Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/806

 754 CHINA

Yung, Hai Shew, and Hai Chen, each of 19 "5 knots speed, carrying arm- aments of 3 6-in. and 8 4'1-in. guns, together with 3 torpedo tubes. All the above vessels were acquired during the years 1897 and 1898. In addition are 4 modern Yangtsze gunboats, built in Japan, 16 smaller river and other gunboats, and 3 modern and about 20 old torpedo-boats.

The following cruisers, especially adapted for the training of cadets, were added to the fleet : — The Ying Swei and the Chao Ho, both built in England (1 912), eachhavinga displacement of about 2,600 tons and a contract speed of 20 knots. The main armaments consist of 2 6-in. and 4 4-in. guns. There are, in addition, 10 first-class torpedo boats and several light-draught river gun -.boats.

There are no naval bases of any importance. Existing dockyards are inadequate, and their plant is obsolete, but the Kiangnan Dock Co. and the Yang-tse yard at Hankow have building and repairing facilities. The revolution checked an intended jeorganisation of the navy, and its present situation is doubtful. It has very little fighting value, but experience proves that the Chinese bluejacket with training and discipline oan rank with any bluejacket in the world.

Production and Industry.

Agriculture. — China is essentially an agricultural country, and the land is all freehold held by families on the payment of an annual tax. The holdings are in general small ; the implements used are primitive ; irrigation is common. Chinese agriculture is intensive rather than exten- sive. Rotation of crops is practised. Horticulture is a favourite pursuit, and fruit trees are grown in great variety. Indeed the Chinese are gardeners rather than farmers. Vegetable culture has reached a high state of perfection. Wheat, barley, maize, and millet and other cereals, with pease and beans, are chiefly cultivated in the north, rice, sugar, and indigo in the south. Treaties forbid the export of grain with the exception of the Soya Bean, the chief product of Manchuria.

Cotton is grown widely even as far north as the southern part of Chihli, the chief area of production being the Yangtse valley. According to the Customs Trade Reports for 1919, next to India and the United States China is already the third largest cotton producer in the world.

Tea is cultivated exclusively in the west and south, in Fukien, Hupeh, Hunan, Kiangsi, Chekiang, Anhui, Kwangtung, and Szechuen. The ex- portation of tea (especially black leaf), owing to the competition of Ceylon and Indian teas, has steadily declined during recent years, falling from 1,576,136 piculs in 1908 to 1,125.536 piculs in 1917.

Silk culture is one of the most successful industries of China, about 27 per cent, of the world's supply of raw silk is from China, the most serious rivals being Japan with 28 and Italy with 25 per cent.

Pigs are raised everywhere in China, and pig's bristles have become an important article of export. China abounds in wild game.

Manufacture. — An important feature in the development of the Chinese industries is the erection of cotton and wool mills, and of silk filatures in Shanghai, Canton and elsewhere, while native looms are found in most dwellings. At present there are over 60 nulls operating in China. At the large centres flour and rioe mills are beginning to supersede native methods of treating wheat and rice. At Hanyang, near Hankow, are large Chinese iron-works, supplied with ore from mines at Ta-yeh, about 60 miles distant. These works are able to turn out about 300 steel rails a day.