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EXTENSIONS SUGGESTED.

Various plans and suggestions have been made for extensions of the Kirin-Changchun Railway, and without doubt one of the objects of the loan just mentioned was to prepare the way for the utilization of this line as part of a system of lines, one of which will be the Kirin-Hweining Railway, discussed on page 208. Another line likely to be built may follow the Sungari River for a short distance and then turn to the northeast; it will probably be extended to the headwaters of the Hurka River and follow this to Lake Birten or Ninguta, in which neighborhood a turn to the southeast would be made, with the line running to the Tumen River in northeastern Chosen and then to the port of Seishin or Keiko. From Ninguta a line would probably be built to connect with the Chinese Eastern at Harbin. These new lines would total several hundred miles of railway-much of it through rather rough terrain and a considerable portion through well-timbered country, the products of which will be much in demand in this part of the world in the next few years.

TRAFFIC.

The business of this line at present is about 40 per cent passenger and 60 per cent freight, and, with the development of the country and further extensions, no doubt the freight traffic will increase at a greater rate than the passenger business. Agricultural products constitute about 60 per cent of the present freight traffic, lumber 20 per cent, manufactured products 15 per cent, and mineral products 5 per cent, animal products being negligible.

EARNINGS AND EXPENSES.

The gross earnings for 1916 were $933,444 Mex. and the operating expenses $756,379 Mex., making an operating ratio of 81 per cent. It is doubtful, however, whether the figure given represents sufficient expenditure to fully maintain both roadway and rolling stock.

INCOME CHARGES AND LOSS.

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After payment of interest charges on funded debt and all other income charges there was a deficit of about $50,000 Mex. Although it is possible that the results from this property will be improved under the virtual management of the South Manchuria Railway Administration, it is hardly likely that it will show a profit.

ROADWAY AND TRACK.

The line lies through a rolling country where railway construction is not particularly difficult, although a good deal of bridging was required. The line is fairly well located and constructed mostly with permanent structures. The track at present is laid with 60-pound rail, which came from the Han-Yeh-Ping Steel Works, but it is stated that as soon as prices become normal it is to be laid with 85-pound rail of the same weight and section as much of the South Manchuria line. The line is tied fairly well and ballasted largely with broken stone. The track work conforms, in general, to that on the Chinese Government Railways (particularly the Peking-Suiyuan), especially the frogs, switches, and similar materials. The bridges seem some

what light for carrying heavy motive power. It was stated that these were for loading between Cooper E-35 and E-40. Most of these bridges were fabricated at the Shanhaikwan Bridge Works of the Peking-Mukden Railway.

ROLLING STOCK.

The rolling stock consists of 22 locomotives, 25 passenger cars, and 227 freight cars, with no service cars. All of this equipment, except 9 locomotives, was furnished from the Tangshan shops of the PekingMukden Railway. The 9 locomotives were furnished from the United States early in 1916. This rolling stock is all equipped with JanneyPenn automatic couplers. Passenger cars are all equipped with air brakes, and the freight equipment averages 46,500 pounds carrying capacity per car. The locomotives, including the 9 new ones, are somewhat light for handling the traffic economically particularly over the steep grades of the temporary line at the point that is to be reconstructed, which is near the middle of the line and governs the trainload in both directions.

WORKSHOPS.

There are small shops at Changchun. These, however, are not intended for the manufacture of equipment, but only for the making of miscellaneous and general repairs. With the new management it is very likely that the furnishing of equipment, and also probably the handling of heavy, repairs, will be taken care of in the shops of the South Manchuria Railway.

OFFICIALS-PURCHASES.

A directory is given in order on page 272, but this does not include the chief of the traffic department called for by the new agreement, since this appointment had not been made when the writer visited Changchun.

Purchases were formerly largely directed by the Japanese chief engineer through the Chinese managing director, but it is probable that the arrangement in the future will be for the chief engineer to handle this business largely through the purchasing department of the South Manchuria Railway, including the drawing on the general storeroom at Dairen and the Shakako workshops.

SIGNING OF CONTRACT FOR KIRIN-HWEINING RAILWAY.

The most important railway development in the Far East since the merger of the Korean Railways with the South Manchuria Railway on August 1, 1917, was the signing, on June 18, 1918, by the Chinese Minister of Communications and representatives of a Japanese banking syndicate, of the preliminary contract for the construction of the Kirin-Hweining (or Kirin-Kwainei) line. This new railway will traverse eastern Manchuria (Province of Kirin) to the Korean border, where it will connect with the Kwainei-Seishin Railway to the Sea of Japan, giving the South Manchuria Railway a new deepwater outlet and opening a new and rich territory to commercial and industrial exploitation. It will also, through its connection at Kirin city with the Kirin-Changchun line, which in turn connects at Chang

chun with the Chinese Eastern, provide the Trans-Siberian route with an ice-free terminus at Seishin as an alternative to Vladivostok.

The preliminary contract provided for an immediate advance of 10,000,000 yen at 7 per cent by the Japanese syndicate, which is composed of the Bank of Taiwan, the Bank of Chosen, and the Industrial Bank of Japan, in exchange for Chinese treasury notes for six months, at the end of which period the formal contract was to be signed. The Japanese banks were pledged, on the signing of the formal agreement, to float for the Chinese Government 40-year 5 per cent bonds for an amount sufficient to refund the 10,000,000 yen advance and to complete the construction of the railway.

The preliminary contract did not indicate the method of operation of the new line, but it is assumed that it will be on a basis similar to that of the Kirin-Changchun line, which belongs to the Chinese Government, but is operated under Japanese supervision, by the terms of a loan of 6,500,000 yen, in a way to make it essentially a part of the South Manchuria Railway.

The route of the railway from Kirin to Hweining (Kwainei) will follow the old caravan road from Kirin southeastward over the Haerpha Mountains, through the so-called West Yenki district of Kirin Province, to Lungchingtsun and thence through Huolikow Pass to the Tumen River, the boundary between Kirin and Chosen (Korea). Over this river, which is a wide, shallow stream, navigable only by rafts and very small boats, an international bridge will be built, the Chinese Government and the government general of Chosen each paying half the cost. Trains will run from this point over the KwaineiSeishin Railway (Kwainei being the Japanese name for Hweining) to the sea.

Seishin as a port dates only from the Russo-Japanese war. Before that time it was a Korean village of about 200 inhabitants. It was opened to trade in 1908 and a Japanese town sprang up, which increased rapidly in size and importance after the building of the light railway and still more rapidly after the standardization of the railway in 1917. In the decennial report of the Chinese Maritime Customs for the northern ports, 1902-1911, this statement is made: "It is predicted by some that when the Kirin Railway is extended to Kwainei and connected up with Seishin, the latter place will become a great exporting port-in fact, the shipping point for the surplus products of all eastern Manchuria; in other words, it will rival Vladivostok and take away a large part of its present trade." The commissioner of customs at Lungchingtsun remarks, however, that he thinks that Seishin will never outstrip Vladivostok. The harbor at Seishin is not exceptionally good, though it is one of the best on the northern Korean coast and is usually ice-free. It is wide and deep but too open. Two breakwaters have been built, inclosing an area of 10 acres, which has been sufficient for the needs of the port thus far. Undoubtedly the breakwater system will now be extended by the government general of Chosen.

The distance over which the Kirin-Hweining (or Kirin-Kwainei) Railway will run is approximately 410 miles-320 miles from Kirin to Lungchingtsun, 20 miles from Lungchingtsun to Huolikow Pass, and 70 miles from the pass to the end of the line. Though the road

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is to cross three rivers and two mountain ranges, the engineering difficulties are said not to be great.

[The foregoing account of the Kirin-Hweining Railway is from a report submitted by Trade Commissioner A. W. Ferrin, when he was acting as commercial attaché at Peking.]

SSUPINGKAI-CHENGCHIATUN RAILWAY.

LOCATION AND EXTENSIONS.

This line connects with the South Manchuria Railway at Ssupingkai and runs in a northwesterly direction, toward Inner Mongolia, a distance of about 52 miles to the important city and trade center of Chengchiatun. A further extension of about 150 miles to this line has already been considered, and as soon as materials can be obtained this no doubt will be made by the same interest that built the present line. These extensions will reach the upper valleys of the Liao River in Inner Mongolia claimed as part of the Japanese "sphere of influence." This country is rich in both agricultural and pastoral products, and it is also stated that there are valuable fuel and other mineral deposits to be reached by extensions of this line.

HISTORICAL SURVEY.

The history of this line is very brief and recent. It may be regarded as one of the important results of the agreement between Japan and Russia as to the areas of the "sphere of influence" that was allocated to Japan in Southern Manchuria and Eastern Inner Mongolia. This, no doubt, is also a counteracting line against the Chinchow-Aigun line projected between Chinchow on the PekingMukden Railway and Aigun on the Amur River. An effort was made at one time by American capital to secure the concession for building this last line.

The loan agreement for the financing, construction, and operation of this line is with the Yokohama Specie Bank (Japanese) and is dated December 29, 1915, as shown by Appendix No. 9 of this report. The first location surveys were made in July, 1916, work was started carly in 1917, and the line was opened for traffic in November, 1917. This, however, was with considerable temporary construction, particularly bridges, which will have to be rebuilt, as mentioned later.

FUNDS AND CONTROL.

The funds for the construction were furnished by the 5,000,000 yen ($2,492,500 gold) loan previously mentioned. The term of the loan is 40 years, the rate of interest 5 per cent per annum, amortization to begin the eleventh year and to be effected by semiannual payments; but the loan can be redeemed in part or in whole by payment of 24 per cent premium until the end of the twentieth year and then can be redeemed at par. The issue was made at 94.5, and the railway property and revenues are pledged as security for the loan, which is also guaranteed by the Chinese Government, as to both principal. and interest. This is one of the cases in which a railway was built to develop a claimed "sphere of influence," largely if not wholly to meet the desire of interests other than Chinese; but, notwithstanding this, the Chinese Government guarantees the loan.

While the agreement calls for a Chinese managing director, it requires both the chief engineer and the chief accountant to be Japanese, and, in addition, during construction, most of the administrative and technical staff were Japanese. The Japanese chief engineer and chief accountant, being permanent employees, will no doubt be in virtual charge of the property, particularly as the operating agreement has been made with the South Manchuria Railway for the hire of rolling stock and the exchange of traffic, including the use of the latter company's station facilities at Ssupingkai.

CONSTRUCTION COST AND CAPITAL LIABILITIES.

The construction cost was estimated, on account of the high cost of materials, at $120,000 (Mex.) per mile, and thus a total of about $6,000,000 (Mex.) would represent the cost for the present line. It is generally understood that, with the present price of silver, the 5,000,000 gold yen will not be sufficient to complete the construction, and it is also stated that thus far only 3,500,000 yen of the loan has actually been issued, although there is little doubt that the remainder will be made available to complete the line as far as possible. The amount of the loan issued constitutes the capital liability to date.

ROADWAY AND TRACK.

The present line is through a rich agricultural country where railway construction is comparatively easy, except for the considerable amount of bridging required, which will be expensive for permanent structures on account of the extreme difficulty of foundation. This is particularly true of a bridge of more than 2,100 feet across the Liao River, where a temporary structure has been built; but on account of the floods occurring in this river during the rainy season permanent structures will be built as soon as possible. The investigations of the foundations for this last bridge indicate that the substructure work will be extremely difficult and expensive. All the other bridges are now temporary structures, and it is planned to rebuild them as permanent structures in the course of time. There is no stone or timber along any part of the present line, and both have had to be shipped in by the South Manchuria Railway; this includes broken stone for ballast. The track is laid with 85-pound rail, which, with the fastenings, came from the Han-Yeh-Ping Steel Works. The South Manchuria 8-foot-6-inch standard ties were used, and the track materials and work are very similar to the practices on the latter line; in fact, much of the material was actually received from the South Manchuria stores department.

ROLLING STOCK.

So far all the rolling stock used has been leased from the South Manchuria Railway. There are on order in the Shakako works 4 locomotives, 10 passenger cars, and 60 freight cars, all along the standard lines of construction of the South Manchuria line, but the delivery of these has been delayed on account of special parts and materials required but not delivered. It is very likely, however, that part of this equipment will have been delivered by the time this report is in print.

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