curs A. 



181 



An interesting report was made on March 

 7, 1864, by the Engineer Durois, upon the new 

 Pass through the Andes, and its practicability, 

 with a view to the construction of a railway. 

 According to this report a railroad could be 

 built within four years, and for a sum not ex- 

 ceeding eight millions of dollars, from the 

 valley of Curico to the summit of the Cor- 

 dillera, which for security and durability would 

 not be surpassed by any mountain road, and it 

 is believed not more obstructed by the snows 

 of winter than the railways of northern New 

 York and Lower Canada. East of the sum- 

 mits there are no serious difficulties to be en- 

 countered. " This grand railway completed," 

 says the report of Durois, " the vast and mag- 

 nificent Argentine Kepnblic would give to her 

 sister of the Pacific a fraternal embrace on the 

 summit of the mountains, which, until the pres- 

 ent, have caused their separation, and the en- 

 tire world would feel the influence of a rail- 

 way between the Atlantic and the Pacific, as 

 it would not only facilitate and shorten the com- 

 munication of the Indies and the Pacific with 

 Europe, but afford invaluable advantages to 

 commerce. 



CHIXA, an empire in Eastern Asia. Em- 

 peror Ki-Tsiang (before his accession to the 

 throne, Tsai-Sung), born in 1855, succeeded his 

 father, Hung-fund, in August 22, 1861. Prime 

 Minister, Yih-soo, Prince of Kung. Popula- 

 tion, in 1849, estimated at 415,000,000. Area, 

 estimated by McCulloch, at 76,815 geographi- 

 cal square miles; by Malte Brun, at 69,840; 

 by Barrow, at 60,072. 



The State Council consists of six members. 

 Subordinate to the State Council are eight col- 

 leges, each of which is presided over by a 

 chief director. These colleges are: 1, for ex- 

 ternal affairs ; 2, for nominating and watching 

 the civil officers of the empire ; 3, for finances ; 

 4, for worship ; 5, for war ; 6, for justice ; 7, 

 for public labors ; 8, for receiving the ambas- 

 sadors from the tributary countries. 



The college of public censors is independent 

 of the State Council. It consists of from forty 

 to fifty members, and it alone has the right to 

 lay remonstrances and complaints before the 

 Emperor. A member of this college always 

 attends the meetings of the eight ministerial 

 departments, without, however, taking part in 

 the discussions. Others are travelling through 

 the empire, and exercising a control over the 

 administration and the higher officers. 



The commerce of the ports of Canton and 

 Shanghai, during the years 1860-'62, was as 

 follows: 



Sir Macdonald Stevenson, to whom is justly 

 accorded the first place amongst the enterpris- 



ing men who have achieved the establishment 

 of railways in British India, paid, in 1864, a 

 visit to China, to ascertain what could be done 

 with the Chinese Government with regard to 

 constructing a railway system in China. The 

 plan proposed by Stevenson is to make the 

 main lines first, leaving the branch lines for a 

 tune. Assuming Hankow to be a great com- 

 mercial centre, one trunk line, in his opinion, 

 should run east to Shanghai, 650 miles, one 

 from Shanghai to Pekin, 850 miles, one from 

 Hankow to Canton, 850 miles, and one from 

 Hankow to British India, 1,600 miles. Steven- 

 son does not advocate all this being undertaken 

 in the first instance, but lays down a compre- 

 hensive plan as the principle on which railroads 

 in China should be constructed. He recom- 

 mends short lines being commenced with all 

 speed between Tientsin and Pekin, and be- 

 tween Shanghai and Soochow, and presumes 

 that these would not only cost little, but would 

 exhibit to the people and the Government the 

 great advantages to be derived from railroads. 

 Stevenson instances the capacity of the Chi- 

 nese to appreciate cheap and swift travel, by 

 reference to the steamers which ply between 

 Hongkong and Canton. "When the fare was 

 one dollar the average daily number of passen- 

 gers was about two hundred ; on the fare being 

 reduced to twenty-five cents, the number rose 

 at least fourfold. The difficulties in the way 

 are classified by Stevenson under three heads: 

 1st. The cooperation and concurrence of the 

 Chinese Government. 2d. The financial ar- 

 rangements ; and 3d. The engineering difficul- 

 ties. He meets these by the following consid- 

 erations : The 1st is a subject for diplomacy 

 every point being taken to explain to the Im- 

 perial Government the advantages of railways, 

 and the means of constructing them. The 2d 

 he also deems a diplomatic affair, depending 

 on the success of the first. That is to say, 

 should a good understanding be come to with 

 the Imperial Government, an arrangement of 

 such a nature could be made as would satisfy 

 capitalists. The 3d he considers to be par- 

 tially ascertained from the surveys of the Cath- 

 olic missionaries of the eighteenth century, 

 which he has closely studied. He advocates, 

 of course, proper surveys being made to con- 

 firm or condemn those of the padres. 



Should the three points above named be sat- 

 isfactorily solved, there is no doubt that before 

 long there will be the beginning of a great 

 railway system in China. 



The cotton trade in the Chinese empire is 

 progressing most favorably. At Canton and 

 Shanghai, up to June, 1864, 52,000 bales of 

 cotton were actually shipped for London and 

 Liverpool, against 12,000 in the corresponding 

 period the year before. Large as this quantity 

 is as compared with former years, the opera- 

 tions of the market are said to have been sadly 

 crippled by the state of the money market, and 

 the scarcity of sycee silver, in which the native 

 dealers are alone willing to make settlements. 



