On & off duty in Annam

Front matter

ON

( OF GO

ON AND OFF DUTY

Chapter I First Impressions Of French Indo-china

The send-off of our English and French friends : Arrival at Cap St. Jacques : First glimpse of the Annamese : Saigon : Adventurous driving : Le tour cf inspection : Public buildings and native dwellings : My first evening in the Tropics : European life in Saigon : Cholen : A crowded native thoroughfare Pp. 13-32

Chapter II Life In An Annamese Fishing Village

Miseries of a coast steamer : An ungraceful landing : Nhatrang : The native village : Fishing tactics : Our new home : Choosing native servants : Beginning of domestic worries : Fight with insects, damp, mould, native habits, &c. : Catering of native cook : The market : My neighbour's pigeons : Cooking practices : Daily routine Pp. 33-51

Chapter III A Tropical Pasteur Institute

Influence of Pasteur's discoveries on tropical medicine : The origin of research work : One of Pasteur's pupils : Yersin's discovery of the plague bacillus : His search for a site and foundation of the present Institute : Its work and organisation : Suoigiau : A rubber plantation : Mosquitoes and malaria : The Institute's vi CONTENTS

cattle : Natives' distrust of European doctor : A shark's victim : Difficulties in treatment of native patients : Escape of a one-legged man : Expressions of gratitude after recovery : A thanksgiving ceremony : Trials of research work in the Tropics Pp. 52-67

Chapter IV In And About Nhatrang

Lessons in riding and shooting : Configuration and outlook of Annam : Want of communications : Comparison with Cochin-China : Beauty and attractiveness of the country : A native village : Pagodas and tombs : Water buffaloes : Red ants : A brickmaking village

Chapter V Daily Routine In The Little Cai-nha

The awakening at dawn : The rush into light and air of the cai-nka's occupants : Tidying up and arranging the house for the day : The ba-gia : The baby's meal : Occupations of the children : The market : The rice-fields — irrigating, ploughing, sowing, and planting out : Occupations which bring men and women together : Evening leisure Pp. 88-104

Chapter VI The Mandarin At Home

How to become a mandarin : The esteem with which education is regarded in Annam : The mandarin's house and furniture : The Citadel : Visit to the Quan B6 of the province : Shaking hands : Refreshments : His family : Nicknames of the children : Respect due to the family name : The Quan Bo's return call : A brother of Thanh-Thai : Illness of one of his wives : The princess : A royal infant : A Chinese pipe : Snapshots Pp. 105-119

Religious systems of Annam : The scepticism of the native : Spirits and genii : Countryside shrines : The shrine to the tiger : Super-

CONTENTS vii

stitions concerning the tiger : Ancestor-worship : The benefits to family life of this cult : Its ceremonies : The death and funeral of a believer : The practice of polygamy Pp. 120-131

Chapter VIII The Social Position Of Women

Marriage laws : Betrothal and divorce : Betrothal and marriage ceremonials : Polygamy : Social situation : Education and occupations : Peculiarities of Annamese beauty : Generalities

Chapter IX The Annamese Commune And The Administrative Organisation Of The State

The Annamese Commune : Its independence and its functions : Mayor and deputy mayors : Notables and the Municipal Council : The Public Hall, goods in common and their redistribution : The canton, the district, and the prefecture : The Ministers and the Comat : The Emperor Pp. 148-155

Chapter X The Tet

Preparations for the Tet : Gambling propensities of the Annamese : Baquan : Festivities during the Tet : Sports on water and land : Procession of the Dragon : A theatrical performance : A curious play : An enthusiastic audience Pp. 156-169

Chapter XI Our Garden

Laying out and planning a garden in the Tropics : Our coolie gardener : Tropical shrubs, bougainvilleas, filaos, agaves : Tropical fruits : Cultivation of European garden flowers : Enemies — lizards, crabs, birds, ants Pp. 170-179 viii CONTENTS

Chapter XII The Tcham Temple Of Nhatrang

History of the Tchams and their conquest : Tcham dress : Their temples : P6 Nagar's temple : Its architectural beauty : The goddess P6 Nagar : Tcham curios and hidden treasures : A Tcham legend Pp. 180-189

Chapter XIII To The Inland Hills— Nhatrang To Daban

Preparations for a two-hundred-kilometre journey : Trials of a tri-car : Catastrophe to a group of native women : Meeting an elephant : Arrival in a village whose inhabitants had never seen a motor-car : Commotion wrought among oxen, fowls, pigs, &c. : Frightful state of roads : Safe arrival at Banghoi : Phan Rang : Breakdown : Return to Phan Rang : New start in pony-cart : No relays ready : Balat : Change of scenery as we approached the hills : Exhaustion of the last pony : Deluge of rain : Shelter at Daban : In the land of the tiger Pp. 190-304

CHAPTER XIV TO THE INLAND HILLS (continued)— FROM DABAN TO DANKIA

The Mois' physical appearance : their baskets : A " tailed race " : A steep climb on horseback : The pines : A snake : Dran : Isolation of Europeans in this district : A second long climb : General view of the plateau : M. Canivey's escape from a tiger : His punitive expedition to a Moi village : Moi bows and arrows : A Moi woman : Dankia Pp. 205-217

Chapter XV In The Kingdom Of The Mois

A Moi village : Children decorticating and winnowing the rice : A Moi hut : Darkness and smoke : Moi furniture : Men and women round the fire : Hygiene among the Mois : A Moi woman's con-

CONTENTS ix

finement : A Moi funeral : Moi tombs : Sacrifice of a buffalo : The priest's oration : The slaughter : The banquet which follows : Moi justice : The Sorcerer : Methods of discovering the culprit

Chapter XVI The Agricultural Station

The discovery of the plateau : The proposed sanatorium : Foundation of the Agricultural Station : Temperate and tropical fruits and flowers : Cattle-breeding : The Mois as farm labourers : Moi slaves : Their hatred of the Annamese : Wages paid in kind : Good-bye to the Station : Visit to a Moi village : Hospitality of Moi women towards their sex : Arrival at Dran : An adventurous ride : An incident on the homeward drive Pp. 233-243

Chapter XVII A Tiger Hunt

A tiger seen on the Station : Surrounding his hiding-place, a clump of bamboos : A courageous dog : First sight of the monster : Wounded : Hunting him in the long grass : Escaped : Reappearance at the house itself : A night watch under a bridge : The tiger by moonlight : Killed at last Pp. 244-258

Chapter XVIII Through Hinter-annam

Preparations for our novel journey : The pholy of Dankia promises to accompany us : Scenery beyond the plateau : Difficulties of mountain and jungle paths : Our first night : Strange quarters : Cockroaches : A tremendous descent : Great welcome to a Moi village : The pholy's hut : Ternutn : Sleeping to an audience : A hasty departure : Mois' accurate shooting : Leeches : Crossing a river : Moi weavers : A narrow escape from a fight : The gradual extinction of the Moi race : Dankia again Pp. 259-275

ILLUSTRATIONS

To/ace page

An Annamese Woman in her Home Costume Frontispiece

An Annamese Woman with her Children in our Garden 12

A Moi Woman with her Children 12

Fishing Experts 34

Fishing-boats in the River 34

Bringing the Nets to Land 34

A Novel Mode of Fishing 34

Doctor Yersin's House 52

The Verandah of the Pasteur Institute 52

Logoun, the Brick -making Village 68

The Return of the Fishing-boats 68

Our Best Road in November 88

On their Way to Market. The Baskets are carried like a Pair of

Scales 88

Ploughing under Water 88

Primitive Method of Irrigation 88

The Native Market 94

The Market Flooded 94

One of the Towers of the Tcham Temple at Nhatrang 102

He balances himself on the Harrow by means of his Buffaloes'

Tails 102

One of the Tricks for flooding a Rice-field 102

Women planting out the Rice 102

Princess Thuyen Hoa outside her House 106

ix b x ILLUSTRATIONS

To/ace page

At the Quan B6's House no

The Quan Bo lent me his Official Robes no

A Mandarin in his Garden 116

Two Mandarins with their Household and Retainers 1 16

The Tomb of a Village Notable 120

An Annamese Tomb 126

A Wedding Procession 134

The Wedding Procession entering Bride's Garden 134

A Highly Ornamental Pagoda Door 148

A Sheltered Corner of the Bay 150

Prisoners at Work on a Stone Dike 154

Dancing 160

A Sampan Race 160

Types of Moi Men 166

Annamese Actors 166

Our Pet Deer begging for Bananas 176

An Agave springing up 176

Inside the Principal Tower of the Tcham Temple of Nhatrang 180

The Market. The Central Figure is a Tcham Woman 186

The Quan Bo's Elephant 192

The Whole Village in our Wake 2oo

On the Edge of the Tropical Forest 200

Resting — the Stick props up the Burden 206

A Picnic near some Falls 2io

Over the Langbian Plateau 212

Our Convoy waiting to be paid 2x4

The Village of Prenh 216

Mois. Two Young Girls in Foreground 218

A Sociable Gathering 233

The Moi Lances have done their Work 222

ILLUSTRATIONS xi

To/ace

A Funeral among the Savages 22^

In a Moi Village 224

The Buffalo Sacrifice. The Moi Chief officiates dressed in

Annamese Costume 228

The Village Sorcerer 230

Savages examine my Watch 230

In Dankia Village 234

Station Coolies 234

A Fine Water-Buffalo 240

Our Convoy emerging from the Forest 244

A Dangerous Search in the Long Grass 250

Bringing him through a Field of Maize 250

The River near Suoigiau 256

A well-made Moi Dwelling 264

A Curious Staircase 264

INTRODUCTION

FRENCH Indo-China forms the Eastern side of the Indo-Chinese peninsula. It is bounded to the east and south by the China Sea, to the north by the Chinese Empire, to the west by Burmah and Siam. Its greatest rivers are the Mekong and the Red River, which form, at their mouth, alluvial lands and rich deltas where the Tonkinese have settled in the north, the Cochin-Chinese and Cambodians in the south. Between the valleys of the Mekong and Red River, extending over a distance of 1000 kilometres, stretches a chain of mountains, which proceeds from the Tibetan system by the Yunnan plateau.

The "Annamitic Chain" expands in North Tonking, traverses Annam, where the highest peaks and largest plateaux (Tranninh, Langbian, 1500 metres) are to be found ; then dies down into the sea at Cap St. Jacques.

The eastern coast-line is so near this mountain chain that the valleys of Annam are of small extent. Those of Song Ca and of Song Ma, in the rich provinces of Thanh-Hoa and Vinh, must be mentioned however, also those of Binh-Dinhand Quang-Nam. Finally, to the south, is the Song Cai, the river of Hue" and Tourane, and the Donai, which rises in the Langbian and forms one of the tributaries of the Saigon River.

Indo-China, a country much greater in size than France, can be said to form a big capital J, of which Tonking forms the head, Cochin-China and Cambodia the tail, and Annam the trunk. The ancient Annamese were fond of representing their country by a pair of scales, the pans loaded with rice, Annam itself was the beam of the scales, not only from its geographical outline, but also on account of its relative poverty. The population of this country is estimated at five millions, whilst that of the remainder of Indo-China is about ten or twelve millions.

The Annamese people the delta of the Red River, the lower valleys and the shores of the China Sea, and the lower delta of the Mekong. They form four-fifths of the population of the Indo-China of to-day, which moreover differs very little from the ancient empire of Annam. This included the present Annam, Tonking, and Cochin-China. The King of Cambodia was tributary. Laos and the mountainous hinterland of Annam were beyond its sway.

The Cambodians — ancient Khmers — inhabit the upper delta of the Mekong and the country of the Great Lakes. The Thais extend over the upper reaches of the Mekong, and a fourth race, the Chams or Tchams, after having played an important part in the history of Indo-China, have been absorbed or dispersed. A few of them, however, are still to be found in villages in Phan-Rang and Phan-Tiet (South Annam) and at Chaudoc (Cochin-China).

The Mois are the aboriginal people of Annam, whom later civilisations gradually drove towards the summit of the mountains, The Annamese call them

Mois, the Cambodians Stiengs or Penongs, the Thais, Khas.

The Chinese are naturally very numerous in Indo- China ; after many centuries they have acquired an exceptional position here, and gained the respectful title of " cai-chu " (uncles).

In their dealings with the Annamese they are, as it best profits them, either discreetly or insolently superior. Except in Tonking, it is they who carry on all the small trade. They are unrivalled shopkeepers, devoted to their work, clever, honest, and very united among themselves. They do not cultivate rice-fields, but they monopolise the rice trade, building manufactories to shell the rice and chartering boats to export it. From the very first days of the European occupation they have made themselves indispensable as intermediaries between the white and yellow races. They have strengthened this position by monopolising all trade connected with gambling, opium, and alcohol. They are perhaps Indo-China's best colonists, and those who make the greatest profits. There can be no question of evicting them at present as the Americans have done in the Philippines (Chinese Exclusion Act). The French have simply tried to limit Chinese immigration by raising heavy taxes on the Celestials, so as to re-establish the equilibrium in favour of the Annamese. In Cochin-China, for instance, a Chinese from eighteen to forty-six years pays, first, a head-tax, which varies from four to fourhundred piastres, and secondly, a prestation tax of from two to fifty piastres a year. Every Chinese must belong to a " congregation," a sort of association which is responsible to the State for all its members civilly and pecuniarily.

The climate of Indo-China is not the same everywhere. While in Tonking and North Annam there is a real winter the temperature in Cambodia and Cochin-China is always hot and damp. The average temperature of Saigon is 30°. 7 7, of Nhatrang 26°. 79, and that of Haiphong 24°. 79 Centigrade. The year is divided into two seasons : dry and wet, according to the monsoons (N.E. from October 15 to April 15, S.W. the rest of the year).

The unity of Indo-China was realised by M. Doumer in 1898. The five States of the Union are : Tonking, Cochin-China, Annam, Cambodia, Laos. A new territory has been added : Quan-Tche"ou on the Lei Tche"ou peninsula, a little to the north of the Hainan Straits, ceded by China. The colonial union has thus been able to acquire a moral personality, permitting it to realise large loans and to carry out extensive public works.

Annam proper is that long strip of country, more than 1000 kilometres in length, which unites Cochin-China to Tonking. The government is a Protectorate. The Emperor reigns at Hue" with the help of regents and of the Chief Council of the kingdom, the Comat. The " Resident Supe"rieur de France," at Hue, is president of the Comat and represents the protecting Power. The whole of the native administration is under the direct control of French officials. There are ten provinces in Annam. At the head of each is a Civil Service official, who takes the title of "Resident de France." The

" Resident Supe"rieur " has the supreme authority over all the services.

The revenue of Annam is about three million piastres. Each province has its own particular revenue, which varies, according to the importance of the population and the value of the land, from fifty to two hundred thousand piastres.

With the exception of Hue" and Thanh-Hoa, the chief towns of Annam are on the coast. Starting from the south, one first reaches Phan-Tiet and Phan- Rang, then the magnificent port of Camranh, where the Russian fleet took shelter before the battle of Tsoushima. After Nhatrang, you pass Qui-Nhon and Tourane. Tourane is the only port with dockyards, between Saigon and Haiphong. It stretches along the left bank of the Song-Hau and joins the big Chinese town, Faifo.

Hue" is the capital, and here it is that the manners and customs of the great mandarins are best preserved. The royal palaces, and especially the tombs, are most characteristic of Annamese architecture.

In North Annam, Vinh and Than-Hoa are the two most important cities.

The Annamese are descended from the Giao-Chi, once established in the south of China. Giao-Chi means separated big toe ; this is a peculiarity which the Annamese have not yet lost, and which enables them to use their big toe in a most skilful manner. The Giao-Chi may be traced back to the remotest antiquity. Nearly three thousand years before our era they occupied Yunnan, the Quan-Si, Quan Toung, and Tonking.

A Chinese prince sent his son Loc Tuc to govern the Giao-Chi. It is the origin of the H6ng Bang dynasty, which reigned over those Qui (foreign devils) for more than two thousand years. It is only in the third century B.C. that we can emerge from this legendary period.

At that time intestine struggles divided the Giao- Chi country into two parts : the Van- Lang to the people of the plain and deltas, the Thai to those of the hill-country. China seized this opportunity of establishing a new Chinese dynasty. In the year in B.C. she conquered the country and kept it in subjection till A.D. 968. The Annamese were therefore governed by Chinese mandarins, who accustomed them to Chinese civilisation during more than a millennium. The literature and moral code of Confucius gave a definite shape to Annamese thought and religion. That their national spirit was still alive is proved from time to time in the repeated insurrections and heroic rebellions against their conquerors. From 39-36 B.C. an Annamese woman, after proclaiming the independence of her country, expelled the Chinese for a time, and reigned under the name of Tru'ng Vu'ong.

But it was not till the middle of the tenth century that the foreigner was driven out and the first national dynasty established. The Dinh, then the L£ (first dynasty) were followed by the Ly, the Tran, and the Ho (968-1407), ephemeral dynasties which gave place in the end to a new Chinese occupation. Treated with unexampled severity, the Annamese rebelled, and once more became free. Their great deliverer was a poor Tonkinese fisherman, Le-Soi, who received a miraculous sword from the genii of the little lake at Hanoi. He was proclaimed king. This dynasty (second dynasty of the L6) occupied the throne till the end of the eighteenth century.

Among the monarchs of this line Thanh -Tong must be specially mentioned as proving himself a clever ruler and great warrior. He formed the six Ministries of State, the mandarin hierarchy, reorganised the civil code, and did much to promote agriculture and public instruction. Placing himself at the head of an army of 260,000 men, he attacked the Chams in their capital and exterminated them. For fifteen centuries the Chams had inhabited the larger part of Annam proper. As the representatives of Hindoo civilisation, they have left remarkable monuments of their past glory. Only a few survivals now remain. This rapid extinction of a powerful and civilised race by the Annamese is a problem of the highest interest.

The Mois, on the other hand, have survived the disturbances and revolutions of the country's history. Faraway in the remote mountainous regions of Annam they have retained their primitive habits. An incongruous collection of wretched tribes may there be found who have sacrificed everything to their love of freedom. At all events, they have succeeded in occupying an immense hinterland, the possession of which their neighbours did not find it worth while to dispute with them.

In the beginning of the nineteenth century the Annamese had extended their rule over Tonking- Annam, and the whole territory of Cochin-China proper. Here they very naturally transformed the valleys and deltas into fertile rice-fields, but made the great mistake of neglecting the hill-country. For it can well be believed that a strong position in the mountains would have enabled them to defend themselves and remain a free people.

It was in the reign of Louis XVI. in 1787 that Annam for the first time came into contact with France. Gialong, of the dynasty of the Nguyen, had been desperately struggling to recover his crown, usurped by the three brothers Tay Son. Not succeeding in this exploit, he followed the advice of the Bishop of Adran, and sent an embassy to France demanding protection. With the help of the French officers Olivier, Chaigneau, Vannier, and Dayot — King Gialong reconquered all his lands. His successor, Ming-Mang, broke off all connection with Europe, in order to gain the support of China, from whom he accepted investiture. Tu-Duc made several attacks on the Christians, whom he massacred in great numbers with their European missionaries. The Spanish and French interfered, and Saigon was taken by Admiral Rigault de Genouilly in 1861. In the following year, Tu-Duc, finding himself besieged in his own capital, was obliged to give up Lower Cochin-China to France. The rest of Cochin-China became French territory in 1867. The King of Cambodia, Norodom, had placed himself under the protection of the French in 1863. The provinces of Angkor and Batambang have been lately given back by Siam, during the reign of Sisowah, in consequence of the happy negotiations of Lieutenant-Colonel Bernard.

The conquest of Tonking required far greater efforts on the part of the French troops, because of Annam's alliance with China, and more especially because the politics of France were uncertain and confused. The French of the metropolis were themselves opposed to it, and it was only through the genius and skill of Jules Ferry that this colony was added to the mother-country, one might almost say against her will.

On two several occasions Tonking was taken and lost, first by Francis Gamier and then by Commandant Riviere. Both attempts, though extraordinarily audacious, failed through want of support at the right moment. A new start had to be made. Admiral Courbet directed the expedition. The French now had to face not only the Annamese, but numerous bands of pirates and the regular troops from the Chinese frontier provinces of the Quan Si and Yunnan. Some splendid feats of arms took place, the capture of Son-tay and Bac-Ninh, the battles of Bac-L£ and Kep, the defence of Tuyen-Quang by the Commander Domine" (1884-85). The cause appeared to be won. The army of the Yunnan was destroyed, that of Quan-Si had been driven beyond the frontier, and from the fort of Lang-Son the movements of the enemy could be carefully kept in view. At sea, after the bombardment of Fou-Tch£ou, Admiral Courbet received orders to take Formosa. He was unsuccessful, and had to be content with merely forming a blockade. Later he took the islands of Pescadores. China was on the point of coming to terms, when the panic of Lang-Son took place (March 28, 1885). It created considerable exio ON AND OFF DUTY IN ANNAM

citement in Paris : the Ferry Ministry fell. Tonking, in spite of all, was finally conquered ; a treaty with China recognised the sovereignty of France.

The military operations in Annam, started by Admiral Courbet in 1883, had the following political results : Recognition of the French Protectorate, restoration of the control of the finances and customs, and the permanent occupation of the forts of Thuan-An and the lines of Vung-Khiona. After the settlement of Tonking, the French wished to consolidate their position in Annam. General de Courcy entrenched himself in the citadel of Hue". There he was suddenly attacked by superior numbers, but put them to rout (July 1885). The King of .Annam, Nam Nghi, who had escaped from Hue", was deposed and replaced by Dong- Khan, whose name means " Union of the Two Nations." One of the regents had been captured and sent into captivity, the other followed the fortunes of the King Nam- Nghi, who had been driven into the Moi country. Thus there were two Kings in Annam, and two large factions. The Christians, suspected of friendliness to the foreigner, were massacred by the orders of Nam- Nghi to the number of 20,000. The question of Tonking- Annam, which had caused the fall of the Ferry Ministry, was brought once more before the French Parliament. It was only by a majority of four votes that it was decided not to relinquish it.

A short time after Paul Bert was appointed Governor. He died at his task. His successors, Constans, Richaud, Picquet, de Lanessan, and Rousseau, effected the pacification of the country and its reorganisation. During the five years in which M. Paul Doumer (1897-1902) held office, the union of Indo-China was accomplished, and the era of great public works and railroads was inaugurated. M. Beau, then M. Klobukowski (1908), succeeded him. Annam has lately been disturbed by one or two small rebellions.

The King Than Thai, who had been chosen by the French on the death of Dong-Khan, was deposed. One of his sons, aged eight years, now reigns over the Annamese under the name of Jy-Su.

Chapter I First Impressions Of French Indo-china

The send-off of our English and French friends : Arrival at Cap St. Jacques : First glimpse of the Annamese : Saigon : Adventurous driving : Le tour ^inspection : Public buildings and native dwellings : My first evening in the Tropics : European life in Saigon : Cholen : A crowded native thoroughfare

A FEW weeks after our marriage we got marching orders for Annam. This did not surprise us, for the natural fate of a French army doctor is a French colony. We were only too pleased that our destination was Annam rather than Martinique or Timbuktu ! My husband had been offered a post by Dr. Roux at the Pasteur Institute of Nhatrang, and preferring bacteriology to other medical work, he accepted it gladly.

I had never heard of Annam up till then, but it was reassuring to learn that our bungalow was all ready for us on the coast in a picturesque country amidst an interesting population.

My family indeed was rather taken aback at the thought of our departure for such a distant, and to them unknown land, but nevertheless they looked on the bright side of things, while some of the inexperienced members even envied the novelty of my new

S O

i 5 existence and the adventures we were likely to encounter. And this was perhaps the attitude of the greater proportion of our English friends. The love of adventure is still a strong national characteristic.

All this encouraging interest and sympathy enabled one to leave England with a fairly light heart. But what a different send-off we received from our friends in Paris! Though evidently proud of their largest and wealthiest colony, any allusion to our approaching sojourn out there was greeted with unconcealed looks and words of pity. One and all thanked Providence that their duty did not call them beyond the confines of their own country. Those whose acquaintance with Annam led me to expect exciting stories of exploration and vivid descriptions of the life and scenery limited themselves to the remark that perhaps we should not find the life as bad as we expected. The attitude was most disconcerting.

Even the doctors of the Paris Pasteur Institute, who with their wives came to bid us good-bye at the Gare de Lyon, took leave as if they might never see us again. Had not the wish to travel and to try new experiences in the East been very keen, my courage would assuredly have ebbed away.

Indeed, as the train glided out of the station and we settled down for the night, I found that the remarks on the platform had not been without effect, and began to shiver with nervousness and apprehension as to what might be in store for us. I pictured disasters and calamities of every description, and a shudder went through me when I realised that there was no going back and that every minute was taking us farther into the vast unknown. I comforted myself with the recollection that the greatest drawback for a woman in such isolated spots as we were going to, is the difficulty, or even the impossibility, of obtaining the help of a doctor, but I was taking mine with me ! I resolved to trouble no more, and let the shaking whirling train act on my brain as well as on my body, and in the consequent confusion of ideas I fell asleep.

The sun was pouring in at the carriage window when I woke the next morning ; 1 was only just dressed when the train came to a standstill in Marseilles.

We spent that day hard at work shopping, no time to drive up to "Notre Dame de la Garde," whose tall spire is associated in the minds of all travellers with their last thoughts of home ; no time to linger on the dirty but picturesque quays with their cosmopolitan crowd of idlers, and early the next morning we sailed.

Some colonial friends of my husband, who had just returned from Indo-China, came on board to see us off. These fortunately cheered us up by declaring that Nhatrang was the prettiest and healthiest spot in Annam.

We met some delightful people, both French and English, on the Salazie, and time and opportunity were not wanting to discuss the merits and characteristics of the two nations. The arguments were often long and lively, and in our peculiar position of French husband and English wife we received on board the nickname of " entente cordiale." We were often cited as typical examples or called upon as umpires.