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Show jV 5 HE VAJVG- J. 1 TSE VALLEVi The actual length of the Tang-tse river la not known, bit It la ratlmated to be 3.000 miles The baala of Ita iralnage area may b taken, according V tbe boat geographical Information, u extending from tho nlnrtletti to Hie ine hundred nnd twenty-second tnerl-llan tnerl-llan of caat longitude ami comprising ibout esotHX) squarr miles, auil a population, one nt I hp moat peaceful mil luiluitniiiia on firth, eatlmated irom 170,000 000 to 180 000 000 tleo-iraphlrnlly tleo-iraphlrnlly there tan bo no tnlrtaka bout the limits uf tho Yang-tao baaln II la the flneat nnd moat valuable of lha Chlnrie empire It la the central llvltlon of thn tmplro separating the mppoacd Itusalan, 'aphcro of lnnu nee" In Manrharla nnd the north of China and the (lermaii "sphere nt In- t luence" In tho pnirlnce of Shan-Tung Irom the Fruich aphere In a-uth China Tbla quiet appropriation of the choice blta of the rarcaa. astum- r Ing China to bj dead nnd In process of Mng carved up by tho Ilrltlah lion, aiuat not only have been pleaaant reading to the Chlneae itatetmcn, but ilao to the representatives of tho other towers nnmtd It wat at If tho llrlt-th llrlt-th lion, never noted for modesty In uch mnttei-H. had anld: "Hen, I take the breaat and choice parta of thla 1 fowl; the able piece, the wings and T legs I lenvo In you, tho llusslan bear, lie Oertnan wolf, and the French , fox" No wonder that tho preacnt extension ex-tension of the lion's plan In thr. dlrec-1 tlon of Shanghai If to preempt Ita claim, haa elicited a significant premonitory pre-monitory growl from all the other beasta of prey In this region, with Ita wealth of natural resources, there are to be found vast works of engineering skill for purpoKcs of Irrigation magnificent roads and bridges, consti lifted before the Christian era The organization of the teemlnR native population, so clal and mercantile, la described as a marvel, with Its system of trade, trade guilds, trade unions, rharltlea, banking bank-ing and postal systems and powerful trade combinations whose history datea back to a period when Europe was steeped In the barbarism of the Dark Ages It Is thla region that haa melted tho cupidity of tho eastern nations. An Hngllsh writer, a womsn, ndmlnlsters this caution "In much talk," ahe says, "about 'open doors' and 'spheres of Influence and 'Interest,' In much greed for ourselves, our-selves, not alwn)s dexterously clothed and ruuch Jealousy and suspicion of our neighbors, and In much Intercut In tho undignified scramble for concessions conces-sions In which we have been taking our share nt l'ekln there la risk of our coming to think only of markets, ter- . rltory and railroads and of our Ignore Ing the men who for 2.000 years have been making China worth scramblln ; for It mar " that wo H forward I with a light heirt, along with other nurnpeau empires not hesitating fof tht sake of lommcrilal advantages. i to break up, In the case of a fourth of the human rare tho most ancient ot i earth's misting clvlllxitlon without giving an equivalent In estimating tho position iMCiipled by-the InhabF tanta of the Yang tse valley, as of the rest ot China It la essential for us To see quite clearly that our western Ideaa rind Ihemiclvea confronted, not with barbarism or with debased theories theo-ries of morals but with an elaborate and antlquo civilization which yet Is not decayed, and which though Imperfect, Im-perfect, haa many rlalms to our respect re-spect and even admiration They meet with n perfectly organised loclal order, a system of government theqv retlrally admirably stilled to tho couri-try couri-try combining the extremes of centralization cen-tralization and decentralization, and under which. In spite, of Ita tremendous Infamies of practice, the governed en-Joy en-Joy a largo measure of peace and prosperity, a noteworthy amount of Individual liberty and security for tta gains of labor, nnd under which It U possible for a pensant'a son to rlao to a high position aa In tho American republic re-public " I - . advanci: auAiw of chinks: iiioxrio army on ni7rni:AT fkom pkkin |