A CHINESE SULPHUR BATH

Twenty miles south of Chungking the range of mountains, j that shields the eastern face of Szechuan's commercial centre, harbours a sequestered valley, in the floor of which bubble up the hot springs called by the Chinese Wen-tang. „ Having never visited a Chinese inland watering-place, ' we thought that a Christmas visit to the Wen-tang would form a pleasant outing for the holidays, and accordingly, packing up our beds and a change of clothing, we set out one Christmas Eve to make the journey. Crossing the great river by the ferry to Hai-tan-chi, a long straggling village composed of a narrow, winding street of steep stone steps, the terminus of the Great Kwei-chow Road, we ascended a thousand feet to the pass of " Hoang-ko Ya " (Banian Gap), so called from a group of magnificent Ficus infecioria shading the last few hundred yards of the winding stone staircase, that leads to the summit of the gap, a thousand feet above the river. And leaving on our left the beautifully-wooded peak of Lao-chiin-tung, with its groups of halls and temples, rising in terraces one behind the other (commemorating some say the retreat in this spot of the philosopher Lao-tze, 600 b.c), we traversed the Straszendorf, the narrow, covered-in street of which forms the first halting-place for travellers bound from Chungking to the south. This pass leads into an upland valley, bounded on the east by another and loftier pine-clad range, its floor, here half a mile wide, terraced into an endless succession of paddy-fields, now clad in their winter garb of stagnant, but clear water ; their banks green with bean plants just beginning to flower.

在重慶以南二十英里的地方，有一座山脈屏障著四川商業中心的東面，山中隱藏著一個幽靜的山谷，谷底湧出被中國人稱為「溫塘」的溫泉。我們從未造訪過中國內地的溫泉勝地，因此決定在聖誕節期間前往溫塘，當作假期的一次愉快出遊。於是，我們打包好床鋪和換洗的衣物，在平安夜啟程。

我們先乘渡船橫渡大江，來到海灘溪（Hai-tan-chi），這是一個長條形的村莊，由一條狹窄且蜿蜒的街道組成，街道由陡峭的石階構成，這裡也是貴州大道的終點。我們向上攀升了一千英尺，抵達黃葛壩（Hoang-ko Ya），該隘口因幾棵壯麗的榕樹而得名，這些榕樹為通向隘口頂端的最後幾百碼蜿蜒石階提供了遮蔽。這個隘口高出大江一千英尺。離開左側的老君洞（Lao-chiin-tung），這座山峰樹木繁茂，殿堂和廟宇層層疊疊，依山而建，有人說這裡是公元前600年哲學家老子隱居的地方。

我們穿過了一條狹窄而有頂蓋的街道，這條街道是從重慶南行的旅人們的第一個停歇站。這道隘口通向一個高地山谷，東邊被另一座更高的松林覆蓋的山脈環繞，谷底約半英里寬，層層梯田延綿不斷，現在覆蓋著冬季的靜水，田壟上種植的豆類植物剛開始開花，綠意盎然。

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The backbone of all these mountain ranges is limestone, but their flanks are rich with tilted layers of red Szechuan sandstone. The great highway leads us by a gentle, almost imperceptible descent down the valley some six miles to the thickly built market town of Lao-chang (old market) ; another market town (called Shin-chang, or new market) lying up the valley side facing Hoang-ko-ya. Here the main road crosses the valley on a raised causeway, the path being from four to six feet wide and well paved with hard and slippery limestone blocks, and shortly afterwards ascends the second range, passing out into the country beyond and over the loftier mountains, whose crests form the boundary of the two provinces and whose blue forms are just visible in the distance on a clear summer's day. But at this winter time everything is enshrouded in mist and haze, and we make our way through a light fog in calm and refreshing coolness.這些山脈的主體是石灰岩構成，但其側面則富含傾斜的四川紅砂岩層。大道沿著緩緩的斜坡，幾乎不易察覺地下行，帶我們穿過山谷大約六英里，抵達密集的市鎮——老場（意為「老市場」）；另一個市鎮名為新場（意為「新市場」），坐落於山谷另一側，面向黃葛壩。此處主路穿過山谷，沿著一條抬高的堤道前行，道路寬約四到六英尺，鋪設著堅硬而光滑的石灰岩塊。不久後，道路開始攀升，越過第二座山脈，進入更遙遠的鄉間，跨越更高的山峰，這些山脊構成了兩省的邊界，在夏日晴朗時，遠處可隱約見到它們的藍色輪廓。然而在冬季，四周被霧氣籠罩，我們在平靜而清新的薄霧中前行。

At Lao-chang we lunched in the usual open restaurant and hemmed in by the usual curious crowd. Our path hence kept on straight down the valley and, as this narrowed in, it commenced to ascend, leading along the side of very steep hills. This ascent, so contrary to expectation, together with the absence of any stream in the valley, gave proof of underground drainage, direct evidence of which was given later in the sinks in the valley floor and in a high ridge entirely shutting in its lower end. The country assumed the wild aspect of the pure limestone regions, nothing but huge ridges of forbidding, dark grey rock cropping up, wave upon wave, in almost vertically tilted strata with, at first sight, not a sign of man or of vegetation. But a closer inspection, when the strata were, so to say, enfiladed by the vision, brought to light row behind row of the jagged, dockweedlike shoots of the young poppy plants, sown in November, and then just appearing above the scant soil collected between the strata and painfully supplemented by manure transported from the nearest town. After a stretch of this barren land (as it would be, peopled by any other

130 GLEANINGS FROM CHINA

than Chinese) the beauty of the valley returned ; the heights were crowned with thickets of dwarf oak, palms and the Ficus, level fields of poppy in the valley floor and smiling farmsteads on the hillsides surrounded by groves of evergreens. Our path, just wide enough for the pony to keep his footing, was cut out of the steep hillside and, being comparatively level, was now very pleasant going ; the walls of the cutting were decked with maidenhair fern and many pink wild flowers. So on about five miles, till the valley ended in a ridge, upon reaching the summit of which the ground fell steeply away from us and we entered the vale of the Wen-tang.

在老場，我們在一間常見的露天餐館用餐，周圍圍滿了如往常一般的好奇人群。從這裡開始，我們的道路沿著山谷直行，隨著山谷逐漸變窄，路開始上升，沿著非常陡峭的山坡延展。這段出乎意料的上坡，再加上山谷中沒有任何溪流，顯示出地下排水系統的存在，後來山谷底部的溶洞和完全封閉的高嶺提供了直接證據。

這片地區展現出純石灰岩地區的荒涼景象，只有一道道巨大的深灰色岩脊以近乎垂直的角度層層疊起，乍一看，幾乎看不到任何人跡或植被。但當我們仔細觀察，從另一個角度看岩層時，才發現一排排鋸齒狀的罌粟幼苗，這些植物在十一月播種，現在剛剛從岩層間的貧瘠土壤中探出頭來，這些土壤是用從最近的鎮上運來的肥料艱難補充的。經過這片荒涼的土地（如果不是中國人來耕種，這裡可能更顯荒涼），山谷的美麗景色又回來了；山頂上覆蓋著矮橡樹、棕櫚樹和榕樹的灌木叢，谷底平坦的罌粟田，還有山坡上被常青樹林環繞的農舍，一派田園風光。

我們走的這條小徑剛好寬到讓馬匹穩步前行，是從陡峭的山坡上開鑿出來的，路面相對平坦，行走起來非常舒適；切割出來的石壁上點綴著鐵線蕨和許多粉紅色的野花。如此走了大約五英里，山谷在一座山脊處結束，當我們到達山頂時，地勢驟然下降，我們便進入了溫塘的谷地。

A breakneck descent by the roughest of paths paved with loose fragments of limestone, for about five hundred feet, brought us at length in view of a winding stream of blue water crossed by a very solid and handsome threearched bridge, beyond which a well-paved wide roadway led to the pavilion-covered gateway of a small, closelypacked village nestling amidst the steepest of hills in this romantic and sequestered valley, apparently shut off from all communication with the outside world except by the most impracticable of mountain paths. The pineclad peaks were half hidden in clouds and the valley itself was full of fog, increased by the clouds of steam from the hot springs. We crossed the bridge, entered the dirty village — a sort of Chinese Ashinoyu ^ — and put up in the best room of the best inn, i.e., in the corner of a fairly clean barn full of people.

我們沿著一條極為陡峭且最為崎嶇的山路快速下行，這條路鋪滿了鬆動的石灰岩碎片，下降了約五百英尺後，終於看到了蜿蜒的藍色溪流，溪上架著一座非常堅固且漂亮的三拱橋。橋的另一端是一條鋪設良好的寬闊大道，通向一個位於這個浪漫而幽靜山谷中的小村莊，村莊擠在最陡峭的山中，亭台覆蓋著村口的門樓，似乎與外界完全隔絕，只有最難行的山路才能進入。松樹覆蓋的山峰半隱在雲霧中，而整個山谷裡都籠罩著霧氣，熱泉的蒸汽更是讓這霧氣更加濃厚。我們穿過橋，進入了骯髒的村莊——這個村莊讓人聯想到中國的「芦之湯」（Ashinoyu）——並在最好的客棧住下，也就是在一間相對乾淨的倉房角落裡，這裡擠滿了人。

^ Ashinoyu is the most frequented sulphur bath in Japan. — A. E. N. L.

The bath was close alongside, and we immediately gratified our curiosity as to what a renowned Chinese " bath " might be like, and, expecting nothing but dirt, were agreeably disappointed and did not hesitate to take a plunge at once in the common pool ; and most refreshing we found it, though uncomfortably hot. The bath is walled in and has a high tiled roof ; it is divided into two basins, one for men and one for women, that for men being about thirty feet square and the water about three feet deep. Two sides of the basin are formed of the natural rugged Hmestone rock, such as would be a fine attraction in a Shanghai garden, while on two sides are wide-cut steps, most agreeable for entering the water and standing upon. Like everything of the kind in China, the bath is free to all. Two or three boys and men were in the water on this evening, but there is such a large inflow of water and the bath is consequently kept so constantly changed that we had no hesitation in joining the native bathers. The water is transparent, but smells strongly of sulphur.

浴池就在旁邊，我們立即滿足了對這座著名的中國「浴池」的好奇心。原本預料會見到髒亂不堪的景象，但結果卻讓我們驚喜，毫不猶豫地立刻跳進了公共浴池，雖然水溫略高，但仍感到非常清爽。這個浴池四周有圍牆，覆蓋著高高的瓦頂，裡面分為兩個池子，一個是男池，一個是女池。男池大約有三十英尺見方，水深約三英尺。兩側由天然的粗糙石灰岩形成，這種岩石若在上海的花園裡會成為一個美麗的景觀；另外兩側有寬大的石階，便於進出水中和站立休息。正如中國所有這類設施一樣，這個浴池對所有人免費開放。

當晚池中有兩三個男孩和男子，但因為水流充足，浴池中的水不斷更新，所以我們毫不猶豫地加入了當地的浴客。水清澈見底，但帶有濃重的硫磺味。

We could not see the inflow, which is below the surface, but judging by the large stream that flows out, the supply of water is practically unlimited, and the natives informed us that the flow was the same winter and summer. A temple adjoins the bath, and large stone tablets, their inscriptions no longer legible, tell of its establishment. No natural phenomenon in China is without its thankoffering to the Unseen, and this pious feeling, so prominent in Szechuan, how will it fare in the face of the present active propaganda of a foreign creed ? Possibly if it succeeds China will be civilised a I'Americaine, where almost every natural beauty and gift of Heaven is monopolised by the " Christian " speculator, and so none but those whose pockets are lined with dollars can partake of them ! But in this " heathen " country, here in the west of China, religion enters into the life of the people and is not a coat to be put on and off according to circumstance. Hence such a thing as a tolled bridge or a tolled road is abhorrent to the so-called " heathen," while everywhere the poor have free ferries (and here in Chungking, throughout the winter, free rice) and, if they need it, free lodging as well at their disposal. Nor do vast private enclosures cut off the hill-tops from the tourist as in many of the most picturesque mountain regions in Britain. Here everything is open, as sportsmen well know, and liberty to enjoy is free to all.我們看不到水的入口，因為它位於水面之下，但根據流出的巨大水量來判斷，水源幾乎是無限的。當地人告訴我們，無論冬夏，水流量都是一樣的。浴池旁邊有一座廟宇，廟前立著幾塊大石碑，碑文已模糊不清，但講述了這座浴池的建立歷史。在中國，任何自然奇觀都少不了對看不見的神靈的祭祀，而這種虔誠的情感在四川尤為顯著。然而，面對如今外來宗教的積極傳播，這種傳統將會如何？如果外來信仰成功，中國會不會被美式「文明化」？在美國，幾乎所有自然美景和上天的恩賜都被所謂的「基督徒」投機者壟斷，只有口袋裡裝滿美元的人才能享受這些美景！然而在這個「異教徒」的中國西部，宗教早已融入百姓的日常生活，並不像一件可以根據情況隨意穿脫的外衣。因此，像收費橋或收費道路這樣的事，對所謂的「異教徒」來說是不可接受的。而在這裡，窮人隨處都有免費的渡船（在重慶，冬季還會發放免費的大米），若有需要，還可以免費借宿。此外，這裡沒有像英國那樣的私人封閉區，將風景如畫的山頂與遊客隔開。這裡的一切都是開放的，人人都可以自由享受這片天地，這一點獵人們早已熟知。