TENGYUEH–SZEMAO
1009
at a standstill, which means that, contrary to expectations, the construction of the "new" road, which is passable all the year round, has not resulted in any increase of summer trade, the cessation of business during this period being due more to un- favourable climatic conditions than the inferior communications. From Tengyueh to Yunnanfu the road is divided into 24 stages for caravans and 12 for Imperial postal couriers. It crosses a succession of mountain ranges varying from 4,000 to 10,000 feet in height, besides being intersected by numerous rivers, including the Sweili and the Mekong, which would appear to render any railway project too speculative and too costly to be commercially practicable. Referring to the question of railway construc- tion the Commissioner of Customs in the course of an interesting report for 1906 remarks:-"Should the visionary project of connecting Yunnan and Burma with a trunk railway be ever seriously considered, an initial difficulty will be the selection of a suitable route. Two have been suggested-the so-called Bhamo route via Tengyueh ; and the valley of the Salween route via Kunlun Ferry. Opinions are divided as to which is the better, but the latter perhaps allows of easier gradients and is, for various reasons, the more preferable. Both, however, are difficult, and it must be admitted that neither is really suitable for railway construction. Considering the almost insur- mountable physical difficulties presented and the colossal expenditure which would be involved, the practicability, viewed commercially, of such a scheme may well be questioned."
Owing to its elevation (5,400 feet) the climate of Tengyueh is temperate and health- ier than any of the valleys in the vicinity, which are rendered excessively unhealthy by malignant forms of malarial fever. Malaria is, however, very prevalent in the town itself during the rains when mosquitoes are plentiful, and when the general health of the place is bad. The average yearly rainfall is about 65 inches, most of which falls from June to September, when the incessant dampness is trying to the most robust. The value of the trade during 1909 as taken cognizance of by the Imperial Maritime Customs, was Hk. Tls. 1,563,361 as compared with Tls. 1,765,868 for 19 8 and TIs. 1,732,212 for 1907. The principal local industry is the manufacture of jadestone ornaments.
SZEMA O
茅恩 Sz-miu
Szemão, opened to the Tonkin frontier trade by the Gérard Convention of 1895 and to Britishi trade by the Burmah Convention of 1896, is situated in the south- western part of the Province of Yunnan in latitude 22 deg. 47 min. 29 sec. N. and longi- tude 100 deg. 46 min. E. It is a sub-prefectural walled town built on a gently rising ground overlooking a well-cultivated plain. The elevation is 4,700 feet above the sea level, and the population is estimated to be about 15,000. The climate is delightful, the temperature rarely exceeding 80 degrees (Fahr.) during the summer and seldomi falling below 50 degrees in the winter months. The plague, such a common visitor throughout Yunnan, is almost unknown in Szemao. The place is distant from both Yunnan-fu (the capital of the province) and Mengtsz 18 days, and from the French Loas frontier 6 days, and from British territory about 12 days. It was opened in the early part of 1897, and so far has not fulfilled the expectation of its potential importance as a trading centre. The value of the trade of Szemao in 1909 was Tls. 205,767 as against Tls, 181,787 in 1908 and Tls, 265, 467 in 1907. The smallness of the trade statisties has been attributed partly to the fact that, owing to the various routes in the neighbourhood of the port, effective supervision is difficult of attainment. No foreign traders reside at Szemao, the trade being entirely in the hands of local merchants, who have no agencies in either Tonkin or Burmah. The principal article imported is raw cotton, which comes from the British Shan States, particularly from Keng Tung and also from the Haut-Laos, A telegraph line from Túng Hai, rửa Yuan Chiang and Pu Erh-fu, connects Szemao with the existing Chinese overland telegraphs. Considerable ethnological interest centres in the neighbourhood of Szemao. Writing on this subject in the course of his Trade Report for 1905 the Commissioner of Customs remarked: "It is of much interest to notice the various aboriginal races in this part of Yunnan, living side by side with,