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TIENTSIN
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TIENTSIN , the largest commercial See also:city in Chih-li, the See also:metropolitan See also:province of See also:China. Pop. (1907), about 750,000. It is situated at the junction of the Peiho and the Hun-ho, which is connected by the See also:grand See also:Canal with the Yangtsze-kiang. It is a prefectural city, and has, since the conclusion of theforeign See also:treaties, become the See also:residence of the See also:viceroy of ,the province during a See also:great portion of the See also:year. The See also:town is built on a vast alluvial See also:plain, which extends from the mountains beyond See also:Peking to the See also:sea, and through which the Peiho runs a circuitous course, making the distance by See also:water from Tientsin to the See also:coast about 70 M. as against 30 m. by railway. The See also:appearance of the city has greatly changed since the Boxer rising in 1900. After that event the city walls, which measured about three quarters of a mile each way, were razed, wide streets were made, the course of the See also:river straightened, electric See also:lighting and tramways introduced and a See also:good water service supplied. Among the public buildings are a university (in which instruction is given in western learning) and an See also:arsenal. There are several See also:cotton See also:mills and important See also:rice and See also:salt markets. The city has always been a great commercial See also:depot; a See also:wharf nearly two See also:miles See also:long affords ample facilities for vessels able to See also:cross the See also:bar of the Peiho, over which there is a See also:depth of water varying from 9 to 12 ft. In 1907 the imports amounted to 79,500,000 taels (a See also:tael in 1907 averaged 3s. 3d.); viz. See also:foreign imports 61,200,000, native imports 18,317,000 taels; the exports in the same year amounted to 17,253,000. Valuable cargoes of See also:tea are landed here for See also:carriage overland, via See also:Kalgan and See also:Kiakhta, to See also:Siberia. During the See also:winter the river is frozen. The See also:principal articles of import are shirtings, drills, jeans and twills, See also:opium, woollens, See also:steel, See also:lead, needles, See also:Japanese sea-See also:weed and See also:sugar; and of export, See also:wool, skins, beans and See also:pease, See also:straw See also:braid, See also:coal, See also:dates, See also:tobacco and See also:rhubarb. The coal exported is brought from the Kaiping colliery to the See also:east of Tientsin; its output in 1885 was 181,039 tons and in 1904 28,956 tons. The importance of Tientsin has been enhanced by the See also:railways connecting it with Peking on the one See also:hand and with Shanhai-kwan and See also:Manchuria on the other. The See also:British concession, in which the See also:trade centres, is situated on the right See also:bank of the river Peiho below the native city, and occupies some 20o acres. It is held on a See also:lease in See also:perpetuity granted by the See also:Chinese See also:government to the British See also:Crown, which sublets plots to private owners in the same way as is done at See also:Hankow. The See also:local management is entrusted to a municipal See also:council organized on lines similar to those which obtain at See also:Shanghai. Besides the British concession the See also:French, Germans, Russians, Japanese, Austrians, Italians and Belgians have See also:separate settlements, five miles in all, the river front being governed by foreign See also:powers. In 1853 Tientsin was besieged by an See also:army of T'aip'See also:ing rebels, which had been detached from the See also:main force at See also:Nanking for the See also:capture of Peking. The defences of Tientsin, however, saved the See also:capital, and the rebels were forced to See also:retreat. Five years later See also:Lord See also:Elgin, accompanied by the representative of See also:France, steamed up the Peiho, after having forced the barriers at Taku, and took peaceable See also:possession of the town. Here the treaty of 1858 was signed. But in 1860, in consequence of the treacherous attack made on the British plenipotentiary the preceding year at Taku, the city and suburbs were occupied by an allied British and French force, and were held for two years. The city was constituted an open See also:port. On the See also:establishment of See also:Roman See also:Catholic orphanages some years later the pretensions of the priests so irritated the See also:people that on the occurrence of an epidemic in the See also:schools in the year 187o they attacked the French and See also:Russian establishments and murdered twenty-one of the foreign inmates, besides See also:numbers of their native followers. The Chinese government suppressed the See also:riot, paid £80,000 in See also:compensation and sent a representative to See also:Europe to apologize for the outbreak. During the See also:period 1874-1894, when Li Hung-Chang was viceroy of Chih-h and ex officio See also:superintendent of trade, he made Tientsin his headquarters and the centre of his experiments in military and See also:naval See also:education. As a consequence the city became the See also:chief See also:focus of enterprise and foreign progress. Having arrogated to- him'. self the See also:practical See also:control of the foreign policy of the nation, Li's yamen became the See also:scene of many important negotiations, and attracted distinguished visitors from all parts of the globe. The loss of See also:prestige consequent on the Japanese See also:War brought about the retirement of Li, and with it the See also:political importance of' Tientsin ceased. Both the foreign concessions and the native city suffered severely during the hostilities resulting from the Boxer See also:movement in See also:June-See also:July, 1900. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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