A BACKGROUND TO THE NEWS

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 101, 23 January 1935, Page 7

A BACKGROUND TO THE NEWS

Indian Rope Trick The illustrations of “The Dominion” yesterday contained two photographs illustrating the Indian “rope trick.” Lord Frederick Hamilton in "Here, There and Everywhere’? tells the story of the mystification of a Colonel Barnard and one of his English subordinates by the performance’of this trick in Calcutta by an Indian juggler. The colonel also took with him his camera. "They arrived at a poor house in the native quarter, where they were ushered into a small courtyard thick with the dense smoke arising from two braziers, burning mysterious compounds. The juggler, naked except for his loincloth, produced a long coil of rope and to Colonel Barnard’s inexpressible surprise, the rope began paying away out of the juggler’s hand of its awn accord and went straight up in the air. Colonel Barnard photographed it. It went up and up until their eyes could no longer follow ’.it. Colonel Barnard photographed it again. Then a small boy standing by the juggler commenced climbing up this rope, suspended to nothing, supported by nothing. He was photographed. The boy went up and up till he, too, disappeared from view. The juggler, professing himself atgry with the boy for his dilatoriness, started in pursuit, of him up this rope, hanging on nothing. He was photographed too. Finally the man descended the rope, and wiped a blood-stained knife, explaining that he had killed the boy for disobeying orders. He then pulled the rope down and coiled it up, aud suddenly the bby reappeared, and together with his master, began salaaming profoundly. The trick was ovei. When the films were developed it was seen neither the juggler, nor the boy, nor the rope had moved at all. The photographs showed that nothing at all had happened. Yet Colonel Barnard declared he had seen the things happen as he told them.” Jehol Japanese and Manchukuo troops are reported to be conceutrating on Western Jehol for the purpose of clearing out the Chinese unless the latter withdraw. Jehol, the gateway to North China and Mongolia has long been coveted by Japanese militarists. It is a mountainous province belonging to the Chinese Empire, and is well placed strategically to be a thorn in the side ot the Japanese in Manchukuo. The large opium revenue derived from the province, no less than the dangers of hostile Chinese armies using it as a base for a renewed attack upon Manchukuo make it highly desirable to the Japanese authorities that it should-be “freed” from Chinese troops and the question of its allegiance settled once and for all. On January 9, 1933, the Japanese War Office issued a statement declaring Jehol to be an integral part of -Manchukuo, and adding that “accordingly those who disturb peace in that province may be considered recalcitrant elements against Manchukuo, and those who invade the province from without are invaders.” By clearing Jehol of Chinese, and attaching it securely, the Japanese will have secured the completion of the conquest of all China north of the Great Wall and strengthened their position there. Japan’s excuse for launching an attack against Jehol early in 1933 was that it was necessary “to exterminate completely all bandits within and to dislodge all the invading armies from the province.” The Chinese put up a splendid defence but were ultimately defeated. White Russians Of 30,000 White Russians in Mauchukuo, two-thirds are stated to be living on the verge of starvation. Manchukuo is three times the size of New Zealand and has a frontier line of nearly 3250 miles. Its population in 1933 amounted roughly to 30,000,000, of whom 29,000,000 were Chinese; 800,000 Koreans and 150,000 White Russians. The Japanese population, which was largely connected with the South Manchurian Railway, accounted for 220,000. While there are over 200 nationalities among the Russians, there are three great divisions known as the Great Russians, the Little Russians, aud the White Russians. The Great Russians have absorbed the Finnish elements, the Little Russians have undergone an admixture of Turkish blood, and the White Russians have submitted to Lithuanian influence. Since Japan has definitely established itself in Manchukuo the influence of the Russians there has decreased. There is no doubt that Japan’s policy is to make it impossible for Russians to remain in Manchukuo under any circumstances whatever. If the present report which indicates that there are now only 30,000 White Russians in Manchukuo can be regarded as accurate, it is clear that hundreds of thousands must have returned to Russia. Usually the Russians do not emigrate singly, or merely a few at a time. The emigrate iu whole villages. It is a notable characteristic of the Russians also that while the men frequently intermarry with other races, the women seldom do so. Harbin Russians, says Dame Rachel Crowdy, are freezing to death nightly in Harbin in Manchukuo. Harbin is situated on the eastern bank of the Sungari river. Although now known as the Paris of the Far Eftst, Harbin was only a deserted village before the Russian penetration into Manchuria. Built in European style, the city had a population in 1933 of 320,000, of which 240,000 are Chinese, 81,000 Russians, and 4700 Japanese. From this city the southern line of the Chinese Eastern Railway runs to Changchun. The city also forms an important point in the long railway which links Vladivostock and the cities of Europe via Siberia. As the largest commercial and industrial centre of North Manchuria, Harbin handles more than 4,00,000 tons of soya beans, wheat, bean-cake, and other produce annually. The city is divided into three sections: Old Harbin, the new city, and the open town. The new city is said to have been planned after Moscow. The railway station, the oflices of the Chinese Eastern Railway and the foreign consulates are located in this section. In the open town, which is the commercial section of the city, reside Russian, Japanese and Chinese merchants engaged in thriving business activities. Almost unaffected by ocean currents, Manchukuo has a dry and cold climate with long severe winters and short sultry summers. The spring season is windy, strong winds often carrying yellow dusts from the deserts of Mongolia._The temperature falls as low as 65 degrees Fahrenheit in winter and goes up as high as 80 degrees in the summer.