THROUGH TONKING TO HONGKONG

THROUGH TONKING TO HONGKONG 133

‘Sept. 15—Sept. 27 ee presents the same contrast to H8k‘ou, that the Model Settlement does to the Shanghai city ; on crossing the railway bridge that now unites the two towns, one passesabruptly from filth and disorder into wide macadamised streets lined with shade trees ; clean white bungalows, one and two-storied, a small bund with pontoon wharf—a miniature Point de Galle with the same tropical air and vegetation, but also a close, steamy atmosphere due to its situation in a narrow valley distant 265 miles from the sea. There are few or no Chinese in Lao-kai (it costs them about six shillings a head to enter French territory) and, in the siesta hour, in which we landed, there were apparently no inhabitants. The military are stationed on the right bank and have to cross the rushing river by ferry to come into Lao-kai; the piers of a high bridge, solid circular pillars of brick and stone, were erected some years ago, but the idea of completing the bridge seems to have been abandoned. The chief buildings are the offices of the administration, a spacious Custom-house with godowns attached, the offices of the ‘‘ Messageries Fluviales,” the Post Office and the Hotel Fleury, where we put up, also a roomy military “ cercle,”’ pleasantly situated on a bluff overlooking the river, and a bandstand in the central ‘“ Square.” Towards evening, after an enjoyable déjeuner at the hotel, we sat on the verandah listening to a military band, we having happily arrived on band-day, and felt that in crossing the Nam-ti we had re-entered civilisation ; but we pitied the folk whose duties relegate them to this depressing spot, with little to occupy them, no sports, no society, nowhere to go; hemmed in as they are by pathless jungle. There is the excitement of the arrival of the “chaloupe” from Yen-bay, 143 kilometres lower down (ninety miles) from May to October, i.e., during the season of the summer freshets, after which communication 1s confined to the tedious native junks. Of course the advent of the railway will change the position, but even then Lao-kai, up to the time when the surrounding country shall have been cleared and brought under cultivation, hardly seems to offer any commercial future. Its importance consists in its being the frontier station on the borders of Tonking and China and in its military depot, which serves admirably to encourage the obstructive Chinese officials at the provincial capital to take a complacent view of French enterprises in their province.

9月15日—9月27日之間，老街（Lao-kai）與河口（H8k‘ou）形成了鮮明的對比，就像上海的租界區與上海老城的差異一樣。穿過如今連接兩鎮的鐵路橋後，人們會突然從污穢和混亂中進入到寬敞的碎石街道，街道兩旁種滿了遮蔭的樹木，白色的平房乾淨整潔，有一到兩層高。這裡還有一個小型的碼頭，裝有浮橋，宛如一個縮小版的加勒角（Point de Galle），帶著同樣的熱帶氣息和植被，但由於老街處於距海265英里的狹窄山谷中，空氣悶熱潮濕。老街幾乎沒有或根本沒有中國人（因為進入法國領土每人需繳納大約六先令的費用），我們抵達時正值午睡時間，似乎也沒看到什麼居民。

軍隊駐紮在右岸，必須乘渡船穿過湍急的河流才能進入老街。幾年前，一座高架橋的橋墩已經建好，這些橋墩是堅固的圓形磚石柱，但似乎完成這座橋的計劃已經被放棄了。這裡的主要建築包括政府辦公樓、一座寬敞的海關大樓（附有倉庫）、“內河郵船”（Messageries Fluviales）的辦公室、郵局和我們下榻的弗勒里旅館（Hotel Fleury），還有一個寬敞的軍事俱樂部，愜意地坐落在俯瞰河流的懸崖上，以及位於中央廣場的樂隊演奏台。

傍晚時分，在旅館享用了一頓愉快的午餐後，我們坐在陽台上聆聽軍樂隊的演奏，慶幸趕上了這個音樂日。穿越南滌河後，我們感覺重新進入了文明世界。然而，我們也不禁同情那些被派到這裡履行職責的人，他們被困在這個令人壓抑的地方，無事可做，無娛樂活動，無社交場所，也沒有任何去處；四周被無路可走的叢林所包圍。他們唯一的興奮可能就是迎來從延白（Yen-bay）出發的“蒸汽船”（chaloupe），這條船從5月到10月的夏季洪水季節會定期從下游143公里（約90英里）處駛來。在洪水季節過後，通訊便只依賴於緩慢的本地帆船。當然，鐵路的建設會改變這一局面，但即便如此，除非周邊地區被開墾並開始耕作，否則老街似乎很難有任何商業前景。它的重要性主要在於它是中越邊境的邊防站，以及它的軍事基地，這些軍事設施在很大程度上促使省會的中國官員對法國在該省的活動持容忍態度。

134 ACROSS YUNNAN

THROUGH TONKING TO HONGKONG 135

We were fortunate in finding a “ chaloupe ” of the Messageries Fluviales making her slow way up stream on the following day, and by her we forthwith took passage to Yen-bay, a day’s journey down river. The “chaloupe ” turned out to be a small sternwheeler, heavily laden with cargo and crowded with “ relief ”’ soldiers, French and Annamite, very badly kept, extremely dirty, with one saloon on the upper deck but no accommodation for sleeping or washing. The crew, including captain and pilots, were all Annamite and the engineers Cantonese. Upon crossing the frontier and entering Lao-kai we had left China behind; H6-k‘ou has the usual crowded population of all Chinese towns, Lao-kai seemed to have none; the boys in the hotel were all Annamite and appeared to us far below the Chinese in intelligence and willingness to oblige. They mostly speak French ; few Europeans in Tonking except the French employed in the administration, who are paid to learn the language, speak Annamite. The language itself has a marked affinity with Cantonese, and any one conversant with the latter should soon pick it up. The steamer was leaving at 6 a.m., and neither on the evening before nor on the morning itself could the hotel proprietor find coolies to take our luggage down to the boat, and but for the kindness of Mr. Shrigardus, the Commissioner of the I.M. Customs, who brought his own Chinese across from H6-k’ou for the purpose, we should have been in evil case. Lao-kai is the administrative dep6t for the troops stationed along the river down to Yen-bay, a distance of ninety-one miles, and our steamer, the Yen-bay, had the task on this trip of furnishing the different garrisons with their supplies for the coming quarter; these consisted mainly of cases of flour from France, packed in tin. The steamer swung round as we reached the different stations and landed her cargo on the bank, which was carried up by the soldiers, French and Annamite. The stations are little more than clearances in the jungle, and now that the Black Flags and pirates that formerly infested the river have all been happily suppressed, the troops have little to do; anything more monotonous and depressing than the life led in these lonely spots it is difficult to conceive, and it is hardly to be wondered at that opium-smoking is commonly resorted to as a pastime as well as a prophylactic against the prevailing malaria. Our fellow-passengers were mainly non-commissioned officers, either on short leave for a visit to the capital (Hanoi), or else being invalided home ; one of these frankly informed us that he smoked opium regularly and that only those who did so were immune from dysentery and the prevalent jungle fever.

我們很幸運，次日找到了一艘“內河郵船”（Messageries Fluviales）的“蒸汽船”（chaloupe），這艘船正慢慢逆流而上，我們隨即搭乘它前往延白（Yen-bay），這是一日的河上旅程。這艘“蒸汽船”是一艘小型的尾輪船，載滿了貨物，擠滿了法國和安南的“替補”士兵。船況非常糟糕，極其骯髒，僅有上層甲板上一個小客艙，卻沒有睡覺和洗漱的設施。船員包括船長和領航員都是安南人，機械師則是廣東人。

當我們穿越邊境進入老街（Lao-kai）時，便徹底離開了中國。河口（H8-k‘ou）像所有中國城鎮一樣，擁有擁擠的人口，而老街似乎空無一人。旅館的服務生全是安南人，從智力和服務態度上看，他們明顯不如中國人。他們大多會說法語；在東京（Tonking），除了法國政府雇員學習當地語言外，鮮有歐洲人會說安南語。這種語言與廣東話有顯著的相似性，對熟悉廣東話的人來說，學習安南語應該不難。

輪船在早上六點啟航，前一晚和當天早上旅館主人都無法找到苦力幫我們把行李送到船上。如果不是中國帝國海關委員施利加德斯（Mr. Shrigardus）的幫助——他特意從河口帶來了他的中國苦力——我們可能會陷入困境。老街是沿河駐軍的行政基地，這些駐軍從老街一直延伸到延白，距離約91英里。我們所乘的蒸汽船“延白號”此次行程的任務是為各個駐軍提供下一季度的補給，主要是從法國運來的裝在錫罐裡的麵粉。

當船到達各個駐地時，會停靠在岸邊，將貨物卸下，交由法國士兵和安南士兵搬運上岸。這些駐地不過是叢林中的小片清理地，現在，由於曾經侵擾河流的黑旗軍和海盜已經被成功鎮壓，士兵們幾乎無事可做。很難想像這些人生活在如此孤獨、壓抑的地方會有多麼單調，因此吸食鴉片已成為常見的消遣，同時也被認為是對抗當地瘧疾的預防措施。我們的同船乘客主要是那些短期休假去首都（河內）探親的士官，或是因病回家的士兵。其中一位坦率地告訴我們，他定期吸食鴉片，並且只有那些吸鴉片的人才能免於染上痢疾和盛行的叢林熱。

136 ACROSS YUNNAN

THROUGH TONKING TO HONGKONG 137

We reached Yen-bay shortly before sunset and went ashore to dine at the hotel, only breakfast being provided on the steamer, on board of which passengers cannot pass the night. We were however again fortunate in finding a connecting steamer in port, leaving in the morning for Hanoi, and by paying $4 extra for a cabin (we had already paid $55 each for our passage tickets) were enabled to sleep on board and so be ready for the early start in the morning. This “ chaloupe,” the “ Chobdo,” was a large sternwheeler that runs all the year round between Yen-bay, the winter head of navigation, and Hanoi, 115 miles distant; better found than the wretched Yen-bay and with ample accommodation and conveniences, her crew were equally Annamiteand her engineers Cantonese, but she carried in addition a French purser, to whose civility we were much indebted. The river banks still looked much the same, only there were more palms and bananas, some trees covered with brilliant red flowers, and some creepers with equally brilliant yellow flowers. The trees were still drowned in creepers. At our first place of call there were soldiers of the Légion Etrangere busy digging a vegetable garden. They spoke cheerily and politely, and it was difficult to believe that all had left “ruined lives” behind them. The women from Hanoi were now very conspicuous in their huge hats with lacquer crowns, surmounting cheery, pleasing faces. Mist and rain prevailed all day.

我們在日落前不久抵達了延白（Yen-bay），上岸在旅館用餐，因為輪船上只提供早餐，乘客也無法在船上過夜。然而，我們再次幸運地發現港口內有一艘連接的輪船，次日早晨將開往河內（Hanoi）。我們額外支付了4美元訂了一個艙位（此前我們每人已支付了55美元的船票），因此可以在船上過夜，為次日一早的出發做好準備。這艘名為“丘博多號”（Chobdo）的蒸汽船是一艘大型尾輪船，全年在延白和河內之間運行，兩地相距115英里。相比於糟糕的延白號，丘博多號條件要好得多，設施也更為完善，船員同樣是安南人，機械師依然是廣東人，此外船上還有一位法國的財務官，我們對他的周到服務十分感激。

沿途的河岸風景與之前相似，只是棕櫚樹和香蕉樹變多了，有些樹上開滿了鮮紅的花朵，藤蔓上也開著同樣鮮豔的黃色花朵。樹木仍然被藤蔓纏繞覆蓋。在我們的第一個停靠點，外籍兵團（Légion Etrangere）的士兵們正忙著開墾一個菜園。他們愉快且禮貌地交談，很難想像這些人都背後有著“破碎的生活”。從河內來的婦女們戴著巨大且帶有漆面頂的帽子，面容開朗而和善，十分顯眼。整日都是霧氣瀰漫，並伴隨著小雨。

138 ACROSS YUNNAN