The West Virginian. [volume] (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1914-1974, 1921-06-20
Yangtze is Wonderful
Stream in Many
Ways

William Philip simms. famous
war correspondent and writer
on international affairs Is study
ing conditions in China. He
tells here Of his observations
on a trip up the 300o-mile
Yangtze River.
BY WIN. PHILIP slMMs,
Written Expressly for the n. E. A.
ON BOARD THE '"WoosUNG"
IIYANGTZE-KIANG, China, April IS.
II the newly formed league OF the
Yangtze provinces, seven in num-
ber, really sticks, It has China ham
strung and hog tied. For whoever
controls this mans river controls
all.
Like the Mississippi, the Yangtze
flows through the heart Of the couns
try. Put half to total population Of
the United States IN the Mississippi
valley along with most OF the ma
tion's iron and coal and other natur-
al resources and some idea may be
had OF what the Yangtze means to
China.
Then too, the Yangtze is, the only
trsns.continentaI transportation sys
fem China has between east and
west unless Won connt vheelbarro;w
or sedan chairs sluns on bamboo
noles betyeen a connIe Of coolies.
The only two fairly! long lines AZ
rSilroad In the country run NORTH.
aTd soutb-Pek,ng To HanEowf and
PeldnS to Shanghai.
s'f 5000 Miles Lond
IT say. This is;,a Jolly. bit Of an:
old river, Ell, iwhat? SAID, an Eng
,lishman sas we !leaned over the
'"Woosung's'' rail- and watched the.
distant shores Of the mighty tSeam
slip by. 80
Anything wrenching from an Eng
iIshman such an outburst~ demands
explanation.
The sYahgtze is 5000 miles long.
rising on the plateau OF Tibet and
emptytng into the China sea at
Shanghai. Ocean liners 20 up to
Hankow 600 miles inland, and twin
crew steamers OF several thousand
tons during the season trade as far
as Chungking, 1900 miles up.
For hundreds OF miles after leav-
ing the sea the low-lylng shores are
but family visible from vessel in
mid-stream, while ahead and astern
the water disappears over the curve
OF the world Just as in mid-ocean.
Navigation Difficult
Two hundred miles up, at wuhu.
the Chinese warship lying at anchor
regularly swings with the tide.
The river drains an empire in It.
selt-65O,Oo0 square miles, with a
population OF 200 million. The land
Is the richest in China. All the .es-
sentials are to be found. Farm prod
ucts. food, coal, iron, gold, salt, tim
Der and other things.
Water in the Yangtze is low in
winter and high In summer. This is
caused by the snow melting in IT,
bet and along the upper reaches.
The river varies from about 40 feet
600 miles from the rivers mouth to
100 feet or even more in the gorges
and other narrows where the ter
rifle volume OF water piles up"
Navigation .at.~times is difficult
Large steamers have been caught in
uni expected swirls and sent at 22
miles IN hour into the shore-some
times perpendicular walls Of lime
stone hundreds of feet higfS
Wind Changes Channel
Tho stream "a always, tricky
v.nrt,a rt SiH n,iots have a mid Of their @
"a rSer1S and cIsI,n c theirs is % n profession
onart no N
uP on Tho ho.t ne nassenver "a a
yanr+ss r n1iot Ia has heen on the
rISos sSrca bov He "a inst bscl[
s.,ra n % SOW nn1tbs tT,n N Ameri.
80 r.Vn arS hosorel ,o, ] attsmnt3nr In tate =
shin M I'm is ",earning ali over again. !"
The channel cham gess from one vee,,
to another he says and unless u
pilot keeps on the job constantly he
is liable to drive his ship onto
newly formed sandbank.
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