In Xanadu did Kubla KhanA stately pleasure-dome decree:Where Alph, the sacred river, ranThrough caverns measureless to manDown to a sunless sea.So twice five miles of fertile groundWith walls and towers were girdled round—than by Marco Polo’s relation, which moved the poet to pen the lines. It was planned as Mukden now is, an outer and inner wall inclosing separate peoples, and its tumuli will probably furnish many tablets and relics of the Mongol emperors, whencarefully dug over. It was too far from Peking for the Manchu monarchs to rebuild, and the Ming emperors had no power there. It was visited in 1872 by Messrs. Grosvenor and Bushell of the British Legation; Dr. Bushell’s description corroborates Polo’s account and Gerbillon’s later notices of its size.[40]There are several lakes, the largest of which, the Peh hu, in the south-western part, connects with the Pei ho through the river Hü-to. The various branches of the five rivers, whose united waters disembogue at Ta-ku, afford a precarious water communication through the southern half of Chihlí. Their headwaters rise in Shansí and beyond the Great Wall, bringing down much silt, which their lower currents only partially take out into the gulf; this sediment soon destroys the usefulness of the channels by raising them dangerously near the level of the banks. The utilization of their streams is a difficult problem in civil engineering, not only here but throughout the Great Plain.Near the banks of the Lan ho, a large stream flowing south from the eastern slopes of the Chahar Hills, past Yungping fu into the gulf, and about one hundred and seventy-four miles north of Ta-ku, lies Chingpeh, or Jeh-ho, the Emperor’s country palace. The approach to it is through a pass cut out of the rock, and resembles that leading to Damascus. The imperial grounds are embraced by a high range of hills forming a grand amphitheatre, which at this point is extremely fine. This descent to the city presents new and captivating views at every turn of the road. The hunting grounds are inclosed by a high wall stretching twenty miles over the hills, and stocked with deer, elks, and other game. The Buddhist temples form the chief attraction to a visitor. The largest one is square and castellated, eleven stories high, and about two hundred feet on each of its sides; the stories are painted red, yellow and green alternating. There are several similar but smaller structures below this one, and on each of the first two or three series is a row of small chinaware pagodas of a blue color; their tiles arelikewise blue. In the bright sunlight the effect of these brilliant bands is very good, and the general neatness adds to the pleasing result of the gay coloring. Nearly a thousand lamas live about these shrines. The town of Jeh-ho (i.e., Hot River) consists mostly of one street coiling around the hills near the palace; its inhabitants are of a higher grade than usual in Chinese cities, the greater part being connected with the government. The road through Ku-peh kau in the Great Wall from Peking to Jeh-ho is one of the best in the province, and the journey presents a variety of charming scenery; its chief interest to foreigners is connected with the visit there of Lord Macartney, in 1793.[41]This fertile prefecture is rapidly settling by Chinese, whose numbers are now not far from two millions.The principal productions of Chihlí are millet and wheat, sorghum, maize, oats, and many kinds of pulse and fruits, among which are pears, dried and fresh dates (Rhamnus), apples and grapes; all these are exported. Coal, both bituminous and anthracite, exists in great abundance; one mode of using hard coal is to mix its dust with powdered clay and work them into balls and cakes for cooking and fuel. The province also furnishes good marble, granite, lime, and iron, some kinds of precious stones, and clay for bricks and pottery.SHANTUNG PROVINCE.The province ofShantung(i.e., East of the Hills) has a long coast-line, its maritime border being more than half its whole circuit. It lies south of the Gulf of Pechele, south-east of Chihlí, north of Kiangsu, and borders on Honan, where the Yellow River divides the two. Most of its area is level, the hilly part is the peninsula portion, where the highest points rise too high to admit of cultivation. The Grand Canal enters the province on its course from Tientsin at Lintsing chau in the north-west, passing in a south-easterly direction to the old Yellow River, and adds greatly to its importance. The shores of the promontory are generally bold, and full of indentations, presenting several excellent harbors; no important river disembogues within the province, and on each side of the peninsulathe waters are shallow. Chifu, in the prefecture of Tăngchau, has the best harbor, and its trade will gradually draw toward it a large population. The hills along the shore have a remarkably uniform, conical shape, resembling the bonnets worn by officers. The hilly regions are arranged in a series of chains running across the promontory, the longest and highest of which runs with the general trend of the coast in Tai-ngan fu, some peaks reaching over five thousand feet, but most of them being under three thousand feet high. Their intervales are highly cultivated. The soil is generally productive, except near the shores of the gulf, where it is nitrous. Two crops are annually produced here as elsewhere in Northern China. The willow, aspen, ailantus, locust (Sophora), oak, mulberry, and conifera, are common trees; silk-worms fed on oak leaves furnish silk.This province is one of the most celebrated in Chinese history, partly from its having been the scene of many remarkable events in the early history of the people up toB.C.200, but more particularly from its containing the birthplaces of Confucius and Mencius, whose fame has gone over the earth. The inhabitants of the province are proud of their nativity on this score, much as the woman of Samaria was because Jacob’s cattle had drunk water at the well of Sychar.TAI SHAN, THE ‘GREAT MOUNT.’The high mountain called Tai shan, or ‘Great mount,’ is situated near Tai-ngan fu in this province. This peak is mentioned in theShu Kingas that where Shun sacrificed to Heaven (B.C.2254); it is accordingly celebrated for its historical as well as religious associations. It towers high above all other peaks in the range, as if keeping solitary watch over the country round-about, and is the great rendezvous of devotees; every sect has there its temples and idols, scattered up and down its sides, in which priests chant their prayers, and practise a thousand superstitions to attract pilgrims to their shrines. During the spring, the roads leading to the Tai shan are obstructed with long caravans of people coming to accomplish their vows, to supplicate the deities for health or riches, or to solicit the joys of heaven in exchange for the woes of earth. A French missionary mentions having met with pilgrims going to it, one partyof whom consisted of old dames, who had with infinite fatigue and discomfort come from the south of Honan, about three hundred miles, to “remind their god of the long abstinence from flesh and fish they had observed during the course of their lives, and solicit, as a recompense, a happy transmigration for their souls.” The youngest of this party was 78, and the oldest 90 years.[42]Another traveller says that the pilgrims resort there during the spring, when there are fairs to attract them; high and low, official and commoner, men and women, old and young, all sorts gather to worship and traffic. A great temple lies outside the town, whose grounds furnish a large and secure area for the tents where the devotees amuse themselves, after they have finished their devotions. The road to the summit is about five miles, well paved and furnished with rest-houses, tea-stalls, and stairways for the convenience of the pilgrims, and shaded with cypresses. It is beset with beggars, men and women with all kinds of sores and diseases, crippled and injured, besieging travellers with cries and self-imposed sufferings, frequently lying across the path so as to be stepped upon. A vast number of them live on alms thus collected, and have scooped themselves holes in the side of the way, where they live; their numbers indicate the great crowds whose offerings support such a wretched throng on the hill.CITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SHANTUNG.The capital of the province is Tsínan, a well-built city of about 100,000 inhabitants. It was an important town in ancient times as the capital of Tsí, one of the influential feudal States, fromB.C.1100 to its conquest by Chí Hwangtí about 230; the present town lies not far east of the Ta-tsing ho, or new Yellow River, and is accessible by small steamers from sea. It has hills around it, and is protected by three lines of defence, composed of mud, granite, and brick. Three copious springs near the western gate furnish pure water, which is tepid and so abundant as to fill the city moat and form a lake for the solace of the citizens whether in boats upon its bosom or from temples around its shores. Its manufactures are strong fabrics of wild silk, and ornaments ofliu-lí, a vitreous substance like strass, ofwhich snuff-bottles, bangles, cups, etc., are made in great variety, to resemble serpentine, jade, ice, and other things. East of Tsínan is the prefect city of Tsíning chau, once the provincial capital, and the centre of a populous and fertile region. Tsíning chau is an opulent and flourishing place, judging from the gilded and carved shops, temples, and public offices in the suburbs, which stretch along the eastern banks of the Canal; just beyond the town, the Canal is only a little raised above the level of the extensive marshes on each side, and further south the swamps increase rapidly: when Amherst’s embassy passed, the whole country, as far as the eye could reach, displayed the effects of a most extensive recent inundation. Davis adds, “The waters were on a level with those of the Canal, and there was no need of dams, which were themselves nearly under water, and sluices for discharging the superfluous water were occasionally observed. Clumps of large trees, cottages, and towers, were to be seen on all sides, half under water, and deserted by the inhabitants; the number of the latter led to the inference that they were provided as places of refuge in case of inundation, which must be here very frequent. Wretched villages occurred frequently on the right-hand bank, along which the tracking path was in some places so completely undermined as to give way at every step, obliging them to lay down hurdles of reeds to afford a passage.”[43]Lin-tsing chau, on the Yu ho, at its junction with the Canal, lies in the midst of a beautiful country, full of gardens and cultivated grounds, interspersed with buildings. This place is the dépôt for produce brought on the Canal, and a rendezvous for large fleets of boats and barges. Near it is a pagoda in good repair, about 150 feet high, the basement of which is built of granite, and the other stories of glazed bricks.The towns and villages of Shantung have been much visited during the past few years, and their inhabitants have become better acquainted with foreigners, with whom increased intercourse has developed its good and bad results. The productions of this fertile province comprise every kind of grain and vegetable found in Northern China, and its trade by sea and along the Canal opens many outlets for enterprising capital. Among its mineral productions are gold, copper, asbestos, galena, antimony, silver, sulphur, fine agates, and saltpetre; the first occurs in the beds of streams. All these yield in real importance, however, to the coal and iron, which are abundant, and have been worked for ages. Its manufactures supply the common clothing and utensils of its people; silk fabrics, straw braid woven from a kind of wheat, glass, cheap earthenware, and rugs of every pattern.Mr. Stevens, an American missionary who visited Wei-hai wei and Chifu in 1837, gives a description of the people, which is still applicable to most parts of the province: “These poor people know nothing, from youth to old age, but the same monotonous round of toil for a subsistence, and never see, never hear anything of the world around them. Improvements in the useful arts and sciences, and an increase of the conveniences of life, are never known among them. In the place where their fathers lived and died, do they live, and toil, and die, to be succeeded by another generation in the same manner. Few of the comforts of life can be found among them; their houses consisted in general of granite and thatched roofs, but neither table, chair, nor floor, nor any article of furniture could be seen in the houses of the poorest. Every man had his pipe, and tea was in most dwellings. They were industriously engaged, some in ploughing, others in reaping, some carrying out manure, and others bringing home produce; numbers were collected on the thrashing-floors, winnowing, sifting and packing wheat, rice, millet, peas, and in drying maize, all with the greatest diligence. Here, too, were their teams for ploughing, yoked together in all possible ludicrous combinations; sometimes a cow and an ass; or a cow, an ox and an ass; or a cow and two asses; or four asses; and all yoked abreast. All the women had small feet, and wore a pale and sallow aspect, and their miserable, squalid appearance excited an indelible feeling of compassion for their helpless lot. They were not always shy, but were generally ill-clad and ugly, apparently laboring in the fields like the men. But on several occasions, young ladiesclothed in gay silks and satins, riding astride upon bags on donkeys, were seen. No prospect of melioration for either men or women appears but in the liberalizing and happy influences of Christianity.”[44]NATURAL FEATURES OF SHANSÍ.The province ofShansí(i.e., West of the Hills) lies between Chihlí and Shensí, and north of Honan; the Yellow River bounds it on the west and partly on the south, and the Great Wall forms most of the northern frontier. It measures 55,268 square miles, nearly the same as England and Wales, or the State of Illinois. This province is the original seat of the Chinese people; and many of the places mentioned and the scenes recorded in their ancient annals occurred within its borders. Its rugged surface presents a striking contrast to the level tracts in Chihlí and Shantung. The southern portion of Shansí, including the region down to the Yellow River, in all an area of 30,000 square miles, presents a geological formation of great simplicity from Hwai king as far north as Ping ting. The plain around the first-named city is bounded on the north by a steep, castellated range of hills which varies from 1,000 to 1,500 feet in height; it has few roads or streams crossing it. On reaching the top, an undulating table-land stretches northward, varying from 2,500 to 3,000 feet above the Plain, consisting of coal formation, above the limestone of the lower steep hills. About forty miles from those hills, there is a second rise like the first, up which the road takes one to another plateau, nearly 6,000 feet above the sea. This plateau is built up of later rocks, sandstones, shales, and conglomerates of green, red, yellow, lilac, and brown colors, and is deeply eroded by branches of the Tsin River, which finally flow into the Yellow River. This plateau has its north-west border in the Wu ling pass, beyond which begins the descent to the basin of the Făn River. That basin is traversed near its eastern side by the Hoh shan nearly to Taiyuen; its peaks rise to 8,000 feet in some places; the rocks are granite and divide the coal measures, anthracite lying on its eastern side and bituminous on the west, as far as the YellowRiver, and north as far as Ta-tung. On top of both plateaus is spread the loess deposit, varying in depth from ten to five hundred feet, and deeply gullied by water-courses in every direction, which expose coal and iron mines.On the eastern side of Shansí the rocks are made up of ancient formations or deposits of the Silurian age, presenting a series of peaks, passes and ranges that render travel very difficult down to the Plain. By these outlying ranges the province is isolated from Chihlí, as no useful water communication exists. This coal and iron formation is probably the largest in the world, and when railroads open it up to easy access it can be readily worked along the water-courses. The northern part of the province is drained through the rivers ending at Tientsin. This elevated region cannot be artificially irrigated, and when the rainfall is too small or too late, the people suffer from famine. The northern and southern prefectures exhibit great diversity in their animal, mineral, and vegetable productions. Some of the favorite imperial hunting-grounds are in the north; from the coal, iron, cinnabar, copper, marble, lapis-lazuli, jasper, salt, and other minerals which it affords, the inhabitants gain much of their wealth. The principal grains are wheat and millet, a large variety of vegetables and fruits, such as persimmons, pears, dates and grapes. The rivers are not large, and almost every one of them is a tributary of the Yellow River. The Făn ho, about 300 miles long, is the most important, and empties into it near the south-western corner of the province, after draining the central section. East of this stream, as far as the headwaters of those rivers flowing into Chihlí, extends an undulating table-land, having a general altitude of 3,000 feet above the Plain. South of it runs the river Kiang, also an affluent of the Yellow River, and near this, in Kiai chau, is a remarkable deposit of salt in a shallow lake (18 miles long and 3 broad), which is surrounded by a high wall. The salt is evaporated in the sun under government direction, the product bringing in a large revenue; the adjacent town of Lung-tsüen, containing 80,000 inhabitants, is devoted to the business. Salt has been obtained from this region for two thousand years; the water in some of the springs is only brackish, and used in culinary operations. There are two smaller lakes nearer the Yellow River.The iron obtained in the lower plateau, in the south-east near Tsih chau, is from clay iron-ore and spathic ore with hematite, which occurs in limestone strata at the bottom of the coal formations. It is extracted in a rude manner, but the produce is equal to any iron in the world, while its price is only about two cents a pound. The working and transportation of coal and iron employ myriads of people, though they are miserably paid. The province barely supplies its own cotton, but woollen garments and sheepskins are produced to make up the demand for clothing.Taiyuen fu, the capital, lies on the northern border of a fertile plain, 3,000 feet above the sea level; this plain extends about 2,000 square miles, and owes its existence to the gradual filling up of a lake there, the waters having cut their way out, and left the river Făn to drain the surplus. Across the Ho shan range lies another basin of equal fertility and mineral wealth, in Ping-ting chau, where coal, iron, clay and stone exist in unlimited quantities. In the northern part of this province the Buddhist temples at Wu-tai shan in Tai chau draw vast crowds of votaries to their shrines. The hills in which they are built rise prominently above the range, and each celebrated locality is memorialized by its own particular divinity, and the buildings where he is worshipped. The presence of a living Buddha, orGegen, here attracts thousands of Mongols from the north to adore him; their toilsome journey adding to the worth of the visit. Most of the lamas are from the north and west. The region north of this seems to be gradually losing its fertility, owing to the sand which is drifted by north winds from the Ortous steppes; and as all the hills are bare of trees, the whole of Shansí seems destined to increasing poverty and barrenness. Its inhabitants are shrewd, enterprising traders as well as frugal agriculturists; many of the bankers in the Empire are from its cities.MOUNTAIN PASSES IN SHANSÍ.The great roads from Peking to the south-west and west pass through all the chief towns of this province, and when new probably equalled in engineering and construction anything ofthe kind ever built by the Romans. The stones with which they are paved average 15 inches in thickness. Few regions can exceed in natural difficulties some of the passes over the loess-covered tracts of this province, where the road must wind through miles of narrow cuts in the light and tenacious soil, to emerge before a landscape such as that seen in the illustration.[45]View over the Loess-clefts from the Han-sing ling Pass, Shansí. From Richthofen.THE PROVINCE OF HONAN.The province ofHonan(i.e., South of the River) comprises some of the most fertile parts of the Plain, and, on account of its abundance and central position, early received the name ofChung Hwa Tí, or the ‘Middle Flowery Land,’ afterwards enlarged intoChung Kwoh, or ‘Middle Kingdom.’ Its form is an irregular triangle, and its size nearly the same as Shantung; it has Shansí and Chihlí on the north, Nganhwui on the south-east, Hupeh on the south and south-west, and Shensí on the west, bordering also on Shantung and Kiangsu. This area is divided into three basins, that of the Yellow River in the north, of the Hwai River on the south, and the Han River on the south-west; the last two are separated by a marked range of mountains, the Fuh-niu shan, which is regarded as the eastern terminus of the Kwănlun Mountains; it is about 300 miles long, and its eastern end is near Jü-ning fu. This range maintains an elevation of 4,000 to 6,000 feet, and is crossed at Nanchau, where a remarkable natural pass about 30 miles long, rising to 1,200 or 1,500 feet, affords the needed facilities for trade and travel between the central and northern provinces. The Peh and Tan rivers drain its southern slopes into the Han, and the eastern sides are abundantly watered by the numerous branches of the Hwai River as they flow into Hungtsih Lake. The northern portion of Honan along the Yellow River is level, fertile and populous, forming one of the richest portions of the province.For its climate, productions, literary reputation, historical associations, and variety of scenery, this province takes a prominent rank. The earliest records of the Black-haired race refer to this region, and the struggles for dominion among feudal and imperial armies occurred in its plains. Its present difficulty of access from the coast will ere long be overcome by railroads, when its capabilities may be further developed, and the cotton, hemp, iron, tutenag, silk and coal be increased for exportation. The people at present consume their own food and manufactures, and only require a good demand to increase the quality and amounts and exchange them for other things. The three prefectures north of the Yellow River are low-lying; through these the waters of that river have recently found their way into the River Wei and thence to the Gulf of Pechele, at Măng-tsin or east of it; the gradual rise of the bed renders their levels nearly the same, while it makes the main stream sobroad and shallow that it is of little use for navigation. These plains are traversed by wheelbarrows and carts, whose drivers and trundlers form a vast body of stalwart men constantly going about in their employment from one city to another.Kaifung fu, or Pien-liang, the capital, is situated about a league from the southern bank of the Yellow River, whose bed is here elevated above the adjacent country. It was the metropolis fromA.D.960 to 1129, and has often suffered from attacks of armies as well as from inundations. The dikes are mostly on the northern shore, and exhibit the industry and unavailing efforts of the people for scores of leagues. During the period of the Manchu conquest Kaifung was defended by a loyal general, who, seeing no other resource against the invaders, broke down the embankments to drown them, by which manœuvre upwards of 300,000 of the inhabitants perished. The city was rebuilt, but it has not attained to its ancient splendor, if credit can be given to theStatistics of Kaifung, in which work it is described as having been six leagues in circuit in the twelfth century, approached by five roads, and containing numerous palaces, gardens, and government houses. The valley of the River Loh lies between the Yellow River and the Fuh-niu Mountains, a fertile, populous region wherein many of the remarkable events of Chinese history were enacted. Loh-yang, near Honan, was the metropolis at three different intervals, and probably further researches here will bring to light many ancient relics; rock-cut temples and old inscriptions, with graceful bas-reliefs, near the natural gate of Lung-măn, where the road crosses Sung shan, have already been seen. Owing to the direction of the roads leading through this region from the south and east, and the passes for travel towards the north-west, it will form a very important centre of trade in the future of Central Asia and western China.The province ofKiangsuis named from the first syllable of the capital, Kiangning, joined to Su, part of the name of the richest city, Suchau. It lies along the sea-coast, in a north-westerly direction, having Shantung on the north, Nganhwui on the west, and Chehkiang on the south. The area is about 45,000 square miles, equalling Pennsylvania or a little less thanEngland by itself. It consists, with little interruption, of level tracts interspersed with lakes and marshes, through which flow their two noble rivers, which as they are the source of the extraordinary fertility of this region, so also render it obnoxious to freshes, or cover the low portions with irreclaimable morasses. The region of Kiangnan is where the beauty and riches of China are most amply displayed; “and whether we consider,” remarks Gutzlaff, speaking of this and the adjoining province, “their agricultural resources, their great manufactures, their various productions, their excellent situation on the banks of these two large streams, their many canals and tributary rivers, these two provinces doubtless constitute the best territory of China.” The staple productions are grain, cotton, tea, silk, and rice, and most kinds of manufactures are here carried to the greatest perfection. The people have an exceptional reputation for intelligence and wit, and although the province has long ceased to possess a court, its cities still present a gayer aspect, and are adorned with better structures than any others in the empire. This province was the scene of the dreadful ravages of the Tai-ping rebellion, and large districts are still desolate, while their cities lie waste.Probably no other country of equal extent is better watered than Kiangsu. The Great River, the Grand Canal, many smaller streams and canals, and a succession of lakes along the line of the canal, afford easy communication through every part. The sea-coast has not been surveyed north of the Yangtsz’, where it is unapproachable in large vessels; dykes have been constructed in some portions to prevent the in-flow of the ocean. The largest lake is the Hungtsih, about two hundred miles in circumference. South of it lies Kauyu Lake, and on the eastern side of the canal opposite is Pauying Lake, both of them broad sheets of water. Numerous small lakes lie around them. Tai hu, or ‘Great Lake,’ lies partly in Kiangsu and partly in Chehkiang, and is the largest in the province. Its borders are skirted by romantic scenery, while its bosom is broken by numerous islets, affording convenient resort to the fishermen who get their subsistence from its waters.CITY OF NANKING.Kiangning fu (better known abroad as Nanking), the capitalof the province, is situated on the south shore of the Yangtsz’, 194 miles from Shanghai. It was the metropolis fromA.D.317 to 582, and again for 35 years during the Ming dynasty (1368-1403). This city is the natural location of an imperial court, accessible by land and water from all quarters, and susceptible of sure defence. When the Tai-pings were expelled in 1865, the city was nearly destroyed, and has since that date only slowly revived. When Hungwu made it his capital, he strengthened the wall around it, inclosing a great area, 35 miles in circuit, which was never fully covered with buildings, and at present has a most ruinous appearance. Davis remarks the striking resemblance between Rome and Nanking, the area within the walls of both being partially inhabited, and ruins of buildings lying here and there among the cultivated fields, the melancholy remains of departed glory. Both of them, however, have now brighter prospects for the future.The part occupied by the Manchus is separated by a cross wall from the Chinese town. The great extent of the wall renders the defence of the city difficult, besides which it is overlooked from the hills on the east, from one of which, the Chung shan, a wide view of the surrounding country can be obtained. On this eastern face are three gates; the land near the two toward the river is marshy, and the gates are approached on stone causeys. A deep canal runs up from the river directly under the walls on the west, serving to strengthen the approaches on that side. Nanking is laid out in four rather wide and parallel avenues intersected by others of less width; and though not so broad as those of Peking, are on the whole clean, well-paved, and bordered with handsomely furnished shops.The only remarkable monuments of royalty which remain are several guardian statues situated not far from the walls. These statues form an avenue leading up to the sepulchre where the Emperor Hungwu was buried about 1398. They consist of gigantic figures like warriors cased in armor, standing on either side of the road, across which at intervals large stone tablets are extended, supported by great blocks of stone instead of pillars. Situated at some distance are a number of rude colossal figuresof horses, elephants, and other animals, all intended to represent the guardians of the mighty dead.[46]PORCELAIN TOWER OF NANKING.Nothing made Nanking more celebrated abroad than the Porcelain Tower, calledPao-ngăn tah, or the ‘Recompensing Favor Monastery,’ which stood pre-eminent above all other similar buildings in China for its completeness and elegance, the material of which it was built, and the quantity of gilding with which its interior was embellished. It was erected by Yungloh to recompense the great favor of her majesty the Empress, and occupied 19 years (1411-1430) in its construction. It was maintained in good condition by the government, and three stories which had been thrown down by lightning in 1801 were rebuilt. The Tai-pings blew it up and carried off the bricks in 1856, fearing lest its geomantic influences should work against the success of their cause. As to its dimensions: Its form was octagonal, divided into nine equal stories, the circumference of the lower story being 120 feet, decreasing gradually to the top. Its base rested upon a solid foundation of brick-work ten feet high, up which a flight of twelve steps led into the tower, whence a spiral staircase of 190 steps carried the visitor to the summit, 261 feet from the ground. The outer face was covered with slabs of glazed porcelain of various colors, principally green, red, yellow, and white, the body of the edifice being brick. At every story was a projecting roof, covered with green tiles; from each corner and from the top of these roofs were suspended bells, numbering 150 in all.This beautiful structure was visited in 1852 by Dr. Charles Taylor, an American missionary, who has left a full account of his observations.[47]It was to have been raised to an altitude of 329 feet and of thirteen stories, but only nine were built; careful measurement gave 261 feet as its height, 8½ feet its thickness at top, and 12 feet at the base, where it was 96 feet 10 inchesin diameter. The facing was of bricks made of fine porcelain clay; the prevailing color was green, owing to the predominance of the tiles on the numerous stories. The woodwork supporting these successive roofs was strong, curiously carved and richly painted. The many-colored tiles and bricks were highly glazed, giving the building a gay and beautiful appearance, that was greatly heightened when seen in the reflected sunlight. When new it had 140 lamps, most of them hanging outside; and a native writer says “that when lighted they illumine the 33 heavens, and detect the good and evil among men, as well as forever ward off human miseries.” The destruction of a building like this, from mere fanciful ideas, goes far to explain the absence of all old or great edifices in China.Nanking has extensive manufactories of fine satin and crape, Nankeen cotton cloth, paper and ink of fine quality, and beautiful artificial flowers of pith paper. In distant parts of the empire, any article which is superior to the common run of workmanship, is said to be from Nanking, though the speaker means only that it was made in that region. It is renowned, too, for its scholars and literary character, and in this particular stands among the first places of learning in the country. It is the residence of the governor-general of three provinces, and consequently the centre of a large concourse of officials, educated men, and students seeking for promotion; these, with its large libraries and bookstores, all indicating and assisting literary pursuits, combine to give it this distinguished position. In the monastery on Golden Island, near Chinkiang, a library was found by the English officers, but there was no haste in examining its contents, as they intended to have carried off the whole collection, had not peace prevented.THE CITIES OF SUCHAU AND CHINKIANG.The city of Suchau now exceeds Nanking in size and riches. It is situated on islands lying in the Ta hu, and from this sheet of water many streams and canals connect the city with most parts of the department. The walls are about ten miles in circumference; outside of them are four suburbs, one of which is said to extend ten miles, besides which there is an immense floating population. The whole space includes many canals and pools connected with the Grand Canal and the lake, and presented in 1859 a scene of activity, industry, and riches which could not be surpassed elsewhere in China. The population probably then exceeded a million, including the suburbs. It lies north-west of Shanghai, the way passing through a continual range of villages and cities; the environs are highly cultivated, producing cotton, silk, rice, wheat, fruits, and vegetables. It was captured in 1860 by the rebels, and when retaken in 1865 was nearly reduced to a heap of ruins. It is, however, rapidly reviving, as the loss of life was comparatively small.The Chinese regard this as one of their richest and most beautiful cities, and have a saying, “that to be happy on earth, one must be born in Suchau, live in Canton, and die in Liauchau, for in the first are the handsomest people, in the second the most costly luxuries, and in the third the best coffins.” It has a high reputation for its buildings, the elegance of its tombs, the picturesque scenery of its waters and gardens, the politeness and intelligence of its inhabitants, and the beauty of its women. Its manufactures of silk, linen, cotton, and works in iron, ivory, wood, horn, glass, lackered-ware, paper, and other articles, are the chief sources of its wealth and prosperity; the kinds of silk goods produced here surpass in variety and richness those woven in any other place. Vessels can proceed up to the city by several channels from the Yangtsz’ kiang, but junks of large burden anchor at Shanghai, or Sungkiang; the whole country is so intersected by natural and artificial water-courses, that the people have hardly any need for roads and carts, but get about in barrows and sedans. Small steamers find their way to every large village at high tide.Chinkiang, situated at the junction of the Grand Canal with the Yangtsz’ kiang, was captured by the British in July, 1842, at a great loss of life to its defenders; the Manchu general Hai-ling, finding the city taken, seated himself in his office, and set fire to the house, making it his funeral pyre. Its position renders it the key of the country, in respect to the transport of produce, taxes and provisions for Peking, inasmuch as when the river and canal are both blockaded, the supplies for the north and south are to a great extent intercepted. In times of peace the scenes at the junction afford a good exhibition of the industry and trade of the people. Barrow describes, in 1794, “the multitude of ships of war, of burden and of pleasure, some gliding down the stream, others sailing against it; some moving by oars, and others lying at anchor; the banks on either side covered with towns and houses as far as the eye could reach; as presenting a prospect more varied and cheerful than any that had hitherto occurred. Nor was the canal, on the opposite side, less lively. For two whole days we were continually passing among fleets of vessels of different construction and dimensions.”[48]The country in the vicinity is well cultivated, moderately hilly, and presents a characteristic view of Chinese life and action. “On the south-east, the hills broke into an undulating country clothed with verdure, and firs bordering upon small lakes. Beyond, stretched the vast river we had just ascended. In the other direction, the land in the foreground continued a low and swampy flat, leaving it difficult at a little distance to determine which of the serpentine channels was the main branch; there were innumerable sheets of water, separated by narrow mounds, so that the whole resembled a vast lake, intersected by causeways. Willows grew along their sides, and dwellings were erected on small patches somewhat higher than the common surface.”[49]This whole country was the scene of dreadful fighting for many years. Between the Imperialists and Tai-pings the city was totally destroyed, so that in 1861 hardly a house was left. It is now regaining its natural trade and prosperity.Near the mouth of the Grand Canal is Kin shan, or Golden Island,[50]a beautiful spot, covered with temples and monastic establishments. A pagoda crowns the summit, and there are many pavilions and halls, of various sizes and degrees of elegance, on its sides and at the base, many of them showing their imperial ownership by the yellow or green tiling. Since the river has been open to traffic, and the devastations of the Tai-pings have ceased, the priests have returned in small numbers to their abodes, but the whole settlement is a poor mockery of its early splendor. A similar one, rather larger, is found at Siung shan, or Silver Island, below Chinkiang; it is, however, on a less extensive scale, though in a beautiful situation. Priests are the only occupants; temples and palaces the principal buildings, surrounded by gardens and bowers. Massive granite terraces, decorated with huge stone monsters, are reached from the water by broad flights of steps; fine temples, placed to be seen, and yet shaded by trees, open pavilions, and secluded summer-houses, give it a delightful air of retreat and comfort, which a nearer inspection sadly disappoints.The banks of the Yangtsz’ during the 250 miles of its course through this province, are uniformly low, and no towns of importance occur close to them, as they would be exposed to the floods. The vast body of water, with its freight of millions of tons of silt goes on its way in a quiet equable current into the Yellow Sea. The dense population of the prefectures on the south bank, contrasted with the sparseness of the region between the Canal and seashore on the north side, indicate the comparative barrenness of the latter, and the difficulty of cultivating marshy lands so nearly level with the sea.SHANGHAI.The largest seaport in Kiangsu is Shanghai (i.e., Approaching the Sea), now become one of the leading emporia in Asia. It lies on the north shore of the Wusung River, about fourteen miles from its mouth, in lat. 31° 10′ N., and long. 121° 30′ E., at the junction of the Hwang-pu with it, and by means of both streams communicates with Suchau, Sungkiang, and other large cities on the Grand Canal; while by the Yangtsz’ it receives produce from Yunnan and Sz’chuen. In these respects its position resembles that of New Orleans.The town of Wusung is at the mouth of that river, here about a mile wide; and two miles beyond lies the district town of Paushan. The wall of Shanghai is three miles in circuit, through which six gates open into extensive suburbs; around the ramparts flows a ditch twenty feet wide. The city stands in a wide plain of extraordinary fertility, intersected by numerous streamlets, and affording ample means of navigation and communication; its population is estimated to be at present over 500,000,but the data for this figure are rather imperfect. Since it was opened to foreign commerce in 1843, the growth of the town has been rapid in every element of prosperity, though subject to great vicissitudes by reason of the rebellion which devastated the adjoining country. Its capture by the insurgents in 1851, and their expulsion in February, 1853, with the destruction of the eastern and southern suburbs in 1860, have been its chief disasters since that date. The native trade has gradually passed from the unwieldy and unsafe junks which used to throng the Hwang-pu east of the city, into steamers and foreign craft, and is now confined, so far as the vessels are concerned, to the inland and coast traffic in coarse, cheap articles.Shanghai city itself is a dirty place, and poorly built. The houses are mostly made of bluish square brick, imperfectly burned; and the walls are constructed in a cellular manner by placing bricks on their edges, and covering them with stucco. The streets are about eight feet wide, paved with stone slabs, and in the daytime crowded with people. Silk and embroidery, cotton, and cotton goods, porcelain, ready-made clothes, beautiful skins and furs, bamboo pipes of every size, bamboo ornaments, pictures, bronzes, specimens of old porcelain, and other curiosities, to which the Chinese attach great value, attract the stranger’s notice. Articles of food form the most extensive trade of all; and it is sometimes a difficult matter to get through the streets, owing to the immense quantities of fish, pork, fruit, and vegetables, which crowd the stands in front of the shops. Dining-rooms, tea-houses, and bakers’ shops, are met with at every step, from the poor man who carries around his kitchen or bakehouse, altogether hardly worth a dollar, to the most extensive tavern or tea-house, crowded with customers. For a few cash, a Chinese can dine upon rice, fish, vegetables, and tea; nor does it matter much to him, whether his table is set in the streets or on the ground, in a house or on a deck, he makes himself merry with his chopsticks, and eats what is before him.[51]The buildings composing the Ching-hwang miao, and the grounds attached to this establishment, present a goodinstance of Chinese style and taste in architecture. Large warehouses for storing goods, granaries, and temples, are common; but neither these, nor the public buildings, present any distinguishing features peculiar to this city alone.The contrast between the narrow, noisome and reeking parts of the native city, and the clean, spacious, well-shaded and well-paved streets and large houses of the foreign municipalities, is like that seen in many cities in India. The Chinese are ready enough to enjoy and support the higher style of living, but they are not yet prepared to adopt and maintain similar improvements among themselves. The difficulty of being sure of the co-operation of the rulers in municipal improvements deters intelligent natives from initiating even the commonest sanitary enterprise of their foreign neighbors.The remaining cities and districts of Kiangsu present nothing worthy of special remark. The Grand Canal runs from north to south, and affords a safe and ample thoroughfare for multitudes of boats in its entire length. Tsing-kiang-pu and Hwai-ngan, near the old Yellow River, receive the traffic from the north and Hungtsih Lake, while Yangchau near the Yangtsz’ River, takes that going north. In this part of the channel, constant dyking has resulted in raising the banks; the city of Hwai-ngan, for example, lies below the canal which brings trade to its doors, and may one day be drowned by its benefactor. Salt is manufactured in the districts south of the Yellow River, where the people cultivate but rare patches of arable land.The island of Tsungming, at the mouth of the Yangtsz’, is about sixty miles long, and sixteen wide, containing over nine hundred square miles, and is gradually enlarging by the constant deposits from the river; it is flat, but contains fresh water. It is highly cultivated and populous, though some places on the northern side are so impregnated with salt, and others so marshy, as to be useless for raising food. This island produces a variety ofkaoliangor sorghum (Holcus), which is sweet enough to furnish syrup, and is grown for that purpose in the United States.
In Xanadu did Kubla KhanA stately pleasure-dome decree:Where Alph, the sacred river, ranThrough caverns measureless to manDown to a sunless sea.So twice five miles of fertile groundWith walls and towers were girdled round—
In Xanadu did Kubla KhanA stately pleasure-dome decree:Where Alph, the sacred river, ranThrough caverns measureless to manDown to a sunless sea.So twice five miles of fertile groundWith walls and towers were girdled round—
In Xanadu did Kubla KhanA stately pleasure-dome decree:Where Alph, the sacred river, ranThrough caverns measureless to manDown to a sunless sea.So twice five miles of fertile groundWith walls and towers were girdled round—
In Xanadu did Kubla Khan
A stately pleasure-dome decree:
Where Alph, the sacred river, ran
Through caverns measureless to man
Down to a sunless sea.
So twice five miles of fertile ground
With walls and towers were girdled round—
than by Marco Polo’s relation, which moved the poet to pen the lines. It was planned as Mukden now is, an outer and inner wall inclosing separate peoples, and its tumuli will probably furnish many tablets and relics of the Mongol emperors, whencarefully dug over. It was too far from Peking for the Manchu monarchs to rebuild, and the Ming emperors had no power there. It was visited in 1872 by Messrs. Grosvenor and Bushell of the British Legation; Dr. Bushell’s description corroborates Polo’s account and Gerbillon’s later notices of its size.[40]
There are several lakes, the largest of which, the Peh hu, in the south-western part, connects with the Pei ho through the river Hü-to. The various branches of the five rivers, whose united waters disembogue at Ta-ku, afford a precarious water communication through the southern half of Chihlí. Their headwaters rise in Shansí and beyond the Great Wall, bringing down much silt, which their lower currents only partially take out into the gulf; this sediment soon destroys the usefulness of the channels by raising them dangerously near the level of the banks. The utilization of their streams is a difficult problem in civil engineering, not only here but throughout the Great Plain.
Near the banks of the Lan ho, a large stream flowing south from the eastern slopes of the Chahar Hills, past Yungping fu into the gulf, and about one hundred and seventy-four miles north of Ta-ku, lies Chingpeh, or Jeh-ho, the Emperor’s country palace. The approach to it is through a pass cut out of the rock, and resembles that leading to Damascus. The imperial grounds are embraced by a high range of hills forming a grand amphitheatre, which at this point is extremely fine. This descent to the city presents new and captivating views at every turn of the road. The hunting grounds are inclosed by a high wall stretching twenty miles over the hills, and stocked with deer, elks, and other game. The Buddhist temples form the chief attraction to a visitor. The largest one is square and castellated, eleven stories high, and about two hundred feet on each of its sides; the stories are painted red, yellow and green alternating. There are several similar but smaller structures below this one, and on each of the first two or three series is a row of small chinaware pagodas of a blue color; their tiles arelikewise blue. In the bright sunlight the effect of these brilliant bands is very good, and the general neatness adds to the pleasing result of the gay coloring. Nearly a thousand lamas live about these shrines. The town of Jeh-ho (i.e., Hot River) consists mostly of one street coiling around the hills near the palace; its inhabitants are of a higher grade than usual in Chinese cities, the greater part being connected with the government. The road through Ku-peh kau in the Great Wall from Peking to Jeh-ho is one of the best in the province, and the journey presents a variety of charming scenery; its chief interest to foreigners is connected with the visit there of Lord Macartney, in 1793.[41]This fertile prefecture is rapidly settling by Chinese, whose numbers are now not far from two millions.
The principal productions of Chihlí are millet and wheat, sorghum, maize, oats, and many kinds of pulse and fruits, among which are pears, dried and fresh dates (Rhamnus), apples and grapes; all these are exported. Coal, both bituminous and anthracite, exists in great abundance; one mode of using hard coal is to mix its dust with powdered clay and work them into balls and cakes for cooking and fuel. The province also furnishes good marble, granite, lime, and iron, some kinds of precious stones, and clay for bricks and pottery.
SHANTUNG PROVINCE.
The province ofShantung(i.e., East of the Hills) has a long coast-line, its maritime border being more than half its whole circuit. It lies south of the Gulf of Pechele, south-east of Chihlí, north of Kiangsu, and borders on Honan, where the Yellow River divides the two. Most of its area is level, the hilly part is the peninsula portion, where the highest points rise too high to admit of cultivation. The Grand Canal enters the province on its course from Tientsin at Lintsing chau in the north-west, passing in a south-easterly direction to the old Yellow River, and adds greatly to its importance. The shores of the promontory are generally bold, and full of indentations, presenting several excellent harbors; no important river disembogues within the province, and on each side of the peninsulathe waters are shallow. Chifu, in the prefecture of Tăngchau, has the best harbor, and its trade will gradually draw toward it a large population. The hills along the shore have a remarkably uniform, conical shape, resembling the bonnets worn by officers. The hilly regions are arranged in a series of chains running across the promontory, the longest and highest of which runs with the general trend of the coast in Tai-ngan fu, some peaks reaching over five thousand feet, but most of them being under three thousand feet high. Their intervales are highly cultivated. The soil is generally productive, except near the shores of the gulf, where it is nitrous. Two crops are annually produced here as elsewhere in Northern China. The willow, aspen, ailantus, locust (Sophora), oak, mulberry, and conifera, are common trees; silk-worms fed on oak leaves furnish silk.
This province is one of the most celebrated in Chinese history, partly from its having been the scene of many remarkable events in the early history of the people up toB.C.200, but more particularly from its containing the birthplaces of Confucius and Mencius, whose fame has gone over the earth. The inhabitants of the province are proud of their nativity on this score, much as the woman of Samaria was because Jacob’s cattle had drunk water at the well of Sychar.
TAI SHAN, THE ‘GREAT MOUNT.’
The high mountain called Tai shan, or ‘Great mount,’ is situated near Tai-ngan fu in this province. This peak is mentioned in theShu Kingas that where Shun sacrificed to Heaven (B.C.2254); it is accordingly celebrated for its historical as well as religious associations. It towers high above all other peaks in the range, as if keeping solitary watch over the country round-about, and is the great rendezvous of devotees; every sect has there its temples and idols, scattered up and down its sides, in which priests chant their prayers, and practise a thousand superstitions to attract pilgrims to their shrines. During the spring, the roads leading to the Tai shan are obstructed with long caravans of people coming to accomplish their vows, to supplicate the deities for health or riches, or to solicit the joys of heaven in exchange for the woes of earth. A French missionary mentions having met with pilgrims going to it, one partyof whom consisted of old dames, who had with infinite fatigue and discomfort come from the south of Honan, about three hundred miles, to “remind their god of the long abstinence from flesh and fish they had observed during the course of their lives, and solicit, as a recompense, a happy transmigration for their souls.” The youngest of this party was 78, and the oldest 90 years.[42]Another traveller says that the pilgrims resort there during the spring, when there are fairs to attract them; high and low, official and commoner, men and women, old and young, all sorts gather to worship and traffic. A great temple lies outside the town, whose grounds furnish a large and secure area for the tents where the devotees amuse themselves, after they have finished their devotions. The road to the summit is about five miles, well paved and furnished with rest-houses, tea-stalls, and stairways for the convenience of the pilgrims, and shaded with cypresses. It is beset with beggars, men and women with all kinds of sores and diseases, crippled and injured, besieging travellers with cries and self-imposed sufferings, frequently lying across the path so as to be stepped upon. A vast number of them live on alms thus collected, and have scooped themselves holes in the side of the way, where they live; their numbers indicate the great crowds whose offerings support such a wretched throng on the hill.
CITIES AND CHARACTERISTICS OF SHANTUNG.
The capital of the province is Tsínan, a well-built city of about 100,000 inhabitants. It was an important town in ancient times as the capital of Tsí, one of the influential feudal States, fromB.C.1100 to its conquest by Chí Hwangtí about 230; the present town lies not far east of the Ta-tsing ho, or new Yellow River, and is accessible by small steamers from sea. It has hills around it, and is protected by three lines of defence, composed of mud, granite, and brick. Three copious springs near the western gate furnish pure water, which is tepid and so abundant as to fill the city moat and form a lake for the solace of the citizens whether in boats upon its bosom or from temples around its shores. Its manufactures are strong fabrics of wild silk, and ornaments ofliu-lí, a vitreous substance like strass, ofwhich snuff-bottles, bangles, cups, etc., are made in great variety, to resemble serpentine, jade, ice, and other things. East of Tsínan is the prefect city of Tsíning chau, once the provincial capital, and the centre of a populous and fertile region. Tsíning chau is an opulent and flourishing place, judging from the gilded and carved shops, temples, and public offices in the suburbs, which stretch along the eastern banks of the Canal; just beyond the town, the Canal is only a little raised above the level of the extensive marshes on each side, and further south the swamps increase rapidly: when Amherst’s embassy passed, the whole country, as far as the eye could reach, displayed the effects of a most extensive recent inundation. Davis adds, “The waters were on a level with those of the Canal, and there was no need of dams, which were themselves nearly under water, and sluices for discharging the superfluous water were occasionally observed. Clumps of large trees, cottages, and towers, were to be seen on all sides, half under water, and deserted by the inhabitants; the number of the latter led to the inference that they were provided as places of refuge in case of inundation, which must be here very frequent. Wretched villages occurred frequently on the right-hand bank, along which the tracking path was in some places so completely undermined as to give way at every step, obliging them to lay down hurdles of reeds to afford a passage.”[43]
Lin-tsing chau, on the Yu ho, at its junction with the Canal, lies in the midst of a beautiful country, full of gardens and cultivated grounds, interspersed with buildings. This place is the dépôt for produce brought on the Canal, and a rendezvous for large fleets of boats and barges. Near it is a pagoda in good repair, about 150 feet high, the basement of which is built of granite, and the other stories of glazed bricks.
The towns and villages of Shantung have been much visited during the past few years, and their inhabitants have become better acquainted with foreigners, with whom increased intercourse has developed its good and bad results. The productions of this fertile province comprise every kind of grain and vegetable found in Northern China, and its trade by sea and along the Canal opens many outlets for enterprising capital. Among its mineral productions are gold, copper, asbestos, galena, antimony, silver, sulphur, fine agates, and saltpetre; the first occurs in the beds of streams. All these yield in real importance, however, to the coal and iron, which are abundant, and have been worked for ages. Its manufactures supply the common clothing and utensils of its people; silk fabrics, straw braid woven from a kind of wheat, glass, cheap earthenware, and rugs of every pattern.
Mr. Stevens, an American missionary who visited Wei-hai wei and Chifu in 1837, gives a description of the people, which is still applicable to most parts of the province: “These poor people know nothing, from youth to old age, but the same monotonous round of toil for a subsistence, and never see, never hear anything of the world around them. Improvements in the useful arts and sciences, and an increase of the conveniences of life, are never known among them. In the place where their fathers lived and died, do they live, and toil, and die, to be succeeded by another generation in the same manner. Few of the comforts of life can be found among them; their houses consisted in general of granite and thatched roofs, but neither table, chair, nor floor, nor any article of furniture could be seen in the houses of the poorest. Every man had his pipe, and tea was in most dwellings. They were industriously engaged, some in ploughing, others in reaping, some carrying out manure, and others bringing home produce; numbers were collected on the thrashing-floors, winnowing, sifting and packing wheat, rice, millet, peas, and in drying maize, all with the greatest diligence. Here, too, were their teams for ploughing, yoked together in all possible ludicrous combinations; sometimes a cow and an ass; or a cow, an ox and an ass; or a cow and two asses; or four asses; and all yoked abreast. All the women had small feet, and wore a pale and sallow aspect, and their miserable, squalid appearance excited an indelible feeling of compassion for their helpless lot. They were not always shy, but were generally ill-clad and ugly, apparently laboring in the fields like the men. But on several occasions, young ladiesclothed in gay silks and satins, riding astride upon bags on donkeys, were seen. No prospect of melioration for either men or women appears but in the liberalizing and happy influences of Christianity.”[44]
NATURAL FEATURES OF SHANSÍ.
The province ofShansí(i.e., West of the Hills) lies between Chihlí and Shensí, and north of Honan; the Yellow River bounds it on the west and partly on the south, and the Great Wall forms most of the northern frontier. It measures 55,268 square miles, nearly the same as England and Wales, or the State of Illinois. This province is the original seat of the Chinese people; and many of the places mentioned and the scenes recorded in their ancient annals occurred within its borders. Its rugged surface presents a striking contrast to the level tracts in Chihlí and Shantung. The southern portion of Shansí, including the region down to the Yellow River, in all an area of 30,000 square miles, presents a geological formation of great simplicity from Hwai king as far north as Ping ting. The plain around the first-named city is bounded on the north by a steep, castellated range of hills which varies from 1,000 to 1,500 feet in height; it has few roads or streams crossing it. On reaching the top, an undulating table-land stretches northward, varying from 2,500 to 3,000 feet above the Plain, consisting of coal formation, above the limestone of the lower steep hills. About forty miles from those hills, there is a second rise like the first, up which the road takes one to another plateau, nearly 6,000 feet above the sea. This plateau is built up of later rocks, sandstones, shales, and conglomerates of green, red, yellow, lilac, and brown colors, and is deeply eroded by branches of the Tsin River, which finally flow into the Yellow River. This plateau has its north-west border in the Wu ling pass, beyond which begins the descent to the basin of the Făn River. That basin is traversed near its eastern side by the Hoh shan nearly to Taiyuen; its peaks rise to 8,000 feet in some places; the rocks are granite and divide the coal measures, anthracite lying on its eastern side and bituminous on the west, as far as the YellowRiver, and north as far as Ta-tung. On top of both plateaus is spread the loess deposit, varying in depth from ten to five hundred feet, and deeply gullied by water-courses in every direction, which expose coal and iron mines.
On the eastern side of Shansí the rocks are made up of ancient formations or deposits of the Silurian age, presenting a series of peaks, passes and ranges that render travel very difficult down to the Plain. By these outlying ranges the province is isolated from Chihlí, as no useful water communication exists. This coal and iron formation is probably the largest in the world, and when railroads open it up to easy access it can be readily worked along the water-courses. The northern part of the province is drained through the rivers ending at Tientsin. This elevated region cannot be artificially irrigated, and when the rainfall is too small or too late, the people suffer from famine. The northern and southern prefectures exhibit great diversity in their animal, mineral, and vegetable productions. Some of the favorite imperial hunting-grounds are in the north; from the coal, iron, cinnabar, copper, marble, lapis-lazuli, jasper, salt, and other minerals which it affords, the inhabitants gain much of their wealth. The principal grains are wheat and millet, a large variety of vegetables and fruits, such as persimmons, pears, dates and grapes. The rivers are not large, and almost every one of them is a tributary of the Yellow River. The Făn ho, about 300 miles long, is the most important, and empties into it near the south-western corner of the province, after draining the central section. East of this stream, as far as the headwaters of those rivers flowing into Chihlí, extends an undulating table-land, having a general altitude of 3,000 feet above the Plain. South of it runs the river Kiang, also an affluent of the Yellow River, and near this, in Kiai chau, is a remarkable deposit of salt in a shallow lake (18 miles long and 3 broad), which is surrounded by a high wall. The salt is evaporated in the sun under government direction, the product bringing in a large revenue; the adjacent town of Lung-tsüen, containing 80,000 inhabitants, is devoted to the business. Salt has been obtained from this region for two thousand years; the water in some of the springs is only brackish, and used in culinary operations. There are two smaller lakes nearer the Yellow River.
The iron obtained in the lower plateau, in the south-east near Tsih chau, is from clay iron-ore and spathic ore with hematite, which occurs in limestone strata at the bottom of the coal formations. It is extracted in a rude manner, but the produce is equal to any iron in the world, while its price is only about two cents a pound. The working and transportation of coal and iron employ myriads of people, though they are miserably paid. The province barely supplies its own cotton, but woollen garments and sheepskins are produced to make up the demand for clothing.
Taiyuen fu, the capital, lies on the northern border of a fertile plain, 3,000 feet above the sea level; this plain extends about 2,000 square miles, and owes its existence to the gradual filling up of a lake there, the waters having cut their way out, and left the river Făn to drain the surplus. Across the Ho shan range lies another basin of equal fertility and mineral wealth, in Ping-ting chau, where coal, iron, clay and stone exist in unlimited quantities. In the northern part of this province the Buddhist temples at Wu-tai shan in Tai chau draw vast crowds of votaries to their shrines. The hills in which they are built rise prominently above the range, and each celebrated locality is memorialized by its own particular divinity, and the buildings where he is worshipped. The presence of a living Buddha, orGegen, here attracts thousands of Mongols from the north to adore him; their toilsome journey adding to the worth of the visit. Most of the lamas are from the north and west. The region north of this seems to be gradually losing its fertility, owing to the sand which is drifted by north winds from the Ortous steppes; and as all the hills are bare of trees, the whole of Shansí seems destined to increasing poverty and barrenness. Its inhabitants are shrewd, enterprising traders as well as frugal agriculturists; many of the bankers in the Empire are from its cities.
MOUNTAIN PASSES IN SHANSÍ.
The great roads from Peking to the south-west and west pass through all the chief towns of this province, and when new probably equalled in engineering and construction anything ofthe kind ever built by the Romans. The stones with which they are paved average 15 inches in thickness. Few regions can exceed in natural difficulties some of the passes over the loess-covered tracts of this province, where the road must wind through miles of narrow cuts in the light and tenacious soil, to emerge before a landscape such as that seen in the illustration.[45]
View over the Loess-clefts from the Han-sing ling Pass, Shansí. From Richthofen.
View over the Loess-clefts from the Han-sing ling Pass, Shansí. From Richthofen.
View over the Loess-clefts from the Han-sing ling Pass, Shansí. From Richthofen.
THE PROVINCE OF HONAN.
The province ofHonan(i.e., South of the River) comprises some of the most fertile parts of the Plain, and, on account of its abundance and central position, early received the name ofChung Hwa Tí, or the ‘Middle Flowery Land,’ afterwards enlarged intoChung Kwoh, or ‘Middle Kingdom.’ Its form is an irregular triangle, and its size nearly the same as Shantung; it has Shansí and Chihlí on the north, Nganhwui on the south-east, Hupeh on the south and south-west, and Shensí on the west, bordering also on Shantung and Kiangsu. This area is divided into three basins, that of the Yellow River in the north, of the Hwai River on the south, and the Han River on the south-west; the last two are separated by a marked range of mountains, the Fuh-niu shan, which is regarded as the eastern terminus of the Kwănlun Mountains; it is about 300 miles long, and its eastern end is near Jü-ning fu. This range maintains an elevation of 4,000 to 6,000 feet, and is crossed at Nanchau, where a remarkable natural pass about 30 miles long, rising to 1,200 or 1,500 feet, affords the needed facilities for trade and travel between the central and northern provinces. The Peh and Tan rivers drain its southern slopes into the Han, and the eastern sides are abundantly watered by the numerous branches of the Hwai River as they flow into Hungtsih Lake. The northern portion of Honan along the Yellow River is level, fertile and populous, forming one of the richest portions of the province.
For its climate, productions, literary reputation, historical associations, and variety of scenery, this province takes a prominent rank. The earliest records of the Black-haired race refer to this region, and the struggles for dominion among feudal and imperial armies occurred in its plains. Its present difficulty of access from the coast will ere long be overcome by railroads, when its capabilities may be further developed, and the cotton, hemp, iron, tutenag, silk and coal be increased for exportation. The people at present consume their own food and manufactures, and only require a good demand to increase the quality and amounts and exchange them for other things. The three prefectures north of the Yellow River are low-lying; through these the waters of that river have recently found their way into the River Wei and thence to the Gulf of Pechele, at Măng-tsin or east of it; the gradual rise of the bed renders their levels nearly the same, while it makes the main stream sobroad and shallow that it is of little use for navigation. These plains are traversed by wheelbarrows and carts, whose drivers and trundlers form a vast body of stalwart men constantly going about in their employment from one city to another.
Kaifung fu, or Pien-liang, the capital, is situated about a league from the southern bank of the Yellow River, whose bed is here elevated above the adjacent country. It was the metropolis fromA.D.960 to 1129, and has often suffered from attacks of armies as well as from inundations. The dikes are mostly on the northern shore, and exhibit the industry and unavailing efforts of the people for scores of leagues. During the period of the Manchu conquest Kaifung was defended by a loyal general, who, seeing no other resource against the invaders, broke down the embankments to drown them, by which manœuvre upwards of 300,000 of the inhabitants perished. The city was rebuilt, but it has not attained to its ancient splendor, if credit can be given to theStatistics of Kaifung, in which work it is described as having been six leagues in circuit in the twelfth century, approached by five roads, and containing numerous palaces, gardens, and government houses. The valley of the River Loh lies between the Yellow River and the Fuh-niu Mountains, a fertile, populous region wherein many of the remarkable events of Chinese history were enacted. Loh-yang, near Honan, was the metropolis at three different intervals, and probably further researches here will bring to light many ancient relics; rock-cut temples and old inscriptions, with graceful bas-reliefs, near the natural gate of Lung-măn, where the road crosses Sung shan, have already been seen. Owing to the direction of the roads leading through this region from the south and east, and the passes for travel towards the north-west, it will form a very important centre of trade in the future of Central Asia and western China.
The province ofKiangsuis named from the first syllable of the capital, Kiangning, joined to Su, part of the name of the richest city, Suchau. It lies along the sea-coast, in a north-westerly direction, having Shantung on the north, Nganhwui on the west, and Chehkiang on the south. The area is about 45,000 square miles, equalling Pennsylvania or a little less thanEngland by itself. It consists, with little interruption, of level tracts interspersed with lakes and marshes, through which flow their two noble rivers, which as they are the source of the extraordinary fertility of this region, so also render it obnoxious to freshes, or cover the low portions with irreclaimable morasses. The region of Kiangnan is where the beauty and riches of China are most amply displayed; “and whether we consider,” remarks Gutzlaff, speaking of this and the adjoining province, “their agricultural resources, their great manufactures, their various productions, their excellent situation on the banks of these two large streams, their many canals and tributary rivers, these two provinces doubtless constitute the best territory of China.” The staple productions are grain, cotton, tea, silk, and rice, and most kinds of manufactures are here carried to the greatest perfection. The people have an exceptional reputation for intelligence and wit, and although the province has long ceased to possess a court, its cities still present a gayer aspect, and are adorned with better structures than any others in the empire. This province was the scene of the dreadful ravages of the Tai-ping rebellion, and large districts are still desolate, while their cities lie waste.
Probably no other country of equal extent is better watered than Kiangsu. The Great River, the Grand Canal, many smaller streams and canals, and a succession of lakes along the line of the canal, afford easy communication through every part. The sea-coast has not been surveyed north of the Yangtsz’, where it is unapproachable in large vessels; dykes have been constructed in some portions to prevent the in-flow of the ocean. The largest lake is the Hungtsih, about two hundred miles in circumference. South of it lies Kauyu Lake, and on the eastern side of the canal opposite is Pauying Lake, both of them broad sheets of water. Numerous small lakes lie around them. Tai hu, or ‘Great Lake,’ lies partly in Kiangsu and partly in Chehkiang, and is the largest in the province. Its borders are skirted by romantic scenery, while its bosom is broken by numerous islets, affording convenient resort to the fishermen who get their subsistence from its waters.
CITY OF NANKING.
Kiangning fu (better known abroad as Nanking), the capitalof the province, is situated on the south shore of the Yangtsz’, 194 miles from Shanghai. It was the metropolis fromA.D.317 to 582, and again for 35 years during the Ming dynasty (1368-1403). This city is the natural location of an imperial court, accessible by land and water from all quarters, and susceptible of sure defence. When the Tai-pings were expelled in 1865, the city was nearly destroyed, and has since that date only slowly revived. When Hungwu made it his capital, he strengthened the wall around it, inclosing a great area, 35 miles in circuit, which was never fully covered with buildings, and at present has a most ruinous appearance. Davis remarks the striking resemblance between Rome and Nanking, the area within the walls of both being partially inhabited, and ruins of buildings lying here and there among the cultivated fields, the melancholy remains of departed glory. Both of them, however, have now brighter prospects for the future.
The part occupied by the Manchus is separated by a cross wall from the Chinese town. The great extent of the wall renders the defence of the city difficult, besides which it is overlooked from the hills on the east, from one of which, the Chung shan, a wide view of the surrounding country can be obtained. On this eastern face are three gates; the land near the two toward the river is marshy, and the gates are approached on stone causeys. A deep canal runs up from the river directly under the walls on the west, serving to strengthen the approaches on that side. Nanking is laid out in four rather wide and parallel avenues intersected by others of less width; and though not so broad as those of Peking, are on the whole clean, well-paved, and bordered with handsomely furnished shops.
The only remarkable monuments of royalty which remain are several guardian statues situated not far from the walls. These statues form an avenue leading up to the sepulchre where the Emperor Hungwu was buried about 1398. They consist of gigantic figures like warriors cased in armor, standing on either side of the road, across which at intervals large stone tablets are extended, supported by great blocks of stone instead of pillars. Situated at some distance are a number of rude colossal figuresof horses, elephants, and other animals, all intended to represent the guardians of the mighty dead.[46]
PORCELAIN TOWER OF NANKING.
Nothing made Nanking more celebrated abroad than the Porcelain Tower, calledPao-ngăn tah, or the ‘Recompensing Favor Monastery,’ which stood pre-eminent above all other similar buildings in China for its completeness and elegance, the material of which it was built, and the quantity of gilding with which its interior was embellished. It was erected by Yungloh to recompense the great favor of her majesty the Empress, and occupied 19 years (1411-1430) in its construction. It was maintained in good condition by the government, and three stories which had been thrown down by lightning in 1801 were rebuilt. The Tai-pings blew it up and carried off the bricks in 1856, fearing lest its geomantic influences should work against the success of their cause. As to its dimensions: Its form was octagonal, divided into nine equal stories, the circumference of the lower story being 120 feet, decreasing gradually to the top. Its base rested upon a solid foundation of brick-work ten feet high, up which a flight of twelve steps led into the tower, whence a spiral staircase of 190 steps carried the visitor to the summit, 261 feet from the ground. The outer face was covered with slabs of glazed porcelain of various colors, principally green, red, yellow, and white, the body of the edifice being brick. At every story was a projecting roof, covered with green tiles; from each corner and from the top of these roofs were suspended bells, numbering 150 in all.
This beautiful structure was visited in 1852 by Dr. Charles Taylor, an American missionary, who has left a full account of his observations.[47]It was to have been raised to an altitude of 329 feet and of thirteen stories, but only nine were built; careful measurement gave 261 feet as its height, 8½ feet its thickness at top, and 12 feet at the base, where it was 96 feet 10 inchesin diameter. The facing was of bricks made of fine porcelain clay; the prevailing color was green, owing to the predominance of the tiles on the numerous stories. The woodwork supporting these successive roofs was strong, curiously carved and richly painted. The many-colored tiles and bricks were highly glazed, giving the building a gay and beautiful appearance, that was greatly heightened when seen in the reflected sunlight. When new it had 140 lamps, most of them hanging outside; and a native writer says “that when lighted they illumine the 33 heavens, and detect the good and evil among men, as well as forever ward off human miseries.” The destruction of a building like this, from mere fanciful ideas, goes far to explain the absence of all old or great edifices in China.
Nanking has extensive manufactories of fine satin and crape, Nankeen cotton cloth, paper and ink of fine quality, and beautiful artificial flowers of pith paper. In distant parts of the empire, any article which is superior to the common run of workmanship, is said to be from Nanking, though the speaker means only that it was made in that region. It is renowned, too, for its scholars and literary character, and in this particular stands among the first places of learning in the country. It is the residence of the governor-general of three provinces, and consequently the centre of a large concourse of officials, educated men, and students seeking for promotion; these, with its large libraries and bookstores, all indicating and assisting literary pursuits, combine to give it this distinguished position. In the monastery on Golden Island, near Chinkiang, a library was found by the English officers, but there was no haste in examining its contents, as they intended to have carried off the whole collection, had not peace prevented.
THE CITIES OF SUCHAU AND CHINKIANG.
The city of Suchau now exceeds Nanking in size and riches. It is situated on islands lying in the Ta hu, and from this sheet of water many streams and canals connect the city with most parts of the department. The walls are about ten miles in circumference; outside of them are four suburbs, one of which is said to extend ten miles, besides which there is an immense floating population. The whole space includes many canals and pools connected with the Grand Canal and the lake, and presented in 1859 a scene of activity, industry, and riches which could not be surpassed elsewhere in China. The population probably then exceeded a million, including the suburbs. It lies north-west of Shanghai, the way passing through a continual range of villages and cities; the environs are highly cultivated, producing cotton, silk, rice, wheat, fruits, and vegetables. It was captured in 1860 by the rebels, and when retaken in 1865 was nearly reduced to a heap of ruins. It is, however, rapidly reviving, as the loss of life was comparatively small.
The Chinese regard this as one of their richest and most beautiful cities, and have a saying, “that to be happy on earth, one must be born in Suchau, live in Canton, and die in Liauchau, for in the first are the handsomest people, in the second the most costly luxuries, and in the third the best coffins.” It has a high reputation for its buildings, the elegance of its tombs, the picturesque scenery of its waters and gardens, the politeness and intelligence of its inhabitants, and the beauty of its women. Its manufactures of silk, linen, cotton, and works in iron, ivory, wood, horn, glass, lackered-ware, paper, and other articles, are the chief sources of its wealth and prosperity; the kinds of silk goods produced here surpass in variety and richness those woven in any other place. Vessels can proceed up to the city by several channels from the Yangtsz’ kiang, but junks of large burden anchor at Shanghai, or Sungkiang; the whole country is so intersected by natural and artificial water-courses, that the people have hardly any need for roads and carts, but get about in barrows and sedans. Small steamers find their way to every large village at high tide.
Chinkiang, situated at the junction of the Grand Canal with the Yangtsz’ kiang, was captured by the British in July, 1842, at a great loss of life to its defenders; the Manchu general Hai-ling, finding the city taken, seated himself in his office, and set fire to the house, making it his funeral pyre. Its position renders it the key of the country, in respect to the transport of produce, taxes and provisions for Peking, inasmuch as when the river and canal are both blockaded, the supplies for the north and south are to a great extent intercepted. In times of peace the scenes at the junction afford a good exhibition of the industry and trade of the people. Barrow describes, in 1794, “the multitude of ships of war, of burden and of pleasure, some gliding down the stream, others sailing against it; some moving by oars, and others lying at anchor; the banks on either side covered with towns and houses as far as the eye could reach; as presenting a prospect more varied and cheerful than any that had hitherto occurred. Nor was the canal, on the opposite side, less lively. For two whole days we were continually passing among fleets of vessels of different construction and dimensions.”[48]
The country in the vicinity is well cultivated, moderately hilly, and presents a characteristic view of Chinese life and action. “On the south-east, the hills broke into an undulating country clothed with verdure, and firs bordering upon small lakes. Beyond, stretched the vast river we had just ascended. In the other direction, the land in the foreground continued a low and swampy flat, leaving it difficult at a little distance to determine which of the serpentine channels was the main branch; there were innumerable sheets of water, separated by narrow mounds, so that the whole resembled a vast lake, intersected by causeways. Willows grew along their sides, and dwellings were erected on small patches somewhat higher than the common surface.”[49]This whole country was the scene of dreadful fighting for many years. Between the Imperialists and Tai-pings the city was totally destroyed, so that in 1861 hardly a house was left. It is now regaining its natural trade and prosperity.
Near the mouth of the Grand Canal is Kin shan, or Golden Island,[50]a beautiful spot, covered with temples and monastic establishments. A pagoda crowns the summit, and there are many pavilions and halls, of various sizes and degrees of elegance, on its sides and at the base, many of them showing their imperial ownership by the yellow or green tiling. Since the river has been open to traffic, and the devastations of the Tai-pings have ceased, the priests have returned in small numbers to their abodes, but the whole settlement is a poor mockery of its early splendor. A similar one, rather larger, is found at Siung shan, or Silver Island, below Chinkiang; it is, however, on a less extensive scale, though in a beautiful situation. Priests are the only occupants; temples and palaces the principal buildings, surrounded by gardens and bowers. Massive granite terraces, decorated with huge stone monsters, are reached from the water by broad flights of steps; fine temples, placed to be seen, and yet shaded by trees, open pavilions, and secluded summer-houses, give it a delightful air of retreat and comfort, which a nearer inspection sadly disappoints.
The banks of the Yangtsz’ during the 250 miles of its course through this province, are uniformly low, and no towns of importance occur close to them, as they would be exposed to the floods. The vast body of water, with its freight of millions of tons of silt goes on its way in a quiet equable current into the Yellow Sea. The dense population of the prefectures on the south bank, contrasted with the sparseness of the region between the Canal and seashore on the north side, indicate the comparative barrenness of the latter, and the difficulty of cultivating marshy lands so nearly level with the sea.
SHANGHAI.
The largest seaport in Kiangsu is Shanghai (i.e., Approaching the Sea), now become one of the leading emporia in Asia. It lies on the north shore of the Wusung River, about fourteen miles from its mouth, in lat. 31° 10′ N., and long. 121° 30′ E., at the junction of the Hwang-pu with it, and by means of both streams communicates with Suchau, Sungkiang, and other large cities on the Grand Canal; while by the Yangtsz’ it receives produce from Yunnan and Sz’chuen. In these respects its position resembles that of New Orleans.
The town of Wusung is at the mouth of that river, here about a mile wide; and two miles beyond lies the district town of Paushan. The wall of Shanghai is three miles in circuit, through which six gates open into extensive suburbs; around the ramparts flows a ditch twenty feet wide. The city stands in a wide plain of extraordinary fertility, intersected by numerous streamlets, and affording ample means of navigation and communication; its population is estimated to be at present over 500,000,but the data for this figure are rather imperfect. Since it was opened to foreign commerce in 1843, the growth of the town has been rapid in every element of prosperity, though subject to great vicissitudes by reason of the rebellion which devastated the adjoining country. Its capture by the insurgents in 1851, and their expulsion in February, 1853, with the destruction of the eastern and southern suburbs in 1860, have been its chief disasters since that date. The native trade has gradually passed from the unwieldy and unsafe junks which used to throng the Hwang-pu east of the city, into steamers and foreign craft, and is now confined, so far as the vessels are concerned, to the inland and coast traffic in coarse, cheap articles.
Shanghai city itself is a dirty place, and poorly built. The houses are mostly made of bluish square brick, imperfectly burned; and the walls are constructed in a cellular manner by placing bricks on their edges, and covering them with stucco. The streets are about eight feet wide, paved with stone slabs, and in the daytime crowded with people. Silk and embroidery, cotton, and cotton goods, porcelain, ready-made clothes, beautiful skins and furs, bamboo pipes of every size, bamboo ornaments, pictures, bronzes, specimens of old porcelain, and other curiosities, to which the Chinese attach great value, attract the stranger’s notice. Articles of food form the most extensive trade of all; and it is sometimes a difficult matter to get through the streets, owing to the immense quantities of fish, pork, fruit, and vegetables, which crowd the stands in front of the shops. Dining-rooms, tea-houses, and bakers’ shops, are met with at every step, from the poor man who carries around his kitchen or bakehouse, altogether hardly worth a dollar, to the most extensive tavern or tea-house, crowded with customers. For a few cash, a Chinese can dine upon rice, fish, vegetables, and tea; nor does it matter much to him, whether his table is set in the streets or on the ground, in a house or on a deck, he makes himself merry with his chopsticks, and eats what is before him.[51]The buildings composing the Ching-hwang miao, and the grounds attached to this establishment, present a goodinstance of Chinese style and taste in architecture. Large warehouses for storing goods, granaries, and temples, are common; but neither these, nor the public buildings, present any distinguishing features peculiar to this city alone.
The contrast between the narrow, noisome and reeking parts of the native city, and the clean, spacious, well-shaded and well-paved streets and large houses of the foreign municipalities, is like that seen in many cities in India. The Chinese are ready enough to enjoy and support the higher style of living, but they are not yet prepared to adopt and maintain similar improvements among themselves. The difficulty of being sure of the co-operation of the rulers in municipal improvements deters intelligent natives from initiating even the commonest sanitary enterprise of their foreign neighbors.
The remaining cities and districts of Kiangsu present nothing worthy of special remark. The Grand Canal runs from north to south, and affords a safe and ample thoroughfare for multitudes of boats in its entire length. Tsing-kiang-pu and Hwai-ngan, near the old Yellow River, receive the traffic from the north and Hungtsih Lake, while Yangchau near the Yangtsz’ River, takes that going north. In this part of the channel, constant dyking has resulted in raising the banks; the city of Hwai-ngan, for example, lies below the canal which brings trade to its doors, and may one day be drowned by its benefactor. Salt is manufactured in the districts south of the Yellow River, where the people cultivate but rare patches of arable land.
The island of Tsungming, at the mouth of the Yangtsz’, is about sixty miles long, and sixteen wide, containing over nine hundred square miles, and is gradually enlarging by the constant deposits from the river; it is flat, but contains fresh water. It is highly cultivated and populous, though some places on the northern side are so impregnated with salt, and others so marshy, as to be useless for raising food. This island produces a variety ofkaoliangor sorghum (Holcus), which is sweet enough to furnish syrup, and is grown for that purpose in the United States.