The Louisiana populist., 1896-11-06
Che WORLDS DIRTIESY CITY
THIS UNIQUE DISTINCTION BELONGS
TO Annoy, IN CHINA.
The Streets Are Filled With the Accumu.
lation of Many Years of Fith--Sickness
eeggars and Dogs the CitY's Predomi.
nant Features.


nant Features,
Annoy, in southeastern China, posses
sas the unique distinction of being the
dlrtiest city in the world. Though as
enc OF the "open ports it has been in
contact with European commerce and
civilization for over half a century.
Aside from the quarter where the for
eigners live, the streets reek with filth,
and the air Is heavy with stenches so
poisonous they can be endured by no
one but a Chinaman who has been
ceared among them.
The city Of Annoy is on an island of
the same maine, and possesses one of
the finest harbors along the Chinese
coast. Some 80 years ago it had a
population of over a million, but the
latest estimates obtainable say that its
inhabitants number hardly tenth of
that now. Properly speaking, here are
TWO cities, an outer and an inner. the
latter being sort of citadel, perched
upon some rocky hills and encircled
by 4 massive wall. 1t is the outer
town, which lies along and around the
harDor, at the mouth of the Lung
hlang River, which is for the most
part, the paradise of filth and disease.
The streets, in some forgotten dy-
nasty, are said TO have been paved with
granite, but the accumulation of de-
cades of filth are so deep as to leave the
statement open to doubt. The thor
oughfares of this Chinese townare even
verse from any sanitary point of view
than those of the other cities of the
empire. They are, on the average.
twelve feet in width, but their depth
Is unknowable, for during the season
Of the rains they turn to rivers of liquid
mud
In this particular part of the city the
ground is fairly level. and an attempt
was once made to conduct a system Of
drainage, but vestiges of these drains
exist.
AT almost every door stands a large
vessel, in which offal and everything
else offensive 10 the European eye and
nostrll is thrown. This is custom pre-
yaiiing in nearly every great city of
China, and for this reason natives of
Annoy looked surprised at the foreign
devil" who as he enters one of their
streets for the first time, grows pale
and sick
In dry weather the streets are deep
with fine dust, and the air is quite as
badly tainted as during the rainy sea-
son, though the quality of some of the
most characteristic smells undergoes a
slight change. 1t would not be so bad
III there was chance for the wind to
have fun sweep once in a while through
these narrow streets, but they are all
covered wholly or in part with avn
fngs, which in fair weather keep out
the sun, and in the rainy season afford
Intellectual protection against the wet.
but always prevent the air from cir
culating freely.
Another thing which makes the at
mosphere of the street retain its pollu-
lion, no matter how much of breeze
may be moving, above the low house
tops, Is the fact that the streets are
tortuous beyond description, their ir-
regularity being made to seem even
greater on account of the way the cor
ners of many of the houses project out
into the streets, making a series of
sharp turnings necessary for pedestri-
ans. Horses and carriages, of course,
are unknown, for there is hardly room
even under the best conditions. for the
long files Of people to brush past each
other.
Much has been written regarding the |
people who throng the narrow streets
Of this and other Chinese cities, but |
one thing that is especially noticeable
IS the vast number of beggars, the most
OF whom are afflicted with some sort of /
repulsiye disease. The ammoHiacal
gases and the ever present foul smells
are the cause OF many sorts of dis
figuring maladies. as well as the epi- |
denies Of fever, smallpox and other
filth-bred contagious diseases which
periodically decimate the dense popula-
ton.
Next to the people in Annoy streets
the most striking thing among living
objects is the vast number of dogs |
1Aey are all about foot high. and
two feet long, with bristling, pale, dirty
yellow or black hair, and tails that curl
up high over the back. They cannot
run very rapidly. owing to the unusual
straightncss of their hind legs, which
makes their attempts at rapid locomo-
ton seem awkward. They all have
black eyes, and all possess this striking
peculiarity-the insides of their lips,
mouths and tongues are black.
In Annoy, as in other Chinese cities.
there are regular markets where dog
meat is sold. the animals which supply
it being reared expressly for the table.
Their flesh is quite expensive. so much
so that ii is considered luxury far out
of the reach of all but those in good
circumstances. These dogs are gener-
ally sold alive, in cages. and keep up |
frightful yelping, which is acceler- |
ated when customer approaches, for |