Directory_and_Chronicle_1927 — Page 871

NANKING

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1915, Pukow, the southern terminus of the Tientsin-Pukow Railway (lying across the river from Nanking), was opened to foreign trade as a branch office of the Nanking Customs.

Nanking is situated on the south bank of the Yangtsze, 45 miles beyond Chinkiang and 193 by rail or 215 by water from Shanghai. From the river little can be seen of it except the long line of lofty grey brick walls which encircle it. The walls have an elevation varying from 40 to 90 feet, are from 20 to 40 feet in thickness, and 22 miles in circumference. They enclose a vast area, a large portion of which is wilderness or uncultivated land. The busiest portion lies towards the south and west, and is several miles from the banks of the river. Whatever of architectural beauty or importance belonged to Nanking perished or was reduced to a ruinous condition at or before its Occupation by the Taiping rebels. The world-famous Porcelain Tower, the most beautiful pagoda in China, was completely destroyed during this period of its history, and now nothing remains of the structure that was once the glory of Nanking. It stood outside the walls on the south side of the city. The celebrated mausoleum of the Emperor Hung Wu, founder of the Ming dynasty (who died in 1398), with other tombs and monuments, known as the Ming Tombs, are just outside the eastern walls. There are many other interesting ruins in or near the city, including the remains of Hung Wu's Palace. Nanking was first brought into notice among Europeans in 1842, in which year the first British Treaty with China was signed here. During the Taiping rebellion no place suffered more. It was first taken by assault by the Taipings on the 19th March, 1853, and after sustaining a prolonged siege was recaptured by the Imperial forces on the 19th July, 1864, a fatal blow to the rebels.

Although Nanking has recovered to a small extent from the prostration which attended its ill-treatment during the Taiping rebellion, it has never yet attianed any commercial importance, but both coal and iron mines are known to exist in the neighbourhood and must eventually be worked, in which case Nanking will probably become a great manufacturing centre. "A new and brilliant era," a Commissioner of the Chinese Maritime Customs has written, "should dawn upon the port of Nanking, on -account of its excellent position as a terminus for the railways which will bring down the immense mineral and other wealth of the provinces of Anhwei, Honan, and Shansi. The distance from either Honan or Shansi is about the same to Nanking as to Hankow, and the engineering difficulties of a railway down to the river opposite Nanking are no greater than those of a line to Hankow. The great advantage, then, which should secure to Nanking its position as the outlet for these rich provinces is the fact of its being so much nearer the sea than Hankow and accessible to the deepest- draught ocean vessels at all seasons of the year. It is, therefore, only natural that a line should have been projected from the mineral fields of Shansi to the village of Pukow, on the other side of the river to Nanking. Work has commenced on a third line to run from Nanking to Changsha, to be known as the Ning-hsiang Railway, connect- ing up with the Shanghai-Nanking Railway at the Nanking end and with the Canton- Hankow Railway at the other end. Yet another line, from the mineral district of Hsin-yang in Honan, through Anhwei, with its terminus at Pukow; is also in contempla- tion. These three lines should revolutionise the commercial conditions at Nanking. The line from Shanghai to Nanking does not seem to have given the impetus to commercial life anticipated. Trains are running daily from Shanghai to Nanking, and a short line has been completed connecting Hsiakwan, the port of Nanking, with the southern part of the city, a distance of six to eight miles. Work was commenced on the southern section of the Tientsin-Pukow line in January, 1909. The total length of the southern section of this line is 236 miles, which was completed in 1912.

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The Naval College, a large pile of buildings, was opened in 1890. It was closed during the Revolution, but has since been re-opened. The Nanking University was founded in 1888 by the Central China Mission of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is now an imposing and well-appointed school, with a large roll of scholars. In December, 1923, a large quadrangle of the National South-Eastern University was destroyed by fire, the damage being estimated at $300,000. The library, containing 3,000 English and 30,000 Chinese books, was almost a total loss. The Arsenal and Powder Mills, for many years in the charge of foreigners, are now entrusted to native direction. They are situated just outside the South Gate. A macadamized road has been built from the steamer landing clear through the city to the Tung-Tsi Gate in the south wall, a dis- tance of eight miles, and many similar roads in other parts of the city have been added during the last few years, so that it is now possible to go "almost anywhere" in carri- ages. The carriages and jinrickshas which have been introduced are much appreciated by the people.