46 GEOLOGICAL RESEARCHES IN 



CHAPTER V.^ 



THE DELTA-PLAIN, AND THE HISTORICAL CHANGES IN THE 



COURSE OP THE YELLOW RIYER. 



The extent of the great plain of Eastern China is pretty well known from native 

 and Jesuit authorities. It lies in a semicircle around the mountainous peninsula of 

 Shantung. Its outer limit, as approximately given on the Jesuit map, begins in 

 the department of Yungping (fu), and, running west, keeps south of the Great 

 Wall till Changping (chau) N. W. of Peking. Thence, remaining east of the 

 southern branch of the Great Wall, it follows a general S. S. W. course, passing- 

 westward of Chingting (fu) and Kwangping (fu), till it reaches the upper waters 

 of the Wei river. Here it turns westward into Hwaiking (fu), and crosses the 

 Yellow river in that department. 



From the right bank of this river it trends a little east of south, passing west of 

 Jiining (fu) (Honan), and then turning eastward it continues south of Kwang (chau) 

 and north of Luhngan (chau) in Luchau (fu). Here an arm of the plain, in which 

 lies the Tsau lake, stretches southward from the Hwai river to the Yangtse, and 

 continues eastward on the right side of this river, occupying the region between 

 the river and Hangchau bay. A hilly region, in the centre of which is Nanking, 

 rises, like a large island from the plain, to the north of this arm. 



The Shantmrg boundary of the plain begins at Laichau (fu), and after describing 

 a great bow to the south it turns west at Shukwang (hien), and running thence to 

 Changtsing (hien), in Tsinan (fu), it turns to the south and around to the southeast. 

 Keeping this course it remains nearly parallel to the Imperial canal till the Kiangsu 

 frontier, which it follows to the sea. 



The greater part of the area included within these limits is a plain which seems 

 to descend very gently toward the sea, and to be very generally below the high 

 water level of the Hwang Ho. It is the delta of the Hwang Ho, and in part also 

 of the Yangtse Kiang, and is remarkable for its semi-annular shape, half inclosing, 

 as it does, the mountain-mass of Shantung. 



The city of Peking stands on a raised border of loam, sand, clay, and gravel, 

 which forms the northwestern skirt of the delta-lowlands, and seems to extend 

 southward fringing the mountains along its western side. The name of the Talo 

 lake (Ta great, and lo plateau or raised plain) seems to refer to such a border, and 



» See Maps I — X, on Plates 4 and 5. 



