however'tame and uniform, that can be rendered fubfervient to
the ufeS o f man.
On the 3d o f November we approached that part o f the river
which, on account o f the numerous ihip-wrecks that have happened
there, is held in no fmall degree of dread by the Ghinefe.
The y call it the Shee-pa-tan, or the eighteen catarads : which
are torrents formed by ledges o f rock running acrofs the bed o f
the river. They have not, however, any thing very terrific in
them, not one being half fo dangerous as the fall at London
biidge about half-tide. But the Ghinefe have no great dexterity
in the management 6 f their vefiels. The y are fo eafily
alarmed, that they frequently mifcarry through timidity, when
a little recolledion and refolution would haye fecUred them
fuccefs, The mountains between which the river was hemmed
in were covered with forefts o f the larch f ir ; the glens and
vallies abounded with the bamboo, o f which we here obferved
two ipecies, one the fame that is common in other parts o f the
Eaft, and the iecond much fmaller in its growth, feldom exceeding
the height o f ten fe e t; and the fibres o f its fmall ftem are
more hard and folid than thoie o f the other ipecies. The Chi-
nele ufe it in the finer parts o f fuch houfehold furniture and
other articles as are conilructcd o f bamboo. From the margins
o f the river to the feet o f the forefts the lower parts o f the
mountains were covered with coppice, among which the moft
common ihrub bore a clofe refemblance to the tea plant, and
accordingly the Chinefe called it the Teba-wba, or flower o f
tea. It was the Camellia Sefanqua o f Thunberg, to which they
had given the fame name (not being very nice in ipecific diftinctions)
tions, as to the Camellia Japónica o f Linnasus. From the nut
o f the former not unlike to, though fomewhat fmaller than, the
chefqut, a very pleafant oil is exprefTed and ufed for fimilar pur-
pofes to the Florence oil in Europe.
This intricate part o f the river, where innumerable pointed
rocks occurred, fome above, fome even with, and others juft
below the furface o f the water, required two long days’ fail with
a fair breeze ; and the falls became more rapid and dangerous
the farther we advanced. At the fifteenth catarad we perceived
two or three veflels lying againft the rocks with their
flat-bottbms uppermoft ; a terrible fight for our bargemen who,
like thè countryman in the fable, inftead o f applying the ihoul-;
d e r to th e wheel, began to implore the afliftance o f the river
god by founding ' the gong, in order to roufe his, attention
and by regaling his olfadory nerves with the fmoke o f fandal-
wood matches ; fo that had we been dropping down the ftream,
inftead o f going againft it, there was every reafon to apprehend
that our barge would have fhared a fimilar fate ; for it received
many a gentle rub againft the rocks..
The appearance o f the country in the neighbourhood o f the
catarads yras extremely beautiful. The tranfparency o f the
ftream, the bold rocks finely fringed with wood, and the varied
forms o f the mountains called to mind thofe delightful ftreams
that are difcharged from the lakes o f the northern counties o f
England. Like thefe too, the Kan-kiang-bo abounded with
fiih, not however with the delicious trout but one o f much
lefs flavour, a fpecies o f perch. Great numbers o f rafts were!
' 3 z floating