12 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I42 



heavals until A. D. 1280. In spite of several invasions from the north, 

 China again flourished, and in Szechwan there were three kilnsites 

 where excellent porcelains were made, the largest one being at Liu-li- 

 ch'ang. During this dynasty Arabs carried on an extensive trade 

 with ports in southeast China, and a colony of Jews settled in the 

 northern Sung capital, where they retained their identity until the 

 middle of the 19th century. 



The shorter Yuan dynasty (1280-1368), when China was again 

 ruled by foreign invaders, was followed by the glorious Ming dynasty 

 (1368- 1 644), whose rulers were Chinese. At the end of this period 

 Chang Hsien-chung led a large army into Szechwan and declared 

 himself "king of the west." He adopted a policy of ruthlessly ex- 

 terminating his opponents. Unnumbered millions are said to have 

 been executed. Although most of these reports are exaggerated, it is 

 certain that more than one million people in Szechwan were killed by 

 Chang and his army, and that many others fled from the province, 

 so that Szechwan was nearly depopulated (Parsons, 1957, pp. 395- 

 396). During the Manchu dynasty West China experienced a great 

 migration, especially into Szechwan, from nearly every province of 

 north, east, and south China. (Ibid., pp. 396-398.) 



For millennia the oceans were a barrier to Chinese trade and cul- 

 tural contacts. During the T'ang dynasty trade developed with India 

 and other countries by means of Arabian ships which came to south- 

 east China. During the Sung dynasty the Chinese had a navy and 

 began to navigate the seas, leading to an extensive foreign commerce 

 with many exports and imports. Chinese ships traveled to Japan, the 

 Philippines, Singapore, Java, and even to India and Iran. During the 

 Ming dynasty Chinese ships made expeditions to Java, Sumatra, India, 

 Ceylon, Arabia, and Africa. 



Portuguese vessels arrived on the China coast in 1522. The 

 Spaniards took possession of the Philippines in 1565, and began to 

 trade with the Chinese coastal cities, followed soon after by the Dutch 

 and the English. As trade with foreign countries developed through 

 the Chinese seaports, it reduced to insignificance the overland route 

 through Kansu and western Asia. Western impact on the coastal cities 

 became stronger and stronger and has influenced every part of China, 

 including the remotest regions in the west. 



THE PEOPLE 



Anthropologists have divided the yellow or Alongolian race into 

 three groups ; the Asiatic continental, the American Indian type, and 



