Directory_and_Chronicle_1920 — Page 1009

Directories & Chronicles 香港指南 All

TENGYUEH (MOMEIN)

越騰 Teng-yueh

The trade mart Tengyueh-situated near the south-western frontier of Yuunan, in lat. 24 deg. 45 min. N., and long. 98 deg. 30 min. E. was opened to foreign trade under the Burmah Agreement of 1897 modifying the Convention of 1894 relative to Burmalı and Thibet, and the Chinese Customs-house was opened on the 8th May, 1920. It is a walled town built in a rice valley and watered by the Tieh Shui river, a small tributary of the Tai Ping which flows into the Irrawaddy a few miles above Bhamo which has been the principal emporium of Chinese trade in Upper Burmah for many years past. The distance from Tengyueh to Bhamo by road is some 140 miles, and little more than half that distance as the crow flies. There are two recognised trade routes known as the "old" and "new" roads--the former via Nampoung and Man- wyne (where Margary was murdered), and the latter via Kulikha and Man-hsien. The "new" road ends some three miles above Man-hsien, and thence the journey to Tengyueh is made over the "old" tracks. Pack animals and porters constitute the only form of transport, and the time occupied on the trip is usually about eight days. Pack animals seldom travel during the rains (June to September) when through traffic is practically 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 to the inferior communications. From Tengyueh to Yunnanfu the road is divided into 24 stages for caravans and nine for 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, the Salween 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 poor. The average yearly rainfall is about 65 inches, most of which falls from June to September, when the incessant dampness is somewhat trying.

The net value of the trade during 1918, as taken cognizance of by the Maritime Customs, was Hk. Tls. 3,952,883 as compared with Hk. Tls. 2,996,910 in 1917, Hk. Tls. 2,340,046 in ' 1916, Hk. Tls. 2,939,434 in 1915, Hk. Tls. 2,572,500 in 1914, and Hk. Tls. 3,132,075 in 1913. The principal local industry is the manufacture of jadestone ornaments.

Directory_and_Chronicle_1920 — Page 1009

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