11. West of Peking, the builders struck sticky clay. Here they chained heavy logs and dragged them into place to make a mold for the Wall. In between the rows of logs they dumped the soil. A long line of workers, each carrying two baskets of earth hung from a bamboo pole, filled the roadway. Others packed it down. As each stretch was finished, they hauled down the wooden mold and moved on. The Wall stood, made only of hard-packed clay.

12. Every 200 yards or so, towers 35 to 40 feet high were built. Here soldiers with bows and arrows were left to defend the Wall. About every mile, block-houses were built to house the soldiers who guarded it.

13. Month after month, year after year, the Wall progressed. It swept in daring curves, climbed mountains, dropped into valleys, leaped rivers. Work on the Wall stopped at a 200-foot cliff hanging over a foaming white river.

14. How long did it take to build the Wall? No one can tell for sure. It is known that Chin used millions of workers. Also he made use of many miles of walls already built. So it is possible that the job may have taken only 18 years.

15. Engineers say that the Great Wall is one of the greatest works of man. And for a long while, it did its job. It kept out the wild horsemen of the north for more than 1400 years.

16. The Wall we see today is not wholly that of Emperor Chin. It was worked on in later years, mostly between 1380 and 1644. Parts of it are in good condition. Other parts, nearly covered by sand, rise only a few feet above the desert. Yet the Great Wall still stands. Here is a lasting record of one man's desire for power—and the work of unknown millions.