The evening times. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1906-1914, 1912-01-08
MONDAY. JAN. s. 1912.
OLD AND NEW CHINA.
SrhScr.utinn Nntc

In tho. Chinese language fekilg
means northern metropolis II Nan
ktng means southern metropolis. Now
that the new republic of China which
has arisen almost im~pcrc"ptlbly on
tho, ruins of all that WIS ancient and
unprosressive, has decided to make
Marking the capital of the rehorh
nation, II glance at the two cities n
what they represent in Chinese deNcl-
upment is interesting.
A look at the map of him Will
show that Picking is in the extreme
north of China. almost under the
shadow of the Great Wall, and that
Nanking is, on a north n south
line. very nearly in the middle OF
China. ON an east and west line
Nanking Is about two hundred miles
up the Yangtse river, that is 10 say,
about that distance from tho sea.
The difference is not merely geo
graphical. Picking is like one of
those castles built by the Normans-
when they entered England. from
which they slowly but surely took
possession of that country. When
tho Manchus came down from the
north they did not wish to he of Chi
I'D DuL ONcI 'ItiIli. Ih'N
planted themselves almos, at the
northern edge of their new possess
sions, and there they have remained
to III day, when politically they are
dead and only waiting for a formal
burial. During all the days of their
power they kept Picking merely as Il
residence city. They kept u OF it,
all that new commercial and indus
trial life which has come into middle
and southern China from the sea.
They so restricted the uses of their
capital that the daily bread-and-but-
ter needs of its million OF inhabitants
constituted tho main trade of the
place, and such care was taken to
keep ii separate from the real emma
that it, WAS dependent for its food
supplies upon distant provinces. 1t
was like II spiders web, with the
fibrcs running off to the south and
the west. md in the center OF this
web sat the Manchu power, pulling III
along these ~sprcad-out iibrcs ali the
products of honest toll and cducat-
ed effort that China produced. No
matter how much China grew, Peli-
ing remained unchanged; it had no
public life. no independent thought.
40 civic strength. 1t WAS merely n
place for tho transaction of official
business and n treasury for every
good thing in the money line hat
could he squeezed nut of the Chi
nese people. 400, 600. 900 strong.
Marking. on the other hand, is in
China and of China. Its civic life
is in touch with all the commercial
capitals of the s~ea-irading powers. 1t
knows what storkS and bonds are.
and it responds to the pulsations of
the great money markets of the world.
The Infinitely varied threads of the
worlds industrial life stretch into il,
and it has learned that Fundamental
maxim of genuine civilization which
requires value to be given in exchange
for the products of labor and skin.
Tt is in close neighhorhood with the
main commercial ports of China.
through whicl modern life is send
ing it's knowledge II the sense If
justice into China. 1t belongs to
southern China. where the life of tho
nation is. and not to northern China,
where tho dead calm of official form
alism still largely persists.
In a faint and distant way. and
making every allowance for tho diff
ference of social levels between the
two nations, south China may he
compared to our north about the
time of the civil war. and north China
to our south before industrialism and
comnerce touched it. oar north
Went pretty far in those days in say
ing what ought to he done and must
he done, and it is about the anne
thing today with the men OF southern
China. North China, OH the other
hand. is remotely like our old south
in holding that the existing order is
fairly satisfactory. The difference is
largely one of environment, and pos
sibly in some degree of climate. The
southern Chinese have been more or
less in touch with modern commercial
life for - forty years. whereas
the north Chjnaman is still living by
himself for himself. When large
masses of people live in this self-cnn-
tanned way they do not make head
way; they require an outside push to
give them a start.