China Letter

Jeiio Sil ver Mines, Dec. 2, 18S9. Oet. 7th taw the first half of our third 25,000 in i Ie trip completed. We spent over two weeks in Japan, sceing tlie likttorlè " Sunrise Kingdoin " put oll the old nnd put on tlie new ; Witneaslng tlic fossil Oriënt rejuvenating, as though some olixir of life had suddenly become predorainant In those vlens where the blood had almost ceased to flow. Japan is one of the mott Interesting and beautifnl countries In the world, and is well repsylng the visits of tlie annually increaslng nnmber of tourists. Her art instinct is wonderful. Shej of course, traína her artists, and her systera of training is excellent, but to begin with, she has sometbing in-bom in her sons md daughters so that frotn the first they utmost liever make rnistakes in their art pioduclions. Incongruity has no place in tbe .] apáñese art instinct. Whon we left Yokohoma for another port, we toolc passage in a very staunch .stool steamer, and it is well for us that we ilid, for we encountered onc of the most terrific typhoons of the Japanese coa.-t that they have ever known. (Typlioon is Ue Chinese Ya feug, gieat wind.) The barometer went below tlie scalo, actually, and ihe wind blevv over 101) dUIas au bour. We were in lminent danger for raany hours, but the steam kept op for Uie against the wind, :iii(l tlie steel plates did not spring apart so we only took in such quantities of water as ca in e in over the grand saloon, etc, but that was enough. Everything was afloat In the social hall saloon and even in the cabins. The water poured down Ihe companion way like soine great wuter-fa'l, and the elegant carpets, passenger"s baggage, boots and shoes, articles of clotliitiir, bags, pails, dishe.-, etc. All went floaling about in the Fait, "salt soup," "China man's allee samee Melican mans." But enough of this. Sullice it to say that the storm finally ceased in a measure and we turned towards port, and aller 4S hours we steamed Into the deslred haven minus the ceptaiu's gig, the "aft" wheel house, with some cables and a great deal of glass broken and .'! feet of water in the larder, no cooking having been done during the storm. It was soaiewhat satisfying to hear the captain reraark that he had heen at sea tbirty odd years, and never saw anytliing to cqnal the great typhoon of '89. He said that ou deck with both anus irounil an hon post he held on most one day nnd that it was impossible to teil where the sea wavcs ceased and the clouds and rain began. It was all one sheet of water as liijih as he conld see. That with the first officer standing beside him, with both hands to bis mouth to direct the sound and shouting as loutl as n sturdy man conld, he, the captain, could not hear one word, the wind was blowing so bard. After leaving Japan, we spent a few days ín the Hermit nation or Corea. Here are queer f-ights and sounds indeed. The Coreans are unlike the Chinese and Japanese. They seem stolidly indifferent to everything around tliem, vvhile the industrious Chinaman and our willy "Jap.11 do their business and "getaway" with all their profits. I saw a fine Corean steamer lying at Chemulpo, which is owned by the government but which cannot be moved because the coal in her bunkers belongs to her foreign offleers, and they will not consent to use it until they have been paid for it. The couutry is su poor that the government cannot pay even small honest deb's. With this condition of affairs you can readily imagine what the sufft-ring amorfg the poor people must be. Upon arrival at Tientsin, China, I fouud that the Jeho Silver Mines, to which we were enroute, were not owned by a Company hut belong exclusively to tlie Viceroy, Li Ilung Chang, who opens the mines at his own expense, under tlie emperör'8 orders and is to bear all losses himself and pay the governinent all proflts, so we are really in the employ of the governraent and we wereaecordingly well recem-d and liandsomely fitted out for a ten days journey northward into Mongolhi. We were provided with such a retainer of attendants that we llved like kings vvhile on one of the most f jomneys. We had an escurt of a iiiuntn-r of men and were provided with tho Viceroy ' own passport, which ismuchbetter than those that ordinarily are grnted for, in case of any trouble on the road. we could demand any number of soldlers nccesary to guard us from all harin, and in case of any loss of goods we could go to the nearest magistrate and (Iemand full recompense for the same. first eighty milos vas by rail, a very novel thing in China. This is the length of the first and ouly railroad in China, llowever, other Unes are prospected and some oftlieni will be built. China has wealth unbounded and brains to use her wealth most advantageously wben she gets ready. After three days journey uorth-east f rom Tientsin we came to one of the few passes through that most ancient monument of Chinese industry, Ithe great wall of China, built more than 2,000 years ago ; it stands to-day on hill and plain, on tbe blcuk mountain top, exteuding more than 1,500 miles, as a type of tlie stability of this great nation. When one looks upon those great bloks of granite, quarrled and laid hy hands long silent before Chrlst was boni, he is so lilled with awe and wondei at the mighty work which has withstood the war of the elements, wbile the mightiest empires rose and feil ; and this alone, like the mountains it stands on, has witnessed it all. I say onc is so filled with thought and wonder as to make the occasion one never to be forgotten. This place, Ku Shan Tzu, where we bow live, is i:i Mongolia, some three liundred miles north-west of Tienstin and Pekin. The mines have been worked by natives for centuries. The mountains are really hone}--combed with their tunnels through the solid rock; one, I know is two miles in length. This is Mongolia, one of the great territories uf China, settled by the Chinese and so much like their owu country that one could scarcely teil the difiérenos unles he counted beadf. China proper bas 1,554,000 square miles and 300,000,000 of people. Alongólia lias nearly the same territory, 1,804000 square miles, but only 2,000,000 people. Grazing and mining are the occupation of the people and game and wild animáis are plentiful. We have all the venlson, beef, mutton, fowl, pheasant, hato, patridge, etc., that we care to buy and very cheap. We have several kinds of deer and antelope about, good shooting, and wolves and larger animáis to prey upon them. But to return to our mines: we have silver, iron, copper and gold here, but the mine we are novv woikiug is chiefly silver. It is yieldiug well and with tlie best of engincs and inacliinery and forcigners to oversce tlie work. The mines are successf ui. Most of uur machlnery carne f rom Frazer & Clialiuers, of Chicago. Our superlntenilant is Trof. John A. Church, who once lectured on geology in the University of Michigan. I think about In '74 or '75. We have six other Americans overseeing tbc (500 mines. We also iiave a small ganïson of soldiers for protection, a Mandarín official as magistrale, and a Tartar General. Ten miles west of us is another fcilver mine with its complement of American macliincry, men etc. As regards my own work, first, as suigeou to the mines, 1 have a good deal of work. The Chinese are so unaccustotned to maoblnery and western methods of mining that they meet with many accidents. Breaking bones by falU In the mines or n blasting the rocks with dynamite, are of frequent occurence. Only a little time since some men brougtit a box of dynatnite up from the mine and placed it on top of one of the boilers to tliaw out. In the mean time the men lay down for a quiet sleep, as it was niglit and no one aboul to report them. Buddenly there was an earth-quake aii'l I will leave yon to imagine what was left of the Cblnaman'a remaios and the " Melican man's" boilers and building. Hut tlie natives are learning about these things very fast and we now have competent engineer machinist?, mili men, and one chemist among them. I hold aclinic every day, having from thirty to flfty patiënte, seven days in the week. times more ttaan fifty lo one day. Thia is because many come In froin the surrounding country as there is not nnother pliysician withln a radius of 300 miles I can say that ray opportunRies for medical and surítical work aro siinply uiilimited. I hold two formal religieus services I 1 i ii iï the Chinese Janguiige exclusively eyery week and one service for the foreigners. This is in addition to tlie snor sermons. We are able to preach while we Uval thc sick. We now have severa interested in the "good news" and sonic thrce oí' four w&itiug for baptism Could any young man ask for a better work than tliis? I intended to say in renard to our geo graphical location that N. E., of Peking i n Mongolia, yon will íi n tl on most o] the maps a place callcd Jeho or Jehol. Vc are 50 miles N. E. of that city, ainong the raountains, and only abou 800 milessouth of thelvara political prisons of Husain, wliichGeo. Kennan has made so well known to the world. With sincere regards to all, I am sincerely yours. D. E. Osborne.