I left the Russian at Hankow and began rambling again by myself. I found an hotel in the Japanese concession of the city and there I put up during my week's stay in Hankow. I deteriorated into a simple tourist. I "did" Hankow, and I "did" Wu-Chang and Han Yang, the cities on the opposite banks of the Yangtsze River. Before leaving Hankow I presented my letter of introduction to Mr. Tze and obtained my steamship passage down the river. I sailed on the steamer Hsin Chang.
Three days and three nights on the picturesque Yangtsze as a first-class passenger, and the Hsin Chang pulled into Nanking. Although my pass was good to Shanghai I concluded to leave the ship at Nanking and go on to the coast by train. I therefore landed, hailed a rickshaw and gave instructions to the coolie to haul me to a Japanese hotel.
American and European hotels were impossible for me on account of their high rates and the Chinese hotels were out of the question because of their filth. There are many Japanese in China and each large city has at least one of their hotels, which are always clean and cheap.
The Nanking Japanese hotel proved to be a difficult institution to find for, after dragging me about two-thirds of the streets of the town, the coolie admitted that he didn't know where it was. At last I saw the Japanese consul's house and directed my rickshaw man to it. From the consul I learned where the Japanese hotel was. In five minutes I was a properly registered guest of the place.
I retained the service of the rickshaw coolie and with a map set out to see Nanking. I passed through the ruins of the old Imperial City where a few Manchus still reside and out of the walls to the Ming tombs. The rickshaw slowly conveyed me along the avenue of hideous monuments erected over the graves of the late members of the Ming dynasty. When I came to the end I alighted and ascended to the summit of the huge structure built over the supposed remains of Woo Hung, the first emperor of the Ming line, who died some six hundred years ago. I sat down and gazed over the distant walls to the city of Nanking nestled in the mist. There I remained in deep reflection. My thoughts had floated across the Pacific to places where I had friends and relatives. Just at this lonesome moment a neatly dressed Scotchman came along and sat down beside me.
"What are you doing, old chap?" he enquired.
"Just knocking about the country," I replied.
"Are you going to Shanghai?"
"Yes, I shall probably go down to-morrow afternoon."