Look at Shen Congwen's Ship in Changde

Changde is Wuling, and the fisherman's hometown mentioned in Tao Qian's Postscript of Searching for God and Peach Blossom Garden should be placed in this place. Deshan is in the lower reaches of the river, more than 2 miles away from the city, which can be said to be the only mountain in the area. The bus may stop at Deshan

station, or at another station across the river from the county seat. Cars don't have to cross the river, but people on the bus might as well cross the river and see everything in the city. The geography book tells people that this is a big dock in western Hunan, and it is a place to exchange export goods and import goods.

tung oil, wood, cowhide, pig intestines and bristles, tobacco and mercury, gallnut and yapian tobacco are loaded by various ships from eastern Sichuan, eastern Guizhou and western Hunan, and all these things have to be re-exported from here and then transported to Changsha

Wuhan. Salt, gauze, cloth, foreign goods, kerosene, medicine, flour, sugar, and various daily consumables and necessities of light industry are also barged in Xiajiang, and they have to be refitted from here, and then transported to the docks and docks at the upstream of the tributaries of Yuanshui by ships of different sizes. There are many kinds of village names in the city. In this case, the people who sit on all kinds of Zhuang numbers are like a millstone, a kind of machinery, busy back and forth for their posts. At the parcel post office

, such people come in and out the most. In the long-distance telephone business office, this kind of person is the biggest customer. The business of restaurants and prostitutes is maintained by such people.

In addition to these prosperous businessmen, there are also some small landlords who live in hutian, young gentlemen who used to be magistrate of a county, male and female middle school students from various counties, and shopkeepers, guys, turtles and tortoise from other provinces who participated in this prosperous market. The population of the whole city is over 1,, and the streets extend for nearly ten miles. When a passer-by comes to this city, he will understand the throat of Xiangxi, which, as rumored, is not small. But I can't think of anything in this throat besides swallowing goods < P > and raw materials. Doing this kind of breathing work has a great responsibility, busy work and mixed nature, and who are they? Without them, will the city suddenly become a ruin by the river? As usual, this kind of people

can be seen clearly, and all of them can meet in water cities, but they are most easily overlooked by travelers. What I want to say is that it really controls this throat and dominates tens of thousands of boatmen in the Yuanshui River Basin.

There is nothing really remarkable and surprising about this dock more than the boatman and his water tools. If you want to know Xiangxi, you have to have an understanding of them first. To appreciate the particularity of local nationalities in western Hunan, boatmen are one of the most valuable materials.

In a traveler's ideal Wuling, there should be many fishing boats. When I got here, I realized that the water was full of boats, but it was not easy to find a fishing boat. At first glance, the large and small ships floating on both sides of the long river only feel similar to each other. In fact, their shapes are complex and different, each with its own personality, which represents the personality of each place. Let us know more about this aspect, which may be convenient for us.

The most striking ship is a three-masted big-headed ship. This is a foreigner who came from the Yangtze River and crossed the lake. Carrying salt is its main duty. Most of them just stop here and will not swim to the Yuan River. Ordinary people call it a "salt boat", and its name < P > is actually a vice. The boatman called it "the big loach fish head", and the story of Yue Fei catching Yang Yao in Dongting Lake was uploaded in Jin Tuo Nazi Compilation, and this name was recorded. Although the name is vulgar, the source is very ancient. Most of these ships are painted in black, so the color is mostly black. This kind of ship sails every season, because it can only move when there is strong water and strong wind. The description in Du Fu's poems of "a myriad of boats, with shadows like Bai Hong" may refer to this kind of water thing.

It is slightly smaller than this kind of salt ship, with two masts or a single mast. Its hull is extremely delicate, and its head and tail suddenly converge, giving a sharp impression. Its whole body is black and it is called "Wujiangzi". Its specialty is that it is not afraid of wind and waves and transports grain across the lake. It

is a race walker on Dongting Lake. The physical structure is characterized by high mast, large sail, deep cabin and sharp head. Covering the canopy is smaller than the hull, because there are protective panels outside the ship's side, and the boatmen are as clean and delicate as the ship itself. Since sailing depends on the wind and sails are used up and down, there are not many sailors on board. Only sailors can pull the canopy, paddle and pole, but they can't paddle. Women can also take the helm for

Lao when emptying the boat. This kind of ship sometimes goes back along the river, the number is very small, and the hull material is thin, which seems unsuitable for adventure. This kind of ship is also a foreign guest in the Yuanshui River Basin.

sailing in the Yuanshui river basin, which is magnificent and has extraordinary weather, can be called a big MAC, and it should be counted as "Hongjiang oil tanker". This kind of boat has many heads and high tails, bright colors, occasionally decorated with a little gold paint, and a rudder < P > building at the stern, which can accommodate family members. The ship can carry three or four thousand barrels of tung oil down, two thousand pieces of cotton up, or one ticket of salt. Twenty-six to forty people paddled, and thirty to sixty or seventy people paddled. They must go up and down after the spring water is released, and the route is to and from Changde and Hongjiang. Every year, the water is up and down three or five times at most, and most of the rest are at rest. They are the owners of the river in rows. As usual, the owner is Mayang, and as usual, his surname is Teng, he is good at making friends, and his manners are clear. I often become sworn brothers with people in big firms, climb relatives' homes, and stand by the sandalwood rudder handle at the back of the boat when sailing, with a little leisurely dignity, and a short pipe with a bamboo whip in my mouth, while watching the water and smoking. When a guest with

status takes a boat and drinks a glass of wine, he tells the guest the history of this oil tanker in detail, carrying too many soldiers with little influence, rich men, or prostitutes in Chiyuan River valley. In other words, it is just how much this ship has to do with the local

"history"! Everything on this ship is huge and solid. When the ship owner was on board, he didn't see anything special in his costume, but when he landed, he wore a robe (his feet were three or four inches above his knees), covered with a green-feathered damask jacket,

wore a fedora or a small satin hat, wore calf leather to hold his belly, tied it with a thick silver chain, and filled it with silver dollars. Wear raw cowhide boots and tread heavily when walking. Tall and thin. There are a pair of big hands, which are full of yellow hair and blue veins.

He can drink and play cards, and he is generous and generous. When he eats sanhua for entertainment, he takes out a lot of silver dollar bills from his arms and is not stingy. Sailors are strong and brave, with sharp eyes, good at singing, swimming, fighting and swearing. Like a tail fish when entering the water,

like a little boar when approaching a woman when landing. Boating during the day and playing cards at night are also very interesting. Although there are many people on board, they have their own things and never get into disorder. The deck is always as clean as new. At the beginning of anchor pulling, drums and gongs will be beaten, paper and incense will be burned at the bow of

, white meat will be cooked to offer sacrifices to the gods, and thousands of firecrackers will be set off to show that people and gods are in harmony and happy, and * * * will help each other and be lucky all the way. In the sailing ceremony and sailing songs, it reminds people of the reason why The Songs of the South happened two thousand years ago, and now it is well preserved, as it is today.

It's smaller than Hongjiang oil tanker, and its form seems a little clumsy (generally ships are made of wooden boards, but this kind of ship is actually made of wooden pillars). It has a flat head and a big tail. At first glance, it shows that the hull is very solid and has the air of a fighter. It's called "Baihe

Ship". Baihe is the alias of unitary water. This kind of ship runs from Changde to Yuanling in Yuanshui, and from Yuanling to Baojing in Youshui. It's extremely dangerous to flow on the beach, and the ship will be able to withstand collision. The ship must be loaded to suppress the waves, so the tail

is as big and round as the hip. When going down, tie one or two large wooden shoulders at the bow. The use of wooden radial is that the ship goes down the beach, and it is more practical than the rudder when turning its head. As the saying goes, "Three oars are not as good as one pole, and three oars are not as good as one shoulder." Read as a trick. You

The water is shallow and urgent, so paddles are not commonly used, so the paddles are very useful, so the paddles grow up especially, and the paddles are thick, fat and short. The awning is made of zongzi leaves and is not oiled. Most of the ship owners are from Yongshun Baojing, and the surname Xiang is Wang and Peng is the majority. The river bed of Youshui River is narrow, and

there are many beach flows. In order to cope with nature, boatmen need more courage. When sailing, we often curse each other instead of singing together, in order to be more restricted by nature and have a bad temper. Youshui is the legendary location of ancient collection caves

, and there are many caves that are tall, spacious and full of mystery. From Yuanling to Youyang, there are always several caves in each county along the Youshui River Basin. However, such as Dayou Cave, Eryou Cave in Yuanling, Lion Cave in Baojing and Longdong Cave in Youyang,

even books in these caves have already rotted. Up to now, the most books in this river should be the Shi Yinben almanac sold by Baoqing paper customers, and every ship has an "imperial almanac" as usual. There are many taboos for boatmen, and almanac is their action

baby. The river is prone to accidents, and individuals want to reduce their responsibilities. Therefore, everything seems to be decided by heaven, handled by heaven, and acted according to the book, which makes them feel more at ease and less controversial, and there is an excuse for the ship to have an accident. There are only

boats in each county in the Youshui River Basin, and they are different in form, but these boats don't leave the Baihe River. The Baihe oil tankers that can be seen in Changde are almost all the same in shape.

White lime and black coal are produced in Chenxi County in the middle of Yuanshui. The local ship carrying these two things is called Chenxi Ship, also known as

Guangbozi. Compared with the above two kinds of ships, it is characterized by brittle materials and lack of personality. The hull is mostly light black, shaped like a shuttle on a homespun machine, and the style is not very clever. Downstream is full of some worthless goods

, and up stream is often emptied because there is no return goods. The hull is dirty, the cargo is short of time, and it is dangerous to sail with full load, so passengers are not welcome, so the shipbuilders don't care much about cleanliness and time. As usual, the sail of this kind of ship is not complete, and the cloth sail is broken, giving people the impression of a broken settlement. The boatmen are lazy because they are idle, and their spirits are mostly depressed.

Donghe (Luxi) originates from Longdong Cave in Miao Township, Gancheng, and Wuchao River in Miao Township, Fenghuang. The two small rivers meet in Suoli City, Gancheng County. East, to Luxi county, and Yuan River flow together. The boat in this river is called "Dong < P > River Boat". The mainstream of Heyuan flows from two caves in Lilin, Miao township. The riverbed is rocky, so the water is particularly clear and the water is particularly strong. The hull must struggle from the collision. The river is small and the hull is relatively light. The ship's side is low and

flat, and the bow is narrow. In this boat, we can find Miao people in the hands of water. But we won't be surprised at him when we meet him, and he won't be surprised at us. Everything about this kind of person is similar to other people on the water, but the only difference is his honesty, faithfulness, simplicity and straightforward temperament, which is more preserved than that of city people because he lives in the mountains. Gancheng people are extremely intelligent and elegant, with small hands and feet, and their voices are very pleasant when singing folk songs. When they arrive at the dock, they can be particularly silent and quiet. The ship is too small, so it is not often possible to dock at this big pier. This kind of boat seems to be shy when it is moored on the river, just as the sailors are shy when they go to the street.

Gancheng Institute is used as the water wharf for the county to take in goods. Although the place is not big, the little stone town is neat and clean, and there are several famous people in the history of nearly 3 years. General Fu Liangzuo, the chief of the army in Duan Qirui era, grew up in this small county. The general of Northeast Army, General Yang Anming, who is known as the tactical authority among the current soldiers in China, is also from this place.

On the river, it is extremely active and lively, and a large number of them are ordinary medium-sized "Mayang boats". This kind of bow and tail is held high, which is graceful and flexible. The origin of this kind of ship is Mayang River (Chenxi). Women, children and child brides can be seen on every boat. The boatman is exceptionally competent in both the business entrusted by the merchant and the work assigned by God. Most of the transshipment business in Yuanshui River Basin is dominated by the local people, which is the result of the prosperity of the population, and therefore there is a Mayang Street outside Changde City. "All success requires struggle", and this principle can also be used as an explanation of Mayang Street. According to legend, this street was made by a sailor named Teng Laojiu with his fists. If we are interested in going to that street specially, we can know that all the people who run small shops, barbershops, boat guys and the oldest occupations without capital are Mayang folks, and we will understand that everyone has a share in this kind of struggle. Mayang people's energy is incomparable, or it has something to do with local production. Mayang produces all kinds of oranges and glutinous rice, which is especially suitable for making sweet wine. With the increase of population, there are more and more ships, so more than half of the water-surface world in Yuan is occupied by Mayang people. Where ships dock, there are Mayang people called folks, and the folks get a lot of convenience. Ordinary foreigners call Mayang people "folks" when they take a boat. The special

of the villagers is that they are tough and happy. Sailors can eat, do, drink and fight. When the ship owner goes ashore, he must dress up as a small country squire, wearing robes and gowns like the big boss who drives the Hongjiang oil tanker, wearing raw cowhide shoes, felt hats or doctor hats with leather ears, heavy gold rings on his fingers, a lot of ocean money in his belly, a tiger paw hanging from the short smoke pipe, and a piece of carved silver skin at one end. Ask where Xianxiang is when you meet people.

What's your family name? Most of my surnames are Teng, and their first names are Daifu and Yigui. For the past 3 years, the politics of this province is more familiar and concerned than that of ship owners anywhere. He likes to talk about ethics, ignores people, and is good at quoting classic aphorisms < P > and local proverbs as chapters when talking about heaven. When complimenting a guest, you must increase your income from the compliment. When you are complimented by a guest, you will call the guest a "confidant" and treat the guest to a bag of millet wine with a smile. Women on the boat are not particularly harmful to sailing, and they are often a good helper. Women are strong and capable, extravagant and good at bearing children.

There is another pair of praiseworthy hands among Mayang people, which are unmatched in Xiangxi for nearly a hundred years. They are also a rare artist in China. They are the hands of the sculptor Zhang Qiutan. Most of the small pieces of art are made by smoking while leaning against the lamp by the cigarette tray. All of them are lifelike, and some of them are still in the private hands of Xiangxi. The big pieces are gods such as Guanyin, the king of temples in various counties. After the Xinhai, superstitions were broken and a lot of them were destroyed.

In Changde Water Wharf, the boats are very small, floating on the water like a leaf, and the number is as large as dried fish, so they are

"Taoyuan Paddle" specially used for passengers. Wood merchants and cigarette sellers, merchants who handle goods up and down, civil servants passing by, and male and female students on vacation are all customers of this kind of boat. The hull is light and small, and the speed of going up and down is twice as fast as that of other ships. When going down the beach, < P > you can walk from the small rapids on the side, and nothing will happen. In Pingtan, you can drive day and night, and you won't be stuck by the checkpoint. Therefore, before there was a highway, this small boat was really a traffic weapon in the Yuanshui River Basin. Ship builders don't need to be nervous about their work.

They spend less and earn more. People in Taoyuan County are rich and old, and the people in Taoyuan County are particularly easygoing (once the Yuanshui River arrives in Taoyuan, it will become a Pingtan, and there will be no bad beaches and rapids, which naturally affects the temperament of people on the water). Therefore, people who make boats are much more sloppy, and many of them are addicts. They make boats during the day and rely on lights at night. Some family members may still stay in the county, run a profession that does not require capital, and work together without idleness. And can be a guide for the guests, and take the guests visiting Taoyuan Cave to the novel places they want.

there are several kinds of ships that should be called "guests" when traveling up and down the Yuanshui River Basin and berthing at Changde Wharf, some from Yuping, Qiandong, upstream of Zhijiang River, some from Tongren, upstream of Mayang River, and some from Longtan, upstream of Baihe River. Yuping ships are mostly re-exported to Hongjiang, but not much downstream. Longtan ships mostly exchange goods from Yuanling, and there are not many trips down.