The herald., 1898-09-18
AAiFRICA'S NEXT FIGHT IS WITnRUSSIA
THE WAR CLOUDS LOOK THREATENING IN THE
ORIENT-BRITAINS CAUSE IS OURS
The Question Whether the Vast Market OF China Is to b
Available for British and American Commerce or Are
Both to Be Shut Out at Rivals Dictates

so far as my observation, reading and
! conversations enable ms to judge, there is
no more vital interest in the preservation
of peace during The next twenty years than
Russia herself. Peace during the next
! five years is not only essential to her well
| fare, but if Russia were to risk a conflict
with any European nation, especially with
| England, the strain upon her adminis,ra-
tive services would quickly reveal 20 an
las,onished Europe the feet of clay now
obscured by the sparkle and coruscations
of a brilliant diplomat. In ,he far east.
that is, in Amour and Primorskaya, the
area on which any war with Britain or Ja-
pan would be partially fought out. there
dwells a population Of quarter of mill
lion Of Russian subjects. Provisions for
;hese people, and for the convict island Of
Saghalien. are sent all the way from odessa
through the Suez canal. The expense Of
equipping an army with its commissaiiat
and transports and sending II by SEA 10 The
far east, is a task TO which the vaun. ed
Russian power would be unequal. Even if
transport were forthcoming, and the
troops or their stores ever go; through the
Suez canal and the Red sea. nothing could
save them, for the British fleet is stronger
in fact. that it is on paper. All the mill
tary stores, commissariat and army from
the far east are drawn from Moscow.
K!eff. Petersburg, Odessa and Nikoloieff.
Until the Trans-Sibe rian railway is finished
every ounce of these endorsements must
travel by sna. If the Suez canal were
blocked the Russian armies for the far
east must pass around the Cape of Good
Hope or march 1850 miles in East Siberia.
The Russian governmemt has no financial
credit for such an enterprise az this.
Nothing but the ignorance of the popula-
tion, which the government does its ut
most TO maintain, prevents The format tion
and expression of a public opinion on the
subject. the influence of which Russian
ministers are themselves the last to deny"
Leaving the question Of Russia versus
Britain at This stage 4, is interesting to turn
to the scene Of ;he dispute When Deweys
great victory dr5w universal attention to
Martla, 1t madl= every one aware Of the
existence Of a place whose geographical
position It would have been hard. prior 10
this, for nns out Of ten people to guess.
The Yangtse vaiisy crisis has caused an.
interest to spring up regarding this part Of
China that was never felt before. Here
is the excellent description Of an agent sent
out especially to study the country and
make report:
THE Yangtse makes the valley. 1t has
done so physically in the past and is doing so
today Were ii pos sible 10 unfold in one
view the whole course Of this stream. from
the mountains and highlands of Thibet
to the sea the hundreds @ tributaries from
north and south, we should have str king
panorama. 1t might recall Tennysons
description of the work of rivers to
Bring down eonian hills and SOW the dust
of continents t. be-" For countless ages
the rich current has been deposited on the
ianks of ancient mounta!ns-many of them
row worn TO mere stumps-the level allu-
vial pla MS on which millions in modern Chi
ma live and still from generation to genera
ton laying by its ever fresh layers IF vir
gin soil to keep up an unsurpas ed fertility
The Chinese denote rivers by the syllables
no and kiang Pei-Ho and Whang-Ho
are north and yellow river respectively.
angtse-Kiang is the great angtSe riv-
~ and provinces and towns on its banks
take their name from it, like kiangsu.
Kiangsi, Ch.nkang and Kiuk!ang, Iangt-
Sc, pronounced very much as If written
angta, the final vowel being nearly
elided. is often said TO mean son of the
with poetic Celestial nomenclature; but