Daily Kennebec journal., 1905-04-07
is A CITY OF BLOOD
Mukden For 80 Centuries a Battle
Point.

Mukden into which the victorious jana
tse i,tse nosts have marched is known as
tniha Sacred City" the cradle of the
IVA M,.hehu Gnu race. which has given the pres
.,it dynasty TO the throne of China 1t is
the capital of Liaotung, one Of the three
provinces of Manchuria, and is situated
on the river Hun, about 800 miles north.
hSt oi Peklng: Without its walls lie
buried IN magnificent tombs the first en-
ptrors of the imperial line. and Within
at the heart Of the city is Il small palace
III Wnlch is said to be concealed enormous
wealth. accumulated by successive EN-
ptrorS during period of 200 years
Mukdcn is il busy, thriving CITY Of 200
W inhabitants. 1t is believed to have ex~
is'cd on It's present site 5000 years, but 1t
never attained importance until the
M;ihchu kings made it their capital in
l'". TWO hundred or more years ago it
WIS known by the name of Sinyang, the
name OF Mukden being conferred by its
aii,ncu cOnQuerOrs.
Historically, Mukden is invested with n
peculiar interest just now, for the fierce
warfare between Russia and Japan which
mas reached its climax in the capture Of
the city brings into prominence the fact
That for thousands of years the place
has been one of the worlds central bat
| tie points. The blood of tens of thou
sands of warriors has stained the plains
about Mukden and the ranges of the
Long White mountains.
Accurate data is hard to obtain con-
ctrning the early Chinese or Mongoliin
history, but 1t is known for IL certainty
that Mukdcn was Il settlement long be-
fore the birth of Christ In 300 years it
Is estimated that 100000 men nave
fought with each other for possession of
the ancient city and that a scores or
more Of the most noted battles of the
Orient have taken place in the immedi-
at" vicinity.
The city was strongly fortified accord
| ing to the standards OF old-time warfare
adopted by the Chinese. The fortitica-
| tlonS are laid in regular parallelograms,
between one and two miles each way,
the walls being built of squared stone or
brlck. thick and massive At the bottom
and taperng gradually at the top. They
are 10 feet in height. y in width, and are
protected ut the top by an S-foOt parapet.
Thick buttreescs break the mOnotony Of
the lCn@ lines of masonry at regular IN
| terValS.
Outside these walls there is a wide
moat and then come the suburbs. which
| extend for mile or more on all sides.
These again are incloscd by walls. which
are constructed of mud and are OF little
value as Qualifications. Around the city
are fertile plains, broken by two streams.
tributaries of the Lao river. which flows
PAST the city of Ncwchwang into the gulf
of l.iaOtung.
Like all the cities of Manchuria. Muk-
den is laid out on Il regular plan, resemb-
ling closely the plans of American cities.
The main street runs due north and
SOUTH and the second best street crosses
it ut right angles, wEile parallel to these
run Il series OF alleys teeIllnS WIFI an III
dustrious population. Almost all tn"
houses are one story, the better class of
them constructed OF gray brick. faced and
corniccd with slabs and tiles of the same
material. which in many instances are
beautifully carved The uniformity of
h" citys architecture tends to make
Mukden mOnotonous to the eye, but this
monOtony is relieved by the traffic and
hustle OF the city and the variety of
its shops.
Mukden is the chief market of the pro-
vince. and the center of a large diStrih
lItinC trade. All kinds of native produce
are poured into its warehouses, and for
cign manufactures are imported in large
quantities. The traveller has no difficulty
in finding the shops of dealers in Russian
cloth. Manchester goods. English cutlery
and Swiss Watches while fur shops full
of fine skins and fur. garments are found
in great numbers.