Directory_and_Chronicle_1929 — Page 606

Directories & Chronicles 香港指南 All

544

PEPING

those of the immortal gods and the Son of Heaven. The railway line to Tientsin was opened in 1897. A further link between the two places was forged in 1922 by means of a wireless telephone system, the plant for which was installed for the Chinese Government by the China Electric Co.

Peping, though it suffered indescribably from the depredations of the Boxers, the Imperial troops, the awful ruffianism of Tung-fuh-shiang's barbarians from Kansu, to say nothing of the subsequent attentions of the Allied troops, is at present more attractive as an object of travel than before, for the simple reason that the city was cleansed by the foreign Powers, and many places of antiquarian, artistic historic interest are now accessible if the visitor sets about his object with due attention to national susceptibilities. Unfortunately, in Peping, as elsewhere in China, the monuments of the past are neglected, except perhaps those in the Forbidden City, and are fast crumbling into ruins.

During 1902 the fortification of the Legation quarter was completed, the railway termini brought to the Ch'ien Men in the Chinese city, and the reconstruction of the various Legations was begun. These were slowly brought to completion, and extensive barracks connected with each for the accommodation of the Legation Guards. As most Chinese buildings in this section were removed the Legation quarter presents the appearance of a European settlement of about half a square mile in extent. There are several large stores, which sell all kinds of foreign goods. The Peping Club is much larger and more convenient than it was before; there is a Catholic Church for the Legation Guards, and several hospitals Rockefeller Foundation (a handsome and splendidly equipped institution, the opening of which marked an epoch in the history of Peking), Dojin (Japanese, completed in 1917), Central, German, St. Michael's and the Methodist Episcopal John L. Hopkins Memorial-which are provided with accommoda- tion for both Chinese and European patients. There are many foreign banks, and numerous Chinese banks. In addition to a number of smaller hotels, there are two large splendidly-equipped hotels-the Hotel des Wagons-Lits and the Hotel de Pekin. The latter is a magnificent structure capable of accommodating 1,000 guests.

The streets of Peping are macadamized, and two electric light companies have been organized which will furnish light wherever wanted in the city. Outside the Legation quarter there are many foreign buildings, the number of which is growing yearly, changing to some extent the appearance of the business localities adjacent to the Glacis.

Since the revolution many changes, which would have been unthinkable under the Manchu régime, have taken place. In addition to opening all available gates, the authorities have constructed several new streets at considerable cost, and are giving better access to certain localities which were formerly badly served. The Imperial City Wall is now pierced in over a dozen places, and three new thoroughfares have been opened, viz., the Nan Ch'ih Tzu, the Nan Fu K'ou, and the Fu Yu Chieh, the last-mentioned providing a well-made road alongside the western wall of the Imperial City. Peping lias a population of 1,375,634 (figures of the Ministry of the Interior.)

Directory_and_Chronicle_1929 — Page 606

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