CHAMBERS'S INFORMATION FOR THE PEOPLE. 



was restricted to Canton ; but dissensions between 

 the English and Chinese officials led to the war of 

 1840-42, and a treaty of peace at its conclusion, by 

 which five ports were thrown open to British trade. 

 The war of 1857, and the capture of Pckin by the 

 English and French in 1860, were followed by 

 treaties under which the commerce of the country 

 was to be fully opened up to Europeans, and 

 Christians were to be protected in the open pro- 

 fession of their faith. It was subsequent to this 

 treaty that European officers were permitted to 

 drill the Chinese troops, and assist in putting 

 down the Tae-ping rebellion. The Chinese gov- 

 ernment have not, however, given that assist- 

 ance which was expected in opening up the 

 commerce of the country. 



We may enumerate a few of the chief towns of 

 China. Tching-tou-fou (pop. 800,000), the capital 

 of Se-chuen, the province just referred to, is a 

 beautiful and opulent city, with wide streets and 

 handsome shops. The houses are brightly painted, 

 and very clean, reminding the visitor of the cities 

 of Chinese pictures, more than the dingier coast 

 towns. Canton (pop. 1,600,000) stands in a fine 

 country south of the Nan-ling chain. At the 

 mouth of the Canton River is the small English 

 island of Hong-kong, 8 miles long, and from 2 to 

 6 broad. The chief town is Victoria, the best 

 part of which is built after the European fashion. 

 The population of the colony is 125,504, of whom 

 2034 are Europeans. Nankin, the capital of the 

 Ming dynasty, had formerly a population, it is 

 believed, of from 500,000 to 1,000,000. Since its 

 destruction by the Tae-pings, more than half of 

 the city is in ruins. Shanghae (pop. 300,000), at 

 the mouth of the Yang-tze-kiang, is now the most 

 important city of the Chinese empire. It is the 

 headquarters of British trade in China. Pekin 

 (pop. 1,600,000), the modern capital of China, is 

 divided into two parts, a commercial city on the 

 south, and a Tatar city on the north, in which are 

 situated the imperial palace and the government 

 offices. 



COREA. 



Corea lies to the north-east of China. It con- 

 sists chiefly of a peninsula traversed by a range of 

 mountains. It has a climate severe in the north, 

 but in the extreme south belonging, like China, to 

 the warm temperate zone. It is well cultivated, 

 and in most respects resembles a Chinese prov- 

 ince. The Coreans, however, have a language and 

 literature of their own. They have been accus- 

 tomed to pay tribute to both China and Japan, 

 but have riot had much intercourse with Euro- 

 peans. Lately, our acquaintance with this curious 

 people and country has been much extended ; 

 and commercial treaties, opening certain ports to 

 foreign commerce, were concluded with the United 

 States in 1882, and with Great Britain in 1884. 



JAPAN. 



The Japanese archipelago consists of the islands 

 of Honshiu, Shikoku, Kiushiu, and Yezo, and a 

 large number of smaller islands which surround 



288 



these. Their surface is generally very rugged 

 some mountains attaining a great height. In 

 Honshiu, Fusiyama (12,500 feet) is a dormant 

 volcano, and Asama-Yama (8300) an active one. 

 The plains are most extensive on the eastern 

 coast. The greater part of the archipelago lies 

 within the warm temperate zone, but there is a 

 very great difference between the climates of the 

 northern and southern islands. The surface is 

 everywhere well cultivated. The chief products 

 are rice, barley, wheat, and potatoes, tobacco, tea, 

 cotton, silk, and all the fruits and vegetables of 

 Southern Europe. The domestic animals are not 

 much reared ; buffaloes and oxen are only used 

 for draught. In some manufactures, the Japanese 

 have made great progress. Their paper, lackered 

 and japanned wares, are unrivalled, and they excel 

 in manufactures of silks and cottons, clocks, tele- 

 scopes, and metallic goods generally. The area 

 of Japan is about 1 50,000 square miles, the popu- 

 lation 35 or 36 millions. Ethnologists are rather 

 puzzled to say to what section of the inhabit- 

 ants of Asia they belong. They differ from 

 the Mantchus, Chinese, Malays, and Esqui- 

 maux, and yet, in some respects, they resemble 

 all these races. The spoken language of Japan 

 entirely differs from the Chinese, but the Chinese 

 classics form the basis of their literature. Japan 

 was till quite recently an oligarchy governed by the 

 daimios or nobles, and the Tycoon or head of the 

 executive. A civil war which terminated in 1868, 

 restored power to the Mikado, the representative 

 of the old sovereigns, and since then Japan may 

 be considered a monarchy. 



In 1 542, the Portuguese settled in Japan ; but 

 there, as elsewhere, their attempts to proselytise 

 led to strife, and they were expelled. In 1660, 

 when the Dutch opened negotiations with the 

 Japanese, they were allowed to send two ships 

 annually for purposes of trade, but on condition 

 that they should not interfere with the religion 

 of the inhabitants. For two centuries and a 

 half, the Dutch and Chinese had the mon- 

 opoly of the Japanese trade. They were confined 

 to a small island on the coast of Kiusiu, near 

 Nagasaki. The government maintained its isola- 

 tion until the islands were visited by the United 

 States' expedition under Commodore Perry in 

 1854, which obtained entrance to the port of 

 Simoda. The English followed the example set 

 them in 1858, and since then the commerce of 

 Japan has been opened to Europeans. A great 

 revolution has been brought about : English books 

 have been translated into Japanese ; Japanese 

 students have begun to frequent the European 

 schools of medicine and law, our dockyards, and 

 our engineering establishments ; not one Euro- 

 pean art or science is now neglected by them ; 

 and they bid fair, in a generation, to rise to the 

 level of European progress. 



Yedo, now Tokio (pop. 823,000),, the capital 

 of Japan, covers a large space, 17 miles long, and 

 10 broad; this area, however, includes extensive 

 gardens. Canals lined with trees traverse the 

 principal streets. 





