102 REVIEWS OF RECENT BOOKS 



plains through which they flow, and the enormous -quantities of silt 

 washed down from the loess regions, any system of barrages, reservoirs, 

 dikes, outlets, and other engineering works can only afford temporary 

 assistance. The problem must be attacked at its root, i.e. the hills 

 must be reforested in order to prevent the soil erosion which charges 

 the rivers with silt, building up their beds to a dangerous height, so 

 that when floods come the banks are broken through and devastation 

 spread through the low-lying plains. 



Mr. Lin shows the great value of forests in preventing floods by 

 reducing the surface run-off, maintaining a steady flow of water instead 

 of disastrous freshets ; acting as reservoirs for water and retarding the 

 melting of snow ; preventing the formation of gullies and landslips, etc. 

 He hopes that China will soon realize the misery caused by neglect, 

 and will do something to start this all-important work — forestry. 

 His pamphlet which has been well circulated, should stimulate his 

 fellow-countrymen to put their hands to the plough. N. S. 



Yearbook of the Netherlands East Indies, 191 6. 



The aim of this compendious volume, which appears for the first 

 time, is "to classify the vast amount of material which has been 

 collected, and to provide a permanent plan for an annual yearbook of 

 the Dutch East Indies." It will be found valuable to all who desire 

 information on the geographical features, flora and fauna, legislation, 

 finance, banking system, commerce, agriculture — in short, every in- 

 formation required by the business man, economist, and tourist 

 desirous of becoming acquainted with these valuable islands is given. 



No census figures are available since 1905, but the number of 

 Chinese in the Dutch East Indies at that time is given as 563,000, and 

 this figure has probably increased since then. Most of the Chinese 

 living in the Archipelago are merchants while many are mechanics and 

 land owners ; they are chiefly middle men and carry on a retail trade. 

 By their diligence and economy many have grown rich and become 

 proprietors of large commercial enterprises, estates and factories. 

 In West Borneo the Chinese have accomplished a great deal towards 

 the advancement of agriculture, and have converted the primeval 

 forest into rice fields and cocoanut plantations. The Chinese are also 

 noted as furniture makers and are also employed in large numbers in 

 the tin mines. 



The chief exports to China are sugar, kerosene oil and paraffin 

 wax (the last growing in importance) and candles ; in 1917 Java sent 

 large quantities of tea to China. Pepper and quinine are also growing 



