Page:Collier's New Encyclopedia v. 02.djvu/534

LEFT CHINA 468 CHINA Finances and Commerce. — The total imports of China in 1918 amounted to £145,658,383, and the exports £127,554,- 295. Japan ranks first in foreign trade, having over 50 per cent. ; the British Empire has over 23 per cent., and the United States about 4.5 per cent. The chief articles of import are cotton goods, metals, rice, cigarettes, coal, and fish. The chief articles of export are silk, raw and manufactured ; raw cotton ; bean cake; bean oil; hides; tea; and tin. In addition to her overseas trade, China has an extensive coast and river trade, in which under special regulations, vessels under foreign flags are allowed to par- ticipate. In 1918 1,601 vessels were reg- istered, of which 354 were foreign and 1,247 Chinese. The present foreign debt of China is largely a matter of conjecture, as many secret loans have been negotiated by more or less responsible administrations. The Tuan-Chi-Jiu administration has been the greatest offender in this respect, as it borrowed recklessly from Japanese sources in order to repress the southern rebellion. As far as is known, the for- eign debt secured by government revenue outstanding on Dec. 1, 1916, amounted to about $860,000,000. The revenue for 1916 was $472,838,584, and the expend- itures were the same. Manufactures. — The manufactures of the Chinese are silk, cotton, linen, and pottei-y, for which latter they are espe- cially celebrated. The finest porcelain is made in the province of Kiang-si. The Chinese invented printing in the begin- ning of the 10th century, and in 932 A. D. a printed imperial edition of the saci'ed books was published. The skill of the Chinese in handicraft is astonishing. Of the grand modern discoveries in the physical sciences the Chinese are pro- foundly ignorant, and the study of na- ture is altogether neglected. Raihvays. — In 1919 more than 6,000 miles of railway had been completed and opened to traffic in China. These fig- ures include the province of Manchuria. 2,273 miles were under construction in 1917-1918. Much greater mileage I'lad been planned,, but the construction was held up during the World War and has been hindered since then by the civil war that has spread over half the area of the Republic. The railroads now in operation have already had a marked effect upon mining and industrial de- velopment, and with the enormous popu- lation and resources of the country are assured of becommg profitable enter- prises. What is needed is foreign cap- ital, and this was arranged for at Paris on May 12, 1919, in a conference by American, French, British, and Japanese bankers. These banking groups have combined for the making of loans to China, the payment of the interest and capital of which shall be a first lien upon the resources of the nation. Religion. — Three forms of belief, the Confucian, the Buddhist, and the Taoist, may be considered the National religions, as they are believed in, more or less, by the great mass of the people. Of these the Confucian and the Taoist are in- digenous, but Buddhism was introduced from India, Confucianism is the basis of the social life and political system of the Chinese. It has been professed by all their greatest men, and is still the sole belief of the educated classes. It is, however, less a religion than a phi- losophy and does not pretend to treat of spiritual things; hence room was left for other creeds to supply its deficiencies in this respect. Temples belonging to the three religions are very numerous. Those dedicated to Confucius are fune- real in character. The Buddhist temples are crowded with images, and Buddha is represented expounding his doctrine to attentive listeners. The many-storied tower takes the place of the bell-shaped pagoda or relic-shrine of other Buddhist countries. Education. — The educational system is divided into secondary and primary schools, the former being directed under the central government and the latter under the provincial governments. Uni- versities, technical colleges, and higher normal schools are directed under the board of education of the central govern- ment; and middle schools, lower normal schools, and primary schools are under the control of the provincial govern- ments. When the educational system is finally perfected, there will be 4 univer- sities, one each in the N., center, W. and S. Capitals of pro nces will have tech- nical colleges of law, industry, and medi- cine, and higher normal schools. Lack of funds has prevented carrying out a complete system of education. The his- toric system of examinations was abol- ished by a decree of Sept. 3, 1905. There are over 5,000,000 pupils undergoing in- struction in the schools of the Republic. The United States returned to China the surplus of the indemnity of 1900 awarded on account of the Boxer trouble, amounting to about $10,000,000 on con- dition that this sum should be spent in preparing and sending students to the United States to receive their education. More than 300 students, including a few women, have been sent under these con- ditions. There are several universities for higher education. Theae include the