The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, February 21, 1904, Page 17

Pages»l7to 20 e e f THE | Pagesl7to_20. SAN FRANCISCO, SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 1904. MANCHURIA, PRIZE OF THE EAST, IS ONE OF THE RICHEST FB}itish_ States Could Islands and Many American Be Quartered - - Within Its Area. ONDON, Feb. 20.—At the out- k of the struggle between Japan Russia little was known by Amer- Still less is known 2 the cause cut the country over which the war ng waged. The quarrel in the as been ®f such long duration i so much had been written of the re between nations the partitic ng of China that on this continertt had come ard the whole subject with in- e. But now the war is on. rill it end is the greatest in- jonal problem that has appeared for a century. Russia and Japan are striving, the former to occupy and the latter to pre- the occupation of that portion of eastern China, lying south of the ur River and over which a diplo- atic duel has long been in progress. For years past Americans have read of the Russian invasion of Manchuria. They have perused columns of opin- ons on the convention of 1896, when Russia and Japan signed articles recog- nizing the sovereignty and independ- ence of Korea. The question has often been asked: “Why does Russia want Manchuria? Why does Japan oppose the scheme?” Manchuria is an empire in itself. It is more favorably situated as to cli- mate than any other part of China. It s bounded on the north by the rich lands of Siberia, on the south by Ko- rea and the gulfs and bays of the Yel- low on the east partly by the grain fields of Siberia, and on the west by Mongolia. Here only is Manchu- ria touched by an arm of the Mongo- n desert. Reference to the accom- panying map will show the vastness of the Manchurian domain. Almost 400,000 square miles of the earth’s surface are contained within the borders of the province. The fol- Jowing table of areas as illustrated in the map is interesting: ened rup people Square Miles. 55,186 Frgland and Wales Hempshire. .. It is in its physical | features that anchuria is rich, for it can safely be d that within the 400,000 square s a population of only 15.000,000 of :nenterprising people exist, to whom mining or exploring is either forbidden by the Government or who are too lazy to go beyond their own back yard. Manchuria is divided into two fer- regions. The valleys and plains of the north drzin through the Amur the sea of Ohkotsk, the others southward to the Yellow Sea. Here we find the greatest variety of climate and conditions of soil. The northern part is similar to Siberia, while South- ern Manchuria in climate, vegetation and inhabitants bears resemblance to China nic crests of extinct volcanoes in Northern Manchuria along the range of the Khingan Mountains stand out boldly against the deeply wooded gorges of the affluents of the River Nonni and here at its base are rich tile sulphur beds, which the Government does not allow to be worked. North of Upper Nonni Valley the Great Khingan is connected by a high- land region and’at its highest point a Chinese temple invites travelers of all nations to come and worship at its shrine. H the Manchu poet sang of the Shan-Alin, the sacred home of his forefathers. The two chief Manchurian rivers flow in opposite directions, the Sungari.be- ing the main stream of the common basin which forms the Amur. During the floods this river becomes an inland sea with islands, the resort of count- lese flocks of wild swan, geese and ducks. The Shara-Muren, or Yellow River, which on the Mongolian plateau ts a part of the khiauho and which flows into the Gulf of Liaotung, finds the sea where stands the important city of Newchwang. The Liauho was at all times an important waterway, the river flowing close to the city of Mukden. The surface of Manchuria is extreme- ly varied, with its sandy wastes, its grassy steppes, rich arable lands and dense forest tracts. In a region stretching east of the Great Khingan the monsoons from the Pacific are ar- rested by the lofty Shanalin highlands, which receive most ¢ “the moisture. This necessarily makes arid the re- gion beyond. But proceeding eastward the soil, benefited by the cloud-bearing sea breezes, Is rich in vegetation, and the forests and streams are the home of wild beasts and fowl. Most of the North Manchurian mountains are green to the peaks, while the valleys abound in impene- trable forests of oak, elm and willow. In South Manchuria nearly all the arable lands have been re- claimed and vegetation is less dense. South of Mukden the seaward route traverses a thickly populated district. Although icebound for four or five months of the year the trade has rapidly increased. Cotton, raw silk, hemp, pea oil and coal are exported from this point. The whole of South Manchuria abounds in coal and the mines in the hills southeast of Mukden supply the towns and metal works of the surrounding districts. The coal is also used by the steamers plying in the Yellow Sea, and is said to be superior to that of Japan and equal to the best Cardiff. Altogether one would call the country of Manchuria » exceedingly fertile. Agricultire is the chief occu- pation of the people. The products are beans and geas. More attention has been lately devoted to wheat and other cereals, cotton, indigo, to- bacco and poppy, the native-grown opium having almost completely sup- planted the Indian drug. The mineral wealth is very great. A gold mine on the lower Sungari River is being worked by the Government, private mining being forbidden. The manufac- tures are unimportant. Some cotton cloth and silk are made for home consumption and soda is prepared on the steppes of the Sungari. There are salmon fisheries on the lower Sungari and the Hurka, where great quantities of fish are dried for the winter. Dis- tilleries are numerous and bean oil is extracted, which forms the staple ex- port. Very fine sable, tiger and lynx skins, ginseng and deer horns are among the other products ANCHURIA, that great proviyce of the Chinese empire, over which Russia and Japan are contending, is e of the richest areas on the earth. The accompanying map shows the posi- tion of the province and mm/vm‘i:‘ons in latitude with various points on the Pacific Coast. This vast domain, bordering Siberia and alluring to Russia because it would give the latter country desirable Pacific seaports, is the prize of all ithe districts in the Orient. In point of position it is the key to a great stretch of country now practically unknown to the world. =~ Ag showing the size of this mag- nificent region, it may be said that England, Scotland, Ireland and the States of New York, Penn- syleania, New Jersey, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island might be placed within its boundaries and there would be more than 100,000 square wmiles to spare. The products are diversified, the scil is fertile and there is much mineral wealth. * WILHELM IS PIQUED AT PRINCE Kaiser’s Son Talks of Renouncing His Rights. —— Feb. 20.—There is one thing which interests the people of Berlin much more than the troubles in the Far East, and that is the do- mestic war between the Kaiser and the Crown Prince, who has shown a strong inclination to have his own will in everything. Hg is now 22 years of age, and thinks that the time has come for him to declare his independence. When he first started in to show that he was far from agreeing with his august father in matters of impor- tance it was a very severe shock to Lse naiser, who in broad German told him to shut up. The conflict became acute when the Kaiser told the Prince that as an of- ficer he had to obey his superior or he would run the risk of being court mar- tialed. . The Crown Prince, with all the hot- headedness of a true Hohenzollern, answered, stamping his feet: “As a lleutenant in the German army 1 know perfectly well that I owe you obedience in military matters, but as a German, even if an officer, I have the right to associate with whom I please, visit whatever theaters I please. You, yourself, was none too obedient to your father when at my age you resented his interference in your private affairs just as much as I do, and I want to tell you that if I am not allowed to develop my own individuality I shall resign from the army, and if you force me to do this I swear that I will never again wear a German uniform. Should this not help I can always emigrate and choose my homain London, Paris or in the United States, where I will be free to live as a human being and not sim- ply be clockwork.” This response for once silenced the Kaiser, who remained speechless for several minutes; then, trying to be calm, told his oldest son that if he were a simple German subject his reasoning would be perfectly proper, but that as Crown Prince and future ruler of Ger- many thére were other laws which he must obey. To this, however, the Prince replied that he was human before he was royal and that he would rather renounce his rights to the throne and be free than to be a crowned slave all his life. ————————— May Paint Queen’s Picture. LONDON, Feb. 20.—The Duchess of Sutherland is sitting to Sargent for her portrait. The Duchess already possesses portraits by the most eminent painters in England and Europe, but she has been eager for a year to induce Sargent t¢ paint her portrait. Sargent is now the busiest portrait painter in London, and has been compelled to refuse dozens of commissions. It is reported the Queen is desirous of obtaining a Sar- «<ent portrait VIORY SRIF IR —_— PADEREWSKI SHOWS DEFIANCE TO KAISER Famous Planist Will Not Allow .His Latest Opera to Be Sung in a German Theater. WARSAW, Feb. 20.—Paderewski, the great pianist and composer, is the hero and idol of Poland. To show his dis- approval of the harsh measures adopted by the Kaiser in German Poland, he re- cently forbade his new opera, “Manru,” to be produced in any German theater. This is said to have greatly annoyed the Kaiser, who is reported to have sent a letter to Pederewski asking him to reconsider his action. It is not known exactly what Paderewski an- swered the Kaiser, but he is reported to have said to a personal friend that as long as the Polish language was not good enough to be used in Germany he did not see why Polish music should /not also be excluded, as it might jar upon Prussian ears. ——————— Find New Race in Africa. PARIS, Feb. 20.—A letter received from a member of the Chevalier expe- dition, which is exploring unknown re- gions in the heart of Africa, states that in the region to the south of Dikakire the expedition found a race of trog- lodytes, none of whom were over four feet in height. They appeared fairly intelligent and lived principally on the animals they caught on their hunting expeditions, bringing down their quarry with bows and arrows. Their marriage ceremonies are sim- ple, the males on reaching the age of 16 drawing lots for the females of the same age. The journey across the country was accomplished without opposition from the natives, 4 LONDON PLANS RELIEF FOR CONGESTED TRAFFIC Many Suggestions Are Ofiered. One of ‘Which Proyides for Two Great Thoronghfares. LONDON, Feb. 20.—How to relieve London's congbsted streets is a prob- lem the authorities have long tried to solve. Some novel proposals were made to deal with the difficulty where the London traffic commissioners met this week. The only way to solve it, declared Charles Scott Meik, was by making new roads. Two great arterial thor- oughfares, running tespectively from north to south, and east and west, were of the first importance. They should pass as close as possible to the large rail'vay termini and other congested centers. Special provision, he said, should be made for through traffic and automobiles. Mr. Meik suggested the double deck construction of roads, the upper deck being reserved for fast vehicles, in- cluding automobiles, and the lower for slower and heavy traflic. To reach the upper deck certain secondary streets should be connected with it. The double decked road should be within the four- mile radius. A suspended railway running along the new thoroughfares was proposed. The cost would be $375,000 a mile, whereas shallow underground railways cost $1,250,000 a mile and tubes $1,750,- 000 a mile. The total cost of the two main ave- nues was estimated by Mr. Meik at $355,930,000. but recoupment from the sale of surplus lands would bring the net cost down to $106,555,000. He esti- mated the net yearly revenues from rail and tramways at $8,123,750. ; —_————— Novel Lights in Paris. PARIS, Feb. 20.—At the annual pic- ture exhibition of the Cercle de la Rue Boissy d’Anglais, otherwise known as the “Epatant,” a great novelty is shown in the new electric lighting invented by the son of the great artist, Fortuny. This system of refracted light is almost as satisfactory as sunlight. DOINGS OF AMERICANS NOW ON CONTINENT Embassador Choate Has Been Il With the Influenza, but Is Re- cuperating. LONDON, Feb. 20. — Embassador Choate was recently attacked by in- fluenza and was compelled to go to Tunbridge Wells to recuperate. Henry White, secretary of the embassy, re- turned from New York just in time to attend the Lansdowne reception. His going to Rome with his,son on a jour- ney revives the gossip that he may get the appointment as Embassador to Rome in the vent of Meyer's retire- ment. With the Vanderbilt influence at the White House White's friends hope he will soon consummate his am- bition to become a full-fledged Embas- sador. Admiral Welville, who came to Eng- land to studv turbine engines, was a guest at a dinner given by G. T. West- inghouse of Pittsburg at Claridge’s. A number of prominent English naval men were present. Harrison Power of Mississippi enter- tained the Duke of Somerset at dinner at the Carlton recently. Power’s son is much in the company of Prince Henry of Pless. General T. L. James, who was mar- ried at Stratford-on-Avon, has been at the Cecil with his bride. The aged general, with his youthful bride, was a center of interest nightly at the big restaurant of the Cecil. General James expects to sail for New York next week after a visit ot Paris. Elizabeth Parkina of Kansas City sang at a smoking concert in Quéen’s all, attended bv the King and Prince of Wales. It was Miss Parkina's debut in London. She took the house by storm, and there were innumerable encores. The King homored her by sending on the stage a special request that she sing “Coming Through the Rye.” Miss Parkina has been in Paris several years, where she achieved mod- erate success. Having won unusual approval in London she now is a star in private musicales and gets big fees. —_———————— London Character Dies. LONDON, Feb. 20.—A wealthy re- cluse, R. S. Wilson of Tuxford Hall, Notts—who had one of the most curi- ous collections one could imagine—died recently, aged 73. He had in his grounds an inferno, guarded by a colossal ef- figy of Satan bounded in chains. His hell, as he described it to those very few visitors privileged to see his exhi- bition, contained effigies typifying law- yers, the priestcraft, the woman with a proud look and a lying tongue and a tobacco devil. The whole was intend- ed as an allegory, Satan being repre- untg as the king of this world AND BROADEST DISTRICTS ON THE FACE OF THE EARTH P AIOLVET. e Jrcraress AC L MPLE. wasw Ssrorze Qk JORTIANG. (o1 A YL EM ozl | L UGENE ar. — )x/?.’é'f.’,l,an ‘ Jtzpflz ‘ LEZAIL cor. r——-—=_: SAYS BERLIN MUSICIANS MURDER THE CLASSICS Chicago Man Passes a Caustic Criti- cism on Harmony as Played in Germany. BERLIN, Feb. 20.—“You live frozen Beethoven stiff and he can’t turn over in his grave and defend himself!” It is the voice of one Frederic Horace Clarke of Chicago crying in the musical wilderness of Berlin. Under the name of Leo St. Damian, Mr. Clarke has been giving & series of seven piano re- citals which have greatly stirred up this city, which regards itself as the musical center of ereation. “The piano must be played without any independent finger movement or hand stroke,” he says. “I have almost outgrown the angle at elbow and very often have a polaric magnetic undula~ tion of unbroken outpouring of emergy through the whole arm in scales, oc- taves and chords. “From an esthetic point of view it is a sin to render two consecutive bars of mudic exactly alike in any respect. Infinite variety in unity is the true principle in art as in nature. “Berlin orchestras and pianists are just murdering the immortals every day with their stuffy metronomic class- jcishh. It is charlatanism.” —_———————— Eddys May Seek Divoree. BARIS, Feb. 20.—Mrs. Clarence Eddy. wife of the famous organist, is reported about to seek a divorce. They have lived apart a long time. The wife owns a mansion near the Trocadero. Her entertainments, especially her musi- cales, are among the best in Paris, sur- passing even Miss Fanny Reed’s. The name upon her invitations is not Mrs. Glarence Eddy, but Mrs. Hershey Eddy. 3