Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1899-05-11
TO GRIDIR0N CHINA
Railway Lines to Be Built Through
out the Empire.
IMPORTANT AMERICAN CONCESSIONS
Enormous Cost of the Prospective
Enterprises.
TO BECOME GOVERNMENTAL

TO BECOME GOVERN ENTAL
Railways present and prospective IN
| China form an Interesting chapter in the
| publication just issued by the treasury bu-
| reau of statistics, entitled Commercial
| China in 1899" With 6.0OO miles of water
| ways now open to navigation by steam YES
| sells of all nations, with 5000 miles of tele-
| graph now in daily use, with over 800 miles
| of railway in operation and over 5000
| miles projected, the details of the proposed
| network of railway lines to connect the
| great waterways and cities of this densely
| populated empire are interesting.
China's first railroad was opened in 1876
| between Shanghai the New York of China,
| and Wusung, fourteen miles distant, lying
more directly upon the seacoast
| tuary of the Yangtze, with which Shanghai
| is connected by the Wusng river. Its ex
| istence, however, was very brief, for
| tive prejudice and superstition were so
| strong that the local authorities bought up
the line, which had been constructed by
| British enterprise, tore up the rails and
| abandoned it. Five years later an English
| engineer who had been placed in charge
| of some coal mines near Tientsin, found in
| existence tramway, over which coal was
| transported On cars puS0eu by CnllleSt
| workmen, and, gradually extending it north
| and south, finally placed a steam engine
| upon ii for use in transporting COAL and
| Chinese prejudice, after finding that the
use OF the engines did not bring the dis
| aster anticipated gave way and the road
way developed into one for general traffic,
and extended little by little until it reached
| Tientsin, at the south and the treaty port
| of Shan-haf-Kwan on the north, and, prov
| Ing successful and popular, further
extended from Tientsin to within a short
distance of Pekin, with which it was con-
nected by an electric road, the entire syS-
| tenn proving SO popular that it soon be-
| came necessary to enlarge its facilities, it's
patronage being gathered from native as
| well as foreign interests and individuals.
| From Pekin II has been extended south
| westwardly to Paoting, and thence is ex-
pected to penetrate the important coal and
| iron regions lying within easy reach.
| This comparatively short system of $50
| miles, connecting the capital of the empire
! with two of the important treaty ports on
| the coast and with Paotng, the capital of
| the province in the interior, is the germ
| from which has sprung a prospective rail-
| way system of more than ten times its
| present length.
| Prospective Railway Enterprise.
| In this prospective railway enterprise all
| the great nations, at least representa-
| ives OF all the great nations, are inter
| ested. Starting from Manchuria the ex-
| IRENE northeasterly dependency of China,
| Is projected Russian line to connect with
| the great Russian transsiberian railway,
| now nearing completion, and which will
| bring Its great traffic to the ice-free ports
| of Port Arthur and Talienwan on the gulf
| Of PechiIi.
| To this proposed Russian line the Chinese
government has already given assent and
work upon it is in progress the men and
| property utilized in its construction being
guarded by Russian troops, thus bringing
| into northern China a Russian influence
| and military force which have led the map
| makers and students of the great affairs of
| nations to already shade, whether Justly
or unJustly, that portion of the map of
| China as Russian sphere of influence"
| This Russian line passes near to the i'm
| portant treaty port Of Newchwang where
American and British commerce is already
| well established, and in order to minimize
| the danger to this commerce by the prox-
| Unity OF the Russian line and Russian in
| terests Brltlsh capital has arranged for the
construction of road from Shan-hai-
| hWan, already touched by a completed line
| from Pekin to Tientsin, to NeWchWang
! thus giving ready railway communication
with the capital, the great port of Tientsin,
| and thence toward the YangtZe valley
| where the British have arranged with
| China that there shall at least be no con-
| cesslons in favor of any other government
| and which valley is thus by some, though
! WIN douptful propr1ety, termed British
| sphere of influence"
| The important territory lying between
Pekin and Tientsin at the north and +ba
| great Yangtze valley in central China is AL
| ready checkerboard of proposed railway
| lines. One of these runs from TientsIn
| enthusiastically to Shanghai at a distance
| or from 100 to $50 miles from the coast fol-
| oWihg the general course of the Grand
| canal. but at considerable distances from
, IL al places, and having a length of prob
| ably 700 miles.
small portion of this from Shanghai
northWard Is British concession but as
part OF the proposed line extends through
| the province of Shantung, in which the Ger
| mans claim railway and mining rights nm
| der their Kiaochau concession British and
| German capital has combined for the CON
| struction of the large proportion of the
| road. At two points midway 1t Is tapped
! by purely German lines which run east
| Wardly TO the German possession and port
| OF kiaochau penetrating important coal
and iron regions, the population of the
province through which they extend Shan
| tung, being more than SO coo GOO
| Lying west of the British-German line
| which connects Shanghai with Tientsin and
| Pekin, and from 200 to 400 miles distant, is
| another important line which is to connect
| Pekin with HankoW, the most important
| interior city of China. Hankow is on the
| 1angtze river, at the head of what NAV
| be termed deep water navigation, being
| reached by large seaworthy steamers that
| bring 1t into direct water communication
| with Shanghai and all the other great
line which connects this great business
| center of nearly 100000 people with the
| capital of the empire, and at the same time
passes through an important agricultural
and mining section having population of
1OO.OOO,OOO, can scarcely be overrated. This
1 prOpOSed line. about $50 miles long is in