Evening star., 1904-03-26

Grin province, In which are the cities or
Grin and Harbin, had a population Of
7OOO,OO also mainly engaged in agricul-
ture. These farmers, mostly Chinese had
been encouraged for years by the Chinese
imperial government. The Russians have
also enthusiastically pursued the same pol
icy, SO that the number Of agriculturists
has increased commensurately with the
growth of population during the last SIX
years. Peasants from Russia have also
been given land, but they have seemingly
made little headway, depending on the gem
erosity Of paternal government.
Wonderfully Fertile.
Every traveller through the plains coun-
try is struck with the wonderful fertility
of the soil. Winter lasts from five to six
months. There is little snow. owing to the
dry northerly winds, but the ice attains =
thickness of three and four feet. With the
breaking Of winter in April summer begins
Immediately, corn is well out Of the ground
by the last of the month. crops shoot up on
all sides, the land blossoms as the rose"
under the benencent influence of the mon.
soons, which begin in June, and force the
grasses, for example. to the height of
Russian. These grasses make excellent for
age for the herds Of cattle and the droves
of horses which are bred In great numbers
on the northern plain. The Manchurian
the kind calculated to stand hard cam
paigning.
So, Russia can scarcely be ousted from
Manchuria until she. loses Harbin. First,
she must be driven back from the Yalu
river and Port Arthur up the Liao-tung
peninsula along the line of the railroad and
ancient highway; from New-chwang, unless
she voluntarily evacuates what is really
neutral territory: from Mukden, which 10
strongly fortified and easy of defense, and
where she has base of supplies, gathered
from Russia and the plains to the north,
for her army and fleet at the peninsula's
a ho nnA
capable Of making hard resistance. Then
would come the task Of reducing Harbin
and as 1t happens to command the plain
for miles in every direction, that might be
hard task. indeed.
During all this falling back on Harbin
the Russian army would have its base OF
supplies still largely intact, while the invad-
ers would have to push over a mountainous
and by no means productive country, al
ready swept by forays Of the retreatfnR
army up to the very gates Of Grin itself.
The plain would offer great natural
difficulties except in spring. when the thaw
causes even the light two-wheeled carts
Of the farmers to sink tight and fast In
mud three or four feet deep. The intense
heat keeps the monsoons from making
great marshes of the plains, as they do
OF the low lands along the rivers.
Farmers and Brigands.
The Chinese farmers will not be likely
to cause the Russians any considerable
anxiety. Too many of them have been
made rich, according to their lights, by
the Russian occupation, and the whites
have done everything to make the agri-
culturists understand that they are friends
and their interests identical But the
khunkhuz are now putting, and will con-
tinue to put, the Russians to not a little
trouble to protect the railroads and the
bases and to gather the necessary COM
mtSSary supplies by railroad and river
The river traffic depends upon a line of
ernment and the river boat lines of the
Chinese subsidized by the Russians.
The khunkhuz, or chunchuses, are the
called them, the curse of Mapchuria. There
land, robbing farmers and villages and
sack outposts along the railroads. These
bands are made up of escaped Siberian
convicts, disappointed gold hunters. peas
ants and Cinnamon engaged in gathering
the gensing root. They are among the most
desperate cutthroats in all Asia.
They have given the Russians peace,
and the latter make relentless war on
them recent traveller in Manchuria tells
of seeing some two score freshly cut human
heads hanging from trees on the outskirts
of Hardin. He asked a Russia official
about the grewsome exhibit
"Oh," said the dignitary, "those are the
heads of a band of khunkhuz we caught
today just outside the city. We have hung
them there as a warning to all their
bretlrenl"