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[[underlined]] Chapter XIV. [[/underlined]]   298.

sion to excavate (though they apparently knew also that the official confirmatory documents had not yet arrived); and they felt in duty bound to respect their ruler's wishes. On the other hand, if they allowed us to do any digging on the Fang Shan plateau, so rich, as they believed, in benign influences over the whole region roundabout, its [[underlined]] fêng-shui [[/underlined]] would be ruined, and all sorts of calamities would be certain to ensue. Hence opposition to our plans had been roused to such a pitch, not merely among their own people but in the neighboring villages also, that they feared they would be unable to prevent or even restrain an outbreak of mob violence that might result in very unpleasant consequences to ourselves, and for which they would receive condign punishment from the governor later.
   We reassured them as best we could, and tried to allay their quite genuine fears; but they went away far from satisfied. As soon as they had gone, Mr. Tung told me that their present attitude was so much at variance from the one that they had manifested when he first rode out, less than a fortnight before^[[,]] [[strikethrough]] (see pp. 288 [[underlined]] sq. [[/undelrined]]) [[/strikethrough]] ^[[,]] that obviously someone had been tampering with them and working on their superstitious fears. We decided however to persist still further in our attempt. 

[[underlined]] Summit of the Fang Shan Plateau. [[/underlined]]
    About 4 o'clock the same afternoon, therefore, Mr. Tung and I set out on foot to examine the summit of the plateau. Strolling through the vil-lage and exchanging friendly greetings with the inhabitants, we then be-gan to mount the steep ascent, hardly more than a footpath; though, as Mr. Tung had said, it seemed practicable, i^[[f]] barely so, for horses. A success^[[=]]ion of zigzags brought us to the top, at a point considerably south of the village.
    There accompanied us a half-grown local lad with rather South Euro-pean features and wearing goatskins and a felt cap. He interested me by