The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1894-08-24
GREAT CHINA, PIGMY JAPAN.
The Challenged Nation Many Times
Larger than the Challenger.
New York World.

DdFUtE tNdu TIC OuclituSCls
New York World.
There are many things about the war
between China and Japan which make
it more picturesque than ordinary wars.
Consider. first. the tremendous difference
in the size of the combatants. OF course,
you know that China is bigger than Japan;
and has many more people; but you
haven't fully understood how much bigger
and how much more D%oDulous it is.
The Chinese Empire occupies the entire
central portion of Eastern Asia, the big
gest of the continents, and its area varies,
according to different calculations, from o.
100000 to 1853, 564 square miles. This in
cludes all the territories over which the
"Son of Heaven" who sits in his yellow
satin robes in his palace at Pekin. has
Jurisdiction. China proper, called by its
inhabitants ChunShwoh, Middle King
DOM or Chunhwa, Central Flowery
Land" has an area variously estimated
at from 1927. 500 to 1.4S2.O91 square miles.
Exclusive of China proper, the territory
of the Chinese empire consists chiefly of
thinly inhabited regions like the great
plain of Manchooria or the tremendous
plateau of Thibet.
Nearly all the population of the Chinese
empire is crowded into China proper. The
most reliable census figures now place
this population at 400. 600, 600. There are
provinces in China which have a thousand
inhabitants TO the square mile. Belgium,
the most thicklyj inhabited portion of the
Caucasian world. has only co., and Bel
GUM is a very small country. No Chinese
province is small. Except the English and
Russian, the Chinese empire is the DiSgcSt
that has ever existed. The Roman empire
at the period Of its greatest expansion
never included more than 100000 square
miles. Neither Augustus nor any of his
successors ever ruled more than l2O,OVO,OU
people. less than one-third the number of
those who braid their pigtails nicely every
morning, and whose eyes slant up to
empire. with all the millions OF India,
falls behind China in populousness. Any
one of three or four provinces in China
has nearly as many people as there are in
all the United States. All the empires.
Kingdoms and republics of Europe COM
bined barely ecual China in population.
If all the people OF China passed before
you in line and you began when you were
born and lived to be a hundred years old.
you couldn't count them all. All the peo-
pie Of England or France could be stuck
away in a corner of China, and unless you
were of an inouiring disposition you would
not know they were there. II the inhab-
itants of China were standing up in line,
shoulder 70 shoulder. the line would reach
around the world four times. Besides be-
ing very numerous, the Chinese are ViSor-
Gus physically. Some of the biggest men of
the world grow in northern China. Chang.
the Chinarnan, was the greatest giant of
modern times.
The resources of China in other things as
cry variey of climate, and therefore every
variety of agricultural products. Its limits
run from orange groves to ice fields. China
has ell sorts of metals. Its river system
is rivaled only by that of the United States.
The Yank-tse-Kiang and the Hoang-Ho be
long in the same class with the Mississippi
and the Missouri. In addition, il has many
big lakes and high mountains. China, more
than any other country. is a world IN Itself
in resources as well as character. The old
Greeks called all who were not Greeks bar
barians." Similarly, the Chinese term bar
barians'' all who are not Chinese. The Chi
nese believe that the. world of light ends
at the borders of China. The Chinaman
may dwell for a period in outer darkness
in order to gather in the coin of the bar
barian. whom he despises. but always he
expects to go back TO China; If not in life.
al least that his ashes or his bones viii
reach the blessed land. The Chinese nation
is a human maSs-immenSe, tenacious, pa
tent and self-sufficient
and pestilences are on a scale commensu-
rate with the population. The greatest
Gonque asb,i in the fb history Try OF Pbe the Ta4 ngma f6lI EaSe
erS of Genghis Khan and Tamerlane. China
infiamed the imagination of Napo.eon Bona
parte.. After Toulon and before Montenotte
he asked permission of the French Dfrec-
tory to accept an officers commission in
the Turkish service: He had his eye on
culinary glory of Genghis Khan and Tanner
lane. He said to a friend: The East is
the only theater of mighty events. y man
can win glory there" But the permission
was refused. China escaped him. Europe
China has had an incalculable influence
upon the history of western Europe and
Huns and the Turks from her borders.
They wandered across Asia in great mi
gratory bands increasing in numbers as
man empire. totally DESTROYED the Byzan-
tine empire and made such a change in
European history that ii is felt to this day.
The situation and character of every reader
OF the World have been Influenced by that
in poottQO GftnaO Or QtChtppr, hundred yea re
ago. All ~schooiboys have heard of the
Great Wall and the Grand Canal of China.
Those are two things about China that
we never forget. The canal is so long and
so large that people get into the habit of
numbering it among the great rivers of
The Great Wall is mans most gigantic
work. 1t was quilt to keep out the Tar
tars more than two thousand years ago.
1t is cf immense height and thickness, and
is 1.5G0 miles long. 1t is said that an army
of 4OO.COO men was sent against the Tar
tars. and after defeating them was en-
plov1d for many years in building this
wall. The Great Wall OF China is one of
the few things no museum manager has
tried TO get for his show; Thus China, even
more than Egypt. is the Sphinx but not
the Niobe of nations.
Now. look at Japan. China's pigmy an
tagonistl The area OF all Japan is only
lE.c0 square miles, or exactly three times
that OF the State of New York. It's popu-
latiOn. by the census OF 1890, was 40,0T2. 6S4.
or less than one-tenth that Of China. This
disI ro0Cr.iOn makes the war between chi
IA anu Japan Vastly AiLNAcSttl5. -NBI must
II be forgotten that the war is likely to
make a great increase in our knowledge
OF that hidden country, China What We
know the least about in this country is the
Chinese baby. Here are facts about him:
Nearly all Chinesa babies are blondes. All
rown-up Clinamen and Chinese women
are decided brunCttes. Nevertheless the
babies are blondes 1t is a freak for which
nobody can account. Th2 average Chinese
baby has a transparent rose and white
skin. large eyes. varying from gray and
light hazel TO brown, and soft, silky hair
thai is usually auburn IN color: In North
green eyes and light red hair. During the
| Infancy OF her child the Chinese mother
is supreme In the household. II John clat-
tiers about the house too much and dlsturbs
the baby woe TO his piGtall II bis wife can
| get her hands on It