ot etek Mets: ibe CHINA LAND OF FAMINE WALTER H. MALLORY AMERICAN GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY SPECIAL PUBLICATION NO. 6 ee A Pi Mea piparaee SOO rit aie e a | 1 ‘ MBAs ? is i Ape, aT, a’ . tie ta Ps Ni he Mien WAS he ph v re A a “* = - iY. 5 ee = : peal jg vk ay GHINA= CAND OF FAMINE MALLORY Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2022 with funding from Princeton Theological Seminary Library https://archive.org/details/chinalandoffamin0Omall Fic. 1. A FARMER OF NORTHERN CHINA ‘‘ There 1s no other peasantry in the world which gives such an impression of abso- lute genuineness and of belonging so much to the soil. Here the whole of life and the whole of death takes place on the inherited ground. Man belongs to the soil, not the sou to man; it will never let its children go. However much they may increase in number, they remain upon it, wringing from Nature her scanty gifts by ever more assiduous labour.” . : IKEYSERLING: The Travel Diary of a Philosopher. AMERICAN GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY ° SEECIAL PUBLICA TIONINOGG Edited by G. M. Wrictey CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE pie | Very Ree eee IEC) Ray Secretary, China International Famine Relief Commission Wal eA S HO RE Wi RID ys 1) Re) OFUNG Ea UN DESY: President of the American Geographical Society AMERICAN GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY BROADWAY AT IS6TH STREET NEW YORK TQ 280 COPYRIGHT, 1926 BY THE AMERICAN GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY OF NEW YORK aj) \ | y »s Ax , q ae a 5 : - M ia : ' — at of i - ; : . ; ; A eee * ’ bh COMMONWEALTH PRESS, WORCESTER, MASS. : of TO MY WIFE ALICE EVANS MALLORY WHOSE INSPIRATION AND ENCOURAGEMENT HAVE DONE MUCH TO MAKE POSSIBLE THIS WORK LIS VArEECTIONATELY INSCRIBED CONTENTS FOREWORD BY Dr. JOHN H. FINLEY PREFACE INTRODUCTION . Chapter I ECONOMIC. CAUSES OF FAMINE Chapter II NATURAL CAUSES OF FAMINE Chapter III POLITICAL CAUSES OF FAMINE Chapter IV SocIAL CAUSES OF FAMINE Chapter V ECONOMIC CURES FOR FAMINE . Chapter VI NATURAL CURES FOR FAMINE Chapter VII POLITICAL CURES FOR FAMINE . Chapter VIII SOCIAL CURES FOR FAMINE . PAGE 64 84 107 14! 163 179 FOREWORD There could be no better preface to this authoritative and interesting work on the Land of Famine than the pictures of country life in the interior of China from Count Keyserling’s “Travel Diary of a Philosopher,’ suggesting in one paragraph first how famine is being constantly fought by the yellow men in their blue jerkins, making the very hills which they cultivate to their summits fortresses of defense, and then how famine saps its way in through the ancestral graves and takes the living as prisoners by reason of their devotion to their dead and of their unwillingness to leave them in order to seek their livelihood and, so, fight famine in distant helds. Every inch of soil is in cultivation, carefully manured, well and pro- fessionally tilled, right up to the highest tops of the hills, which, like the pyramids of Egypt, slope down in artificial terraces. The villages, built of clay and surrounded by clay walls, have the effect of natural forms in this landscape: they hardly stand out against the brown background. And wherever I cast my eyes, I see the peasants at work, methodically, thoughtfully, contentedly. It is they who everywhere give life to the wide plain. The blue of their jerkins is as much a part of the picture as the green of the tilled fields and the bright yellow of the dried-up river-beds. One cannot even imagine this flat land devoid of the enlivening presence of these yellow human beings. And it represents at the same time one great cemetery of immeasurable vastness. There is hardly a plot of ground which does not carry numerous grave mounds; again and again the plough must piously wend its way between the tombstones. There is no other peasantry in the world which gives such an impression of absolute genuineness and of belonging so much to the soil. Here the whole of life and the whole of death takes place on the inherited ground. Man belongs to the soil, not the soil to man: it will never let its children go. However much they may increase in number, they remain upon it, wringing from Nature her scanty eifts by ever more assiduous labour; and when they are dead, they return in child-like confidence to what is to them the real womb of their mother. And there they continue to live for evermore. The Chinese peasant, like the prehistoric Greek, believes in the life of what seems dead to us. The soil exhales the spirit of his ancestors, it is they who repay his labour and xi Xi CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE who punish him for his omissions. Thus, the inherited fields are at the same time his history, his memory, his reminiscences: he can deny it as little as he can deny himself; for he is only a part of it. ’ “The plough among the tombstones” is the summarizing phrase describing China’s agriculture and ancestral worship— “the universal religion of the country.” Mr. Mallory, in speaking of the social causes of famine, says that the most thickly populated regions where the land is good and where it is most needed for agriculture are ‘‘just the districts where graves are most numerous.”’ This is the physical side of it, but deeper than that is the filial devotion which like a cen- tripetal spiritual force holds the descendants to the tombs of those who have gone before. There are natural causes, economic causes, and political causes which Mr. Mallory presents, clearly and convincingly, but down at bottom is this profound social cause which he recognizes and which must be reckoned with in dealing with the things that are seen. | As Keyserling suggests, the Chinese peasant and the early Greek have something in common, as this prayer of an ancient farmer preserved to us out of that time witnesses—the prayer of one who was held to his ancestral plot, inadequate though it was. To Demeter of the winnowing fan and the Seasons whose feet are in the furrows, Heronax lays here from a poor little plough-land their share of ears from the threshing floor, and these mixed seeds of pulse on a slabbed table the least of a little; for no great inheritance is this he has gotten him here on barren hill. The problem in China is due primarily to the fact that the ‘‘no great inheritance’’ grows less and less for the individual with the multiplying of the heritors; and the multiplying force is the necessity, felt by the worshipper of the past, of “providing sufficient male children so that, in spite of the ravages of disease, accident, wars, pestilence or famine [to which the multiplying contributes] at least one will survive to carry on the family name and perform the necessary duties required by ancestor worship.” The Manchurian wheat fields make vain permanent appeal to those who feel this FOREWORD X1i1 filial and paternal obligation, even though they may go in numbers to help with a season’s harvest. There is a pioneer belt along the northern front of China in Manchuria and Mongolia which could accommodate millions upon millions of ill-fed or starving Chinese farther south. If such fields were open to settlement and cultivation in America, there would be such a rush as there was a few years ago to the last frontier lands in Oklahoma. The American settlers would not be burdened in their flight by their Lares and Penates, as was Aeneas of old, who not only bore them with him but carried his father on his shoulder. The Chinese peasant says, however, in the face of like allurement: ‘‘Who would take care of the graves of my ancestors?”’ Our own civilization, one of whose Ten Commandments enjoins parental reverence, but one of whose chief concerns now is the want of respect by youth for age, and by the present for the past, must find something to praise in a people who are willing to make sacrifices even to the point of starvation in order to honor not only their parents but their remote forbears. Our scientists are beginning to be concerned about spaces for libraries and cemeteries, but it is am economic anxiety. It ought not to be necessary to destroy this sense of spiritual continuity in order to fight famine in China, but it must be taken into account in all the plans for con- trolling floods, fighting pestilence, increasing soil fertility, improving methods of cultivation for the fields and conser- vation for the forests, using modern agricultural implements, making fuller use of time, avoiding waste effort, developing means of transportation and providing for credits. All these things seem to wait upon a better political organization and control, but, as Mr. Mallory urges, amelioration may be achieved even without a unified empire. It is a shocking fact that with all the labor expended and virtues practiced, nearly a fourth of the people of the globe live in a land of famine—not of general famine at any one time nor of continuous famine in any one place, but of famine in one or another province or locality all the time. ‘There was a famine in the land”’ was a frequent phrase in ancient history. XIV COLINAS CAND ZO DSR ANLINE It is somewhat discreditable to present world agriculture with its surplusage in some regions that other regions should be chronically in that condition. Mr. Mallory makes constructive suggestions, which need not be anticipated here, but it is well to give the reader who pauses to read this prefatory note the advice that one who enters the rather dark passages reciting the causes of famine in China need not abandon hope for China—for at the end one comes out into the light of day again with this assurance from the guide: If history teaches us anything, she teaches that a race as numerous and as fundamentally sound as the Chinese, which has maintained its political and cultural solidarity for so many centuries, will not perish from the earth. The American Geographical Society, which is interested in the whole earth, makes this sympathetic scientific contribu- tion to the desired welfare of our antipodes, who are rich in natural resources and have almost unlimited human energy. JouHN H. FINLEY PREFACE The meager knowledge in Western countries of things Chinese makes it incumbent upon those who have had the privilege of intimate association with China’s problems to record their knowledge, or even their impressions, in some permanent form. The writer presents this book to discharge his obligation in this connection. It is, so far as he knows, the first to be published in English dealing exclusively with one of China’s major problems, namely, famine. It has been the writer’s purpose to set forth in these pages, as briefly and understandably as possible, why China has so many famines and what, in his judgment, can be done to prevent them. No effort has been made to give a history of past disasters, excepting for purposes of illustration, and the good and bad practices of former times are alluded to only in order to throw light on conditions as they are today. Some repetition will be discerned. This was unavoidable, for many factors are associated in the causes of famine; and its cure can come only through correlated improvements of a widely divergent nature. While treating these causes and cures individually, therefore, the writer may have traversed ground previously trodden, but only for the purpose of focus- ing attention on the relation of cause with cause, and cure with cure. The author wishes gratefully to acknowledge the assistance he has received from Mr. J. E. Baker, Advisor to the Chinese Government, Mr. Y. S. *Djang, Chief Secretary, Chinese Red Cross Society, Professor J. B. Tayler of Yenching University, and Mr. O. J. Todd, Chief Engineer, China International Famine Relief Commission, for criticisms and helpful suggestions in portions of the book where their expert knowledge of the particular points involved made _ their advice appropriate. He wishes especially to record his appreciation of the help of Mr. Carl W. Bishop, of the Smith- XV XVI CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE sonian Institution, and of Mr. H. B. Elliston, of the Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information, whose inti- mate knowledge, the one on the cultural and the other on the economic side of Chinese life, has made their aid of inestimable value. Acknowledgment must also be made to the China Inter- national Famine Relief Commission for the photographic illustrations selected from its file and adding so much to the value of this volume. All those which are not otherwise credited were taken by Mr. O. J. Todd. Wiel eave Peking, China, April 6, 1926. = Fy a : nate. Fic. 2—A Chinese village turning out em masse to see the foreign visitors. PNERO DOG RLON Food is the most urgent problem of the Chinese. This fact is reflected even in the speech of the people. In China the polite salutation on meeting a friend is “‘Have you eaten?” instead of the customary inquiry as to one’s health or well-being usually employed in other tongues. This form of greeting is a creation of the rural community, and the impli- cation is that if the person so saluted has not eaten the inquirer will see that his needs are quickly met. Foreigners who study the language with a Chinese teacher find that almost the first words and phrases given to them have to do with food, eating, and money (with which to buy food). “The rich man has food to eat, the poor man has none,” forms the basis of one of the first lessons. Beggars are referred to in the colloquial idiom as ‘‘food wanters’’; and they all provide themselves with pails or bowls in which they can receive the refuse from the tables of the well-to-do. The food problem is an ancient one in China: from the earliest times famines have been an ever recurring scourge. A study recently completed by the Student Agricultural Society of the University of Nanking brought to light the surprising and significant fact that between the years 108 B. C. and 1911 A.D. there were 1828 famines, or one nearly every year in some one of the provinces. Untold millions have died of starvation. In fact the normal death rate may be said to contain a constant famine factor. Depleted vitality following years of want also tends to increase the death rate. Chinese history is filled with the details of past disasters and not only recounts at great length the nature of the calamity and its causes but names the officials under I 2 GH TNE SAIN D2 © Pare VN Te whom relief work was administered and describes the methods pursued in bringing succor to the unfortunate victims. The Emperor Yii, who lived four thousand years ago, achieved great renown and is still regarded by the Chinese people as a national sage, for the wisdom displayed in his flood prevention work on the Yellow River. Since his time officials have repeatedly endeavored to follow his example, and fame has been more readily achieved by devising methods to relieve and prevent famine emergencies than in almost any other way. The great drought that occurred in North China in 1920- 1921, during which, according to the best obtainable in- formation, 500,000 of the natives perished, is still fresh in the minds of the public. Mr. Dwight W. Edwards, in his comprehensive report,' estimates that at the height of the distress nearly 20,000,000 people were destitute. In some of the worst affected districts not only was the entire reserve of food consumed but also all other vegetation. : cansRed Gross, under |) =-4 VAN HWE Fi fronnem el 4 4 | YB “ecm an arrangement with Bose a ben | the Chinese govern- m ug Dig fm fia nove’ MIGRATIONS OF YELLOW RIVER Ss ment, sent a Board of COURSES oF YeLLow RIVER CHINA INTERNATIONAL FAMINE RELIEF COMMISSION BEFORE YEAR 1324 100 150 MILES Engineers headed Dy |r rion mownos ae merase ay cpiguud OPPErED 8 a Fad. sin OMIT et Poe es ee Sibert to investigate the Hwai River Con- servancy Project. In its report this Board stated that the last flood had inundated 10,470 square miles in Anhwei and 2300 square miles in Kiangsu and that these provinces are subject to a disaster of equal severity on the average once every six or seven years and a disaster of minor importance every three or four years. This area, larger than Belgium, comprises some of the best farming land in all China. Fic. 29—Map showing historical migrations of the Yellow River. 17 See J. R. Freeman: Flood Problems in China, Trans. Amer. Soc. of Civil En- gineers, Vol. 85, 1922, pp. 1405-1460. 50 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE Assuming that the normal yield of rice is 2000 pounds an acre, the loss due to one of these serious floods is more than 16,000,000,000 pounds; and, counting the less severe inundations, probably 3,000,000,000 pounds of China’s principal food is destroyed annually as a result of these catas- trophes. This is sufficient to feed more than 6,000,000 / Bue ‘ peas SS : Se” 5 oe == WEIHWE! FU oe \ pee he we Do FAN HS g See, é ret, SHOW CHANG HS. GO / 0 enh f LOW Pu CHOW one Ye “CHIU S nest CHANG YUAN HS pia a BR ge Ce, Sy) Ge TUNG Sine HS et o / 3 V4 4,KAO CHENG HS. TSAOGHOW FU f LAN YI Pe Ne COURSE OF YELLOW RIVER PRIOR TO YEAR 1852 20 40 60 80 100 KILOMETERS St _t. t—__1,—+ + +, tt) 10 20 30 40 50 60 MILES \ 34 precereettemsereteme DIKE OF YELLOW RIVER 34 ee Fic. 30—Dike system of the lower course of the Yellow River. Scale approxi- mately I : 3,000,000. adults. Allowing for the children, more than 7,000,000 of the population could be supported from this annual wastage. Coupled with the damage occasioned by the years of high water is the loss that results from the lack of drainage of Hungtze Lake and the other low-lying regions. It is estimated that more than 600,000 acres could be reclaimed if the proper conservancy scheme were carried out. This would mean an increase of more than 1,200,000,000 pounds of rice annually—sufficient to feed a population of nearly 3,000,000. In other words the total annual loss to the NA EU RAESGAUSESSORSE AMINE 51 country from this uncontrolled river is sufficient to provide food for approximately 10,000,000 people. Hee YELLOWSRIVER ’’ The Hwang Ho, or Yellow River, ‘‘China’s Sorrow, seems to have been a problem since the dawn of history. ‘ 18 Ae e Nt pause TSING CHENG HS, ™*s S36 ‘ CHINA INTERNATIONAL FAMINE. RELIEF COMMISSION Yi LOWER COURSE OF YELLOW RIVER SHOWING NSsDIKESoOYOITEM JANUARY, 1926 PREPARED BY Cp Yeutl PEKING TRACED BY C. P. Udi The lower course of the Yellow River has constantly fluctuated. Compare Figure 29. The earliest annals give accounts of great inundations and of efforts to control the ravages of this menace. It is difficult to present an idea of the extent of the damage caused by the Yellow River floods. They occur at present less often than along the Hwai, and the area affected varies in extent from a few to many thousand square miles. The river has been meandering back and forth for thousands of years, as can be seen from the extent of the delta built up. It is not possible to trace all the courses of the river even in historic time, but the accompanying map (Fig. 29) is prepared from the most 52 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE =< authentic material so far available. The Yellow River has flowed into the sea as far north as Tientsin, and its most southerly outlet was probably through the Yangtze River at Shanghai. | While floods of relatively minor importance occur as often as once or twice in every decade, there have been but three ereat migrations of the river in the past thousand years. On several occasions, however, there have been extremely severe floods when the river has left its course but later returned to its old bed. Such an instance is the flood of 1887— 1889 when a break occurred in the southern dike in the province of Honan. According to Chinese official records more than 2,000,000 people lost their lives either from drown- ing or from starvation during the resulting famine, and nearly the whole province of Honan south of the river was inundated. : It is not only in times of unusually high water that there is danger of flood along the Yellow River. The distance between the dikes is great, and this permits of considerable meandering so that the current is constantly shifting from side to side. Hence when the river is rising the current may suddenly swing in toward a dike in an unprotected stretch, which, unless rapid and adequate measures are taken, soon crumbles away. This is what happened in Shantung Province in the summer and fall of 1925 when the southern dike was breached and an area of about 800 square miles was flooded. The loss in crops alone was estimated at $20,000,000, and yet the river was not at an unusually high stage when the disaster occurred. THE RIVERS OF CHIHLI PROVINCE There are eight principal rivers entering the Chihli plain. In ancient times these streams reached the sea through many channels. But when the Grand Canal was extended from the Yellow River to Tientsin in the thirteenth century no crossings were provided, or if provided were not maintained, and the waters were all led into the Hai Ho, which flows NATURAL CAUSES OF FAMINE 53 through Tientsin. This was already the outlet for the Pei Ho and the Yung Ting Ho, and its capacity has not been sufficient to carry off the flood waters in years when the rain- fall has been heavy. Since 1891 there have been seven serious inundations of the central Chihli plain. It would therefore appear that this district is subject to floods on the average once every six or seven years. The total catchment area is more than 88,000 square miles; and when it is con- sidered that all but a very small part of this water must reach the sea through the Hai Ho, a small stream, it can be understood why these disasters occur. The last serious Chihli flood was in the summer of 1924. During the severe storms in July it was estimated that the inflow into the river system was 25 times as great as the outflow through the Hai Ho. The difficulty of obtaining accurate reports simul- taneously from various sections of the province makes it impossible to state exactly what extent of country was in- undated at any one time; but it has been reliably established that an area of no less than 5000 square miles was covered with water long enough to destroy completely the growing crop which should have been harvested in September and October and that a large portion of this area was still in- undated during the autumn, thus preventing the planting of the winter wheat. The lower section of the plain is but a little above sea level, and it usually takes two or three years for all the flood waters to reach the ocean. If the value of the crop be put at only $30 an acre, the loss to the province was nearly $100,000,000, Chinese cur- rency, simply from the destruction of growing foodstufts. When to this are added the losses due to failure to plant the winter wheat and subsequent crops the sum will exceed $125,000,000. As such a catastrophe happens on the average every six or seven years, it may be estimated that the annual loss from these floods is not less than $18,000,000. This sum is sufficient to provide a livelihood for 120,000 families, or more than 600,000 people, according to the standard of living now prevailing in northern China. Nor must one overlook the loss from demolition of buildings and the 54 CHINA: EANDSOP FAMINE Fic. 31—In its upper reaches the Yellow River flows through hilly country. Fic. 32—Tungkwan, below which the Yellow River enters on its lower course. Fic. 33—The lower Yellow River is confined between dikes some of which are stone-faced. NATURAL CAUSES OF FAMINE BG Fic. 36 Fic. 34—Break of a Kan River dike, Kiangsi, probably because of lack of proper upkeep. Fic. 35—Break of a Yellow River dike in Shantung, 1925. Fic. 36—One of the dike breaks that caused the Chihli floods of 1924. 56 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE drowning of live stock and of human beings. In 1917 the dikes which protect Tientsin gave way, and damage to the extent of many millions of dollars was done in the city itself. In 1924 a similar catastrophe was narrowly averted: the principal seaport of northern China stands in constant danger of inundation with each successive flood. In the Kan River delta region of Kiangsi Province large areas between the various mouths of the river and around the Poyang Lake have been diked in and produce a good yield of rice annually. In the 1924 floods most of these dikes were breached, and hundreds of square miles of good farming land were covered with water. It is not intended to discuss here all the areas of China subject to floods; in fact, there is not sufficient dependable information concerning many of them to make it possible to give more than a general indication of the damage wrought by inundations. The specific examples given have been selected because in their case more reliable data are available and because they are the most frequently or most severely affected. If a thorough tabulation of the annual loss due to this cause could be made, the sum arrived at would reach a staggering total. In 1922-1923 there was a severe flood of the Tsao Ngo River in Chekiang.. In 1924 central China was visited by the worst inundation recorded in many years, and large areas in Hunan, Hupeh, and Kiangsi were covered with water by an overflow of the Siang, the Kan, and the Yangtze Rivers. The same year saw a serious flood of the West River in Kwangsi and of the Min River in Fukien, as well as the flood in Chihli already mentioned. Other areas where floods occur include the basins of the following rivers: the Fen (Shansi), the Han (Hupeh), the Pearl ( KWEI y 7 ak >) a SN 7 ae XK oe DVYUCHOW ™ ca YUCHOW 5 nS \ \ 34 are XS = eat hie Ae eX : Gaal A =n OCHENGCHOW FU 32 ii} 16 Fic. 85—Various conservancy schemes for the Hwai River, provinces of Anhwei and Kiangsu. Scale I : 3,500,000. NATURAL CURES FOR FAMINE 155 — 36 JSoxurow ae \ J ICHOW FU a eS es = ZUNE OF HWP --+ ( Wie Eee K CHANGCHOW" ae POS IR eS iui CHINA INTERNATIONAL FAMINE RELIEF COMMISSION HWAI RIVER CONSERVANCY SCHEMES Nae en ° 20 40 am 80 100 120 KM SHANGF : | ‘ PREPARED BY -.7. Hoek. JANUARY , 1926 TRACED BY. /e.Che Peg From the point of view of famine distress no area is in greater need of flood prevention. 156 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE Gain from land subject to flood, estimated at 10,500,000 acres (land inundated in 1921), at $60 anacre . . . . $630,000,000 Yield on 1,250,000 acres to be reclaimed, at $60 an acre . 75,000,000 Improvement to 33,333,333 acres at $12 anacre .... 400,000,000 $1, 105,000,000 This is computed on the complete scheme proposed by the Chinese National Conservancy Bureau. THE YELLOW RIVER The fact that the Yellow River has made but three con- siderable changes in its course in the past thousand years is an indication that a large measure of control of this difficult stream has been obtained by native methods. It is astonish- ing that without any accurate knowledge of the elevation of the country, in fact, without even the instruments for acquiring such information, dikes could be constructed that have endured for many hundreds of years. Not only have earthern dikes been built, but they have been reénforced by stone; while in many critical places protective groins have been constructed to deflect the swift current from the dikes. Modern engineering methods, however, can make the river even more safe, and the following passage from a report of Engineer Freeman’s should assist in dispelling any doubt as to their efficacy: The result of all information that the writer has been able to obtain about the elevation of the Yellow River’s flood waters above that of the plain outside the dikes, together with his personal inspection while floating down along the stream in December, 1919, have convinced him that the river is no such fierce and ungovernable tyrant as it has been painted, and that it regularly carries to the sea more than 99 per cent of the sediment which it digs and brings down over the vast loess deposits upstream from the apex of the delta, that the rate of raising its bed after having reached its present elevation is hardly more than one foot in a hundred years, and that means for confining the channel in a straight and narrow way and forcing it to dig its bed deeper are within economic reach, and as to the many outbreaks recorded in history and shown by the looped dikes on the reconnaissance maps, it is plain that these are the result of human carelessness and official negligence rather than the result of the wrath of the river gods. NATURAL CURES FOR FAMINE 157 Fic. 86—A new Famine Commission dike on the Yangtze River. Fic. 87—Land reclaimed from the Yangtze River by a dike project of the Famine Commission. Fic. 88—A completed Famine Commission stone-faced dike. 158 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE The Yellow River in its upper reaches is well confined in its course by hills, and not until it emerges onto the great plain in the western part of Honan province does the danger begin. From here to the sea, a distance of approxi- mately 500 miles, there are dikes on both sides; but these dikes follow the course of the stream in all its meanderings instead of confining it in a straight channel. The low- water surface is on the average fifteen feet above the gen- eral level of the plain outside the main dikes, while in the high-water season the surface rises to thirty feet above the plain. The dikes are nominally five feet higher still but in many places are not adequately maintained at that height. The Famine Commission has begun a thorough survey of the course of the river under the management of its chief engineer, Mr. O. J. Todd, who has had a wider experience with this stream than has any other foreign expert. Since 1920 he has constructed many miles of dikes along its banks, and in 1923 he designed and carried to completion the rever- sion works at Liching in Shantung—a project similar to but more difficult than the well-known control works of the lower Colorado River in America. A considerable stretch in west- ern Honan has already been mapped. The Commission pro- poses to adopt a comprehensive scheme for the permanent control of the river and in case of future famines in Honan and Shantung to utilize relief funds in paying able-bodied members of refugee families to work on the project, beginning at the western end. No estimate of the total cost of this work can be definitely made until the surveys are complete. The work can be done in sections beginning at the upstream end. The constriction of the stream also will reclaim large stretches of land. Proba- bly this reclaimed and very rich land will be valuable enough to pay for a large part of the cost of the work, for in some places the dikes are many miles apart. If this territory were sold as it is redeemed and the proceeds used for construction of the next section, the work, after it was once started, would be almost self-supporting. 159 NATURAL CURES FOR FAMINE — \\ TEHCHOWE | one Ae NSU Ne eG \ ) 37 AREA SUBJECT TO FREQUENT FLOODS ZZ OLINTSING CHINA INTERNATIONAL FAMINE RELIEF COMMISSION MAP RIVER SYSTEMS OF CHIFILI SHOWING AREAS SUBJECT TO FREQUENT FLOODS 36 SCALE 0 20 30 40. 50 6 7 ® 90 100KM ° JANUARY, 1926 1g Stk ENGINEER A Fic. 89—It is proposed to solve the flood problem in Chihli by a flood channel PREPARED BY ¢.@ Neu: APPROVED ey © [tt heusson CHIE! th7 TRACED BY 16 : 4,000,000. Scale of map I to supplement drainage via the Hai Ho. 160 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE No statistical estimate can be made of the benefits to be derived from the improvement of the Yellow River, for there is no particular flood area that, is inundated at regular intervals. However, permanent control would protect Shan- tung and Honan provinces from the danger of flood for many years to come, and the increased production of foodstuffs on the reclaimed land would greatly help to prevent famines. FLOopD PREVENTION IN CHIHLI The disastrous floods occurring every few years in Chihli are preventable and present a much simpler and less ex- pensive problem than the control of either the Hwai or Yellow Rivers. The solution, we are told by engineers, is to provide an additional channel to the sea from the main ponding area. This will serve to supplement the Hai Ho, which is now the only outlet for the flow of several rivers converging at the city of Tientsin. This channel would be about 45 miles in length, 450 feet wide, and 12 feet deep. It would carry twice the quantity of water discharged by the Hai Ho at its maximum flow; and the cost for earthwork, according to the Famine Commission’s estimates, would be about $6,000,000, Chinese currency, if done with famine labor. Even an elaborate project, to include refinements in addition to the simple construction of the flood channel, it is estimated would call for only $12,000,000, and this is but 16 per cent of the calculated loss from the last flood. The benefits of this project, in addition to rendering Tientsin, the largest port in northern China, safe from inundation, would be the provision of crop insurance for an area of approximately ten thousand square miles of the richest farm land in the province—an area nearly as great as that of Belgium. Similar proposals are applicable to many rivers, the more important ones being the Pearl and the Yangtze. On these and other rivers such improvements could be carried out as have been demonstrated in other countries to be thoroughly effective. The costs would be heavy but light in comparison NATURAL CURES FOR FAMINE 161 with the benefits derived, and there would be little danger of failure if proper technical supervision were given. LAND RECLAMATION The failure of dikes in past ages or changes in the courses of the rivers has inundated large areas in China, and neglect to make proper repairs has in some cases resulted in the formation of permanent lakes. In many instances the water that has taken this land out of production does not reach any considerable depth, and the draining of these inland seas, or the reclamation by diking of a part of the area now flooded, is not an insuperable task. The proper improve- ment of the Yangtze River and its tributaries will redeem large tracts now forming the beds of Tungting and Poyang Lakes. The Hwai conservancy scheme will at least partially drain the Hungtze and several other lakes in Kiangsu prov- ince whose combined area is more than 1800 square miles; and there are other projects of less importance, whose completion would be proportionately beneficial. Vase Locust] ;-ROBLEM A world-wide effort is being put forth to solve the locust problem; experiments are being conducted in various coun- tries, including a study of the possibility of introducing para- sites to the insects, an investigation of the effectiveness of spraying swarms from airplanes, as well as a consideration of the industrial uses to which the dead insects could be put. If useful products could be made from the carcasses of locusts so that they had a commercial value, a method of killing the insects would speedily be found. Another constructive proposal for meeting catastrophes wrought by these pests 1s an insurance project advocated in Europe—the farmers of all countries taking out policies, whose premiums would serve to indemnify individuals in blighted areas. Locust insurance might be undertaken in China with beneficial results if honestly directed, but it is unlikely that enough farmers would avail themselves of it to make it 162 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE effective in preventing famine distress after a severe visitation. There are in most families no extra funds even in normal years, for a good crop means only a better diet and not ready money. Hence it would be almost impossible, especially for the poorer people, to find funds to pay the premium. At the Pan-Pacific Food Conservation Conference held at Honolulu in the summer of 1924, the following resolution was passed: Whereas, in all Pacific countries that are subject to plagues of locusts or grasshoppers, it is highly advisable that accurate scientific surveys be made of lands which may constitute the permanent breeding grounds of these insects; and that, when such permanent breeding grounds are delimited with some degree of certainty, it is important that they be scouted at frequent intervals in order to learn the prospects concerning approaching devastating flights, and in order to begin preventive measures at the earliest moment. Resolved, That the governments of the Pacific countries be advised to make such surveys and to establish, where possible, in permanent breeding regions biological stations for the study of the factors in natural control. Resolved further, That where swarms originating from definitely located permanent breeding areas, customarily enter lands controlled by different governments such governments are urged to establish and to defray the expenses of cooperative commissions charged with the promotion of such procedures as are indicated in the preceding resolution.*’ There is great need for a biological study of this pest by some international organization having facilities for making the necessary observations in all countries. These studies should then be followed by the formulation of a plan of attack to be undertaken simultaneously by the various countries of the world. Unless treated in some such comprehensive fashion there is little hope for success in eradicating this scourge. For other natural calamities that may occasionally produce local famine distress, such as earthquakes, typhoons, hail- storms, and frost, there is no known cure. Crops may in some instances be covered to protect them from hail and frost; and, when severe storms occur on coasts, stronger sea walls may serve to keep back the salt water from ruining farm land. 37 Pyoc. First Pan-Pacific Food Conservation Conf., Honolulu, 1925, p. 185. Fic. 90>—The Great Wall at Kupehkow, (Photograph by F. G. Clapp.) GHAR EE Ra ROVGELGA eG RSs rO Re rea VULIN China is at present engaged in a great experiment. She has no traditions on which to build a truly representative government, and, considering the lack of education and the backwardness and poverty of the masses, it is a question if such a government can be evolved without the disintegration of the territory now comprising the republic or the assumption of the reins of power by some despot able to exact obedience. China is really today a republic only in name. There has never been an election, and the control of the state has been effected by the display of force rather than by the will of the citizens. There are some who ascribe all the ills manifested by the new régime to the last dynasty, asserting that these are inherited disabilities of the decadent Manchu house. But, even assuming that this is true, it does not explain how these evils are to be eradicated, how dishonest officials are to be- come public-spirited, how the fatalistic philosophy of the race is to be replaced by a sense of civic responsibility, how the present reign of force is to be exchanged for a reign of law and the war lords induced to disband their armies and turn over the administration of the country to civil authori- ties. Time alone will tell—probably a considerable lapse of time—how this can be accomplished; and it is the writer's opinion that if and when an effective and stable central government is evolved, it will conform much more closely to the requirements of Chinese political philosophy than the Western-made republican model so hastily adopted. 163 164 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE ForM OF GOVERNMENT Not IMPORTANT But for the creation of conditions that will result in the prevention of famines it makes little difference what precise form the government takes so long as it is maintained in the interests of the people rather than for the personal profit of the officials. Confucius said: ‘‘The requisites of govern- ment are that there be sufficiency of food, sufficiency of military equipment, and the confidence of the people in their ruler.’ When asked which of these was least important, he said: ‘‘The military equipment”; and when questioned as to which of the two remaining might be dispensed with first, he said: ‘‘Part with the food. From of old, death has been the lot of all men; but if the people have no faith in their rulers, there is no standing for the state.”’ STABLE GOVERNMENT Woutp Stop LossEsS FROM WAR The first beneficial effects that would result from the establishment of a stable and effective government would be a cessation of the evils of civil war, which have been discussed in Chapter III. One of the first steps would be the suppression of banditry and the disbandment of super- fluous troops. Disbandment involves more than a million men, if we assume that a standing army of 500,000 is enough to maintain order and protect from foreign invasion. This is roughly four times the peace strength of the standing army of the United States, which has only a fourth of China's population. There has been much talk of the disbandment of the mercenaries with which the various military leaders have surrounded themselves and by which they maintain their positions; but the problem is a larger one than at first appears. Not only must the chieftains agree to relinquish their power, but some provision must be made for properly disarming and disbanding their troops and getting them back to their homes or finding them employment. For a coolie to find work in a district to which he is a stranger is almost impossible. Many interesting proposals have been put forward for the employment of disbanded troops on con- POLITICAL CORES FOR? FAMINE 165 Pe gee gt ee ge og ¢ FIG. 93 oe ii DE teal Fic. 91—The Chinese sawmill. Labor is plentiful and cheap. Fic. 92—Reeds in the Chihli lake region are used to make mats. Fic. 93—The Famine Commission mat-making project employed flood victims in their homes. 166 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE servancy schemes; this is an excellent idea, but first there must be political stability so that funds for the construction of such projects may be forthcoming. Reduction in the annual government expenditure for war purposes would make it possible either to lower taxes or to undertake constructive enterprises. This assumes, of course, that demilitarization is accomplished by a reputable government and honest officials. PRESENT OFFICIAL VIEW ON FAMINE PREVENTION A striking example of the present view of the military leaders on the problem of famine prevention was afforded the writer in an interview with Marshal Wu Pei-fu several years ago when he was virtually the dictator of the Chinese government. The purpose of the conversation was to discuss ways and means for the control of the Yellow River in Honan province. The Famine Commission was prepared to start its survey of the country through which the stream flows and sought government approval and coédperation. The Marshal showed much interest in the matter, but it was difficult to convince him that a careful survey should be made. “Why go to the expense of making surveys’’? he said, “I have a perfectly good military map which shows the course of the river, which I shall be glad to give you.”” Upon being assured that a survey would be necessary and that the Commission was prepared to defray the cost he reluctantly consented. In the course of an hour’s discussion it became evident that General Wu had ideas of his own on the subject of river control. He first explained that the great difficulty was the quantity of silt carried down from the hills and deposited in the stream bed every year. If that silt could be kept in suspension it would be carried to the sea and the problem would be solved. He proposed the purchase of a number of tug boats to which could be attached a large spiked anchor much like a chestnut burr. He thought that if there were a number of these tugs steaming up and down the river dragging POLITICAL CURES FOR FAMINE 167 their spiked anchors, the silt would be stirred up and carried to the ocean several hundred miles downstream. As we were about to leave, the Marshal mentioned the subject of roads of which the Commission had built some hundreds of miles not far from his headquarters. ‘‘ Your roads are much too narrow” he said, ‘‘only twenty feet where they should be sixty.’”’ I explained that if a twenty-foot road were built three times the mileage could be constructed with a given sum of money. But he was quite firm in his opinion. ‘All my roads are sixty feet wide,’’ he insisted; and there the matter ended. It is true that he did build some roads sixty feet wide, using his troops for the work, but a road of such width is of no greater service than a twenty-foot road except, perhaps, for troop movements. This all goes to show that Wu Pei-fu’s main energy and thought were directed to military rather than civil affairs; for he is a man of education, and, if really interested, would inform himself on matters so important to China as river conservancy and road building. But, while cessation of civil strife would prevent great losses, it is the constructive side of the problem that would effect: the greatest insurance against starvation conditions among the people. Crop ESTIMATES AND RESERVES OF GRAIN Most famines, particularly those due to drought, can be anticipated if there is a proper crop-reporting system. Crop estimates can be made at fixed times through the growing season, and a sufficiently accurate appraisal of the situation arrived at to forecast the probable yield over the whole country. If such information were collected by the county officials in China and forwarded promptly to the central government, plans to meet any impending distress in the regions where crop failure was threatened could be drawn up well in advance. Although some data are collected, the present system is entirely unsatisfactory, because the information is not put into usable form until months after 168 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE the crops have actually been harvested. Poor communica- tions with interior districts and civil strife tend to make further delays. An efficient and reliable crop-reporting section of, say, the Government Bureau of Economic In- formation is a vital part of a famine-relief or famine-preven- tion bureau. The collection of reserves of grain in the walled cities throughout the provinces subject to famine distress should be encouraged. ‘This grain need not be given to the people in the form of doles, in fact, it should not be so distributed excepting in emergencies; but it should be put on the market at cost to prevent hoarding and profiteering during periods of shortage. It should also be used by the government to recompense laborers engaged during famine times on the construction of public utilities. NEED OF GOVERNMENT SUPPORT FOR BETTER LAND UTILIZATION We hear a great deal about the conservatism of the Chinese farmers, but, given the means to effect improvements and having concrete proof that these means will bring the desired results, the Chinese will adopt new methods. The govern- ment should provide the means and should undertake the demonstration of the beneficial effect of more scientific procedure in raising foodstuffs. It is impossible to state just what sum is devoted to the maintenance of the Agri- cultural Department of the government. It is perfectly safe, however, to say that expenditures are entirely inade- quate to bring about the improvements that would serve to raise the standard of living of the farming population. Government action is especially needed for afforestation and forest protection. On a visit to the Western Tombs, where many of the emperors of the last dynasty are buried, the writer witnessed the wholesale destruction of the forests now taking place. This is one of the few places in China proper where even a semblance of a forest exists. The old trees have been preserved for hundreds of years, but the FOUCURICAR CURES ROR SBAMINE 169 WIE is Pilli;) FIG. 95 Fic. 94—The beautiful old trees at the Western Tombs are now being cut down by the troops. (Photograph by T. J. Betts.) Fic. 95—There are literally millions of acres where valuable forests would grow. 170 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE military authorities are now systematically cutting them down to sell for lumber and to use for fuel. We inquired of some of the troops why this was being done and were told that the regiment billeted there was a “‘forestry’’ regiment. Its duty was to protect and preserve the trees; but, since they were now no longer the property of the Manchus but belonged to the “‘people,”’ they, as the people’s representa- tives, were cutting some of them down and shipping them to the railhead to be sold. This was said to be necessary in order that funds might be provided for the regular payment of the “‘forestry”’ regiment. About ten years ago a Forest Service was organized by the government as a Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce. According to Mr. Dau-yang Lin, $181,000, Mexican currency, was appropriated as its first year’s budget. The number of men engaged in China’s forest service totaled only 70. Germany with an area only about one- twentieth as great employed more than gooo, and in Russia a force of 36,000 was maintained before the Great War. Mr. Lin also compares the relative expenditures of the nations for maintenance for a forest service and shows that China’s $181,000 is only about a two-hundred-and-fiftieth of Ger- many’s budget and a fiftieth of America’s. In connection with the utilization of the land, reference must again be made to the growth of the opium poppy, which takes good grain land out of cultivation. Less than ten years ago the cultivation of the poppy was almost entirely stopped, but with the continuance of civil commotion the acreage has increased year after year until now it is as widely grown as ever. A stable government could successfully solve this great problem, which has such an important effect on the well-being of the masses. CHINESE BUSINESS ON SOUND BASIS One of the enigmas of present-day China is the apparent ability of the people to pursue a ‘‘business-as-usual’’ course in spite of the absolute political chaos with which they are 88 Dau-yang Lin: Chapters on China and Forestry, Shanghai, ro16. POLITICAL CURES FOR FAMINE I7I surrounded. The Maritime Customs returns show a con- stantly increasing volume of foreign trade, factories are being built, new industries introduced, markets for new products opened up, and a slow but steady advance made year by year in the modernization of the country. Last year, amid frequent changes in government, student riots, and civil wars around the capital, a street railway was opened in Peking for the first time in her history; and, in spite of frequent difficulties with troops who insist on riding free and in spite of coal famines due to the interruption of railway communications, the street cars still run and, we must assume, make a profit. Another instance of business progress is given by the U. S. Department of Commerce: There is no more striking example of China’s ability to progress in the face of what appears to be insurmountable obstacles than the develop- ments in the past few years in Canton. The contrast between the Canton of to-day and of seven years ago is striking enough when it is considered that this remarkable development took place within the remarkably short space of seven years, but it is even more startling when it is understood that these seven years represented the most stormy period of Canton’s history—years of civil war and strife, extending from the city itself to all parts of the neighboring provinces.*® Such facts show the soundness of the Chinese business fabric. With this background the tremendous possibilities for the industrial development of the country, if given proper government, can be estimated. FAMINE RELIEF METHODS The China International Famine Relief Commission during this interim of governmental impotence is doing all that an organization inspired by philanthropic motives and carried on as a purely nongovernmental agency can hope to do. Its greatest contribution to the famine question has been the working out of a method of treatment that in many respects is novel and which may later be taken over by the authorities. This method, as will be explained later, uses the 9 J. H. Nelson: Changing Factors in the Economic Life of China, U. S. Dept. of Commerce, Trade Information Bull. No. 312, 1925. L72 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE — funds contributed for famine relief in such a way as to leave, after the emergency is past, permanent works of a famine-pre- vention character. A somewhat similar policy has been adopted by the Indian government. The Famine Commission, it may be noted, worked out its program quite independently; and not until its policy had been completely formed did it discover that practices in India were in some respects almost identical. The Chinese government method of distributing relief funds in times of disaster is not unlike the practices followed by governments the world over where public money is divided among the people. It is customary in such instances to make an even distribution among the sufferers, and, since the funds are usually too meager to provide adequately for all the needy until the following harvest, the sufferers receive only enough to prolong life for a few days, after which they die and the relief funds are buried with them. Philanthropic societies in China, following the government’s lead, have adopted much the same practice; but some of them have gone a step further and selected a smaller number of bene- ficiaries providing sufficient relief to keep them alive until they can reap a harvest or by some other means regain their self-support. In both of these instances, however, the people are supported in idleness; for both flood and drought result in a destruction of the crops, leaving nothing for the rural population to do until the next planting season. This has a distinctly unfavorable effect on the farmers and tends to lower their morale and force self-respecting country folk into the pauper class. The American Red Cross in its China Famine Relief Work in 1920-1921 adopted the plan of furnishing employment to the able-bodied members of stricken families.4° In return for a day’s labor on some public work sufficient relief was provided to support the laborer and his dependents. The wages paid were on a piece-work basis and were intentionally kept below the normal wage scale in order that only the ssf Report of the China Famine Relief, American Red Cross, October, 1920—-Sep- tember, 1921, Shanghai. POLITICAL CURES FOR FAMINE 173 Fic. 98 Fic. 96—The Famine Commission gives relief in return for labor on famine- prevention works. A Han River dike project. Fic. 97—Flood-prevention work in Hupeh province built with famine labor. Fic. 98—A Famine Commission dike project in Kiangsi province. 174 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE actually needy might be assisted. Thus the professional mendicants were automatically eliminated, as no one who could possibly get along otherwise would toil for less than the usual rate of pay. Failure to find in any region persons who were willing to work under these conditions proved that the particular region was not seriously affected. This Red Cross experiment was not the first of its kind in China, but it was the first of any importance. The work accom- plished was the construction of roads, of which 850 miles were built during the emergency. At the close of the Red Cross operations a large part of the public were still unconvinced of the superior advantages of the labor relief plan. Hence when the Famine Commission announced that it would adopt this policy so far as possible for all its operations there was opposition in some quarters. However, after six years’ continuous experience of the benefits of such a course nearly all its opponents have been won over. The Famine Commission has greatly developed the Red Cross scheme. Now the policy of employing the able-bodied victims of a disaster is not followed for social considerations alone but for economic reasons as_ well. Projects having a distinct famine-prevention angle are now selected, such as irrigation, flood-prevention, and land reclamation. In places where there are no undertakings that contribute to the increase of production or the conservation of foodstuffs, road building is chosen, opportunity for which is always and everywhere available in China. A REVOLVING FUND FOR FAMINE-PREVENTION PROJECTS Since projects of the sort mentioned above are revenue- producing or revenue-conserving, a further feature has recently been added. It is now the Commission’s practice, wherever possible, to regard sums expended on such works as a loan to the community benefited and to expect a return as soon as practicable, whereupon the funds are devoted to other areas needing assistance. A nominal interest charge is made to cover administrative and engineering costs. POGTTIGALSGURES FOR RAMINE 175 It will thus be seen that the Commission affords a means of organization and finance that has hitherto been lacking in rural China. For instance, a flood occurs in a certain province, rendering the people destitute. In order to save the population the Famine Commission agrees to loan a million dollars. This money is expended by the Commis- sion’s agents in repairing the dike system, the failure of which caused the inundation. The otherwise idle villagers are recruited to do the work, and the wage they receive, which is less than the normal scale, keeps them alive. With the dikes restored and the danger of flood removed a good crop is harvested, and ample funds are available to reim- burse the Commission so that similar emergencies can be met in other places. Or perhaps a famine occurs from drought.. The relief funds are used to construct a large irrigation scheme, the work being done by the victims of the disaster. The provision of a dependable water supply makes good crops possible, and the return of the funds is made by a contribution from the farmers whose land is served. In both cases the food supply is increased, and future famines to a considerable extent are obviated. Quite apart from the usefulness of this work in itself, its greatest benefit is the lesson taught. What tremendous good would accrue, and what a great step would be taken toward relieving China’s 400,000,000 people from the con- stant threat of famine, if a stable government with adequate funds were to assume responsibility for carrying through to its logical conclusion the undertaking already started! For it has been proved to be thoroughly sound. GOVERNMENT FAMINE BUREAU As soon as an effective government is formed, the writer would propose the establishment of a Famine Prevention Bureau directly under the Cabinet Office, which should be charged also with the government relief work. This bureau to be effective must be granted extensive powers and be organized for works of widely diversified character. Many 176 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE elements must be treated simultaneously to bring the most salutary results. There must be close codperation with the regular government departments, especially the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce, the Ministry of Communica- tions, and the Ministry of Education. It is for these reasons that a special bureau is recommended, and it should be placed under the Cabinet Office to give it independence and authority. While the National Famine Prevention Bureau should be established by the central government, its operations should be made effective through similar departments of the pro- vincial administrations. The provincial bureaus would be responsible for carrying out the actual work of relief, reporting regularly to the central office. Authority to remit taxes, both national and provincial, should be vested in this department. | There should be maintained an executive organization capable of rapid expansion in emergencies and including the necessary technical staff and equipment. In the interim between famines it should devote itself to laying plans and preparing projects against future disasters. The above may be regarded as the relief functions of the bureau. More important than these is the preventive work. Conservancy, irrigation, land-reclamation, and flood-control works should be undertaken as the necessary funds are provided by the government, and the same organization and staff that function during a famine can be thus employed between periods of disaster. Following the plan of the American Reclamation Bureau or the Famine Commission, these projects can be carried out on a revolving fund basis, for the benefits will be many times greater than the cost in all cases where the schemes are practical. The Govern- ment Famine Bureau would have a great advantage over the Famine Commission in that it could collect repayment for works constructed by a tax on those who benefited by them. This the Commission, as an unofficial body, is, of course, unable to do. It has had little difficulty, however, in collecting its loans. POD E LCA TA GU RTS Sh O Re AVENE lay COOPERATION WITH OTHER DEPARTMENTS This bureau should effect a liaison with the proposed crop- reporting sections of the Bureau of Economic Information. In this way a shortage of food in any area could be foretold before famine conditions are actually upon the people. There are other signs than crops indicating imminence of famine distress—influx of beggars into the towns and cities; rapid rise in the price of foodstuffs and in the interest rate; unusual wandering of people, to be marked especially along the rail- ways. Local officials should be instructed to report such conditions to the bureau, as well as to give prompt and complete data on any natural disaster, such as flood or the visitation of locusts. Assuming that the policy of giving relief in return for labor is adopted by the government, it will be seen that a close codperation must be maintained between the bureau and the Public Works Department of the various provinces. The writer would propose that all conservancy work that would normally be undertaken by the central government should be put under the bureau. If this were done, projects of predetermined benefit could be prepared in advance in almost all districts. Close contact with the Ministry of Communica- tions would make it possible to employ large numbers of able-bodied victims on road and railway construction, and the portions of such projects requiring manual labor should be pushed forward with vigor during famine periods. OTHER FAMINE PREVENTION WoRK While conservancy work is being carried out by one division of the bureau, other divisions should be formed to effect crop improvements, to promote forestry, to develop and stimulate rural industries, and to introduce better credit facilities for the country population. A close liaison should be established with the Ministry of Education in order that the bureau’s influence may be brought to bear on the educational policies, particularly those of the country and the agricultural schools. 178 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE Above all, the appalling results which a continuance of present conditions will inevitably produce must be brought home to the people of China, and the possibilities of improve- ment must be discovered and strongly advocated. This can most effectively be done by a properly managed govern- ment department. Famines, which have long been recognized as nature’s ruthless means of keeping down the population, can be prevented; but in order to prevent them the inhabitants of the world, and particularly those in overcrowded countries, must shoulder the responsibility for correcting existing evils rather than pass on to an ever-increasing posterity a fruitless struggle for existence against insuperable odds. F1G. 99—A course for farmer codperators conducted by the Famine Commission. CHAPTER VIII SOCIALE CURES FOR FAMINE OVERPOPULATION MEANS POVERTY There are some optimistic persons, scientists included, who do not view the rapid increase in the world’s population with apprehension. The writer would suggest for such persons a few years’ residence in interior China. Here one is brought face to face with the dire conditions that inevitably follow when the number of inhabitants is greater than the productivity of the land they occupy will support. It may be suggested that productivity can be increased. This is certainly true. To quote again from Mr. H. B. Elliston of the Chinese Government Bureau of Economic Information: Were scientific agriculture introduced on a wide scale, these lands could be made to yield more abundantly. But the country does not seem to have arrived at that stage yet, just as it is still in the dirt road stage of highway development. You cannot force material progress on a country. That comes from cooperation from within, which is again predicated on ability to absorb the fruits of such progress. You cannot persuade a farmer to buy an up-to-date plough if he is merely subsisting on the ragged edge of penury; if he is totally divorced from any help but that created by himself. It would therefore seem that age-old methods of agriculture will persist for many years to come. Many foreigners are attacking the problem of helping China in the wrong way by not putting first emphasis on the increase of production. Humanitarian enterprises are legion in China, many of them supported solely by American funds. Their aim is to preserve the life of the people, to teach safeguards against disease and calamity. Thus, some of the erst- while checks to over-population are in process of elimination; and coupled with the natural geometrical increase of the race, may in the course of time 179 180 GHINA LAND OFSEAMINE outweigh other considerations in keeping China on the border line of economic endurance. The right way to help China is to intensify her productivity, so that it will be able to take care of the excessive population. Production should come before population in the humanitarian enterprises of the West, for population’s sake. For what is the good of saving people from disease if finally they have to starve to death in the unequal striving for existence which is the constant battle of the majority of present-day Chinese? But another question arises: Will the increase of production bring more comforts of life for the inhabitants, or will it simply result in an increasing number of people to share existing comforts? It has already been stated that the population of China doubled between the middle of the eighteenth and the middle of the nineteenth century, and a steady increase has been made since that time. Europe has increased her population two and a half times in the last century. The world has doubled its numbers in sixty years. Japan’s population of 56,000,000 in 1920 represents a doubling in forty years, but Japan has been rapidly industrialized. China’s advance is below the average rate because the checks are more pro- nounced. But even at this reduced rate of increase there would be nearly 900,000,000 people in China in another century, or more than half of the present population of the world. The writer does not believe that this is going to happen, of course, but the only factor to prevent it will be the failure of production to keep the pace. What does this constant battle between production and population portend for China? It portends a century of abject poverty for the masses, the sort of poverty from which they are now suffering, but intensified. It can only be prevented if the fruits from im- provements in agriculture, in trade, in distribution of popu- lation, and in the development of the country, are restricted to something like the present number of inhabitants. How is this going to be brought about when apparently the chief ambition of the Chinese is the rearing of offspring, when so much effort is now being spent to counteract the natural checks that heretofore have kept the population within bounds? SOGCTATITGURES FOR BRAMINE 181 EDUCATION NEEDED The cure for the social causes of famine is, in a word, education. This does not mean book learning alone but general enlightenment, particularly of the masses, and the rousing of public opinion. Up to the present time no scientific study has been made in China of important practical problems such as has been the rule in Western countries. Even sup- posing such studies had been made, dissemination of the results would be next to impossible on account of the low standard of education and the high percentage of illiteracy. Thus the subject must be treated from its very foundations. The literacy percentage must be increased while educators and social workers are doing more advanced research work. The task is a herculean one, for the conditions which it is sought to improve are tending constantly to retard the work. Overcrowding renders the struggle for existence indescribably hard, and one can scarcely be blamed for finding it difficult to seek education on an empty stomach or after a day of strenuous labor. It has always been a marvel to the writer in view of these circumstances that there is such a love of learning among the people; but even with the willingness to undergo great hardships to gain knowledge, which is apparent on every side, there are surprisingly few who are able to get more than the most rudimentary education. Mass EDUCATION MOVEMENT One of the chief obstacles that confronts the educator is the difficulty of the language. There is no phonetic al- phabet, the written language being represented by something like 25,000 different characters. Most of the texts, further- more, contain so many characters, and the language has been so cumbered with allusions, making exact understanding difficult except for the really well educated, that the man of meager learning has been unable to make them out at all. This has led in recent years to a number of mass education movements. Various phonetic alphabets have been devised, but these do not meet the need, for China possesses a great 182 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE number of quite dissimilar dialects. However, the written character always has the same meaning even though it is pronounced differently in the spoken languages of the country. The most hopeful educational movement is one that is making very considerable progress at present. It is, briefly, an attempt to convey thought by the least possible number of written characters. Mr. Y. C. James Yen, the leader of the movement, is quoted in the China Year Book as having said: No greater contribution has ever been made to the cause of popular education in China than that made recently by the Literary Revolution in abolishing the classical language and adopting the pei-hua (spoken language) for all literary purposes. That the adoption of the pei-hua facilitates immensely the study of the Chinese language no one can dispute. Mr. Yen then goes on to say that after several years of study by himself and his associates a course was developed consisting of a series of readers called “Foundation Charac- ters,’ a course based on 1000 characters representing the words most commonly used in the spoken language. Mastery of this list will enable a man to write simple business letters, keep accounts, and read simple newspapers intelligently. It has been demonstrated that this can be accomplished by Chinese in four months by one and a half hours of daily study. The movement aims to reach the common people and is generally carried out by volunteer teachers or students who are recruited from the educated classes and who devote certain leisure hours to the work. In many cases the school buildings are used during hours when they are not required for the regular students. A demonstration of the effectiveness of this idea in a number of widely scattered cities led to the formation of an organization known as the National Popular Education Association, and extensive plans are being for- mulated to launch campaigns in all parts of the country. The greatest progress has, naturally, been made in the cities. The problem of reaching the country people is a much more difficult one. This movement is described to show that there is now a growing tendency in China to undertake reforms. It is one SOCIAL CURES FOR FAMINE 183 of the signs that the present unsatisfactory situation is recognized and that the people mean to do something to remedy it. Such an enterprise together with kindred move- ments springing out of the literary renaissance should have the whole-hearted support of those who are desirous of seeing better times in China. Fic. 100—A group of farmer coéperators, members of the China International Famine Relief Commission rural credit societies. BirtH CONTROL NEEDED But while the spread of education and general enlighten- ment is a hopeful sign, it must be recognized that unless a conscious effort is made to lower the birth rate the effect of modern knowledge will do quite as much to increase popula- tion in China as to decrease it—probably more, in fact. The spread of modern ideas of sanitation, the proper control of contagious diseases, preventive medicine, and modern surgery will naturally greatly decrease the death rate—at least it should logically do so. It may mean, however, that the man who is saved from dying of cholera today will die of starvation tomorrow. Certainly this will happen if the death rate decreases materially and the birth rate remains at the same level, other factors remaining constant. The writer views this problem with such concern that he would even propose as a department of the work of every medical 184 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE institution the teaching of methods of contraception. In this way the birth rate might be lowered at the same time with the death rate. | While it takes centuries to build up a population as large as that of China it would take a comparatively short time to reduce it to a size where the productivity of the land would support it in comfort. In fact, if the people should be content to have just half as many offspring during the next generation as were born during the last, the population would probably be so reduced that there would be plenty of food for all and no hardship whatever would be felt in the process. But birth control by the Chinese on any extensive scale is at present out of the question; years of strenuous work and a change in the basic social concepts of the Chinese must precede its realization. There is nothing, so far as the writer can find, in the original Christian doctrine which cannot be reconciled to a scientific treatment of the question of eugenics of which a control of the birth rate, where it is excessively high, is an important factor. The objections which may be raised on religious grounds are, at least, much less fundamental with Christianity than they are with Confucianism. Thus the displacement of Confucianism in China by Christianity might conceivably make the work of the reformer less difficult. However, this is a hypothesis which cannot be proved for centuries to come, judging from the present registered rate of progress in the introduction of Christianity. It would appear in fact that a crusade must be carried on in China as elsewhere. But even assuming that the psychology of the Chinese could be changed and that they could be induced to adopt pre- ventive measures, the conditions under which most of them live are such that contraception could not be nearly so effec- tive as in Western countries. The poverty of the people would prevent the purchase of drugs or the various preventive devices; also the tremendous task of teaching the people their use would be an obstacle of no mean proportions. As was intimated in a previous chapter, the introduction of industrialism, if it produces the same reactions in China SOCIAL CURES FOR. FAMINE 185 that it has abroad, will serve to check the birth rate; and the improvement in the standard of living resulting from it will act as a further retarding influence. It is possible also that the introduction of the Western form of life insurance and also more prosperous conditions will help to destroy the idea that it is necessary to rear many children in order to have sons to make provision for declining years. The adoption and enforcement by the government of a marriage law establishing monogamy as the only recognized code might assist in a small way to decrease the number of births; and indeed government action along other lines connected with the population question would undoubtedly have effect. THRIFT SOCIETIES Education would also help to prevent much of the waste- fulness of ceremonials. Of late years there has been a reaction against the old practices, and those Chinese who have had the advantage of foreign training are the most ardent in their effort to break the shackles imposed by custom. This tendency has asserted itself in the formation of ‘thrift societies,” whose members bind themselves not to initiate or participate in feasts or other wasteful practices. The Y. M. C. A. has done much to develop this movement, and “thrift weeks”? are now organized throughout the country, when a concentrated effort is made to reach as many people as possible with the message of the benefits of saving and the evil effects of wasteful ceremonies. This is accomplished through lectures, bulletins, and posters. The movement should be fostered and encouraged by all thinking people. Education, again, must be relied upon to bring about the reform in foot binding. An unwittingly beneficial effect of the greed of a certain military official has come to the writer’s notice. In one of the provinces where the custom of foot bind- ing has been religiously followed even up to the present time, the military governor without any warning declared that it was to cease forthwith. However, it was provided that feet 186 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE could still be bound if a tax were paid. This tax was on a sliding scale, all women over thirty being exempt. The rate was highest for the youngest children, tapering off after the marriageable age. It was provided that payments according Fic. 101I—The chief means of transportation in China. A small junk carries very little sail. to the age of the child concerned should be made at regular intervals so long as her feet should be bound. This is certainly a way to get results. INFLUENCE OF WESTERN CIVILIZATION Of late years with the development of transportation, the improvement of communications, and the gradual opening up of China, it has been borne in upon the people that a new era has dawned, and their complacent self-sufficiency has been rudely shocked. The impact of Western industrialism has indeed shaken this great country to its foundations. It has resulted in a transformation even of the form of govern- ment, it has served to develop a nationalistic spirit in some of the people, it has set in motion forces that will eventually re- sult in the complete emancipation of the Chinese women. China is truly awakening although, because of the tremendous field to be covered, progress is not rapid. SUGTALVGURES KORSRAMINE 187 There has been a growing interest on the part of the Chinese in Western education for application to their own needs, an interest which has resulted in a marked increase in the number of natives who complete their education in Fic. 102—Sailing over the inundated fields during the northern China floods of 1924, foreign countries. There are several thousand Chinese stu- dents in the United States alone. Foreign schools in China (most of which are missionary institutions) have also met with much favor and have long waiting lists of applicants. The return to China of thousands of foreign university grad- uates has injected new life into the country. This group has founded the Chinese National Association for the Advance- ment of Education, which has undertaken the tremendous task of educational reform. While progress has been made in the theory of modern organization, the practical side has also been mastered by a constantly growing number of foreign-trained mill operatives, mechanics, bank clerks, chauffeurs, and the like. It is quite generally conceded that the Chinese, under proper super- vision, display as much ability in handling mechanical con- trivances and in carrying out the routine clerical requirements of modern business as do Westerners. Thus, while there is 188 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE a lack of inventive genius, it would appear that there is a capacity of imitation coupled with the ingenuity that has always been a characteristic of the race. We are justified in expecting an industrial expansion somewhat on the order of the development in Japan. The two principal factors working against the rapid industrialization of China, quite apart from lack of capital or credit organization, are the dishonesty of the officials, who prey on developments of all kinds, and the lack of codperation on the part of the people. Remove these disabilities and there is no reason why China should not be the greatest industrial nation in the world. The country is rich in natural resources and has an unsur- passed abundance of cheap labor. CHINESE FUNDAMENTALLY SOUND With the awakening of China will come more civic pride and more community spirit, and these things in turn will make for better living conditions. There are some confirmed pessimists about China who can see no future for her but a continuation of the present chaos and ultimate breakdown and disintegration; but, although there may be great political changes and realignments, there are still four hundred million Chinese people; and, if history teaches us anything, she teaches that a race as numerous and as fundamentally sound as the Chinese, which has maintained its political and cultural solidarity for so many centuries, will not perish from the earth. Fig. 103—Sunrise over the sacred Hwa Shan. (Photograph by C. W. Bishop.) CONCLUSIONS The chronic famine situation in China cannot be ade- quately relieved without a stable and effective government. This does not mean, however, that no amelioration can be achieved during these disordered times. Any doubt on that score has been removed by the operations during the past six years of the China International Famine Relief Commis- sion and its constituent committees. There are some lines of work that will yield results more quickly than others. In order of importance they are: 1. Flood control, irrigation, land reclamation. 2. Economic improvement, rural credits, colonization, home and village industry. 3. Improved agriculture and forestation. 4. Development of transportation. 5. Education. Several of these might be undertaken at once. In fact all of them should be pressed as vigorously as possible, and it should be noted that some progress is actually being made day by day in several of these directions. But on account of the limited funds at the disposal of codperative enterprise, the undertakings that would be most quickly productive should be put in the forefront. Many persons will not agree with the writer as to this arrangement. For instance, some will doubt the wisdom of putting education last when the reduction of the birth rate is so vital to the prosperity of the people of China and hence to the famine problem of the future. But even the most sanguine will agree that modification of the fundamental concepts of the people will be a very slow and expensive 189 190 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE process. What is needed is the immediate release of the masses from the constant threat of starvation. This will in itself create conditions where education can be appreciated and where more thought can be devoted to the larger social aspects of life. The greatest immediate benefit to the nation will come from insurance of the crops against flood and drought and provision of means to increase the area of cultivable land and the yield on the fields already worked. This can be done by flood control, irrigation, land reclamation, and other similar projects which modern engineering has made possible. The cost of such work in China, where human labor is plentiful and cheap, is relatively small compared with the benefits which result; and the effect is at once apparent, even minor projects bringing prosperity almost immediately to thousands of people. Although the largest schemes must wait for better political conditions, there are almost unlimited fields for work on problems of small dimensions. Next to conservancy, the most quickly productive work is the economic improvement of the rural population by the provision of better credit facilities, by the introduction of home and village industries, by colonization, and similar enterprises. Most of these, except colonization, can be undertaken at once and carried forward even under present conditions in China. Improved agriculture and forestation might also be included in this category; but they are more difficult to bring about, and their benefits are not so quickly apparent. The development of transportation is important, but in its effects on the famine problem it is put fourth. There are already existing trunk lines which serve the provinces that are most susceptible to distress, and the cost of extending the system is at present almost prohibitive. Quicker results can be effected by using funds for conservancy or rural improvement. Education, in its broader sense, is the fundamental cure for the ills not only of China but of the world. It goes hand in hand with the projects of improvement listed above— CONCLUSIONS IQI in fact, it may even be considered an integral part of every one of them. Education is used here not in its broad sense but in the commonly accepted meaning of the acquisition of knowledge from books, and hence is put at the end of the list. And now for a final word about the population problem. In the writer’s opinion it is overpopulation that constitutes the fundamental reason for the recent famines in China. Futhermore, overpopulation is now a matter of world con- cern. What has occurred in China, will if the human race lets nature take her course, most certainly occur in other lands which are now prosperous. If a pair of rabbits are shut in an enclosure which has a limited area of good grass they will be comfortably provided for; but their numerous progeny will have very hard scratching unless some altruistic person throws in fodder from outside. There are optimists among us who ascribe to Providence this rdle of benefactor to the ever increasing human race, but they fail to take cognizance of the fact that no bountiful showers of manna have fallen in China. And who will say that there is no need? INDEX Adoption, 9I Agriculture, 38; antiquated methods, 24; intensive, 25, 27; scientific, 109, 179; teaching, 4 American Red Cross, 32, 49; China Famine Relief, 172; Hwai River conservancy, 152; road _ construc- tion plan, 174; wells for irrigation, 148-149 Ancestor worship, 88, 90, 100; effect on birth rate, 88 Ancestral tablets, 90 Anhwei, 45, 48, 49 Animals, domestic, 78; improvement, 114 Arable land, 118 Armies, 20; army on the march, 64 (ill.); cost, 78; disbandment, 164; excess troops, 77 Artisans, 128 Authority, 67 Bakers | siens 3.35 Banditry, 75, 119, 123; Shensi refuge from bandits, 77 (ill.) Banking, 3, 21; rural, 129 Bard, Emile, 70 Bean cake and oil, 112 Bean flour, 113 Beans, I12 Beggars, I, 11 (ill.) Berczeller, L., 113 Binding the feet, 98, 185 Birth control, 183, 191 Birth rate, 4, 17, 87, 189, 190; ancestor worship as related to, 88; concubin- age and, 91 Birthday celebrations, 93-94 Bishop, C. W., 82, 189 Boats, families living in, at flood times, 117 (ill.); sailing over in- undated fields in 1924, 187 (ill.); Yangtze junks and steamers, 133 (ill.) Borrowers, 22 Boxer Rebellion, 66 Buddhists, 100 Budgets, family, 7 Burgess, J. S., 11 Burial, 98, 100 Business soundness, 170 Buxton lle. 5 erro Canals, 34; irrigation, 144, 145, 148 Cannibalism, 40 Canton, 171; dike improvement scheme, 72 Canton Christian College, 114 Capture of citizens, 76 Carriers, human, 32, 33 (ill.) Carts, 139; flooded roads and, 135 (ll.); with the narrow tires, 31 (ill.) Cave dwellings, loess, 61 (ill.) Caves, 62 Census, 84, 85 Ceremonials, waste, 93, 185 Chairs for travel, 103 (ill.) Chang-chao-lan, 68 Charity, 106, 172 Chekiang, 15, 940, 41,)-4 2" destroyed, 58 45; fields Ghengeba ston 20 Chenfu, 12 Chengtu plain, irrigation, 142, 144 Ch’ien Lung, 85, 108 Chihli, 10, 15, 29, 40, 41, 45; dike break, 55 (ill.); flood around Hsin- An, 36 (ill.); flood of 1924, 53, 56; flood preventon plain, 160; ice in flooded area, 8g (ill.); river systems and flood areas, 52, 159 (map) Children, 88, 90; adoption, 91; sale, 2 China, 1; lowlands and river basins, 6 (map); povulation increase and area, 108; self-support, 108-109 China Continuation Committee, 16; census, 85-86 192 INDEX China International Famine Relief Commission, 7, 32; credit plan, 129; dikes and land reclaimed by, 157 (ills.); methods, 171; operations, 189; relief in return for labor— Han River dike, 173 (ill.); river regulation plans, 152, 158; roads, 137 (ills.), 138; Shensi irrigation, 146 (with map); survey, 10; wells for irrigation, 148-149 China’s Sorrow, 51 Chinese, 1; fecundity, 87; fundamental soundness, 188; mechanical ability, 187; northern and southern, 83; pacifism, 64; residing abroad, 120; students abroad, 187 Chinese Government Bureau of Eco- nomic Information, 11, 84, 115, 168, 179 Chinese language and alphabet, 181; Foundation Characters, 182 Chinese National Association for the Advancement of Education, 187 Chinese National Conservancy Bureau, 152, 156 Chinese Turkestan, 119 Chou Dynasty, 106, 145 ‘“Christian Occupation of China, The,’ 16 Christianity, 88, versus, 184 Chu, Co-Ching, 38 Ch’uantou, 86 Civil war, 164 Civilization, 104; western influences, 186 Clannishness, 104 lapis x. 02,4104 Classics, 104 Clothing, 92 Coinage, need of uniform, 131 Colonization, 3, I2I-122; companies, 122; relief for overcrowding, 118 Communications, lack of, 29, 136 Community spirit, lack of, 71 Concubinage, 91 Confucianism versus Christianity, 184 Confucius, 65, 67, 101; on government, 65, 67, 164; on worship of ancestors, 88 ’ 90; Confucianism 193 Conservation of food, 139 Conservatism, 100, I19; development and, Ior Contraception, 184 Co6éperation, lack of, 71, 104, 106, 188 Coéperative credit societies, 129 Copper cash, 132 Corr Peeris Corruption, official, 68, 70, 80, 188 Cost of living, 7; Chenfu and Huichow, I2 Cotton, 114 Cottonwoods, I15 Credit, 20, 129; coSperative societies, 129 Cremation, I00 Crop estimates, 167 Crops, 13; 20,43, .J42-2iailures: 107, 110; multiple, 27; new foods, III Cultivation, intensive, 25, 27 Currency, 132 Custom, IOI, 104, 185 industrial Dams, 144, 146 Dau-yang Lin, 170 Death rate, I, 17, 183 Debts, 94 Deforestation, 4, 37 Dehydration, 140 Density of population, 15. Population Denudation, 28 Diet, model, 9 Dikes, 45, 46, 147, 150, 152; breaks, 55 (ills.), 56, 57 (ills.); building with famine-relief labor, 173 (ills.); failure to repair, 71; Famine Commission dikes, 157 (ills.); flood refugees living on, 117 (ill.); opposition to improvement, 72; roadway on a dike, 84 (ill.); Yellow River, 50-51 (map), 54 (ill.), 156, 158 Dirt roads, 138-139 Disbandment of troops, 164 Dittmer Ga Gs7 20 S11 Dian eevee 05 Dogs, 95 Doles, 168, 172 Domestic animals, 78 Donkeys as freight carriers, 103 (ill.) See also 194 Drainage after floods, 46 Droughts, 36, 107, 142; Chinese method of breaking, 44; famine of 1876-1879, 29; historical data, 38-43; North China in 1920-1921, 2 ‘‘Droughts in China’’ (Hosie), 38 Earthquakes, 59, 141, 162; Kansu in 1920, 60; loess slide in Kansu, 61 Gll.); Yunnan, 1925, 62 Eating, excessive, 95 Economic reserve, 107 Educated men, 109 Education, 104, 189; agricultural, 109; foreign, 187; mass movements, I81; ministry of, 177; need, 181 Hdwards se W..2.3 Elliston, H. B., 84, 179 Emigration, 119, 121 Emperors, 65 Engineering, projects, 72, 150, 152 Erosion, 28; prevention, 26 Eugenics, 184 Exports, 125 144, 145, Faith in rulers, 164 Family, cost of living, 7; enrichment, - 67; pooling of resources, 24; size, 4, 13, 87, 88; stressing the family unit, 71; system of living together, 18, 104, 106 Famine Commission. See China In- ternational Famine - Relief Com- mission Famine prevention, 71, 178; Freeman scheme for Hwai River, 153; non- codperation a hindrance to, 105; revolving fund for projects, 174; schemes, 3; views of military leaders, 166 Famine Prevention Bureau for the Government, 175; codperation with other government departments, 177; Famine relief, 120, 121; lines of work in order of importance, 189; methods, I7I Famine relief surtax, 71 Famines, I; cures, 107; drought of 1876-1879, 29; economic causes, 5; CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE Famines (continued) economic cures, 107; fundamental cause, I9I; irrigation during, 120; natural causes, 36; natural cures, 14t;)-North China, 1020-19213.) 2% 3; political causes, 64; political cures, 163; refugees, 110 (ill.); social causes, 84>" social cures) 179; victims, sri Cll.) Fan Kung Dike, 49 Farmers, 110; course of instruction by the Famine Commission, 179 (ill.); group of codperators, 183 (ill.) ‘‘Farmers of Forty Centuries"’ (King), 25 Farming. See Agriculture Feasts, 93, 94, 185 Fen Ho, 18 (map) Feng Yu-hsiang, colonization scheme, 122 (ill.), 124; motor road built by, T2351") Fertility of the soil, 25 Fertilizers, 96, 110 Fish, 140; flood waters affording, 89 (ills. ) Flood prevention, 150; famine labor in Hupeh, 173 (ill.); organizations, 72 Floods, 23 (ills.), 36; area flooded by break in dike, 57 (ill.); areas flooded in 1924, 47 (map); areas subject to, 56; deposits on farm land, 151” (ills.); Hunan in 1924, 39 Cills.); Kalgan in 1924, 69 (ill.); occurrence, 45; refugees on dikes and in boats, 117 (ills.); sailing over inundated fields in 1924, 187 (ill.); Shantung in 1925, 69 (ill.), 72; slow drainage of waters, 46 Food, 1; bill of fare in famine time, 2° concer; 1or, 763 Iconservation; 139; exports and imports, 108; im- portation, 125; new crops, IIT; Overeating, 95; requirements not met, 13; unwholesome, 5 Foot binding, 98, 185 Foothills, 150 Foreign goods, 135 Foreign markets, 125, 126, 127 Foreigners, 66 Forest Service, 170 INDEX Forestry, 4 Forestry regiment, 170 Forests, depletion, 28, 37; destruction at Western Tombs, 168, 169 (ill.); land where growth is possible, 169 Gll.); rainfall and, 141 Foundation Characters, 182 Freeman, J. R., 48, 49, 152; on Yellow River control, 156 Freight, 35; donkeys carrying, 103 (ill.); rafts on the Yellow River, tir (ill.). See also Transportation Frontier movement, I2I, 123 Frost, 162 Frugality, 92 Fruit, 140 Fruit trees, 115 Fuel, 116 Fukien, 80; population distribution, 19 (map) Fuller, M. L., 62 Funerals, 93 (ill.), 94 Ganiplesoonk) ss Lt Garden of Western China, 144 German porcelain, 79 Gilbert, Rodney, 132 Good Roads Association, 138 Government, 64, 67, 74, 75; authority, 67; Famine Prevention Bureau sug- gestion, 175, 177; famine relief methods, 172; form, 164; monarchi- cal nature, 65; need of effective central, 125; present experiment, 163; relief work, 70; stability re- quired, 164, 189; support for land utilization needed, 168 Grain, 68; reserves, 168 Grain dealers, 21 Granaries. See Public granaries Grand Canal, 34, 48, 52, 153; American loan for improving, 74 Grave mounds, 99 (ills.) Graves, 98, 99 (ills.). See also Burial Gray, G.AD29 Great Wall at Kupehkow, 163 (ill.) Guam, 63 Guilds, 106 Gullies, 150 195 Hai Ho, 52; proposed flood channel, 159 (map), 160 Hail, 162 Han River, dike building, 173 (ill.) Hann, Julius von, 43 Hantan, 44 Helpfulness, lack of, 106 Highwaymen, 76 Highways, 138. See also Roads Home, 119; burial at, 100; industries, 127. See also Family Honan200407 41, 45) 00m L5on 100; flood of 1887-1889, 52 Horvath pA wA,, 113 Hosie, Alexander, on droughts, 38; on visitations of locusts, 59 Households, 84 Hsin An, flood around, 36 (ill.) Hughey ie linneel 21 Huichow, cost of living, 12 Human carriers, 32, 33 (ill.) Hunan, famine refugees, 74 (ill.); floods and their havoc in 1924, 39 (ills.) Hungtze Lake, 48, 50, 152, 161 Huntington, Ellsworth, on the north- ern and the southern Chinese, 83 Hupeh, flood-prevention work, 173 (ill.) Hwa Shan, 189 (ill.) Hwai River, 48, 152; conservancy schemes, 49, 152, 153, 154 (map), 155 (map) Hwailu-hsien, 30 Hwang Ho. See Yellow River Ice, 116; fishing through, 89 (ill.); on flooded area in Chihli, 89 (ill.), 116 Idleness, 96, 97, 105, 172 Illiteracy, 181 Impey, Lawrence, 57, 117 Incomes, 9, 10, II India, communications, relief #172 Industrial development, 18, 125, 188; conservation and, IOI Initiative, 93 Insect pests, 115 Insurance, life, old-age, 90 136; famine TOS ee lOCcuste (LOD 196 Integrity, lack of, 104 Intensive cultivation, 25, 27 Interest rates,<2,,2 122,924,120 Inundation, 46, 116. See also Floods Irrigation, 3, 26, 115; Chengtu plain, 142, 144; from a stream, 126 (ill.); great plains, 147; lifting water for, 102 (ill.); old schemes, 144; Wei-pei plain, 145; wells and reservoirs, 148 Japan, 15, 97; earthquake of 1923, 60; population, 180 Jobs, 97 Junks, 133 (ill.), 138; chief means of transportation, 186 (ill.) Kalgan, 124; flood in 1924, 69 (ill.) Kan River, breaks in dikes, 55 (ill.), 56 Kansu, 41, 118; earthquake in 1920, 60; earthquake and loess slide, 61 Cll.) Kaoliang, 27 Kiangsi, breaks in dikes, project of Famine 173 (ill.); porcelain, 79 Kiangsu, 15, 41, 42, 45, 48, 49; popu- lation distribution, 19 (map) Kine serie 25 King father, 66 King River, 145, 146 Knibbs, G. H., 85 Knitting machines, 128 Kupehkow, Great Wall at, 163 (ill.) Kuyiian, 62 Kwangsi, 118 Kwangtung, Works, 72 Kweichow, 78, 118 56; dike Commission, Board of Conservancy Labor surplus, 18, 19, 77, 96 Lace making, 128 Lake drainage, 161 Land, 3; farm land ruined by sand layer from flood, 151 (ill.); reclaimed by dike project, 157 (ill.); reclama- tion, 3, 161; registration fees for deeds, 70; unsettled, 118 Language, difficulty of, 181 Latrines, 96 CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE Liching, reversion works, 158 bietw DS Kear3 Likin, 79; abolition desirable, 135 Lin, Dau-lang, 170 Ling Nan Agricultural College, 114 Literary Revolution, 182 Loan associations, 24 Loan sharks, 22 Loans, 21, 129. See also Credit Locusts, 36; catching, 5 (ill.); efforts to solve problem, 161; migrations, 58 Loess country, 60; cave dwellings in, 61 (ill.); | Kansu earthquake, 61 (ill.); railroad extension in, 134 (ill.) Looms, hand, 128 Looting, 76 Lowdermilk, W. C., 37, 150 Lung, Ch’ien, 85, 108 Lung Hai Railroad, (ill.) extension, 134 Machinery, 128, 134-135, 187 Males, 88, 90, 91 Mallory, W. H., 57 Malone, C. B., 7 Malena Rees Manchu house, 66, 85, 86, 163 Manchuria,33928,532 762) 1189110" banditry, 124; labor movement into, 19; soy bean in, I12, I13 Margin of livelihood, 5; lack of, 14 Maritime Customs, population figures, 85, 86; tariff rates, 134; trade reports, U7 Maritime Dike, 49 Markham, Edwin, 87 Marriage, 91, 185 Mat making, 165 (ills.) Migration, 2, 20; during famine, 120; refugees in Hunan, 74 (ill.); trend, 82 Military leaders, 67, 75; defeated troops, 76; famine-prevention views, 166; power, 164; revenues, 135; taxes imposed on the people, 79 Millet, 27 Min Chung, I15 Min River, 56; distribution over Chengtu plain, 144 Ming Dynasty, 108 Mints, 132 INDEX Misfortune, 106 Missions, Christian, 88, 90 Mohammedan Rebellion in 1862, 86, 97 Money, 132 Money lenders, 22 Mongolia, 3, 82, 118, 119 Monogamy, 185 Montandon, Raoul, 58, 59 Moser, C. K., 135 Mounds. See Grave mounds Mysticism, 90 1861I- National Popular Education Associa- tion, 182 Natural calamities, 141, 162 Natural resources, 92, 125, 188 Negligence, official, 69 (ills.), 72 Nelson, J. H., 171 Noncoéperation, 71, 104, 106, 188 North China, famine of 1920-1921, 2, 3 Officials, 94, 105; corruption, 68, 70, 80, 188; negligence, 69 (ills.), 72 Oil cans, 92 Old-age insurance, 90 One man, one job, 97 Opium, 80, 170; poppies on grain land, 80, 81 (ill.) Organization, 106; lack of, 66, 67 Overcrowding, 15, 17, 191; colonization to relieve, 118; government action needed, 82; poverty the result of, 179 Overeating, 95 Pacifism, 64 Pan-Pacific Food Conservation Con- ference, on locusts, 162 Parental obligation, 90 Parker, E. H., 84, 85 Paternalism, 65 Pawnshops, 21 Peanuts, III Pearl River, 160 Peculation, 105 Pei Ho, 53 Peking, 67, 124, 136; currency bureau, 132; income estimate, II; street cars, 171; universities, funds for, 71 Peking-Mukden Railway, 32 197 Peking-Suiyuan Railway, 124 Persian wheels, 144 Philippines, 112 Pile driver, native, 127 (ill.) Plain, great eastern, 45 Plains, irrigation on, 147 Plant diseases, I15 Plant improvement, I14 Plow, native, 27 (ill.) Political conditions, disorganization, 4 Pooling of resources by families, 24 Poppy, 80, 170; on grain land, 81 Cll.) Population, 10; checks, 17; Chinese statistics, 84; density, I5, 16 (map); increase, 108, 180; problem, I91; reduction, 183. See also Overcrowd- ing Porcelain, 79 Post Office, population figures, 85, 86 Potatoes, III, 140 Poverty, overpopulation the cause of, 179 Power, native, pumping plant, 102 (ill.) Poyang Lake, 56, 161 Prayer for rain, 44 Prevention. See Famine prevention; Flood prevention Productivity, 179, 180; industrial, 128 Public granaries, 68, 139; abolition, 67 Public Works Departments, 177 Pumps, 102 (ill.), 148 Rafts on Yellow River, 111 (ill.) Raiffeisen credit societies, 129 Railways, 30, 136; appropriation of revenues, 74, 79; freight, 35; loans, 75; need of, 138 Rainfall, 36; forests and, 141; lack of, 38; normal, 42; prayer of Tao Kwang for, 44. See also Droughts Read, B. E., 9 Rebuilding, lack of, 98 Reclamation of land, 3, 157 (ill.), 161 Red Cross. See American Red Cross Reeds for mats, 165 (ill.) Reforestation, 116 Reforms, 182 Refrigeration, 139-140 198 Religion, 88, 90 Republic, 67, 163 Reservoirs, 149, 152 Revenue, new methods of obtaining, 70 Revolution of I911, 64, 66 Rice, 26, 445° drys fields, 615 Gil); fields in Szechwan, 107 (ill.); flood loss, 50; insect pest, 115; method of growing, 28; native huller, 26 (ill.); overeating, 96; tax on, 79; yield, 13 Rickshaw man, 92 Riddell, Lord, 126 Rivers, 36, 138; control of courses, 3, 150, 158; diking, 71; General Wu’s ideas of control, 166; silt, 45 Roads, 105; carts in wet weather, 135 (ill.); Famine Commission roads, 137, (ills.), °238>" Red Cross: plans of construction, 174; repairs neglected, 105; width, 167 Rockhill, W. W., 86 Roxby, P. M., 85 Ruins, 97 Sale of women and children, 2 Salutation, I Sand layer on farm land, 151 (ill.) Sawmill, native, 165 (ill.) Schools, 109; foreign, in China, 187 Science, 104 Scientific agriculture, 109, 179 Shanghai, 52, 63 Shansi, 29, 40, 60; deforestation, 37; population distribution, 18 (map); wages, II—I2 Shantung, 15, 40, 45, 158, 160; flood OfALO25 22. (ills. M52 moons) a7 labor movement from, 19; population distribution, 17 (map) Shensi, 29, 30, 40, 60; irrigation, 145, 146 (with map); motor road and cart road, 137 (ill.); refuge from bandits, 77 (ill.); tree planting, 143 Gll.); wood lot, 15 (ill.) Shensi Irrigation Scheme, 73 (ills.) Siang River, 56 Sibert, W. L., 49 Silk, improvement, I14 Silt, 45, 60, 152; layer left by flood, 151 (ill.) CHINA: LAND OF FAMINE Silver dollar, 132 Smith, Adam, 136 Smith, Arthur, 84 Soil, 13; enrichment from floods, 148; maintenance of fertility, 25; river deposits, 46 Soldiers, cost of See also Armies Son of Heaven, 65 Soy bean, 112 Soy bean flour, 113 Speculation in cereals, 68 Standard of living, 9, 78, 107, 125 Standard Oil Co., 92; steamer on the Yangtze, 133 (ill.) Starvation, I Statistics, 5; collection by Relief Commission in 1922, 7; population, Chinese figures, 84 Steamboats, 34, 138 Stockton, Sir Edwin, 126 Storage, food, 139; grain, 68; water, 149 Storms, 162 Suiyuan, 140 Surtax, famine relief, 71 Sissmuilch| 2 Pec17 Swan pan, 132 Swatow, 63 Szechwan, 136; rice fields, 107 (ill.); strife with Kweichow, 78; terraced fields, 14 (ill.) maintenance, 78. layGhenyl2, 1120 Taiping Rebellion, 66, 86 Talifu, 63 Tanks. See Reservoirs Tao Kwang, prayer for rain, 44 Tariff conference, 134 Taxes, 79; likin, 79, 135; new -im- posts, 70; remission, 41-42; remis- sion in famine years, 70; rice, 79 sLayler | 3.4475.0, 10 Tea, improvement, I14 Terraces, 26; destruction by rains, 56; Szechwan, 14 (ill.) Thrift societies, 185 Tibet, 68, I19 Tientsin, 29, in 1917, 56 2, 124, 160; dike break INDEX Timber, 28 Time, waste of, 96 Ting-fang, Wu, 126 Todas Oe) 4a 58 Transit taxes, 79, 135 Transportation, 3; better facilities needed, 136; donkeys as carriers, 103. (ill.); inefficient methods, 32; junke e133) e(ills)s1 30,0450). ll.) political hindrance, 74; water hauls, 32 (ill.), 34 Travel, chairs for, 103 (ill.) Treaties, 135 Trees, 29, 116; broken by ice, 116; occurrence in northern China, 143 (ill.); planting, 115, 141; planting in foothills and gullies, 150; planting in Shensi, 143 (ill.); watering, 142 Troops, excess, 77; forestry regiment, 170; trains, 75 (with ill.). See also Armies Tsao Ngo River, 56 T’u Shu Tsih Ch’eng, 38 Tungkwan, 54 (ill.) Tungting Lake, 161 Twain, Mark, 64 Twitchell, H., 68, 70 Typhoons, 63, 141, 162 United States, loan for improving the Grand Canal, 74 U. S. Department of Commerce, on business progress, I7I Usury, 22 Vayssiére, Paul, 58 Vehicles, horse and mule-drawn, 32 Vernyi, 60 Village industries, 19, 127 Villagers, 1 (ill.) Wages, 128; Shansi, 11-12 Waste, 93; in ceremonies and feasts, 93, 185; of food by overeating, 95; of fruit, 140; of time, 96; utilizing, 26, 92, 96 Water, transportation by, 32 (ill.), 34 Water buffalo, 31 (ill.) 199 Wei Ho, 115; earthquake in valley in 1556, 60; valley, 146 (with map) Wei-pei plain, 145 Wells, irrigation from, 148 Wen-Hao, Wong, 60 West Lake, 86 West River, 56 Western civilization, 186 Western Tombs, 168; forest destruction, 168, 169 (ill.) Wheat, 27, 43, 114; floods and the crop, 53s yield13 Wheelbarrows, 32, 34; native, 31 (ill.) Widows, 91, 92 Williams, S. Wells, 44 Women, emancipation, 186 Wood, 28, 115; scarcity, 141 (ill.) Wood lots, 115; family, 118; Shensi, T5 (ill.) Wu Pei-fu, view of river control and famine prevention, 166 Wu Ting-fang, 126 Yangtze River, 34, 48, 49, 52, 56, 160; dikes built by the Famine Commis- SION @alS 7 illss) smjUnkse baa eels steamers, 133 (ill.) Yellow River, 34, 36; break in a dike in Shantung, 55. (ill.); Chinese along the middle reaches, 82; control, 156; crops along, 147; dike system of lower course, 50-5I (map); dikes, 158; flood-prevention work, 2; floods, 23 (ills.), 51; lower course and dikes, 54 (ill.); migrations, 52; migrations, historical, 49 (map); rafts of cowhide, 111 (ill.); Shantung flood in 1925, 69 (ill.), 72; upper reaches, 54 (ill.) Yen, ¥, Ga fJames—a13s2 Yennanfu, 8 (ill.) WVeRiVir GaeAL si os Yii, Emperor, 2 Yu-hsiang, Feng, colonization scheme, 122 (ill.), 124; motor road built by, 123 (ill.) 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