Evening star., 1924-11-30

down to the little town of Woosung.
4
1T was that railroad. which Is just
l. twelve miles in length that In
troduced China to steam locomotion.
Its track was the first built in the
empire II was constructed by "a
British company in 1875 At cost OF
800. 900, and was operated only two
months. Then 1t was destroyed by
the Chinese officials. who were op-
posed to railroads because the smoke
OF the locomotives might anect the
spirits who inhabit the air.
AS the story goes. they paid
coolic one hundred dollars to allow
himself to be run over by the cars
and be killed that the money might
enrich his family. The man threw
himself In front Of the train and was
taken out mangled and dead. There
upon the mob tore up the road, and
the people decided it should be abol-
ished.
For a long time after that the rail-
way movement was dormant. but II
again sprang into life. and now China
has about seven thousand miles OF
railways open to trafiic, and many
thousand more miles are projected.
In the consular district tributary to
Shanghai there are about four hun
dred miles OF track, and within the
space OF six hours one can now go by
fast express train to q half dozen Cit
les of a half million or more people
each.
Going on, we land at the Central
Wharf. the landing place OF the Rob-
ert Dollar Company. which has many
lines of steamers acroas the Pacific
and sends its vessels more than one
thousand miles up the Yangtse, and.
in fact, clear around the world. Here
we take automobile and crossing a
bridge of concrete and steel, ride up
the Bund. This Is q wide strip of
land. 1t is laid out In parks and
roadways that border the river for
several miles, and Is backed by the
chief business structures.
The Bund is the Wall Street, the
Office section, and the commercial GEN.
ter of China. Shanghai Is the chief
ocean gateway to the great Yangtse
Kiang Valley, which feeds more than
two hundred millions Of people. 1t is
situated in one of the most densely
populated parts of the republic, and
has, it is said. forty million souls .iv-
ing within a radius of one hundred
and fifty miles. Within q few hours
by train is city population as large
as that of Chicago, including the
greater Shanghai, which is as big as
Philadelphia; Hangchow, which is
bigger than Buffalo; and Soochow, of
about the same size. Ningpo. reached
by steamer each night, Is of the same
size as Cincinnati. and the whole re-
gion is peppered with smaller towns
and villages.
The density Of Chekiang, the prov
ince adjoining, is almost astgreat per
square mile as that of Rhode Island.
1t is this population and the more
than two hundred million people
reached by the rivers that form the
fos:dation of Shanghafs financial and
commercial supremacy.
From q business and manufactur-
ing standpoint. the city is the most
important in China. and with the
railroad era which is bound to come
sooner or later It will probably. be
one of the worlds greatest cities,
vying with New York, London, Berlin
and Tokyo as to people and wealth.
WE see signs Of the increasing
w riches OF Shanghai as we ride
along the Bund. The highway Is Of
asphalt, with long lines Of automo-
biles parked In the middle, and jim
rikishas and wheeibarroks moving
along among the carriages and cars.
There is a tramway ut the back, and
along tho front near parks facing the
r;yar orA draws niled hi1h with