CHAPTER V. 



YANG-TZE RIVER 



Although the valley of the Yang-tze is 

 the most populous region of China it has 

 long been the favorite shooting ground of 

 the sportsman. The valley takes its name 

 from the river that runs through it and the 

 area of the former is in creditable propor- 

 tion to the imperial waterway of the latter ; 

 and it is the richest, and the most favored 

 by the facility of its communications. In 

 this central region of China the Yang-tze 

 river drains an area of 700,000 square 

 miles, and the population of its basin is 

 estimated at 200,000,000. The climate is 

 temperate and free from the great variations 

 of the north. While the summer is hot the 

 excessive cold of winter is not experienced, 

 and the crops are less irregular than in 

 other parts of the Empire. The agricultural 

 products are tea, rice, silk, wheat, cotton, 

 and buckwheat. The maunfacturing in- 

 dustries are mostly of silk, yarn, cotton, 

 cloth, indian ink, porcelain ware, salt, and 

 oil. Its mineral wealth may be said to be 

 great, but it is less rich in coal beds than 



