Four Young Explorers; Or, Sight-Seeing in the Tropics Read online

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  ALL OVER THE WORLD LIBRARY

  OLIVER OPTIC

  FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS

  ALL-OVER-THE-WORLD LIBRARY

  By OLIVER OPTIC

  * * * * *

  _Illustrated, Price per Volume $1.25_

  FIRST SERIES

  A MISSING MILLION Or THE ADVENTURES OF LOUIS BELGRAVE

  A MILLIONAIRE AT SIXTEEN Or THE CRUISE OF THE GUARDIAN MOTHER

  A YOUNG KNIGHT-ERRANT Or CRUISING IN THE WEST INDIES

  STRANGE SIGHTS ABROAD Or A VOYAGE IN EUROPEAN WATERS

  SECOND SERIES

  AMERICAN BOYS AFLOAT Or CRUISING IN THE ORIENT

  THE YOUNG NAVIGATORS Or THE FOREIGN CRUISE OF THE MAUD

  UP AND DOWN THE NILE Or YOUNG ADVENTURERS IN AFRICA

  ASIATIC BREEZES Or STUDENTS ON THE WING

  THIRD SERIES

  ACROSS INDIA Or LIVE BOYS IN THE FAR EAST

  HALF ROUND THE WORLD Or AMONG THE UNCIVILIZED

  FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS Or SIGHT-SEEING IN THE TROPICS

  _OTHER VOLUMES IN PREPARATION_ ANY VOLUME SOLD SEPARATELY

  LEE AND SHEPARD Publishers Boston

  "YOUR FIRST SHOT, LOUIS," SAID SCOTT.

  _Page 30._]

  _All-Over-the-World Library--Third Volume of Third Series_

  FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS

  OR

  SIGHT-SEEING IN THE TROPICS

  BY

  OLIVER OPTIC

  AUTHOR OF "THE ARMY AND NAVY SERIES" "YOUNG AMERICA ABROAD, FIRST AND SECOND SERIES" "THE BOAT-CLUB STORIES" "THE ONWARD AND UPWARD SERIES" "THE GREAT WESTERN SERIES" "THE WOODVILLE STORIES" "THE LAKE SHORE SERIES" "THE YACHT-CLUB SERIES" "THE RIVERDALE STORIES" "THE BOAT-BUILDER SERIES" "THE BLUE AND THE GRAY AFLOAT" "THE BLUE AND THE GRAY--ON LAND" "THE STARRY FLAG SERIES" "ALL-OVER-THE-WORLD LIBRARY, FIRST SECOND AND THIRD SERIES" COMPRISING "A MISSING MILLION" "A MILLIONAIRE AT SIXTEEN" "A YOUNG KNIGHT-ERRANT" "STRANGE SIGHTS ABROAD" "AMERICAN BOYS AFLOAT" "THE YOUNG NAVIGATORS" "UP AND DOWN THE NILE" "ASIATIC BREEZES" "ACROSS INDIA" "HALF ROUND THE WORLD" ETC., ETC., ETC.

  BOSTON LEE AND SHEPARD PUBLISHERS 10 MILK STREET 1896

  COPYRIGHT, 1896, BY LEE AND SHEPARD

  _All Rights Reserved_

  FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS

  TYPOGRAPHY BY C. J. PETERS & SON, BOSTON.

  PRESSWORK BY BERWICK & SMITH.

  TO MY APPRECIATIVE AND VALUED FRIEND

  FREDERICK D. RUGGLES, ESQ.

  RESIDING ON A HISTORIC HILL IN HARDWICK, MASS.

  This Volume

  IS RESPECTFULLY AND CORDIALLY DEDICATED.

  PREFACE

  "FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS" is the third volume of the third series of the"All-Over-the-World Library." When the young millionaire and his threecompanions of about his own age, with a chosen list of near and dearfriends, had made the voyage "Half Round the World," the volume withthis title left them all at Sarawak in the island of Borneo. The fouryoung explorers, as they became, were permitted to spend three weeksthere hunting, fishing, and ascending some of the rivers, while the restof the party proceeded in the Guardian-Mother to Siam. The youngermembers of the ship's company believed they had seen enough of temples,palaces, and fine gardens in the great cities of the East, and desiredto live a wilder life for a brief period.

  They were provided with a steam-launch, prepared for long trips; andthey ascended the Sarawak, the Sadong, and the Simujan Rivers, and hadall the hunting, fishing, and exploring they desired. They visited thevillages of the Sea and Hill Dyaks, and learned what they could of theirmanners and customs, penetrating the island from the sea to themountains. They studied the flora and the fauna of the forests, and wereexceedingly interested in their occupation for about a week, when theycame to the conclusion that "too much of a good thing" became wearisome;and, more from the love of adventure than for any other reason, theydecided to proceed to Bangkok, and to make the voyage of nine hundredmiles in the Blanchita, as they had named the steam-launch, which voyagewas accomplished without accident.

  After the young explorers had looked over the capital of Siam, theGuardian-Mother and her consort made the voyage to Saigon, the capitalof French Cochin-China, where the visit of the tourists was a generalfrolic, with "lots of fun," as the young people expressed it; and then,crossing the China Sea, made the port of Manila, the capital of thePhilippine Islands, where they explored the city, and made a trip up thePasig to the Lake of the Bay. From this city they made the voyage toHong-Kong, listening to a very long lecture on the way in explanation ofthe history, manners, and customs, and the peculiarities of the peopleof China. They were still within the tropics, and devoted themselves tothe business of sight-seeing with the same vigor and interest as before.But most of them had read so much about China, as nearly every Americanhas, that many of the sights soon began to seem like an old story tothem.

  Passing out of the Torrid Zone, the two steamers proceeded to the north,obtaining a long view of Formosa, and hearing a lecture about it. Theirnext port of call was Shang-hai, reached by ascending the Woo-Sung. Fromthis port they made an excursion up the Yang-tsze-Chiang, which was anexceedingly interesting trip to them. The ships then made the voyage toTien-tsin, from which they ascended by river in the steam-launch to apoint thirteen miles from Pekin, going from there to the capital by thevarious modes of conveyance in use in China. They visited the sights ofthe great city under the guidance of a mandarin, educated at YaleCollege. Some of the party made the trip to the loop-wall, near Pekin.Returning to Tien-tsin, with the diplomatic mandarin, who had acceptedan invitation to go to Japan in the Guardian-Mother, they sailed forthat interesting country, where the next volume of the series will takethem.

  It may be necessary to say that the Guardian-Mother, now eighteen monthsfrom New York, and half round the world, reached Tien-tsin May 25, 1893;and therefore nothing relating to the late war between China and Japanis to be found in this volume. Possibly the four young explorers wouldhave found more sights to see, and more adventures to enjoy, if they hadstruck either of the belligerent nations during the war; but the shipsailed for the United States before hostilities were begun.

  Of course the writer has been compelled to consult many volumes inwriting this book; and he takes great pleasure in mentioning among themthe very interesting and valuable work of Mr. W. T. Hornaday, theaccomplished traveller and scientist, "Two Years in the Jungle." Thisbook contains all that one need know about Borneo, to say nothing of thewriter's trip in India among the elephants. His researches in regard tothe orang-outang appear to have exhausted the subject; though I do notbelieve he has found the "missing link," if he is looking for it.Professor Legge contributed several articles to "Chambers'sEncyclopaedia," which contain the most interesting and valuable matterabout China to be derived from any work; for he lived for years in thatcountry, travelled extensively, and learned the language. I am undergreat obligations to these authors.

  The author is under renewed obligations to his readers, young and old,who have been his constant friends during more than forty years, for thefavor with
which they have received a whole library of his books, andfor the kind words they have spoken to him, both verbally and by letter.

  WILLIAM T. ADAMS.

  DORCHESTER, MASS.