Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1913-06-13

other Asiatc nations, very little pro-
gress has been made since that time.
Several explanations for this condition
are given. The Chinese, though pa
tient and painstaking workers, are not
inherently inventive, and 1t has fur
ther been the policy of the ruling
power during the modern era to iso-
late China and to discourage advances
on the part of foreign nations seeking
commercial relations, Another him
drance has been the custom Of aIices-
tor worship, the reverence for old GUS
toms and habits, and 80 a horror of
all innovations. 1t speaks well for
the Standard OIL company that kero-
sene oil is the only well-known pro-
duct Of foreign origin In the country.
AS early as the seventeenth century
A. D., the Chinese manufactured pa
per and printed in a crude sort OF
way. The baking Of porcelain and the
weaving of silk. some processes con-
nected with which have never been
improved upon, antedate records. One
of the wonders Of the world and re-
markable feat of engineering, the great
wall of China, was built in the third
century B., c., as protection against
the raids Of the Tartars. 1t stretches
for nearly $500 miles along the north
ern border Of China proper, often
reaching height Of 80 feet. and sup
ported by frequent garrison towers,
and was so thoroughly constructed
that portions of It today remain in
good condition.
Intensive agriculture and horticul-
ture and the processes Of irrigation
and fertilizing have been highly devel-
oped; in China proper, in the valleys
of the Yang-tse and the Hoang-Ho,
water is pumped to the very hill tops,
1000 to 5000 feet above sea level, and
two or three crops year are harvest
ed.
These valleys support a denser pop
ulation than any similar area in the
world. II all the people in the United
States and 40,o00.ooo more were all
crowded into the state Of Texas the
population would be no denser than
It is in southern China The Yang -tse
is one OF the principal thoroughfares
Of China and is navigable for nearly
| 1000 miles, but the Hoang-H Ho is shall
| low and frequently overfows its low
banks. In the last $500 years 1t has
changed its course eleven times, and
the different channels 1t has occupied
are hundred miles apart. The great
loss Of life-on one occasion reaching
| !, 900, ,000-and the damage to property
resulting from the floods accompany
ing these changes have, given to the
river the name of "China's sorrow"
The natural water ways, supple
mented by the Grand canal, which is
l,200 years old, furnish elaborate
means Of inter communication, and the
tonnage Of China's inland commerce
Is estimated larger than the combin-
ed tonnage Of all the rest Of the world.
The boats and methods Of handling
the cargoes, however, are antiquated,
and steam is barely known. In all oc-
equations the great motive power for
the 450,000,000 is manual labor. Cool
les, or porters,. the laborings class,
earn seven cents day. Oxen and
mules are used to some extent at the
irrigation pumps and in packing. Cat
tie and sheep cannot be raised, for
there is no ground that can be spared
for pastures, There are no roads, only
foot paths, and In some parts Of Chi
! ma passengers are transported over
land by wheelbarrow. ~ -
The great Industries outside Of the
production of food for home consump-
tion, are the raising Of tea and silk
worns and the mulberry trees for the
worms tt, feed upon. While few agri-
cultural possibilities are now undevel-
oped, that is, land possibilities, for the
tools end methods are utterly crude,
the mineral resources have barely
been touched. The coal fields, the
largest in the world, alone represent
incalculable wealth, and many other
minerals are found In commercial
quantities. Whenever China does per-
NIT the invasion of foreign capital
and enterprise there will be a revolu-
ton in the commerce Of the world
Chicago Record-Herald. ~ rg
Il