Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1891-11-11
sALT-woRks IN CHINA.
Primitive Methods Employed by the
WOrkmen.


Primitive Methods Employed by the
Workmen.
During late journey to the north
of our city traversed the district con-
tanning the salt and gas wells for which
Sz-chuan is noted, and when the in
evitable question came: do you have
such things over your foreign-side?'
one could not but overlook the implied
sarcasm, in genuine admiration of the
achievements which the Chinese have
made with, or in spite of their cum
brous, time-consuming methods. This
region of the salt wells named ''Tz-liu-
hngp the self-fowing welD is famed
throughout the empire. In a valley
some one hundred and twenty miles
northeast from Sui-fu, one comes upon
. scattered unwalled town lying upon
both banka of clear. greenish stream
said to be strongly impregnated
with salt, and literally covered
with boats- There is an air of bust
ness activity in the place that, COM
binedswith the heavy smoke lying on
all around, brought more wildly to mind
the manufacturing districts of our own
land, than any other place have seen
in China The most prominent objects
in the city are the huge clumsily-con-
structed wooden derricks reared on the
hillsidess among the houses, and, in
The houses appear to be built to accom-
modate the derrick, rather than other
wise. Every derrick means a well.
By the courtesy OF the owners we are
allowed to inspect the whole process of
obtaining and evaporating the salt.
Tho well Is . small circular opening in
to the ground. perhaps eight or ten
inches in diameter. A large stone 1T
ted with q mouth of the size of the
well covers the top, and through
the opening q bamboo cylinder,
perhaps thirty feet in length, shod
with iron at the lower end, is let down
into the well until the bamboo has
become filed with water, which is then
drawn up and emptied into an adjoin-
ing reservoir. The apparatus for low
ering and raising this cylinder is of the
crudest description. In low, straw
matched shed about twenty feet from
the well, Is a huge wooden wheel
around which is coiled the well-rope.
This rope is fastened to the bamboo
cylinder and then passed over a rude
wheel at the top of the derrick. When
all is ready the large wheel on which
the rope is coiled, is set in motion, and
gaining velocity as it turns, just whirls
around till the bamboo reaches the
bottom Of the well, and there Is no
more rope to pay ont.
Now comes the task of raising the
few gallons Of water in the bamboo.
Sometimes water buffaloes are hitched
to the wheel and the thing set in mo-
ton. Very often 4 number of men
and boys, in all conditions Of de-
cay, as to apparel, and need
as to food, are hitched up OF
the wheel, and the procession
starts. counted between twenty and
thirty boys on one wheel, but had not
heart or patience to stay till they had
hauled in the three thousand feet of
rope at the end Of which dangled per-
haps five gallons of dirty salt water.
The process is slow and expense. If
the Chinese were not SO violently clan
nish and afraid of the foreigner they
could well be taught an easier method
That Is but half the process.
is either carried away in hst-boats or
buckets on mems shoulders to the place
where it is evaporated and the salt
finally secured. There are two methods.
One in which soft coal il used, and an
other in which the heat is supplied by
natural gas, which abounds in certain
places. The gas is conveyed to the
desired spot by means of bamboo pipes
fitted together as well as the Chinese
know how, and then bound round
with braided straw. The fac
tory is roughly built shed having par
allel rows of cast iron pans beneath
which'the gas'is burning and the evapor-
alton constantly going on day and night.
For lights during the night shifts, there
are naked gas lights of sufficient guam
tity all about the place. These are
never extinguished apparently, and
judge great waste takes place because
of inability to control the gas. The
whole place, however, is noted for it's
wealth, and one may see violent con-
trasts between the rich well-fed nabobs
who ride in chairs with four men to
carry them, and pitiful, hungry crowd
OF starvelings who huddle together in
their poor quarters less cared for than
beasts that perish. Apart from the
merely natural interest attaching to
this spot, for us it had fascination far
other in its character. Crowded togeth-
or In 4 few square miles of ground are
uncounted thousands of human souls
pitiful alike in their need and ignorance.
w. M Upcraft, in Standard.