Directory_and_Chronicle_1936 — Page 878

Directories & Chronicles 香港指南 All

A484

WUCHOW

of great inconvenience to the inhabitants and at times bring about a total cessation of business. To obriate this, the principal steamship offices, the Custom House and Tax Office are located on pais (houses built on pontoons), moored alongside the river bank In July, 1924, Wuchow was visited by a very high flood-73 feet 9 inches-which is the second highest on record. The highest record-79 feet 6 inches-occurred in 1915. In winter the only local industry worthy of mention is boat building; when the river falls the foreshore is lined with matsheds, where native craft of all descriptions are constructed. The situation of Wuchow makes it the natural distributing centre for the trade between Kweichow, Eastern Yunnan, Kwangsi, and Hongkong and Canton. The future is full of promise, and Wuchow is sure to make a bold bid for second place as the largest trade market in the south of China. Local merchants are making strenuous efforts to divert to Wuchow, via the Liuchow and West Rivers, the trade of south-eastern Kweichow, which is principally supplied via the Yangtsze. Attempts are being made to work the manganese, antimony, copper, and tin mines which abound in the Kwangsi Province.

Conditions in the province were entirely peaceful throughout the year, chiefly owing to the existence of a well-organised militia. The Kwangsi Pro- vincial Government were able to extend their system of modern highways' considerably. The whole province can now traversed from the vicinity of Wuchow by motor car north-westwards into Kweichow, the capital of which province (Kweiyang) can be reached in some 24 hours as against the many weeks which such a journey would have occupied in the days before motor highways came into existence. Owing to barrier formed by the West River, the road system terminates at Yunghu-about 14 kilometres above Wuchow- instead of at Wuchow itself; but a launch service conneets these two places and, from the former town, almost any important city in the province can now be reached by car. Communications in the province have been further improved by the inauguration during the year of a regular aeroplane service for mails and passengers between Canton, Wuchow, Nanning and Lungchow which operates three times weekly (subject to weather conditions) and accom- plishes the entire journey either way in one day.

TRADE IN 1934

An important feature of the year 1934 was the further decrease in direct foreign imports counterbalanced by an increase in direct exports, resulting in a preponderance of nearly 50 per cent. in favour of the outward trade. Statistics are as follows: direct foreign imports, 5.2 million dollars as against 6.8 million in the preceding year (a 24 per cent. decrease); and direct exports to foreign countries, 10 million dollars against 8.6 million (a 16 per cent. increase). Provincial taxation contributed largely to the decrease in imports. The increase in the total value of exports was attributable to in- creased shipments of such as staple products as wood oil, tea oil, paper, tin and poultry.

Directory_and_Chronicle_1936 — Page 878

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