The International Development of ChinaSun, Yat-sen
History
The International Development of China
Sun, Yat-sen
China -- Economic conditions -- 1912-1949; Railroads -- China
The Hweiho rises in the northwest corner of Honan and runs southeast
and east to the north of Anhwei and Kiangsu. Its outlets have been
sealed up in recent years so its water has accumulated in the Hungtse
Lake and it depends upon evaporation as its only means of disposing
the water. Thus in the heavy rainy season, it floods a vast extent of
the country surrounding the lake and causes great misery to millions
of people. So the conservancy of the Hweiho is a very urgent question
of China to-day. Recently many investigations have been made and many
plans proposed. Mr. Jameson, chief engineer for the American Red Cross
Society, has proposed two outlets for the Hweiho: one following the
old course of the Yellow River to the sea and another through Paoying
and Kao-yu Lakes to the Yangtze. In this project I propose to follow
Mr. Jameson's plan for the sea outlet only as far as the old Yellow
River and for the Yangtze outlet only as far as Yangchow. When the sea
outlet or north branch reaches the old Yellow River I will lead it
across into the Yenho and follow the Yenho to its northern turn. From
there, we cut across the narrow strip of land into the Kuanho which
enters the sea at the nearest deep water line. This saves a great deal
of work of excavating the old course of the Hoangho. When the southern
branch reaches Yangchow, I propose to make the canal pass east of that
city instead of west as Mr. Jameson proposed, so that its current will
join the Yangtze in the same direction at the new curve below Chinkiang
city.
Both of these outlets or branches of the Hweiho should be made at least
twenty feet deep right along, so that coastal vessels from the north
to the Yangtze could use them as passage instead of going round the
Yangtze estuary, thus shortening the distance by about 300 miles. And
with twenty feet depth for both outlets, the Hweiho and the Hungtse
Lake would be well drained and the present bottom of the lake, which is
sixteen feet above sea level would be converted into agricultural land
at once. Thus 6,000,000 mow of land could be reclaimed according to the
estimate of Mr. Jameson, from the Hungtse and the neighboring lakes.
If twenty dollars a mow be taken for its value, a sum of $120,000,000
could be netted. Besides this direct profit to the Government, there
is an area of some 17,000 square miles of occasionally flooded land
which would be made flood-proof so that normally we shall have two
crops a year instead of two only in five years. That is to say, the
17,000 square miles or 10,880,000 acres will be made to produce five
times more than at present. For instance, if the value of the gross
production be estimated at fifty dollars an acre, then the total value
would be $544,000,000 Mex. and five times this sum would amount to
$2,720,000,000 Mex. What an enormous profit to the country!
c. The Kiangnan Waterway System
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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