CHEKIANG AND FOKIEN.—The two provinces of Chekiang and Fokien belong neither to the basin of the Yangtse nor to that of the Si-kiang. Lying along the south-east coast of China, they are to a great extent cut off from the interior by the various ranges of the Chinese massif which run parallel to one another and to the coast. The northern part of Chekiang belongs, indeed, to the delta lands of the Yangtse, but in the south, and in Fokien, there are few plains and the land is generally mountainous. The rivers are naturally short, and, with the exception of the Min, are not of great value as means of communication. The summers are hot and the winters mild, the lowlands at least being protected, except in the north of Chekiang, from the cold winds of winter which blow from the continental interior. The agricultural products are of considerable importance. Green tea comes from Chekiang and black from Fokien, but both provinces have suffered by the great decline in the foreign demand for Chinese teas. Chekiang also produces large quantities of silk, and its piece-goods rank with those of Kiangsi as the best in China. Cotton is grown throughout the whole region and sugar-cane in the south. The camphor tree (Cinna momum C amphora) is found in both provinces, and the distillation of camphor has been an important industry for some years. Un
fortunately, the reckless destruction of the older trees is unaccom panied by the planting of others to take their place and the end of the industry is said to be in sight.
Minerals are believed to be fairly abundant, but so far little has been done to develop them. The chief trading centres include Hangchow, Ningpo, Foochow, and Amoy. Hangchow, on Hang chow Bay, is at the southern entrance of the Grand Canal, and is also able to communicate with the interior by means of the Tsien tang ; it is connected with Shanghai, and will eventually be con nected with Ningpo, by the Shanghai-Hangchow-Ningpo railway.
Ningpo, near the south shore of Hangchow Bay, and Foochow, on the Min-ho, about 35 miles from its mouth, both have considerable local trade. Amoy, situated on an island at the mouth of the Lung-kiang on the south-east coast of Fokien, was formerly the great centre for the export of tea from Formosa. Since the annexation of that island by Japan this trade has been lost, and Amoy, which has an excellent harbour, is seeking to develop commercial relations with the interior of Fokien.