Pullman herald. [volume] (Pullman, W.T. [Wash.]) 1888-1989, 1909-12-24

whole trip through the mountains
hundreds of miles from any per-
son to whom he could appeal and
among people who had never be-
fore seen white man, Mr.. Mey-
- was never even threatened with
personal violence. He carried a
revolver, however, ready for in
slant use, not so much as guard
against a possible attack from the
natives of the country through
which he was passing, but as a
precaution against the Hunhutz-
es (Redbeards). These are bands
of outlaws that for centuries have
terrorized a great stretch of coun-
try in Manchuria just north of the
Korean boundary. Chinese mer-
chants still pay tribute to them
as the merchants of medieval Eu-
rope paid the robber barons. Since
he was so near their haunts, Mr..
Meyer thought it better to be pre-
pared to meet any of their number
that might have strayed across
the mountains.
But without an attack of the
Hun-hutzes there were hardships
enough on this trip through a
country so far removed from the
possibility of seeing a white man
that, as Mr.. Meyer said:
In that country man is his
own devil and his own god, his
doctor and his defense.
This mountain district of north
ern Korea is rather poor in vege-
tation, although fairly well for
ested In spite of this, however.
the trip was productive. Mr.. Mey-
er found varieties of wheat and
sorghum that thrive in fairly
cold climate and at an altitude of
5000 feet above sea level. Back in
the Liao-yang district in Man
churia, before he crossed the line
into Korea, he secured cuttings
or seeds of many fine fruits,
among others the fragrant water
pear, mentioned by Sir Alexander
Hosie in his book, Manchuria. !"
There, too, he found alfalfa grow
ing wild on the city wall, where,
i'll the times of Russian dominance
III that country, the cattle were
allowed to Craze. AT Kin-schau,
southwest of Liao-yang, he had
been aided in getting many valu-
able specimens by an Irish Pro-
testant missionary, named Hunt
er. He noticed among the Korean
mountain folk, some other things,
which, although valueless to his
branch of science, would be most
interesting to ethnologists. They
were totem poles so like those com
mon among the Alaskan Indians
that only specialist in totem pol
es could tell the difference.
Mr.. Meyer spent two or three
months in Vladivostok preparing
his cuttings and seeds and putting
his notes in order, and then took
the train for Khabarovsk, Siberia,
the northern terminus of the
branch from Vladivostok. 1t is
also Mr.. Meyers g farthest north"
and came near being his last stop
ping place, for he narrowly escap-
ed being killed by an assassin. In
khabarovsk it was often 45 de-
grees below zero, yet the very
severity of the climate was an ad-
vantage in one way. Grains that
would grow there would be hardy
enough for the coolest parts of
the United States, and Mr.. Meyer
collected many specimens of wheat
and barley and sent them back to
the United States. He also secur
ed some ornamental spruce, fir and
fpine, and found varieties of pears
and plums that survived the hard
winters of that country.
The railroad took him back to
Vladivostok and over to Hardin
where he stopped again to investi-
gate. Here, as everywhere else in
Russian territory, he was not mo-
Tested by the officials. Their rules
for travellers were strict, and
strictly enforced; but, ones these
were complied with, there was no
further trouble.
Things were very different,
however, when he got among the
lChinese officials at Kirin. While
he was there he had to show his
passports eleven times. He heard
that there was a variety of peach
which grew in Kirin in spite of
the severity of the climate. After
some search he found that it was
cultivated by a Buddhist priest
IN the temple garden. The priest
vas willing for Mr.. Meyed to make
cuttings from the tree for a con-
sideration of So, and a promise
InOt tn foil in tho ,a;ob bo.La