Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-12-05
QUEER ROADS IN CHINA.
Cux1esitass q Travel and Postal Service In the
E1owery Land.

k1owery Land.
Minister DENLY has Just sent to the Depart
mont Of State . very interesting description OF
roads in China. Outside OF the cities they are
OF the most primitive nature, being merely
lines Of ruts across the fields. In summer they
are fathomless, impossible hogs, and travel.
except on foot, lie practically suspended. The
pig-tailed orientals have never taken much
trouble with road making, partly because
throughout the greater part Of their country
the plains are . network of waterways. natural
and artificial. while human labor for carrying
burdens has always been preferred to that OF
beasts over the narrow and eircuitous mountain
passes Roads for military purposes seem
never to have been thought Of by the Chinese.
Inc great campaigns OF the Mongol and
Manchu emperors were conducted with hordes
OF nying cavalry along no fixed routes.
How DISPATCHES USED TO BE CARRIED
China has telegraph lines now. but previous
to their introduction intelligence was conveyed
to the center of government from outside PROV
lnces by an elaborate system Of post stations
these were placed about thirty miles apart
ana relays OF horses were constantly kent IN
| readiness for the imperial couriers. By such
means dispatches were sent to dIstan provincial
capitals at the rate OF $50 miles Der day Kub!A
hahn, the Mongol emperor had more than
| ~ OOo post stations, with 800 600 horses espe-
ciaily kept for the use of msssengers In con-
| nection with the mounted courlers an elaborate
system OF foot messengers was also MAR tanned.
Inc latter were swift runners and their stations
were only three miles apart. BY them the EN-
peror Is said to have received news from places
ten days journey distant in twenty-four hours
or information from points 100 DAYS away
within ten days. Fruit gathered in Peking in
| the morning was thus transmitted to the sum
mer palace, distant ten days travel, arriving
| on the evening of the next day.
Express conrlers who carry imperial mesa ges
between Gartok and L'Hasa, the capital Of
lbibet, make the entire distance of 500 miles
on horseback In eight days without relief.
| riding night and day. Dispatches are placed
inside their robes, and the latter are sealed
upon their bodies, SO that they cannot be
removed until the end Of the journey. when the
| seal Is broken by the proper official These
messengers are lifted at the post stations from
one horse to another and arrive at their desii-
nation with cracked faces and eyes bloodshot
| and sunAen. They sometimes die on the way
| from exposure and fatigue.
THE ELABORATE SYSTEM OF POSTS
Tor imperial messages in China seems never TO
| have suggested the establishment OF a govern
ment postal service for the public at large All
private correspondence is transmitted by pri-
vate post Offices, OF which there are several
rival establishments In each city. These firms
employ their own couriers who travel on horse
e.
Between cities. where the business justfies a
| regular mounted service, letters and small par
GELS are carried at the rate of seyenty-fiye or
eighty miles a day. The charges for small dis
tances are not excessive, a letter being sent
from Peking TO Iientsin for about 10 cents.
For long distances, however, the postage
Is disproportionately large. The United
States legation has frequent occasion
| to communicate with missionaries in
the interior. particularly in the prov
ince Of Shantung. From Picking to Chinanfu.
| the capital OF Shantung, is about 225 miles, aud
the usual charge for transmitting a letter
| thither is 40 cents. Competition forces the
postal establishments TO be very careful and re-
liable. At river ports at the hour of the sailing
OF steamer the competition between rival
| hrms In soliciting patronage through their
| runners is very brisk. That the systems of
government and private post should exist with
out leading to the construction Of proper roads
and highways is remarkable.
| IN NORTHERN CHINA,
where waterways are NOT SO numerous as in
| the south, intercommunication has always pre-
sented serious difficulties which no attempt
has been made to overcome. The large rivers
are TO be crossed by ferries only while the
smaller streams must be forded. At the ferries
| the ferry boats Intentionally constructed
with high side board so that carts cannot he
| driven on without unhitcning This gives en-
| ployment to a crowd of hangers ON in lifting
| on and of the carts for a compensation. In
time OF flood there is apt to be no way of cross
ing the streams at all. Where nature has
afforded no convenient impediment bad char
acters sometimes dig holes IN the road SO as 10
obtain employment IN helping carts through.