Fulton County tribune. (Wauseon, Ohio) 1883-1925, 1916-12-01

South China, was originally
the home of uncivilized tribes
called by the Chinese wild
men, and their homes ''barbarism
caves" These aboriginal tribesmen
are scattered freely through nearly all
parts of the province, but occupy prin-
cipally the great north and northwest
sections
If we draw a line across the map
just west of Kueilin in the north and
Marking in the south, we will find that
with the exception of Lungchow on
the Annamese border, by far the great
er half of the province has no estab-
HShed Christian work whatever. In
this neglected region there are numer-
GUS walled cities, market towns and
villages, all teeming with human life
The great majority of the inhabitants
of these vast regions are aborigines,
variously called Mao, Yao, Tung and
Chuang. These tribes have so inter-
married with the Chinese that they
have adopted most of the latter's Gus
toms, including mode of dress, but re-
tain their own form of speech.
Some of these tribesmen are met
with in great numbers along the road
leading to Tinglinkai. The scenery
along this route is beautiful, indeed,
writes a Liuchowbu correspondent of
the North Darby Mail. In places one
must walk for hours high up on the
mountain side, while so feet below
rushes a foaming mountain stream.
The valley is narrow and on either
side tower huge granite mountains,
wooded almost to the summit with a
stunted growth of fir, while far below
by the gurgling stream the slender
bamboos grouping shyly together, bend
gracefully over the rushing waters.
The path is tortuous one, winding in
and out round the many bends. Here
and there a homestead can be seen
| guarding a small section of terraced
paddy fields, while to secure irrigation
to his little farm the ingenious settler
has to run hollow bamboo pipes from
mountain spring, thus conveying the
crystal water to his home first, and
then from terrace to terrace all the
way down the mountain side, irrigat-
ing each small field.
These people belong to the Vac
tribe. They have no written language
Of their own. Those who have haG
any schooling whatever have studied
the Chinese characters and can speal
broken Mandarin as well as theil
own dialect. The dress Of the men /:
like that of the Chinese, but the WON
ems dress differs somewhat Theil
blouses, instead Of buttoning on thu
right side, Chinese style, come togethel
in the front, and meet at the necl
women wear high-crowned hats, gay
ly colored and profusely ornamentet
by numerous strings of beads that ham,
about the shoulders and down tn
back. Others have a fiat, thin cloth
covered board on their heads made il
sort of Mother Hubbard bonnet
Still others of the poorest classes sim
ply wrap their heads with long blu
cloth.
As the tribe lives exclusively in tn
mountain regions, where rice canno
be cultivated in large quantities, thei
diet consists for the most part of corr
maize and other grains, with a plent
full supply of vegetables and sweet pc
tatOes. While extremely shy and re
firing, still when once a conversatio
can be entered upon we found the1
very friendly.
, First Sight of White Man.
On one occasion while travelling i
r their district we had an amusing e.
perience. After traversing the con
paratively level road from Linhsi t
Shanih we entered a wilder, NOR
sparsely populated section of the couI
try, where the most ordinary foot
such as rice and native vegetables, b.
came our staple fare. We reached
small village about noon, and afte
partaking of some red-cOlored rice an
some green's we continued our sjou
ney westward. Our path now led I
up a high mountain, and for some te
Ii or more we gradually ascende'
when, coming suddenly around ben