lumbering as they
were, whenever they had to pass over an uneven road. At length, thanks
to the goodness of God, we arrived without accident at Si-Ning. The town
is of very large extent, but its population is limited, and itself, in
several parts, is falling into absolute decay. The history of the matter
is, that its commerce has been in great measure intercepted by
Tang-Keou-Eul, a small town on the banks of the Keou-Ho, the frontier
which separates Kan-Sou from Koukou-Noor.

It is the custom, we may say the rule, at Si-Ning-Fou, not to receive
strangers, such as the Tartars, Thibetians, and others, into the inns,
but to relegate them to establishments called Houses of Repose
(_Sie-Kia_), into which no other travellers are admitted. We proceeded
accordingly to one of these Houses of Repose, where we were exceedingly
well entertained. The Sie-Kia differ from other inns in this important
particular, that the guests are boarded, lodged, and served there
gratuitously. Commerce being the leading object of travellers hither,
the chiefs of the Sie-Kia indemnify themselves for their outlay by a
recognised per centage upon all the goods which their guests buy or sell.
The persons who keep these Houses of Repose have first to procure a
license from the authorities of the town, for which they pay a certain
sum, greater or less, according to the character of the commercial men
who are expected to frequent the house. In outward show, the guests are
well-treated, but still they are quite at the mercy of the landlords,
who, having an understanding with the traders of the town, manage to make
money of both parties.

When we, indeed, departed from Si-Ning-Fou, the Sie-Kia with whom we had
lodged had made nothing by us in the ordinary way, for we had neither
bought nor sold anything. However, as it would have been preposterous
and unjust on our part to have lived thus at the expense of our
neighbours, we paid the host of the House of Repose for what we had had,
at the ordinary tavern rate.

After crossing several torrents, ascending many rocky hills, and twice
passing the Great Wall, we arrived at Tang-Keou-Eul. It was now January,
and nearly four months had elapsed since our departure from the Valley of
Dark Waters. Tang-Keou-Eul is a small town, but very populous, very
animated, and very full of business. It is a regular tower of Babel,
wherein you find collected Eastern Thibetians, _Houng-Mao-Eul_
(Long-haired Folk), El