Evening star., 1924-08-09
KALGAN IS CENTER
OF CARAVAN TRADE
Chinese Frontier City Much
Like Border Town of Wild
West Days.

IF you lived in Kalgan,' China,
your winters wood supply would con-
sist Of several dozen carts. knock ed
to pieces for the purpose. You would
buy your wine and oil and vinegar in
baskets instead of jugs; and another
basket would replace the old oaken
bucket as a container for your drink
ing water" -.
So says q bulletin from the Wash
ington headquarters of the National
Geographic Society in regard to the
latest Chinese city to suffer from
disastrous floods. -
Gateway to Mongolia.
"Kalgan lies 125 miles northwest
of Peking, close against the Great
Wall that was to keep out the Mon
gols and other nomad enemies of
China" continues the bulletin. But
one needs only a hasty glance around
the streets after reaching Kalgan to
realize that the wall no longer full
fills it's function. for a large part of
the population of the city is made up
of Mongols. This is frontier town
of China-'the gateway to Mongolia
it is called-and the sheepSkin gar
ments of Mongol teamSters and cara
van workers tell the story, just as
the chaps of cowboys marked our
own frontier cities a few years ago.
"Kalgan has another tie with
Americas old West. 1t is the end of
the railway toward Mongolia, and to
this rail head are driven great herds
as long-horn were driven to Wichita,
Kans., and other rail points genera
tion past.
100000 Loads of Tea.
TT is as a caravan center for the
trade of Central Asia that Kalgan is
most noted, however. Before the
World War between 100000 and 200,-
600 camels were kept busy carrying
tea from Kalgan into Mongolia, large
ly for Siberia. The Siberian demand
has dwindled, but still thousands of
shaggy, bumped creatures carry their
loads of tea off to the northwest. To
kalgan are brought large quantities
of hides, leather, wool, furs and other
products OF the plains. Much of this
freight is brought in bullock carts
made in the simplest and crudest way
Having served their purpose these
carts are knocked to pieces and sold
for firewood, thus affording the cara
van owners a MOTTO to-be-neglected by
product
THE people of Kalgan capitalize
their position as the terminus of a
great caravan route. They make
harness, saddles and hemp rope for
use as traces. The oldest industry
however, is the manufacture of will
low baskets as containers for liquids
The baskets, inevitably somewhat
coarsely woven because of the mate
rails, are lined with tough. vanished
paper, and are as watertight as
though made of metal or pottery.
Automobiles Conquer Desert.
'kalgan is no longer dependent
on camels, bullocks and horses as
transportation agencies. A few years
ago an automobile line was estab-
lished across the Cobb Desert from
Kalgan to Urga, capital of Mongolia,
700 miles away, and was so success
full that other motor cars have been
added. The Cobb Desert, like the
Great American Desert. has been
found to be largely a matter of imag-
ination or at least of faulty nomen-
clature. The grass lands of the
southern Cobb almost meet the even
more luxuriant prairies of the north.
Only narrow stip is really barren.
The long projected Mongolian Rail-
way would robably extend from Kali
gan to Urga along the route the au-
tomobife mail and passenger line now
trayerSeS"