224 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



A VISIT TO THE HANGCHOW BOEE 



By Dr. CHARLES KEYSER EDMUNDS 



CANTON CHRISTIAN COLLEGE 

 II 



The Great Sea-wall 



JUST when and how and at what cost the present substantial sea- 

 wall was built are now matters for more or less conjecture, the 

 chroniclers of the province neglecting such information as irrelevant 

 in comparison with fanciful legends to be retold in connection with 

 so great a work. 3 One of the most interesting of these stories refers 

 to what was perhaps the first attempt at anything like an adequate 

 sea-wall. It is to the effect that in the region of Emperor Huang Wu 

 (25 a.d.) an official, Hua Hsin, proposing to build a sea-wall opposite 

 the present site of Hangchow, issued a proclamation offering 1,000 

 "cash" (about fifty cents gold) for every man-load of earth that the 

 people should bring to the river bank. On the appointed day great 

 crowds of men, women and children came to carry earth. At a signal 

 every one took up his load and carried it to the spot indicated by 

 Hua Hsin's lieutenants. At this juncture Hua Hsin himself appeared 

 and, feigning surprise when told of the large wage to be paid per man- 

 load, he ordered the people away, saying it was utter nonsense to talk 

 of such high pay. Indignantly the people threw down their loads and 

 walked away, thus unwittingly dropping the earth just where the wily 

 official wanted it. " Thus in one day Hua Hsin, by his trickery, built 

 a sea-wall of great height, and one that withstood the briny waters 

 for many years." 



In spite of this assertion of the native chronicler, however, a dyke 

 built in this fashion was sure to prove too flimsy to withstand the 

 impacts of such tides as sweep the bay, and we are not surprised to 

 find frequent references to daily sacrifices and prayers to the Water 

 Dragon for protection against the powerful waters. It was not until 

 the period of the Five Eulers that these prayers were answered by the 

 appearance of a man of works as well as of faith, the "great Prince 

 Ch'ien," Hangchow's most famous man. Many places of interest 

 about the city still bear his name in recognition of his great services 

 to the people, which included besides the less tangible, though none 

 the less real, benefits of a wise and capable government, the more 

 "substantial" benefits arising from the efficient fortification of the 



8 For a fuller account of these legends see F. D. Oland's "Hangchow," 

 Shanghai, 1906. 



