The Eaton Democrat. (Eaton, Ohio) 1875-1903, 1879-10-23
THE CHINESE WALL.
G.r. t,rantss Visit TO the Great M6hdiieht'
tffott . New York Herald nettef.1

fam. t,rantts visit 10 the Great M5hdiieHh
tffotn q New York Herald nettef.1
About o'clock in the afternoon Iieit.
sperry, the navigator, had an
experience That must have reminded
him OF Columbus discovering America.
He had found the Great Wall. By care
fully looking through our glasses, in
time we saw it-a thick, brown, lrregu-
lar line, that crumbled into the sea.
The Richmond steamed towards the
beach, and so gracious was the weather
that we were able to anchor within q
mile Of shore. ALI the boats were let
down, and as many as could be spared
from the vessel went ashofe-the Cap
tain, the officers, sailors in their blue,
tidy uniforms, and IN especial sailor,
with d pot OF white paint; to inscribe the
fact that the Richmond had visited the
Great Wall. The Great Wall is the
only monument I have seen which
could be improved by modern sacri-
lege, and which could be painted over
and plastered without compunctiols of
conscience. From what I read of this
stupendous achievement it wal built
under the reign of a Chinese Emperor
who fourished two centuries before
Christ. The Emperor was disturbed by
the constant invasion of the Tartafs, d
hardy, nomadic race who came from
the hills Of Mongolia and plundered
his people, who we're, indeed, afterward
to cone-if the only the Emperor could
have opened the book of fate and known
and rule the country and found the
dynasty which exists, after a fashion,
still. So his Majesty resolved to build
a wall which should forever protect his
empire from the invader. The wall
was built, and 30 well was it done that
here we come, wanderers from the an
tipodes, twenty centuries after, and
find il still q substantial, imposing,
but, in the light of modern science,
a useless wall. It is 1850 miles
in length, and it is only when you con-
slider that distance, and the incredible
amount of labor it imposed, that the
magnitude of the work breaks upon you.
We landed on a smooth, pebbly beach,
studded with shells which would have
reioiced the eyes of children. We
found a small village and saw the vii
layers gathering corn. The children, q
few beggars, and a blind person came
to welcome us. The end of the wall
which juts into the lei has been beaten
by the waves into q ragged, shapeless
condition. There wa an easy ascent
however, up stone steps. At the tor
there was a small temple, evidently Civ
en- to piors use still, for there was
keeper who dickered about letting us in
and the walls seemed to be in order
clean and painted. The wall at the site
of the temple was seventy-fve or loo
feet wide, but this was only a special
width to accommodate the temple and
present an imposing presence to ths
sea. As far as we could see the wal
stretched over hill and valley, until il
became a line. Its average width al
the surface is from twenty to twenty
five feet. At the base it varies from
forty feet to 100. It is made of stone
and brick, and, considering hat twenty
centuries have been testing its work
manship, the work was well done.
As q mere wall there is nothing ina
posing about the Great Wall of China
There are 100000 walls, the world over
better built and more useful. Whai
impressed us was the infinite patienct
which could have comprised SO vast
labor. Wonderful are the Pyramids
and wonderful as a dream the ruins O
Thebes. There you see mechanical re
suits which you cannot follow or solve
engineering achievements we could no
even now repeat. The Great Wall is
marvel of patience. I had been reading
the late Mr.. Stewards calculation tina
the labor which had builded the Grea
Wall would have built the Pacific rail
ways. Gen. Grant thought that Mr.
Seward had moderated its extent. g!
believe he said, that the labor ex
| pended on this wall could have bull
every railroad in the United States
every ca1Ial and highway, and most
not all of our cities" The story is tina
millions we're employed on the wall
that the work lasted for ten years