Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1924-08-20
tility is related by the late Prof. +.
II. King Of the Agricultural College,

H. King Of the Agricultural College,
University of Wisconsin, who travelled
in China and wrote Farmers of
Forty Centuries He told how the
Chinese had cultivated two or three
crops a year for 1000 years upon
the same land, and had increased
its fertility, instead Of depicting 1t.
But the wastage of labor! The
Chinese patience, industry and mar
rowness in their intensive cultiva-
ton and intensive manuring of the
soil are marvellous. They live by the
agricultural knowledge of thousands
of years ago-not by the advance of
recent centuries. American agricul-
ture has been revolutionized within
the last 60 years.
For generations there have been
frequent calls for relief of China, ow-
ing to floods and famines, which
disasters have seemed to the Chinese
unavoidable fate. Ten or twelve
years ago the American Red Cross
Society undertook to make a survey
of the causes and possible means of
prevention of such calamities. 1t sent
a commission of expert engineers
who made careful and scientific
study of the topography. They dis
covered that. centuries ago, a Chinese
emperor had built the Grand Canal
putt 1T not merely dug it-so that
1T crossed the Hwuie Valley upon a
nlsh earthen aqueduct, making a
dam across the entire valley, neces-
stating rivers to change their courses
hundreds of miles to reach the sea.
When floods came the Grand Canal
apueduct held them over an area of
thousands of square miles, General
deloreStation has tended to augment
Hoods and droughts.
me engineers evolved a general
plan of drainage and irrigation,
which would cost s4O,O00,O00 1t
would redeem rich river-bottom land
belonging to the government, which
couio be sold to cover the cost of the
enterprise The Chinese government
proposed to float a loan to cover the
cost. but then came the World War.
stopping the project. Since then
the political situation has made the
federal government helpless.
x X *
Fcr the relief of the fiood-and. fam
ine-stricken of 1921 an American
committee, headed by Thomas w.
Lamont, raised $6.0O0,O00. 1t then or
ganized in China prominent resident
aliens-mostly Americans-and native
Chlnese into the International COM
mission to administer the relief. This
tnacada mized roads with the labor of
the FAMINE sufferers, who were paid in
1000, not money. They built 500 miles
or good roads, suitable for automo-
pies and the law now requires all
vehicles using such roads to run an
or 10 inch tires, in place of the
Chinese narrow tires, which DESTROY
the roads. In the last three years
roads thus constructed AGGREGATE
~ a
only 1000 miles of railroads, where
she needs 100000 miles.
x x X
There is great region destitute of
water, where, in d dry season all
crops fail for lack of irrigation. In
connection with the 1921 relief nv
the American Red Cross. an engineer
discovered that a well - feet deem. s
Feet wide at the bottom and 5 feet
at the top cost $50 and supplied I'M
1alilng water enough to irrigate three
acreS-an average Chinese farm. The
American Red Cross announced that
1t would pay nalf the expense for
every such well the farmers would
put in, and it thus assisted in Great
ing $500 wells, thereby watering
100000 acres. Many more wells have
since been dug, unsubsidized.
Ihe international commission is now
permanent organization for relief.
To it the Red Cross Society has al
ready cabled 100000 to meet i'm
mediate emergencies. 1t is estimated
that S1O,O00,000 will be required, in
Guiding the cost of carrying the star
wing from the present flood through
the year until the harvest can mature.
This relief, as in the past, will not
be given in money. but in food. as
wages in making permanent improve
ments in roads, and possibly modified
plans of partial food prevention.
Copyright, 1924, by Paul V. CollnsD