Illustrated Gazetteer of the Maritime Countries (Vol. 30)

Legal matters are characterized by a fondness for litigation, and punishments are quite severe. They honor the Buddha original: 浮屠 (Futuo); Wei Yuan uses Buddhist terminology to describe Russian Orthodox Christianity, a common practice in early Chinese ethnography; from the King to the common people, they observe ten-day Great Fasts during each of the four seasons. Regarding its mountains and rivers, there is Mount Pavlovsky original: 帕付林斯科山 (Pafulinsike shan) located on the eastern border of the territory, and the Vrolok Ridge original: 佛落克嶺 (Foluoke ling) to the northwest. It rises high

above all other mountains. The locals say that snow accumulates there in both winter and summer, making it inaccessible to everyone. ○ Connecting from where the various Khalkha tribes pasture their herds: downstream on the Selenga River original: 色楞格河 (Selengge he) is a place called Chuku Bayur original: 楚庫柏與 (Chukubaiyu), likely referring to Chikoy where one enters the Russian border. From this point northward, the waters all flow to the north. Along the route are great mountains and deep valleys; the mountains are filled with dense forests and thickets. In summer, there are many snakes and scorpions, and the waters abound with fish. ○ Originally, in the fiftieth year of the Kangxi reign [1711], Tulishen, formerly a Reader of the Grand Secretariat, was commissioned as an envoy to the Torghuts. His route took him through this country, and upon his return, he wrote an account of its geography and local customs. I have now listed the major bodies of water below in the order he encountered them. Although the mountains are numerous, the reasons for their fame are not fully recorded The Vrolok Ridge is in the territory of the Verkhoturye Torghuts; the ridge is over ten li high A li is a traditional Chinese unit of distance, roughly 500 meters here.

The downstream flow meets the Irtysh River original: 額爾齊斯河 (E'erqisi he) in the east. On the north side of the mountain, there is a river The Selenga River originates in the Kha- lkha River; the downstream flow meets Tengis Lake likely Lake Baikal, which was sometimes referred to as the "Tengis" in Mongol-influenced sources in the southwest.

Internally, it flows northeast to Chuku Bayur and enters the Russian border, where it receives the Chuku River coming from the southeast. It then flows northeast for over two hundred li until it reaches Lake Ur original: 烏兒湖 (Wu'er hu). The river is forty to fifty zhang wide A zhang is a traditional unit of length, approximately 3.3 meters or 11 feet; its waters are vast and its flow is calm. It begins to freeze in the tenth month. Both banks are mountainous, and along the shores are many thickets of willow, elm, birch, and cherry trees.