Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1908-07-14
DIR. EDWORDS in CHINA.
POOR OPINION OF CHINESE SU
PERSTITloNS AND CUSTOMS.
WONDERFUL RIVERS.

Shanghai, China, Feb. 25.--When ]
left Manila some two weeks ago ]
looked forward to my visit to China
with more than ordinary interest
Here is the beginning of all things
Oriental, SO far as manners, customs
and religions are concerned. Here is
the strange people. standing constant
ly as menace to Causacian civiliza
ton, and as sailed up the Yellow
river to where the vessels turned into
the Shanghai river, could not helr
likening this yellow contamination Of
the beautiful blue of the ocean water
to what may possibly happen. should
the vast horde of inhabitants of China
ever be turned toward Europe or
America.
We sailed in the yellow sea, and the
waters were still as blue as the ocean
for we were yet one hundred and
forty miles from the coast of China
within one hundred miles Of the
mouth of the Yengtse river. "a few
miles further, however, the sea be
came a deep yellow, and the water
Opaque from the contamination of tn
detritus brought down by the great
river which flows through China fol-
more than a thousand miles. In my
boyhood had speculated on the mys
teries of China, as / pored over my
map at school, and thought I had
some idea of what all this meant, but
as we sailed out of the blue into tbs
yellow, I received an object lessor
that was more forceful than all thu
information gained through books.
The Yangtse river itself is a won
derful stream, and while we were sey
eral miles within its mouth we wer
unable to see either side, and i
seemed as if we were still away GU
in the ocean. The river here is fort.
| miles, and in order that you may OF
tain some idea of what it is, nee,
but tell you that for eight hundre
miles it is deep enough to permit Il
passage of the greatest battleship.
As We approached the shore I wa
surprised at the apparently barre
condition of the country. For mile
on either side Of the river the Ian
stretched away with no sign of b,
man habitation, although I was tol
that this soil is the most fertile III a
China. Covering the land were Ii
Vulnerable mounds OF varying heighti
/ and I supposed them to be relics /
ancient peoples, something like thos
/ who built the mounds in Ohio but
learned that these mounds are til
tombs of departed Chinese, and whic
ancient custom forbids ever bein
disturbed. Here was my first lessc
4 regarding the reason for the arrest
| the development Of the Chinese rae
i Superstition precluded the use Of til
! fertile land, and also precluded roas
4 or telegraph lines being built aero
/ the country Chinese superstitie
/ will not permit of a shadow OF al
kind being cast upon the tomb Of i
ancestor.
4 One would imagine that this vene
Il Z :. : -. 4 s J.
4 alton would lead them to take 8
. ceptional care Of the graves, but sue
is not the case. In Japan sa
graves several hundred years o
4 which looked as fresh with fiowei
y and decorative, offerings as If the
4 had been recently made. In Chin
4 however, it is entirely different. Whs
the grave Is filed 1t is abandoned ali
no care given TO IT at all. The on
protection Is that given by suDersi
ton, and this accounts for the aba,
4 donment Of the best hand in the Ell
pire, and also for the lack of progrel
I in the way Of road building and d
Telopment China is notorious Il
III tf1 hal iroads ond ,ye,,,o Il 49, s.. II