NOTES.—ORIGINAL AND SELECTED. 279
to suggest that possibly these observations may tend to
strengthen the idea that probably the red-hills of Essex may
have been formed in somewhat the same manner.—E. McArthur
Moir (Indian Forest Service), Deoban, Colchester, October 22nd,
1906.
Making of Marine Salt in China.—The following ex-
tracts from Macartney's Embassy to China (London, 1797) may be
interesting in connection with Mr. Christy's paper (ante p. 193),
and possibly also with reference to the problem of the Red-hills
(ante pp. 1802). Writing of the progress of the Embassy along
the Pei-ho, and of the character of the villages on the banks of
the river, the narrative continues (Vol. II., pp. 177-182):
" Near some of the towns and villages were pyramids about 15 feet high, but
of different dimensions as to length and thickness. They consisted of bags of
salt heaped together in that form as peat is preserved in some parts of Europe,
These bags were covered merely with common matting ; which was, however,
found sufficient shelter against the dissolution of the contents by rain. The
showers which fell in this part of the country were indeed slight, and seldom
happened......The opposite bank of the river for a considerable way
was crowded with pyramids or stacks of salt of the height of those already
mentioned. The quantity of that article necessary to fill such heaps appeared
to be so enormous that Mr. Barrow was induced to ascertain it by some sort of
calculation. 'The number of entire stacks was 222, besides several others that
were incomplete. A transverse section of each stack was found to contain seventy
bags. None of these stacks were less in length than 200ft Some extended to
600. Supposing the mean or average length of these stacks to be 400 feet, of
which each bag occupied a space of two feet, there would then be, in each
stack, 200 sections, or 14,000 bags, and in the 222 stacks, upwards of 3.000,000
bags of salt. Every bag contained about 200 lbs. of salt, and consequently,
altogether six hundred million of pounds weight of that article.'.....
Most of the marine salt imported into the Pei-ho is brought from the sea-coasts
of the two southern provinces of Fo-chien and Quantung, where it is prepared
from sea-water. Large fields being made perfectly smooth and flat, with
margins elevated about six inches, sea-water is let in upon a clayey surface,
either through sluices, or pumped up at high water by chain-pumps. The water
is suffered to lie on these fields to a depth of two or three inches. The heat of
the sun in the summer season is sufficiently strong to evaporate the water. The
evaporation, carried on slowly and uniformly, leaves behind large cubic crystals,
and forms that species usually known by the name of Bay-salt in England.
There are similar works near the mouth of the Pei-ho river, but to no consider-
able extent. Its more northern situation is certainly not so favourable for the
process by solar heat. Artificial heat is found necessary to complete the process
in England, and even in some of the southern parts of France. The salt brought
from Quantung and Fo-chien into the Pei-ho is sufficient to load annually nearly
two thousand vessels of 200 tons burden each."
The Earl of Macartney's account gives a vivid idea of the