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-6- possible to help and to protect. The town of Mupin is surrounded by high mountains. Near the [[underline]] twon [[/underline]] ^[[town]] the vegetation is very poor. I would say almost semi-arid. To secure much here, we will have to get off and work the high mountains that surround the town. The nearby hills are rather badly deforested. The people here are very friendly, and so much so that it makes a burden and interfers to some extent in collecting. They crowd into the room and visit so much that it wears me out, and all but prevents me from doing important things. I bought a white bear skin for about $3.00 gold, but it has neither claws, ears, nor tail. I'll try to get a better one. I am invited to a dinner by the head magistrate tomorrow at two o'clock. I'd prefer to be out hunting but it would not do to turn down the invitation by a magistrate. We are getting lots of insects. I am very tired and sleepy. If this collecting trip is successful, it will not be because it is easy. It is as hard as any trip that has been taken. But we will try our best to succeed. We can not mail packages at the postoffice. We cannot buy oil paper to cover specimens with. We cannot buy nails to nail our boxes with. Practically all the houses and furniture here are made without nails. June 29. This morning I climbed the mountain with four hunters each having one hunting-dog. Several times we passed very near the edges of sheer precipices, and the man who was leading said to me, "Be careful, there is a sheer precipices below." We climbed a very steep mountain, and the man who was carrying my load lagged far behind. I merely supposed he was weak. When he finally reached the top, he lay flat on his back, panting for breath. He soon left us, and went back to the village of Mupin. Later he claimed that we passed the spot where his father fell over a precipice and was killed, and meditating on this fact made him so weak that he could hardly carry his load. We did not see any wild mammals. I was given a feast by the head of the local militia, and all the officials and dignitaries of the city were present. After this I went hunting and netting. We killed nine birds today. Yang Fong Tsang and Chen Gih Uen are spending the night on a high mountain netting, trapping, and shooting. They will return tomorrow morning. Tomorrow I am invited to a feast by the magistrate, who is very friendly. He has sent orders to all the officials to give me every help possible. We are going farther west day after tomorrow, July first. Later we will go south of here. I think we are getting more insects than we ever secured on a collecting trip before. We have not secured many first-class birds yet. This afternoon I secured five birds at four shots, one a fly shot at a very rapid swallow. There was a hard wind tonight, so we did not get many insects by means of the lantern. The hunter and their dogs received as their presents two postal cards each, and were well satisfied.
