China China

or the Chinese Empire, a vast territory in Asia, comprehending five great divisions: China Proper or the WBighteen Provinces (Shih-pa- Shang), and its dependencies, Manchuria, Mongolia, Jungaria and East Turkestan, also Tibet, which, however, is practically independent. ‘The whole empire has an area estimated at 4,- 277,170 square miles; pop. 426,050,- 000. The dependencies are described under their respective Se and this article refers to China Proper, ancient Cathay or The Middle Kingdom, the centre of power and population, with an area estimated at 1,532,- 420 square miles; pop. 407,253,029.. It oceupies the BE. slope of the tablelands of Central Asia, and is almost in the form of a square. Two-thirds of the interior are estimated to be mountainous; the central and northern hills are off-shoots of the Kuen-lun range, while in the southeast extensive chains stretch from the Tibetan highlands to the eastern seaboard. Between these mountain-systems, and almost parallel flow the two gie at rivers of China, the Hwang-ho, and the Yangtze. Besides these rivers and their humerous tributaries, the most notable are the Se-Kiang in the south, and the Pei-ho in the north. The waterways are the highways of China; joined by a vast network of canals, they form a gigantic system of inland communication, always thronged with craft of every description. The coast-line, an irregular curve of about 2,500 miles is fringed with islands, the largest of which, Formosa, was ceded to Japan after the war of 1894-5. The greater part of China lies within the temperate zone, but the climate is marked by a great range of temperature, from tropical heat in the south, to arctic conditions in the north, according to seasons. The flora, forestry, and fauna, are allied to the climatic conditions, China is well supplied with minerals, including gold, silver, copper, and iron; there are extensive coalfields, inexhaustible beds of kaolin, or porcelain earth, and salt is abundant.