Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China/Hankow
OTHER TREATY PORTS AND FOREIGN SETTLEMENTS.
HANKOW.
ANKOW, which is 602 nautical miles distant from Shanghai, is situated in the province of Hupeh, within the angle formed by the junction of the river Han and the Yangtsze-Kiang. The native city spreads itself along both rivers, and the foreign settlements occupy the bank of the Yangtse below it. On the right bank of the river Han is the city of Hanyang, and, nearly opposite, on the right bank of the Yangtsze, the Prefectural city of Wuchang, the capital of the province and the seat of the Government under the Hukuang Viceroy (at present Chen Kuei Lung). The population of the three cities is estimated at about half a million. Hankow flourished for many centuries until it was devastated in the Taeping rebellion. For some time after that it was merely regarded as a suburb of Hanyang, but it has now quite outstripped the older city in wealth and importance. In his work on "The Yangtsze," Captain Blakiston gives the following excellent description of a bird's eye view of the place and its surroundings. "Hankow," he says, "is situated just where an irregular range of semi-detached low hills crosses a particularly level country on both sides of the main river in an east and west direction. Stationed on Pagoda Hill, Hanyang, a spectator looks down on almost as much water as land, even when the rivers are low. At his feet sweeps the magnificent Yangtsze, nearly a mile in width; from the west, and skirting the northern edge of the range of hills already mentioned, comes the river Han, narrow and canal-like, to add its quota, and serving as one of the highways of the country; and to the north-west and north is an extensive treeless flat, so little elevated above the river that the scattered hamlets which dot its surface are, without exception, raised on mounds—probably artificial works of a now distant age. A stream or two traverse its farther part, and flow into the main river. Carrying the eye to the right bank of the Yangtsze, one sees enormous lakes and lagoons both to the north-west and south-east sides of the hills beyond the provincial city."
The climate of Hankow, it must be admitted, is far from perfect. During four or five months it is extremely hot, the thermometer in summer-time occasionally registering as high as 105° Fahrenheit. Especially in July and August is the atmosphere close and oppressive. The months of October, November, and the early part of December are usually very pleasant, but the days of sunshine may be interrupted by cloudy weather, with cold piercing winds at nightfall. In the early months of the year the thermometer averages about 44° Fahrenheit, but sometimes falls much lower. The cold is very penetrating then by reason of the dampness in the air. Snow falls occasionally, but it generally melts away during the day. Everything possible is being done to safeguard the health of the community, and the sanitary conditions are improving year by year. The large dyke built two years ago to prevent the annual flooding of the plain immediately behind the city, and the gradual filling in of low-lying ground to remove stagnant water have helped to reduce the plague of mosquitoes and sickness. Upwards of 50,000 tons of mud have been brought by trolley into the British Concession to fill in vacant plots at a cost of $11,823. and a far greater amount, for which figures are not available, has been brought by another trolley line and by thousands of coolies, who take the mud from the river bank at low water. In the Russian Concession the ground has been raised some six feet by the deposition of some 108,000 tons of mud, and the work in both concessions is still proceeding. The French and German Concession have likewise been raised and bunded, and the Japanese Concession is being treated similarly.
Before the opening of the port to foreign trade, Hankow had a troubled history. The three cities—Hankow, Hanyang, and Wuchang—were taken and re-taken no fewer than six times during the Taeping rebellion, and when evacuated by the insurgents in 1855 they were to a large extent laid waste. Hankow's record as a foreign settlement dates from 186l. It was included among the Treaty ports in accordance with the terms of Article X of the Treaty of Tientsin of 1858, between China and Great Britain, and in 1861 Mr. (afterwards Sir) Harry Parkes commenced negotiations with the Viceroy of Wuchang for a British Concession. The ground asked for was about seventy-five acres in extent, adjoining the native city, and having a river frontage of about half a mile. It was especially stipulated that foreigners should not be confined to "factory sites" as they were in the early days in Canton. But it was not until the persuasive influence of the Navy had been employed that a lease of the area required was granted to the British Government, in perpetuity, conditional on an annual payment of $138·05. Until 1895 this remained the only foreign concession in Hankow. According to the original agreement the land could be let only to British subjects, but this was altered in 1864 so that land might be leased by subjects of any power having Treaty relations with China. Of the 74 lots of the original concession, 52 are held by British subjects, 11¼ by Russians, 3 by an American, 2 by an Italian, and 2 by a Spanish Mission, 2 by the Hankow Club, 2¾ by Japanese, and 1 by a German. In 1898 the Concession was extended by a grant of a further area of 74 acres, and of this 45 per cent. is held by Britons and their Municipality. 27 per cent. by the Italian Mission, 10½ per cent. by Germans. 11 per cent. by French, and 5½ per cent. by Russians.
In the German Concession.
In the French Concession.In the British Concession.
Russia was the next foreign Power to obtain a concession. This adjoins the British, and has an area of 247,000 square yards, with a river frontage of 722 yards. Then the French secured a grant of 137,000 square yards of land, with a river frontage of a quarter of a mile. The German Concession was obtained in 1895 by a German company called the Deutsche Neiderlassungs-Gesellschaft. It has a frontage of three quarters of a mile and an area of 506,000 square yards. It was developed by a syndicate at great cost, and, in 1905, was taken over by a company of German landowners and placed under the administration of a municipality. Further along the river and adjoining the German concession the Japanese were granted an area of 147,000 square yards a few years ago. This they have commenced to develop on lines similar to those followed by the other nationalities. A bund some four hundred yards in length and a number of streets are being laid out, and the area generally is the scene of much building activity. Beyond the Japanese Concession a Chinese syndicate holds a parcel of land on which it is proposed to erect a model Chinese settlement. Some work has been done in this direction. The British Concession, being the oldest, was for a long period the centre of foreign trade, and many of the largest and oldest firms have their premises here. Of late years the other concessions have made great progress, and now also contain a number of fine buildings. The British wharfage dues, however, exceed those of the Russian and German Concessions combined, and in trade the British are still predominant.
The visitor who is familiar with other foreign settlements in China cannot fail to be impressed with Hankow. When the Japanese have completed the work upon which they are engaged, the Settlement will possess a main street, four to live miles long, which will form an extremely pleasant riverside promenade. Lined with well-grown trees, it has a pleasing appearance from the water, and in the summer season it presents a very animated spectacle. Some of the houses along the water-front would be a credit to any city. Owing to the ample accommodation afforded by the Bund the town has no great depth. The first three streets running parallel to the river bank are broad and well laid out, and contain most of the important hongs, the rear portions of the various concessions being occupied mostly by Chinese, Japanese, and smaller firms. Another feature of the Settlement which cannot fail to be observed is its air of commercial and industrial activity. Numerous hulks used for storing and shipping the cargo brought by the various steamship lines trading with Hankow are ranged along the Bund wall: tall chimneys and large factories rise above the town in almost every direction; and thousands of coolies carrying goods may be seen in constant procession between the Bund and the godowns. The town possesses many large mills: there are several Government factories on the Wuchang side of the river; and extensive iron and steel works have been established at Hanyang.
The native city presents no distinctive features, being much like other native cities—a maze of narrow streets flanked by more or less dilapidated-looking houses. Its wealth and prosperity, however, cannot be denied, and the leavening spirit of progress is seen in the recent installation of a plant for supplying some 500,000 gallons of water daily, and in the erection of the necessary machinery for lighting the streets with electricity. The total population of Hankow approaches a quarter of a million.
Hankow has been described as the "Chicago of the East," but that, of course, is a form of poetic licence. Hankow, however, is an extremely important place, from a commercial and industrial point of view, and it will be interesting to examine in more detail the causes that have led to its rapid development, and the scope and extent of its present-day activities. The Peking- Hankow Railway, connecting the interior of China with Europe, has done a great deal towards fostering the multitudinous business interests, and further benefit is expected when railway communication is established with Canton and Hongkong (Kowloon). No work in connection with this project has yet been commenced in the province, but a British engineer, Mr. R. St. George Moore, M.I.C.E., has been engaged, and a start will soon Ix: made. Another ten years should see the line completed. Hankow, it must be remembered, is distant only twenty-nine hours by rail from the capital of the Empire. The passenger from Hankow may arrive in Europe by the Trans-Siberian Railway in twenty days, and already the European mail comes by this route. But it is to its unrivalled water communications that the port chiefly owes its prosperity. In addition to the fine river, on the banks of which it stands, there are canals and large streams bringing it in touch with almost all parts of China. Indeed, in the high-water season, boats may go as far as the borders of the Kwangfung Province, and an additional impetus must be given to trade when the problem of the navigation of the Yangtsze Rapids has been solved and direct communication established with Szechwan, which is said to be the richest province in China. With this end in view there is more than one company in the field at the present time.
The port is well served with river steamers going to all parts of the Yangtsze, both above and below Hankow. The fleet numbers not less than 46, of which at the moment 18 are British, 13 Japanese, 8 Chinese, 5 German, and 3 French. There is also a large fleet
HANKOW BUND IN WINTER.
of smaller vessels and launches. Some 25,000 native junks, carrying probably a million tons of cargo, are said to clear from Hankow annually. From April to November, when the river is at its highest point, large steamers can reach the port. At times Peninsular and Oriental and other ocean-going vessels come direct with cargo, while the battleship Glory, and one of the largest cruisers at present on the China station, have navigated the river between Shanghai and Hankow.
The port has been open to foreign trade for nearly half a century, but a greater advance has been made during the last ten years than throughout the whole of the previous time. Notwithstanding the fact that tea, formerly the staple product, has fallen from its high estate, the trade in this particular commodity is still large. Certainly a fleet of steamers, direct from London and Odessa, is not now to be seen anchored off the Bund as in days gone by, but, nevertheless, there are many large shipments of tea during the season, and the four large tea factories in the neighbourhood do a thriving business. Especially was this the case last year, when, owing principally to the higher prices of Indian and Ceylon teas, there was an increased demand for teas from Hankow. At the present time there is a great call for brick tea, which is made from tea dust, and is exported to Mongolia, North China, and Russia. The factories are working to their utmost capacity, but the supply seems to be insufficient. Of the brick-tea factories, two are situated in the Russian Concession and two in the British Concession. They are equipped with modern machines and employ thousands of Chinese, and the importance of the business may be gathered from the fact that some 26,000,000 taels' worth of brick and tablet tea have passed through the Customs during the last ten years. The tea trade as a whole is mainly in the hands of Russian merchants.
Next to tea, probably the most important trade is done in hides, which are dried and packed for Europe and America. Wood oil, sesamum seeds, and the oil made from them, are other important articles of export, and a considerable business is also done in tobacco, musk, feathers, albumen, antimony, bean-cake, beans, cotton, fungus, horns, iron, lead, rape-seed, animal tallow, and Chinese products of all descriptions. The net value of the trade of the port for 1907 was, in round figures, £18,700,000. Of this sum, imports represented nearly nine millions sterling, and exports upwards of £9,800,000.
THE YANGTSZE RIVER AT CHINKIANG.
The river banks in the vicinity of the town are the scene of much industrial activity, and both on the Hankow and Wuchang sides there are a number of factories which, together with the tank installations of the various oil companies and the railway company, give the district a very prosperous appearance. The several albumen factories, to which indirect reference has already been made, are doing fairly well in spite of Chinese competition at Chinkiang. The process in these factories is to separate the white from the yolk of the egg and by steam-heat to reduce it to a thin gelatine sheet for industrial purposes. The yolk, also, is made up for use in dressing leather and for mixing with certain kinds of varnish, &c. The principal industrial enterprise in the vicinity, however, is the Hanyang Iron and Steel Works, situated on the Han River, and owned and operated by a Chinese company, headed by Sheng Kungpao. They were established by Viceroy Chang Chih-Tung. whose idea it was that China should make her own railway materials from Chinese ore on Chinese territory. For some time the undertakings proved anytTiing but a success, and were eventually leased by His Excellency Sheng. He failed to make them pay, but two years ago the re- construction of the works was commenced, and modern machinery installed, with the result that they will soon be capable of turning out all kinds of iron and steel- work for railways, ships, and other purposes. During 1907 the blast furnaces produced some 37,000 tons of pig-iron, a large portion of which was exported to Japan, while some went to the United States. A new furnace has just been completed which will add to the output by some 250 tons a day, and for the present year the output of the furnaces is estimated at 160,000 tons of pig-iron. The aim of the management is to produce a class of work capable of passing all recognised standards. The coal and coke required come from the Ping-hsiang mines, and the iron ore from mountains some 30 miles down the Yangtsze. Connected with this enterprise is a Government steam brick factory capable of turning out 60,000 bricks a day. The adjacent arsenal is another undertaking owned by the Government. It situated in the German Concession, This will have a daily output of several million cigarettes. Several oil-press and bean-cake factories, Chinese and Japanese, are at work inside and outside the Concessions. In the vicinity of Hankow there are four Hour mills. One of these is carried on by a European, and makes flour from wheat imported from home ; the others are in the hands of Chinese. Opposite to the British Concession are Messrs. Carlowitz's large ore-
retining works, at which antimony, lead, and
zinc ore are crushed ; and on the Wuchang
side there are Government glass mills, and
cotton and hemp mills. The cotton and
hemp mills, together with a silk filature,
THE RUSSIAN SETTLEMENT AT HANKOW.
GKOri' OF RKSIDKN'I'S AI' THK Oi'KMNC. Ckrkmoxv.
KUSSI.AX MUMCIP.^L Cot'N'CIL OKFICKS.
SOMK OF THK RUSSI.AX COM>U'NnY.
consists of a small-arms factory, under foreign nianagement, and powder, chemical, and ammunition factories. The arsenal, however, at the present time is in a moribund con- dition owing to want of funds, and half the machinery is idle. Rifles in small numbers, cartridges, and some quick-firing ammunition form the principal output at the moment, but it is said that equipment is to be provided shortly for the manufacture of heavy ordnance. In the Japanese Concession there is a Chinese- owned match factory capable of turning out half a million boxes of matches a day, while another notable industrial enterprise which has just been placed in working order is that of the British-American Tobacco Company, were leased by the Viceroy in 1902 to a company of Chinese capitalists for Tls. 100,000 a year for twenty years, and, apart from the hemp mill, the concern is doing a flourishing business. Satisfactory progress, also, is being made by the Hupeh Cotton Mills established by the Government. A tannery on an exten- sive scale, and under European supervision, has recently been started, and there are several brick and tile factories, as well as numerous minor industries. The financial position of Hankow is, to say the least, remarkable. The ci;y is in a large measure the financial centre of the interior of Northern Cliina, and in the foreign settle- ment are to be found large branches of six Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/704 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/705 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/706 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/707 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/708 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/709 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/710 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/711 704 TWENTIETH CENTURY IMPRESSIONS OF HONGKONG, SHANGHAI, ETC. and other entcrtaiiimeiils. The hotel is con- nected with the telephone, and for a telegraphic address has adopted the word "Astor." In short, the arrangements for the convenience of the guests are as complete as possible. Mr. Briol, has spent tifteeii years in the East, and was formerly manager of the Hotel des Colonies at Shanghai. The Terminus Hotel, however, has become inadequate lo the needs of the Settlement, and Mr. Saint Hoi has the end of 1909. It should be nienlioned that extensive cellars have been laid down in connection with the Terminus Hotel, wines being imported direct from Kiirope. • DEUTSCH-ASIATISCHE BANK PREMISES. INDUSTRIAL. TH£ HANYANG IBON AND STEEL WORKS. The first sod of the Hanyang Iron and Steel Works was cut in the sixteenth year of His Majesty Kwangsu, corresponding to the Christian era of 1890. The first lot of machinery and furnaces, ordered from Eng- land by Viceroy Chang-Chih-tung, of Hupeh (now Grand Secretary), was to have been erected in Canton, for the Viceroy was then presiding over the Liang Kwang Provinces, but, upon being transferred to Wuchang, he directed the shipment of machinery to be sent to Hupeh and, as the magnetic ore of Tayeh is among the richest in the world, containing 60 to 65 per cent, of metallic iron, he was certainly right in selecting this province. Unfortunately, no suitable coal for making coke could be found in the whole of Hupeh, and this fact was respon- sible for the difliculties encountered in the first stages. As to the site, the late Viceroy has often been blamed for choosing Han- yang, instead of Tayeh where the ore is, but he had good reasons for making his selection. It must be remembered that it is still an unsettled problem even in Europe and America at the present day as to which is the more suitable location for ironworks — the market where there are all the facilities and advantages that a market offers, or the home of the raw material, where there is everything at hand and cheap. Hotel representatives with carriages meet the passenger trains and incoming steamers, and, as often as required, parties are organised with competent guides engaged to visit the places of interest in the vicinity. In the season enjoyable trips can be made to the upper reaches of the Yangtsze. and sportsmen coming to Hankow will find an abundance of game, both large and small, as well as good hunting. The arrangements for participation in all these forms of amusement may be made at the Astor House, and the advice of the proprietor, Mr. Schroeder, may safely be relied upon, for it is based on long experience and sound knowledge of local circumstances. WA60KS UTS HOTEL TERMINUS. Though only established in 1901 the Wagons Lils Terminus Hotel has gained much popu- larity with tlie travelling public as well as with the residents of Hankow. It occupies a fine site in the French Concession, close to the Kund, with frontages to the Hues Dau- tremcr des Missions and Saigon ; and it lies within easy distance of the Peking-Hankow Railway Terminus and of the steamer landing places. Both trains and steamers are met by representatives from the hotel wiih carriages and luggage coolies. There are thirty-two bednxjms. besides public and private dining rooms, drawing, sitting, and reception rooms. The proprietor, Mr. Saint Pol, has had a long experience in the management of hotels in Europe and in the East. A member of the French Cook S<Kiety of Paris and of the London Cook Society, he has an expert knowledge of cuisine which ensures that his patrons are well catered for. The manager. THE ASTOR HOUSE HOTEL. A. SciUioKDKK (Man;ijit-i). therefore made arrangements lo replace it by a modern three-storeyed building, with eighty living rooms, bathrooms and all the usual appointments on a superb scale. The plans have been prepared, and it is expected that the new building will be in readiness towards After the arrival of the plant at Hanyang it took fully three years to instal it, and in the course of installation many additions were made to it, these being obtained chiefly from Belgium. When the works were ready for occupation, the dilficulty of getting Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/713 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/714 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/715 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/716 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/717 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/718 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/719 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/720 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/721 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/722 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/723 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/724 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/725 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/726 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/727 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/728 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/729 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/730 Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/731