Mountain Democrat. [volume] (Placerville, El Dorado Co., Cal.) 1854-1860, 1860-01-07
From Russia to Pekin.

y Ircnrn tEavCIcr communicates W tuc
North China Herald rambling account Of an
overland trip from the Russian frontier To the
city tf Prkin, in China which furnishes S0IHe
interesting, though not very satisfactory in
formation, concerning that region Of country,
and the great Chiuc>c capital. The writer
selected Eiakta, which lies due south from
Lake Baikal, it, Russia, for lis point OF de-
parturr, instead of Ncrtchinsk, some distance
to TIE northeast, where the postal road from
81. Petersburg terminates, but for what rca-
son does not appear. From kiakta to Cr@a,
the capital Of the Chinese province Of Mongo-
liza, and which is located near the northern
border Of that province, the country is very
mountainous; from Urga to the frontier Of
China proper is level, hard, sandy desert,
without "a drop of water or house, but pco-
pied by ho>pitablc, MongolS, who live in tents,
furnish horses, carncl%. mutton and water pre-
served ia ,i terms, and will divide all they
have with tie wear Traveller. Here the cold
ia winter is terrific, the wind blowing in hur
ricancs. while durir ( the short summer the
heat is quite AGiran, and the sand storms
will tear the skin oil and blinI the Traveller.
Ofthc way ticnccGrrwarl to the imperial city,
a;id OF the city i;,-If, We have the following
animated sketch:
VI the frontier Of China proper, 900 miles
from ki;,l,ta, the desert stops short in such
an "Ntrapii.itmry manucr n to max" tins one
"t the most r,narhable sI'ot> on the earth.
ificr gradual ascent of 900 feet from rga,
il j. lidcil!y broken IKE ELI, facing the
,tlt tltii,iill"it>e am! !taratle 81 maintains,
trrr~ iiy,rS, and GirIn hniisrS suiIciily hurst
upon the view, Ill bath"d in sunlight, and
smoking. aS il were, with heat. .Ata great
depth hcI"w, bat yet twenty miles of, and
not vet visible, Ii Tie great town "t (lotIan
llua- !pn called "Call.an" by the Russians,
and beyond it, hounding the horizon on the
south, Il i'ilr-o,d range Of prcciIitons noun
taiu> ri> far into the air; the first range is oi
chuco!n,c color, the two next have Il violet
and scarlet liu., and the last, scarcely visible,
aii 0ycr!lau.in. III" plain Of Pokln on the
north, j. ni Il light haZy blue. Here, where
We now stand, is large wall, built Of loose
stones, and ii Kind Of monument which marks
the actual frontier Of Chiui, and this is most
crr"ncou>lv marked on all maps as the great
wall, although the latter is one hundred
miles further south. and is crossed at twenty.
five miles from Pckin. From Callgan to Pc
kin the country may he called chaos oI
mountains. and, wherever house can stand
al illllcIHlIpl VI tpNil~s tll ~
high walls, some Of which have begun t0
vi ld under the weight Of twenty centuries,
and others have been buried to the top under
the sand ofthc Mong"lian desert.
After passing uml,r the great wall, whence
the view is truly magnificent the road sud
denly gnc- down into deep narrow gorge a
checked with huge blocks Of granite fallen
from the broken mountains above, and here
the decent for eight miles, is 50 PERCEPTIONS
that the MoE."!S themselves have To dis.
mount. Five or six minor walls are now
passed and they nigh; equally be called il
work of giants for no matter what the slopes
If the mountains may be, they rise from the
bottom nfprcfipicc> to their very SUBMITS,
and are still fastened to them like 80 many
>crIcrt>. When the Traveller enIcrges from
This gloomy dcfilc his heart mus beat within
him as hc stretches his eyes towards the great
and mysterious city Of Pcki; but there he
will See nothing but bounilcss plain Of sand
with a few scattered farms, woods of cypress,
little rivers, aud not n patch Of green, whilst
every other point of the horizon is shut up by
al unbrokrn and majestic range of blue and
drcary peaks, rising like Il barrier between
two worlds, to the hight Of five thousand feet
However, aS yon approach the city, OF which
nothing at all can be seen uutil you have
passed under its very wall, the buZZlng hiss
ling, moaning of men, asses, women, camclS,
gongS, and birds ofprey, of monster kites, and
pigeons with mclodiouS instruments attached
to them. aud carrying back to heaven the eX'
travigant inspirations Of Chinese musicians;
in fact, all the noises and smells that come
floating upon the wind over this great wall
aS If all the animal creation were breathing
within il, are things 50 strange to traveller
Just arrived from Paris, that he cannot de
scribe them. Once he has passed under the
pondcrOuS northern gate, measured the thick
ness of the StuprndOus wall, and is fairly il
Prkin, he will bc utterly bcwildcrcd; all be
fore him is a confused and dusty mass Of col
orS, men, mules, cabs, hundreds OF camclS,
with the weary MongolS in their once red
gown, cnthroned and fast asleep on thcil
highest summit an inmcnsity Of wide, per
irctlv straight aud endless streets; a living
ocean of the most degraded bcggarS, Of cooks
laborcrS, blind men beating on kettle drums
orators delivering speeches; then, right and
left, brilliant shops, cafes and hotels >urnount
cd hy long poles Of all colors, wooden wall'
beautifully carved and gilt over; in fact, it is
scene So unique in the world, that no dream
could ever be eccentric
After travelling due south for four miles
leaving on the left the splendid rcin fSr
street and its noble gate towering like another
Babel in the misty horizon. and on the righ
the eastern wall Of the imperial city, shutting
it out from proianc eyes, but over which the
Imperial hills, lakes, kioSqucS, temples anC
rc'larS may be seen ut intervals, we came al
length to the northern limit Of the Chimes
town.