Evening star., 1898-05-28
MANCHURIA.
A Quaint Country of Exceeding Rich
ness md Great Promise.

"A
ness md Great Promise.
From the Nineteenth Century.
Away on the extremely opposite end to
ours of the great Eurasian continent is a
country to which only too. little attention
has as yet been paid. and which, on ac-
count of it's wealth. Its favorable natural
position and the Intelligence of it's inhab-
itants, will attract to itself a yearly IN
creasing notice from Europe, and play no
insignificant part in the history of the next
few decades. The recent march of events
has shown two rising powers pressing
around Manchuria and threatening to con-
test it's possession with the seemingly DOR
mant Chinese.
If Manchuria was such a wretchedly
poor country as, for instance, Khiva, Merry
and Turkestan, and others which have
fallen to the lot of the Russians, compare
lively little attention need be paid to the
progress of events in that distant quarter
of the world. It would matter but little
to other European nations whether the
Russians or Japanese did or did not take
the country. But Manchuria is not such a
desert country. 1t Is. on the contrary.
country of exceeding richness, and of
promise scarcely less than that of the
Transvaal itself, and compared to which
the whole Of central Africa, from Uganda
to Khartoum. IS of paltry insignifcance.
The timber alone in the vast virgin for
ests which clothe the hillsides over thou
sands of square miles must be worth many
millions, for this timber is of the most
valuable kind, and besides the ordinary
world, and which, being fast growing, are
easily replaced when curt down, there are
immense quantities Of hard timber-of oak
and elm and walnut-to replace which a
century is required, and the quantity Of
which in the world is rapidly diminishing
Manchuria Is equally rich in Its produc-
ton Of cereals, and In the southern portion
of such crops as indigo and tobacco.
Such being the climate, the nature Of the
country. Its soil and productions. the in
habitants, as might be expected. are a
stIong, hardy, vigorous race, and from the
glers of Manchuria have issued three sue
run the whole of China. The numbers Of
the original inhabitants have been aug
mented by streams of immigration from
China proper, and these, though slightly
less robust than the original Manchus, are
yet of good and sound physique. They
are the very reverse of impulsive-cool
calculating, provident and economical
That not even the manure from off the
ROADS Is allowed to be wasted. and the heat
of the fire required for cooking purposes
is carefully utilized by means of f1ues to
warm the whole house. Their industry
IS apparent in the care bestowed upon their
fields. In the summer they work from
dawn TIL sunset, with brief interval for
the midday meal, and In the winter they
start hours before daybreak on their long
carrying journeys. They are grave and
little given to mirth. On the whole law
abiding. amenable to control and to the
restraints Of social life; If not particularly
warm in their devotion to their children
ana to their parentsG at any rate not abso-
lutely callous, and though any active be-
.nevolence Is very apparent, there are, On
the ekher hand. few. symptoms Of active
malevolence. But the 1most important
trait to notice is their StEcng conservatism.
What was good eRougn for their fathers
the present-day inhabitants think must be
good enough for them. i1They are intelli-
gent and quick to grasp simple IDEAS but
superstfttous and ignorant of natural sua-
sion; very lacking in imagination. with
for invention. They all dress alike, and
in the same way I'm which they have
dressed for centuries past; there is no dif-
ference between o4e house and another.
and even their carts are all Of the same
pattern. The rigid hxity Of ideas Is a
corcomitant Of their strong conservative
proclivities. Theyr have, al aArule, little
regard for truth, hut In. business matters
oEce their word is given 1t may be relied
upon. Honesty is not a pronounced trait
in their characters, nor are they remarka-
BILE for morality. And these defects must,
therefore, be- set against their striking
Industry and thrift. Their religion seldom
shows ITSELF and has little effect upon
their practical conduct. It. produces IN
ttem none of that fanaticism which impels
1t imposes upon the people OF Manchuria
few OF those restrictions as to what the&
may or may not eat or do with which the
people Of India are 60 fettered.