Untitled

TOPOGRAPHY. 85
invaded by the sands of the western desert. Some fifteen hundred years ago,
during the flourishing period of the kingdom of Khotan, Shachew was a chief
centre of the caravan trade between China and the Tarim basin.
Yuimimian, lying on the route to Hami, completely escaped the ravages
of the
Dungans, while Ngansi, on the same route, was entirely destroyed. Nothing is
now to be seen on its site except heaps of rubbish, ruined temples, the scattered
fragments of idols. The neglected gardens no longer check the advancing sands,
which in some places are surging over the ramparts. Unless the place be soon
resettled, it will disappear altogether. North of it the desert, properly so called,
stretches away beyond the horizon in the direction of the Tian-shan. But this is
not the region most dreaded by the traveller, although as far as the Hami oasis he
meets little beyond a few camping-grounds on the banks of the streams, and the
debris of ruined cities.
Hami (Khami, Khamil), described by Marco Polo under the name of Camul, is
one of those cities which may be regarded as indispensable. It occupies a position
clearly marked out for a centre of population. Hence, although frequently wasted
or destroyed, it has always risen from its ruins, either on the same spot or in the
immediate vicinity. The Hami oasis is a necessary resting-place for armies and
caravans, whether arriving from or plunging into the desert. No conqueror
advancing east or west would venture to push forward without first securing a firm
footing in Hami, and commanding all the resources of the district. As a strategical
point it is almost unrivalled in Central Asia. The zones of vegetation which
fringe both sides of the neighbouring Tian-shan have necessarily
become the
'' Nan-lu" and " Fe-lu" that is, the southern and northern routes to the western
world and here, accordingly, converge the great historic highways. Yet Hami
never seems to have lieen a large place, the strip of arable land surrounding it
being too limited for the development of a great capital. During the recent
rebellion it suffered much, its rice-fields, vineyards, and gardens, noted for their
excellent melons, having been frequently wasted.
West of Hami, the two towns of Pijan (Pishan) and Turfan, now much
reduced, occupy neighbouring oases extremely fertile, and yielding excellent
cotton, sesame, wheat, besides all sorts of fruits, especially magnificent grapes.
Although frequently traversed by Chinese travellers, Regel is the only European
naturalist who has visited this region in recent times. Yet there are few districts
of Central Asia more deserving of careful exploration.
Between Pijan and Turfan
rises an isolated cone, which is said to have vomited lava and ashes some ten
centuries ago. The old geographers also speak of a mountain west of Turfan,
rising in a series of terraces, all composed of blocks of agate. On this sacred
mountain not a single plant is to be seen, and its dazzling brightness is caused by
the sparkling agates, " the remains of the hundred thousand lohaii," who have
earned immortality by their virtues. Turfan was the last city recaptured by the
Chinese in 1877 from the Dungans. It lies about 30 miles west of Old Turfan,
which was destroyed four hundred years ago, and of which the walls, 50 feet high,
are still standing. Their peculiar structure is referred by Hegel to the Uigurs,