100 



CHINA. 



According to a proclamation of the Govern- 

 or of Che-kiang issued in 1880, there are enor- 

 mous areas of land left uncultivated in that 

 district, and, although seventeen years have 

 elapsed since the last war which so terribly 

 ravaged the country, a large extent of land has 

 never been able to pay the taxes, and has con- 

 sequently been left untilled. This is particu- 

 larly observable in the departments of Chin- 

 houa, Chuchow, and Yen-show, in which up- 

 ward of 1,000,000 acres are idle; while in 

 those of Hang-show, Ka-shing, and Hu-chow, 

 there are 6,000,000 in the same predicament. 

 Some of the land is too poor even to return 

 much for labor and capital bestowed upon it, 

 but there are at least 5,500,000 acres of really 

 rich and fertile soil at present completely neg- 

 lected. This arises partly from the fear lest 

 any cultivator of the land in question should 

 be called upon to pay up the arrears of taxes, 

 but the Governor's proclamation specially men- 

 tions this exemption. 



The military forces of the empire consist of 

 two distinct bodies. The corps which is called 

 the "Banner Army," because it was ranged 

 under eight banners, numbers roughly 230,000 

 non-commis%ioned officers and privates, besides 

 40,000 eleves or paid expectants from these 

 grades to the higher ranks, and 5,000 artifi- 

 cers and followers. There are about 80,000 

 in Peking ; other 50,000 are distributed about 

 the province of Pechili ; there are 40,000 in 

 Mantchooria; and the remainder furnish the 

 Tartar garrisons of the chief cities throughout 

 the empire. By far the most important of all 

 the Banner forces is that which is known as 

 the Hian-ki-Ying, and which, according to 

 Sir Thomas Wade, is the only corps which 

 can have any claim to be considered as an 

 army. They number some 36,000, besides 

 26,000 ettves. But it is commonly believed 

 that of the whole Banner forces throughout 

 the empire at the present time no more than 

 30,000 of the Hian-ki-Ying, with perhaps 18,- 

 000 of those that make up the twenty-five 

 garrisons, can be said to be effective. Mili- 

 tary exercises are almost universally carried 

 on in the imperial hunting park an immense 

 tract of country surrounded by a wall, the ac- 

 cess to which is jealously forbidden to foreign- 

 ers. In Peking there is a force of field-artillery 

 with modern breech-loading guns, but of their 

 numbers and effectiveness he could form no 

 idea. While the Bannermen are the soldiers of 

 the Mantchoo sovereign, an alien, though suze- 

 rain power, the force of the Green Standard, 

 called Luh-Ying, is, in part, the constitutional 

 army of China. The duties of the Luh-Ying 



are by no means confined to those of a Euro- 

 pean army, for the responsibilities of a police 

 force are imposed upon them, and by far the 

 larger portion of them seem to be devoted to 

 the duty of preventing robbery, contrabandism, 

 and other crimes. Besides being the land- 

 force, the Luh-Ying man the navy of the sea- 

 board provinces, and have adistinct organization 

 of divisions and garrisons, each under its gen- 

 eral So completely are these forces under the 

 Governors-General of provinces, that even the 

 Imperial Cabinet at Peking finds it very difficult 

 and sometimes impossible to induce these offi- 

 cers to move their army beyond the borders 

 of their province. The strength of these pro- 

 vincial armies varies with the size of the prov- 

 ince and with the duties they have to perform. 

 Taking all the provinces, the average for each 

 is about 34,500 men and 640 officers one offi- 

 cer to fifty- two men. Of the capabilities of 

 the nation Captain Gill said: "The Chinese, 

 especially those of the north, are a fine people 

 physically ; they are hardy and enduring, frugal 

 and temperate ; they can undergo great fatigue 

 on a small amount of food, and will support 

 great privations without complaint. They are 

 law-abiding, docile, and obedient to authority ; 

 and, if the discipline in their armies is at pres- 

 ent lax, the history of Gordon's force shows us 

 what it might be if the soldiers were properly 

 paid, properly officered, and properly looked 

 after." Captain Gill is of opinion that the 

 Chinese, if properly trained, properly armed, 

 and properly led by officers in whom they 

 placed confidence, would certainly furnish ma- 

 terial for admirable soldiers. 



The foundation for a navy was laid in 1877, 

 when the Government received four iron-clad 

 gunboats which had been built in England. 

 They were primarily intended for the defense of 

 the coast. To these four others were added in 

 1879, which had likewise been constructed in 

 England. 



The following table exhibits the commerce 

 of China from 1872 to 1878, the values being 

 expressed in taels (1 tael = $1.61): 



In the ten years from 1869 to 1878, inclu- 

 sive, the imports increased in total value about 

 18 per cent., and the exports 25 per cent. 

 The foreign trade of China is mainly with 

 Great Britain and her colonies. Tea constitutes 

 two thirds of the ^exports to Gre;it Britain, 

 the only other important article being raw silk. 

 The 'extent of the commercial intercourse 

 with the United States, Great Britain, the Brit- 

 ish colonies, and Japan, may be seen from the 

 following table, giving the volume of the trade 

 with each country in taels : 



