Evening star., 1902-02-22

of ruSheS and twiSS which extends far out
from the wall in the shape of bow. 1t is
twenty feet high apd sixty feet in dame
ter and is made of sticks filled in with mud,
the ends Of the sticks facing outward.
That wall is to protect these ships from
the daily inroad of the Pacific which might
otherwise dash them to pieces against the
stones.
Now look down at the bay. We ap-
preaching low tide and the water is still
flowing out The goddess of the Tsingtang
is supreme. The bay is filled with the silt
brought down by it from the mountains. 1t
Is Shiny and muddy, great sheet of bright
yellow ten miles in width bordered at each
end with navy blue mountains. The sky
is bright blue and filed with waves of
fieecy clouds just above me. Far out be-
ycnd the yellow / can the white caps on
the Pacific. the realm of old Neptune. but
"a yet there is no sign of his invasion OF
the land.
! climb to the top of the wall. first having
my guide draw my camera up with string,
and st down and wait for the coming in
vasion. / am on wide dyke shaded by
bay and the ocean in front of and be-
hind and below me, a mighty garden spot
ted with clumps of green trees and covered
with a crazy quilt of luxuriant crops. There
are patches of pink peach orchards just
bursting forth INFO bloom, gray thickets Of
mulberry trees and clumps of feathery
bambOoS out of which peep the thatchCd
roofs OF farm houses. There are people
IN the fields. lazy buffaloes dragging the
plows through the furrows, and in the will
lows above me l hear the singing of birds.
l. is an ideal country scene, as peaceful
and quiet as that of any part of the world,
and | almost doZe off l look.
The Battle of the Waters.
But what is that sound in the distance?
1t makes me think of a railroad train at
great speed. but far off. 1t slowly deepens
and l look out to sea. 1t is the mighty
Pacific gathering itself together for the
great bore at Hangchow. With my glass
can see a faint line of white at the foot Of
blue islands about ten miles away. 1t is
now but streak of silver cutting the sea.
AS l. watch 1T it broadens and lengthens
The sound increases. See! There is low
wall of foam way out there in the water.
There are great boats behind it which are
floating in on the tide, and ships in front
which it must swallow up as it comes on
ward. Now it is nearer and higher. With
the naked eye can see it throwing it's foam
over and over, while the bay at my feet is
as still a mill pond. Now the flood has
caught the ships They ride with it. They
sway this way and that apparently on their
beam ends Now they are lost, and little
later on see them rising and falling with
the swell behind 1t.
Now the wall Of water is extending far
out in the bay It is dashing itself against
the embankment some miles further up, and
it is rolling, seething, foaming, roaring to-
ward me. This wall Is greater than that
which engufed Pharaoh's army. 1t makes
me think of Niagara, and the thunder of it's
oncoming current is almost as great 1t
comes closer and closer until at last it
dashes almost to my feet and goes roaring
onward. 1t has caught the great junks on
the terrace swayed their masts to and fro,
and, passing, has left them floating, for the
bay Is now filled and the terraces hidden
How the water seethes and boils. There are
a myriad whirlpools In the bay. The ships
are pulling at the great bamboo cables with
which they are tied to the shore, and the
whole for moment is like the rapids be-
low Niagara Falls
moment later and the contest is over.
The Pacific has crowded the river far back
1t has filled the bay and the tide is felt
far into the interior. The dykes and the
walls. however. have protected me farms.