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This state of affairs is by no means unusual in provinces watered by the Yellow River, which has an evil name for inflicting sorrows on the human race.
famines may be said to be seldom absent from its sphere of influence.
Floods and
It therefore follows that, this almost normal condition being well known, advantage will be taken of the credulous, who are willing to subscribe to any fund having the title of "Relief."
I therefore approach the subject with caution, and shall only deal with the effect of the famine on the riverine population between Kiukiang and Nanking.
Above Nanking there are no signs of any distress, nor of any refugees, either in the country or in the towns.
On the contrary, there is an abundance of cheap food, which could be bought at moderate prices if any organized system for famine relief were adopted by the authorities.
A person named Li, a son of the late Li Hung-chang is said to have made a corner of wheat in Wuhu.
The Governor of Anhui informed me that his province was very little affected, and the river not at all.
At Nanking a different state of affairs exists. Here there are certainly 15,000 refugees, who have come down the Grand Canal and other waterways, and who have been placed in refuge camps close to the gates of the city.
These poor people are almost destitute of clothing, and are very short of provisions.
There are many women and children among them, and also, it is estimated, many normally destitute people, who have traded on such situations since they were born.
The mortality is not yet great, but will become so with the advent of wet weather and a colder temperature. When these two conditions shall prevail, the weak, the aged, and the children will die in hundreds.
The great majority of the adults are willing and anxious to work, but the authorities do not move in the matter, nor make use of the abundance of cheap labour at their disposal.
The attitude of the officials towards the situation is somewhat as follows:-
There is not sufficient money available for feeding the refugees; therefore deaths
must occur.
There is no money absolutely available for creating famine relief works; and why should any official incur the risk of debt for a philanthropical object?
The ever-interfering foreigner has offered to send missionaries among the refugees, to select the cases most deserving of relief, and to relieve those cases only, the funds being insufficient for relieving all,
But if the hair of the head of one of these interfering foreigners is injured, the official will be answerable to a higher authority, and may lose his own head.
They therefore contend that the distribution of only partial relief would be an aggravation of the situation, and would be sure to produce trouble.
This may seem to be a purely obstructive policy, but it is not so in reality, for the Chinese system of government is based on the personal responsibility of each official for the affairs under his control.
Therefore, it is fair to admit the justice of the official view, seeing that Chinese Yet one more circumstance contributes to the system of government is as described. official dislike of allowing foreigners to send representatives to distribute relief among the few.
This is that the official would be deprived of his squeeze. This squeeze is his just (Chinese) due. From a Chinese point of view, it is unjust to attempt to deprive him of it.
Hence the deadlock, which must, alas, continue, unless the funds assume sufficient dimensions to meet the requirements of all the destitute, in addition to a sufficient margin for covering the squeeze, imposed on the fund by the officials when the money shall have passed through their hands,
China being such as it is, it is useless for foreigners to interfere by offering money for benevolent purposes unless the charity of the donors is so great as to reconcile them to the fact that a large percentage of their offerings has been absorbed to pay the officials of China.
BERNARD L. MAJENDIE.
(Signed)
Sir,
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Inclosure 3 in No. 1.
Lieutenant-Commander West to Vice-Admiral Sir A. Moore.
"Thistle," at Chinkiang, December 31, 1906. IN accordance with your Confidential Memorandum, I have the honour to report the following:
Chinkiang.-The great question here is that of the famine, which after going into as closely as possible, seems to be greatly exaggerated by the American missionaries, who are booming it for all they are worth in America and Shanghae. The various accounts in the Shanghae papers of the great distress are written by them, and they boast that they will get at least 50,000 gold dollars from the United States for the relief fund.
It is true that the famine this year is greater than that of most years, but the local authorities seem perfectly able to cope with it at present.
It seems to be encouraging the Chinese to exaggerate their troubles by foreigners getting up relief in the shape of subscriptions, a considerable sum of which is wasted in filtering through to the right quarters.
I have estimated that an outside total of 2,000,000 people will be in want of relief till the beginning of April.
The Customs authorities have raised a subscription and pay 300 dollars per month, which is sent out in the form of rice and flour to the women and children ouly.
The railway employs many and flour is almost daily sent up the Great Canal to Chinkiang Pu and the other famine districts. In Chinkiang at the present time, there are roughly about 10,000 refugees living near the railway and outside the city walls in reed huts. I understand that every year considerable numbers of people (perhaps an average of about 2,000 or 3,000) come south by the Grand Canal for relief in the shape of work, food, &c., only to go back in the early spring.
The American gun-boat "Quiros," is stationed at Chinkiang specially for the purpose of inquiry into the famine question, the Commanding Officer Lieutenant and Commander Bisset and myself quite agree that the state of affairs is nothing like so bad as it is made out to be.
I have been greatly assisted by Mr. G. B. Tours, His Majesty's Consul, who has shown me several letters from the missionaries situated in the famine districts who nearly all say the same thing as regards the exaggeration.
I have also discussed the state of affairs with Père Chevalier, the head of the Roman Catholic Mission, Mr. Walker, of the China Inland Mission, and Mr. Paxton, one of the American missionaries.
The river is falling rapidly and it is quite the practice for the river steamers to ground on their way to and from Hankow.
The railway to Nanking is progressing very slowly and it will be some considerable time yet before it is complete, in spite of the optimistic views of the promoters and officials connected with the scheme.
Nanking.I interviewed the Consul, Mr. W. P. Ker, with reference to calling on the new Viceroy Tuan Fang, with the result that his Excellency said that it would be convenient for him to receive the call on the next visit of the ship to Nanking, so I hope to make his acquaintance shortly.
The new Viceroy is apparently very progressive and has already instituted several new customs. He has ordered that no official business shall be done on Sunday, following that new custom in Peking, whereby Sunday is declared a day of rest.
He has a son, Mr. Toero, who has been partly educated in America, and who speaks English with an American accent.
This son, I understand, will shortly enter the Chinese navy,
There are several thousand refugees from the famine stricken districts, living in reed huts, south of the city, who are fed by the local authorities. Owing to the revolt in Kiangsi, over 2,000 rebels being in arms, the Viceroy dispatched 3,000 troops consisting of artillery, cavalry, and infantry to Wuchang.
I have, &c. (Signed) R. M. N. WEST.
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