The following pages comprise little more than a transcript of the journal kept by me during a two months' journey from Shanghai, the metropolis of the coast, to Chung-king, the commercial metropolis of Western China. This journal was written up each night, as I travelled along in the native boat, and was despatched home by successive mail for the amusement of my friends in England. I have been induced to publish it in the belief that impressions formed and recorded day by day on the spot, give a better idea of the actual state of things in China than many of the elaborate and carefully compiled books which attempt a more exhaustive description of the country.

以下內容幾乎只是我在兩個月旅程中所記錄日誌的摘錄，這段旅程從沿海大都會上海（Shanghai）出發，前往西部中國的商業中心重慶（Chung-king）。這本日誌是在我乘坐本地船隻沿途旅行時，每晚整理書寫的，並分批郵寄回家，供英國的朋友們消遣。我之所以決定將其出版，是因為我相信，這種在現場每天形成並即時記錄的印象，比許多試圖對中國進行更全面描述的精心編撰的書籍，能更真實地反映當時的實際情況。

So much interest is now felt at home in the "Flowery Land," and such very erroneous conceptions appear to be entertained in regard to China, her wealth, her strength and prowess, and her value as an ally — qualities of which, in my opinion, only the remote potentiality exists at present — that no apology is needed for presenting a literal picture of the country I traversed.

目前國內對「花之國」（Flowery Land）充滿了濃厚的興趣，然而許多人對中國的財富、力量、軍事實力以及作為盟友的價值抱有非常錯誤的認識——在我看來，這些品質目前僅具備遙遠的潛在可能。因此，我認為無需為呈現我所走過的這片土地的真實情況而作任何解釋或辯護。

vlii Preface to the First Edition

With the exception of the ubiquitous missionary, the travellers who have ascended the " Great (and sole) Highway" of China to its highest navigable point may be counted on the fingers of one hand. So tedious are the antiquated modes of travel, that of the thousands of European residents at the treaty ports, few have the leisure or inclination to journey outside of the routes covered by our " barbarian " steamers. Of the voyage to Chung-king, up the Yang-tse river, a distance of 1500 miles, 1000 miles are traversed by steamers to Ichang in a week's time. The remaining 500 miles occupy from five to six weeks, a longer time than it takes to go from London to Shanghai. Since the execution of the celebrated " Chefoo Convention " in 1875, the placing of steamers on this upper route has been under discussion, but Chinese obstructiveness has thus far succeeded in staving off the evil day, and nothing but strong pressure on the part of the foreign ministers accredited to the Court of Pekin will bring about this much-needed innovation, an innovation as much desired by the native merchants and traders as it is dreaded by the official and literary classes. Apart from the laudable fear of injury to the livelihood of the existing junk-men, anything that leads to further contact between foreigners and the people at large is deprecated as lessening the influence of the profoundly ignorant ruling class ; and thus, notwithstanding the heavy losses in life and property that the present system of navigation entails, this further contemplated

Preface to the First Edition ix

invasion of the inner waters of the Empire is strenuously resisted.

除去無處不在的傳教士，能夠沿著中國唯一的「大幹道」（Great (and sole) Highway）一直航行到最高可通航點的旅行者，數量少得一隻手都能數得過來。過時的旅行方式極為繁瑣，以至於在條約港口居住的成千上萬的歐洲人中，只有少數有閒暇或興致離開「野蠻人」（barbarian）蒸汽船所覆蓋的路線。從揚子江上行到重慶的航程，總長1500英里，其中1000英里由蒸汽船一週時間內抵達宜昌。然而剩餘的500英里卻需要五至六週的時間，甚至比從倫敦到上海的時間還長。自1875年簽訂著名的「煙台條約」（Chefoo Convention）以來，在這條上游路線上設置蒸汽船的問題一直在討論中，但中國的阻撓迄今成功推遲了這一「災難性」的日子。只有向駐北京的外國公使施加強烈壓力，才能促成這一急需的創新。這一創新不僅是當地商人和貿易商所期盼的，也是官方和文人階層所懼怕的。除了合理的擔心——對現有帆船人的生計造成損害外，任何促使外國人與普通百姓接觸更多的舉動，均被視為削弱深度無知的統治階層影響力的行為。因此，儘管現行的航行制度造成生命財產的巨大損失，這次進一步計劃的對帝國內河的「入侵」，依然遭到強烈抵制。

——《第一版序言》 ix

In reading this journal, in which I have depicted the existing difficulties of the route, it must be borne in mind that the Yang-tse is not only the main, but the sole road of intercommunication between the east and west of this vast Empire. Roads, properly so called, do not exist in China ; narrow footpaths alone connect one town and village with another, and, except by the waterways, nothing can be transported from place to place but on men's backs. In the far north, it is true, cart-tracks exist, and clumsy twowheeled springless carts are there in use, but in Central and Southern China, land travel is absolutely confined to paths, so narrow that two pedestrians have often a difficulty in passing each other. Traces of magnificent paved roads, of the ancient dynasties, still exist in nearly every province ; but they have been destroyed by neglect, and have been disused for centuries past. Since the date of the Mongol invasion (1279), every incentive to progress has come from without, and every foreign well-wisher of the Empire, especially if resident, is impelled to do his utmost to carry on this progress.

在閱讀這篇日記時，必須記住我所描述的路線困難，揚子江（Yang-tse）不僅是交通的主要道路，更是東西部之間唯一的交流路線。在中國，所謂的「道路」基本不存在；只有狹窄的小徑將各城鎮和村莊連接起來，除了水路外，任何物資的運輸只能依靠人力肩挑背負。在遙遠的北方，確實存在一些車道，笨重的兩輪無彈簧馬車在那裡使用，但在中國中部和南部，陸路交通完全依賴狹窄的小徑，兩個行人經常難以並肩通過。幾乎在每個省份，古代朝代的宏偉鋪石道路的痕跡依然存在；然而，這些道路由於疏於維護，已被摧毀，並且在過去幾個世紀裡都未曾使用過。自蒙古入侵（1279年）以來，所有進步的動力均來自外部，對這個帝國懷有善意的外國人，尤其是居住在中國的，更是受到了推動，竭盡全力促進這一進步。

The rulers of China should take to heart Bacon's words: " Since things alter for the worst spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly, what end will there be of evil ? " Railways have been long talked of, but so far, the short line, built some

Preface to the First Edition

years ago, which connects the Government coal-mine of Kai-ping with the nearest canal, is the only road in existence. Trunk-lines running north and south are said to have been authorized, but as long as the Government eschews foreign aid they are not likely to be built. A line running east and west presents almost insuperable difficulties, owing to the precipitous mountains and deep gorges into which the whole country west of Ichang is cut up. Hence the necessity of turning the great natural highway of the Yang-tse to the best advantage. Of the great gain to trade, and to British manufacturing interests more especially, which the cheapness of intercommunication between Eastern and Western China would effect, I have spoken more at length in my twelfth chapter.

中國的統治者應該深思培根（Bacon）的話：「既然事物若不有意改進，便會自然而然地走向最壞，那麼惡果何時才會停止呢？」鐵路早已經討論了很久，但到目前為止，僅有的一條道路是幾年前修建的，它連接了開平（Kai-ping）的政府煤礦和最近的運河。據說已授權建造南北幹線，但只要政府拒絕外國援助，這些鐵路就不太可能建成。一條東西走向的線路幾乎是不可能的，原因在於從宜昌（Ichang）以西的整個地區都被陡峭的山脈和深峽谷分割開來。因此，必須充分利用揚子江這條天然的交通大道。我在第十二章中更詳細地討論了這條通道對貿易，特別是對英國製造業所帶來的巨大利益，尤其是東西部中國之間低成本的互聯互通所帶來的好處。

I must not conclude without paying a tribute of admiration to Captain Blakiston and Dr. Alfred Barton, for their valuable and accurate work, "Five Months on the Yang-tse." These energetic pioneers preceded me over the same ground just twenty years before. Nothing has altered in the interval, and but for the fact that their want of knowledge of the language debarred them from free intercourse with the people, and so cut them off from many interesting social facts, the publication of this journal would have no raison d'être.

ARCHIBALD JOHN LITTLE.

ICHANG, July 16th, 1887.

我不能在結束前不向布拉基斯頓船長（Captain Blakiston）和阿爾弗雷德·巴頓博士（Dr. Alfred Barton）表達我的敬意，感謝他們撰寫的寶貴而精確的著作《揚子江上的五個月》（"Five Months on the Yang-tse"）。這些精力充沛的先驅者在二十年前就走過了我所踏足的同一片土地。在此期間，這裡的情況並未發生任何改變；如果不是因為他們對當地語言的缺乏了解，使他們無法與當地人自由交流，從而錯過了許多有趣的社會事實，我這本日記的出版也就沒有任何意義了。