A rratioe of conditions in North Kangra was reed by the Rev. Father Jacquinot de Besange 6.1, Ca-Chairman, ata recent Meeting of the China Foreton. Famine Rollo! Committee. Photographs illustrating "there conditions appear on page #5.
The first time I saw a Chinese She carries with her all the out-coffes in most fashionable café—The floods in the North are prob-Jady in the long gown which is so ward indications of a philosophical Mars,—or to gossip a little over an ably less spectacular than those of much affected in these days in acceptance of the unavoidable, ice-cream. But some throw in a the mighty Yangizekiang. It is only most of the Treaty Ports, was some a slow. but regular and unrelenting while the young puss behind her passing searching gaze, with a rise of the water. It is not the rush years ago, when she walked along swaggers in all the crimson of hardness of glance that is its own of one of the largest rivers of the the bridge which stretched across cheek and lip, the glossy hair and advertising. world. The Blue River overflows the lounge of the Hotel Moderne in pretty clothes which announce her} and fills its valley with angry water, Harbin. It was worn by the wife for what she is,—the old man's new Peaked caps set off the high as yellow as tea, and seems to be of a well known diplomat, was darling. A prosperous merchant necked tunics of some of the men, like one of those pre-historic rivers. made of black velvet, which with waddies in, heralded by an priest passes with his unkempt As. it divides China at the centre a pair of diamond earrings advanced paunch which speaks well beard and hair, clothed in a rusty into two distinct regions, it forces us adequately set out the beauty of for high living if, possibly low black dignity which sets him apart to pay attention. the wearer. The high heeled thinking, and a thin sparsely from the others, and though a num~ But, "in the North, the terrible Huang Ho is, stil! more dan-Parisian shoes, the exquisiteness of bearded aesthete drifts across the ber of shaggy heads are doverd of serous. Its bed is not stable nor figure and the charm of face all lounge to round out the picture. any covering at all, it is the shaven fixed; it is the greatest sorrow of went to make up a memorable dome and its reflections which China, as it_has always been ever picture, which was repeated many. emphasizes that somewhere in the since "2,000 B.C. Is the Huang Ho times when the vogue became to Sitting near one of the windows sky outside the sun is really doing. to follow much longer the course it be more generally accepted. is a short man somewhat beyond a bit of shining opened for itself in the year 1852! middle age, strongly marked face One may doubt it, so dificult is its But this is not to talk of her, Prominent nose, and bull neck with And so we come back to the way to its mouth in the north of though the charm of the picture short stocky Body balanced pre-bridge. If there is another Shantung. It is blocked by its com-will always remain. Our imcariously on somewhat slender legs pact mud banks. We may expect entrance to the hotel, it is not used. encased in narrow trousers. I have that its last irrestible effort towards mediate concern is with the bridge very much. The link between the watched him for hours. A restless the South may force it to stray over which she walked. Techni-reception office and the hotel indefinitely into the flooded regions cally a bridge is a narrow strip of soul who sits awhile in his well upstairs has been worn alittle' of Western Shantung and Kiangsu. carpet which connects one room tailored clothes, suddenly seizes his threadbare by many feet, shod in One hundred and thirty kilometres with another, and though to the, hat, disappears into the street for a high heeled shoes, or the flat minute or so, to return and enter NE. of Kaifengfu, an enormous puns: the stretch of material with monstrosities which only the work-break more than 200 yds. wide, ocx which we are immediately con-into serious consultation with ing class will endure. A man in a curred in the bank of the Huang Ho. cerned does not connect two rooms, someone he has seen and brought suit of dungarees passes through, From that break the yellow flood but the reception hall and the stairs in from outside or who has just his black smudged face indicating water came down and the break drifted in to see him. He is more to the upper rooms of the hotel, it an intensity of purpose, a Chinese: could not be mended and in fact, sufficiently fulfils the purpose to of a mystery than usual, for, unlike boy crosses bearing on his still widening. Gen. Huang Shantung took wise and justify the appellation. the average Russian business man, shoulder a coat hanger from which he carries no portfolio. courageous action to save as many is suspended a suit which has: £5 possible of the unfortunate popu-'There may be many more beauti obviously just been pressed. From lation from that inrush of water, ful hotel lounges than that of the 'Years of observation has justified the restaurant on the ground floor'
There are a few millions of them. the conclusion that no Russian ever Hotel Moderne. Indeed it might be! group of diners emerge, whose Unfortunately at the beginning no admitted at once that it would be! considers himself to be a business national etiquette requires that!
Jone could foresee what was to dificult not to be more attractive, man unless he carries a portfolio. they shall bear audible testimony happen. They though that the flood for this particular specimen, though Tt may not be stuffed largely with to the excellent meal which they would run off and as there was no
it Is not upholstered in red plush, Papers to indicate a wealth of mi have just taken. There is much understanding between the Shantung and Kiangsu authorities, those in decorated in such a style as to ters to be disposed of. bowing and murmuring of polite-/Shantung resented that the Kiangsu give just that impression, Red It is just possible that it Is be-nesses ere they cross over the people barred further progress of the red leather, red carpet, red ing used to take home the weekly bridge and pass out into the food towards the South, but table' covers, and' the red. bridge wash, but a man in Harbin with-sunshine. should be remembered that the plain; fringed with a time faded edging out a portfolio, is a nonentity, a There are not many Englishmen fof North Kiangsu bring rich crops of blue, all make one look sur-man who carries no weight in the the hotel, but one just comes in, every year of wheat, beans, sesame reptitiously around for the inevit-world of affairs, a masterless man a rangy, red haired individual, all "and kaoliang. Lake Waishan, able Victorianism of wax flowers and eke a vagabond. There are two sucking the traditional pipe and. overflowed. The agricultural, population which had settled there, would under a glass bell. They are not of them sitting near the ghastly surrounded with an aura of imnot leave their elds until the last to be found; nor are there any anti-picture which adds to the gloom penetrable reserve, which the, minute and now their crops, wheat, macassars: just two small ingreof the room. They place their English always seem to carry in [beans and kaoliang are under water, lents missing which would have!
Portfolios on the table, draw out a foreign places. He is off for some-which is still rising, covering all completed the illusion, Above the: few papers, and go into so close where, for a few curt phrases lender its yellow blanket. fireplace is an oil painting of herois 'a huddle, for secrecy's sweet sake, ascertain from the porter that his. dimensions representing what that they may safely be said to baggage has already gone to the Dykes to Protect Plain
pears to be a gentleman in bat' consume their own smoke. A sus~ station.
'Then took place a most astonishing wings carrying a lifeless young surat murmur, a furtive glance She is not beautiful, except Jeffort to build a dyke, that T ha woman down' a steep and rocky! around, perhaps a cup of the with the beauty of youth, but fever witnessed." In fess than "34 weeks in the very hot._menth of declivity, Nobody seems to know evitable tea and lemon, a hurried what she lacks in actual beauty of what it f all about, and perhaps it August under the unmereifel sun shaking of the hands and a quick feature is amply made up for by fof the Chinese summer which never does not matter for' there are three departure. The conference her dressing and general make up. relaxes its ardour, they have erected other things which serve to attract ended, and, if the indolent gent She is dressed in red, with red another great wall of China, to pro-attention, the lounge itself, the man lounging near heard anything coral earrings, hair swept back tect the low lying plain of North people who cross over the bridge, of what transpired, his ears must from the brow, and finished off in Kiangsu, The dyke is five metres and those, who, passing to and fro have been as long'as the nose of plait which completely encircles high and 25 metres broad at its base, along Kitaiskaya, present an inthe unfortunate gentleman in the the head. It seems to give it a 1 is in the shape of a gigantic S,, a teresting picture of Harbin types. fairy story. 'The atmosphere in one flattened appearance, but she is so Deneficient' dragon undulating. along sense gives the impression of an bien soignée that "whatever she more than a. hundred kilometres, [On one side of the dyke the water Intensive listening and a determin: [does it will sure be right."
Jeomes level with "the top. On the At the moment the lounge itself tion not to be heard, all producing other. side there is a_ sharp slope 48 absorbing. There is an enormous an overwhelming silence in which Immediately behind her comes Jot five yards and as. the. water number of Japanese in the hotel, the quiet tones of a cathedral another young woman. Obviously Still Rising, day" and. night, a. close and they and their visitors eprawi verger would be a positive shriek living in the hotel, and the pos-watch is kept. Last week T'was with all over the few chairs and settees of noise. sesser of a very young sporting dog, the teams of workers who are con-available. Others pop in and out, stantly replacing one" another, so young that it has still the blue in morning coats, or evening dress, 'There is a continual change in Jorder' to gain on. the "flood and look of youthful wonderment in Sorgeous at times with decorations protect the crops which ave no! the occupants of the seats around its eye, an indisposition to proceed and. yellow rosettes bow cere-[Fet been gathered. "Will they" sue= the lounge. A group of young at the end of a lead, and a profound fecea? "It is not yet certain. Every moniously to each other with a women come in, smartly dressed as lack of knowledge of what such tone is at wark, rich and poor. number "of genuflections which the Harbin young woman knows bridges are actually meant for. It the beginning there were some who seems to increase with the imhow on a slender purse. Nobody all so very embarrassing that the hesitated and failed to do. their portance of the recipient of such buys anything, but they gather only thing to do is to hurry the share of the common task and courtesies, and hustle on their way round a table and the fun is on. animal out, which is done not a the course of a. great battle, to one or the other function which Whether it is a choice titbit of summary executions took place at second too early. the visit of the Emperor has made local gossip, or the latest funny story he foot of the dyke. the order of the day. Japanese Consider the fact that more than does not matter, but they at least A brass hat comes strutting 1,000,000 workers had to be centrale officers swarm in in their dozens, are not overcome, as are their men, through, sword clanking even more Jed for this undertaking. Ts not that stern of mien and with clanking with the necessity of not uttering Toudly than his general martial Jenough to make us understand how swords, the embodiment of a self-thought too loudly. Others come manner. A cloud of top hats drifts the rear wall. has. been erected? sufficient importance. Just across and go to the table. Black-avised and while some stop to make Every village for. every' mow the way is a group of Japanese men halt, effec their heels and kiss obeisance, one with a short bow territory. had to supply a man_ to) sq civilians the young mother with the an outstretched hand, while a few work: and a tree to provide stakes atest baby, swaddied in many. short clipped sentences pass on the Moves up the stairs, perhaps, for that could be planted in the ground all we know to' escape ' the wrappings and for the nonce cradled and fastened with wire to assure Joke of the day. Perhaps the mechanical boredom of his en-on one of the saltees where the afubiquitous listener chuckles courage. fectionate young father uses a piece what has passed, but it is never-{ing the temperature in our bedroom of paper to keep away the very oc~ theless noted, for who knows?
And then she comes. She may had Groped until,—too late to ring easional fly. Seated next to him is Even a woman's pleasantry might not be much to look at. But she another young man in search of have a political significance. [te belt "for "atiention—we had is a tall, healthy looking, young, draped our thinly covered bed with comfort. He has removed his woman, black of hair, a short nose fan overcoat to regain some of that shoes, and, with grey socked feet Outside the lounge two young' and a shorter upper lip which bares, rest which the cold had denied on the table, is taking his opium boys gaze in. One whose hatless her upper teeth when she smiles. cum dignitate. A third wanders, [blendness has been bleached white Yet there is a kindliness abou: her This morning as we were typing noisily if politely, in search of a by the summer's incessant sun, has appearance which attracts attention some of this she entered the room spittoon, which being close to our about him an attractive impishness. as with her labour thickened ankles with @ blanket over her arm, a own chair makes us wish we had His clothes bespeak his poverty, and flattened feet she crosses smile on her face and a phrase' been seated elsewhere. but there is about him a quality of, }the bridge on her way home. She her lips of something about sturdy deviltry which disdains the. has had a long day as a femme de holodnoi shpat. At least. that is 'A Chinese family passes thzough, the antics of his confrere busy chambre, but like a good Scout she how it sounded. She was right we the father of riper years, the poking his tongue out at the people has done her daily good deed. {did sleep cold, ud to-night we workaday wife with her son, and, jon the other side of the glass. hope to dream about that one good little distance behind, the younger Young women in the most modish Last night it snowed in Manchuli, deed which shines in a naughty solace of a man's declining years. clothes pass hurriedly by as if self- and in the early hours of the morn- world, and do it in warmth, firm base for the dyke. Sandbags and instruments had also. to be supplied. A team of workers Is, made up of 20 men. They have to build a. small portion of the dyke and maintain "it, In what other country could this have been done better" and so. simply? As, for 4000 years, they have had to ght against floods, the thing was quite natural to them. Just as in the legendary times of Yao and. Shun 2300 B.C., the same system and the same means were employed.
North Kiangsu Like Great Bow!
Looking at the map it will be seen that North Kiangsu is like a great bow! the lakes into which the Hwat River flows form the bottom of the bow. It should be remembered that every year the overflow of the Yangtzekianig happens at the same time when the floods occur in the North, then the Grand Canal already heavily charged with mud cannot drain this big bowl. It will be necessary to cut a direct opening to discharge these lakes and the Hwai river into the Yellow Sea, As the geographical conditions a understood, let_me tell you of the state in which the unfortunate population of North Kiangsu finds itself. They have not been able to. save anything in the grave disaster, Noth ing is left to them, not even their health. What an incalculable number 'f Chinese existences have been saved throughout centuries, on account of the good tea which they drink, so hot almost to boiling point. Now the oer country people, no longer have, their life saving hot tea, and have had to take the muddy' and cold water of the floods, Many of them are victims of dysentery and typhoid. 'They can hardly stand and there are 150,000 to 200,000 of those victims in Kiangsu. 'There are "two to three millions' of them in Western Shar tung. Most of them are shivering with' malaria, Very' few are seathed. As summer is drawing to its end they will have to be clothed and famine is already there. Ve soon, as it has been the case where, they will have to eat only grass and the bark of trees. Let me Mention that even such poor sources is about to fail also. The bark has been swelling in the water, Trees Condemned to Die At the first frost in winter It will detach itself from the stem of the trees. Trees that have been for a certain time plunged into the flood are almost all condemned to die. We do not distribute money or grain ourselves but the people are given tickets which they may present {0 the grain stores and receive the equival ent in grain. Remember that they need very little of it every day. Three to four dollars a month enough to save a man from starving One morning, when we were about to start, an old Chinese came and begged to be allowed to go on board our junk. He was asked why he wanted to come and he told us simply that he had his son, 18 years old who was living attached to the root of his farm in the middle of the flooded "region and he wished to bring him a little millet for him to subsist. They refuse to leave their properlies unless they are forced to. do £0. They refuse, also, to believe cone thing which is'too certain, that the water will remain on the elds up to the end of January. There will be no winter sowing. What is urgently needed is medicines, clothing and money.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.