The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-11-21

To the EInpire-The Question
Taken Up Officially.
From the Chicago Tribune
The Yhnkees must invade China;
there is no longer any doubt about it,
However, the invasion win be a peace
full one, of a commercial nature. and
involving no grab of territory This
government is determined that the
United States shall obtain a share of
the trade Of the Middle Kingdom, for
which four grCut European powers are
now contending Accordingly, the de-
partment of state is on the point Of
publishing an important and elaborate
document, taking the form of a vol
ume of 500 pages, which shows just
how this result is to be accomplished.
The book will afford interesting read
ing for every merchant and manufac-
turer, big or little, in this country.
No step will fhil to be taken, no
stone left unturned, in the competition
for a fair share of the trade of the
5OO,O0O,00O people who dwell in lands
washed by the same sea that laves the
shores of California. Oregon and Wash
ington. 1t is not merely China, Russian
Siberia, japan, Corea, Siam, FormoSa,
the Philippines, Java, Borneo and a
multitude of islands great and small
constitute a vast field which has been
termed the Pacific opportunity" All
Eastern Asia today is trembling with
the oncoming tread Of progress. nnd,
when once these uncounted hosts real
lie that old conditions of sloth and in
action must yield TO the inVaSion of
new ideas then the movement all along
the line will astonish the world. Those
countries which have prepared TO con-
troll the ASiatic trade win naturally
he nd in 10 division
while these who are laggards will be
forever relegated in the rear. Corea,
Java and the Philippines have as many
accessible inhabitants as Africa while
Siam has as numerous a population as
Australia and the lesser islands of the
Pacific.
China, nevertheless. is par excellence
the field of future American opportuni-
ty. With her $4,000. 900 people, advanc-
ing rapidly in civilization with the
growth Of a new era, she will need i'm
mense quantities of ever so many kinds
of things which we are ready to fur
nish. At present her exports are only
one-seventh of those Of France, which
has one-seventh Of Cuba's population;
but the time will yet arrive when her
products VIII be proportionate to the
number Of her inLnbitants-say, fifty
times as great for expectation as they
are now. The problem is to make her
rich by developing her resources, and
then she Will have means and willing
ness to buy fifty times as much.
LOOKING FAR AHEAD.
A century hence the Chinese empire
Will be gIidironed with American rail-
ways, drawing trains Of cars built in
United Suites factories. These trains
will carry not only pig-tailed passen-
gers, grown Indifferent to the sacrilege
OF running over the graves Of their an
cestors, but coal and iron from Chinese
mines. These mines will be controlled
mostly by American capital, and then
machinery will be of American make
There will be other mines. too, of gold
silver, lead and various other valua bic
metals and minerals deriVable from the
bowels of the earth. For. If the testi-
mony CT many American experts is
worth anything, China embraces some
of the richest and most extensive min
eral-producing regions Of the world.
Hitherto the development of Chinese
mineral resources has been studiously
discouraged and opposed by the au-
thorities. The first thing required is
permission to the people to avail them
selves freely of their untouched wealth
underground. The absurdity of the
present situation in this regard is fair
ly Illustrated by the fact that steam
boats at Ichang. 900 miles inland on
the Yangtse river, are compelled to
burn costly imported japanese coal,
although Ichang is situated on the bCr-
ders of one of the richest coal fields
in the world. The coal deposits OF that
region are so remarkable as to arrest
the attention of casual travellers. but
the government will not allDe hem
to be worked. If these mines, with the
Incidental iron ores and petroleum
springs, were permitted to be exploit
ed, there would be such a trade tlut
the available steamers and junks wou d
hardly be able to carry it all. \ gold
mining company was organized IN 1896
In this province (SZechuan) by a Chi
nantn named Tong, who studied min
Ing i'm the United States. He got the
sanction of the Viceroy to buy machin-
cry, but the people petitioned the lat
ter official TO stop the work Sample S
of gold from the mines had been shown
to the viceroy, and the petition was
not granted. SZechuan has a popula-
ton equal TO that Of FInnce and an
area about as great.
Shantung is described as one vast
mineral field, gold, silver, copper iron,
ccal and even diamonds are found
The gold mines have been worked by
California miners, but thy had to aban-
don the task. owing to the obstructive
ness Of the native officials. ten years
ago. 1t is expected that, with the ad-
vent of the locomotive in the near flu
ture, great activity will be shown in
exploiting gold, coal and other miner
ais Were this province under any 9th.
er rule. ii would be one of the creates
mining sections in the world 1t ha:
n population of 29, 600, 000-about III,
same as that of Spain. This is one o.
the northeastern provinces of China
proper, and through it runs the famous
Hoang- Ho, or Yellow river, known a.
'Ehina's Sorrow" by reason of tn,
destruction of millions of people by IL
frequent oVerfioWs. In this PROVING
China's two great sages, Confucius ant
Mencius, We're born.
IMMENSE FUTURE MARKETS.
outschang, capital of Hoppe. tn,
Chicago of China" will soon be con
nected with Pekfn by rail, the roa,
being under construction by a Belgian
syndicate. This city las 1.5oO 600 IN
habitants, and it - the central arke
for about 70,0O0,0e0 people-a population
equal 10 the of the entire United States
point like this merely illustrates tn
vastness of the possibilities of Chin.
as purchaser of American goods TIL
magnitude Of the population of tn
Oriental empire well nigh exceeds III
scope of the human mind TO realize. a
least 1--WE times that of this country
there has never been a census of tn
Central tlowery Land'-the wants O
its individual components will groS
rapidly with the development of tn
civilization which is to be forced upol
these people. who have stood still 70
thirty centuries.
Just at present there is reaction
airy movement in China, but the EN-