Newspaper Page Text
Burma, Important British Colony,
Provides ‘Back Door’ to China
CHINA
. CHUNGKING
/
" INDIA
CANTON
MANDALAY^o^n 10 ..—O J
^7 n FRENCH
Bay of indo- j>
Bengal / china
* ANG wIIL SIAM) UChina&a
BACK DOOR" OPEN. Map shows the route of the recently com
pleted highway running from Rangoon, Burma, to Chungking, capital
of war-torn China. Because many of China's eastern seaports are block
aded by the Japanese this route has become an important life line for
the forces of Chiang Kai-Shek.
Recently Completed High
way Used for Shipping
War Supplies.
Prepared by National Geographic Society,
Washington, D. C.—WNU Service.
Burma, where demands for
independence are reported to
be growing steadily more in
sistent, is an important link in
the British Empire chain.
East of India, Burma
touches on the north the bor
der of Tibet; on the east that
of China proper, French In
do-China, and Siam. With
fingers of land thrust into the Bay
of Bengal, Burma stretches south
far down the west coast of the Ma
lay peninsula, to share with Siam
the narrow and strategic land bar
to the China sea which culminates
in the Malay States and England’s
naval base of Singapore.
From Burma runs the recently
completed highway that is China’s
vital back door entrance for sup
plies, now that many of her eastern
ports are closed by Japanese occu
pation. Connecting Rangoon—half
way down the long coast of Burma
—with the Chinese provisional capi
tal of Chungking, in the heart of that
war-torn country, this route covers
in all more than 2,000 miles, twist
ing a tortuous motor path over Chi
na’s high western plateaus, dipping
deep into rugged gorges and rising
high over mountain passes.
Burma Route by Rail.
The Burma section of the route,
about one-third of the entire dis
tance to Chungking, is mostly by
rail, which provides communication
between Rangoon and Lashio, near
the western border of China. On the
way the railway passes the town of
Mandalay, of Kipling romance.
Through Rangoon, as capital and
chief port of Burma, flows most of
the country’s foreign trade, now re
ported to include incoming trucks,
gasoline, machinery, and munitions
destined for the Burma-China road
as a result of the war in China. All
together, Burma’s import-export
business was estimated for the last
fiscal year at more than $278,000,000.
Rangoon, accessible to river nav
igation 900 miles inland, is also
known in the international transport
field for its excellent airport, where
three major lines converge. So
many ’round-the-world aviators and
air-minded travelers come this way
that it has been predicted that Ran
goon will bdcome to the air lanes
what Singapore is to sea lanes—a
“crossroads of the East.”
Burma is strictly agricultural
country with rich soil and plenty of
rainfall. It is more fortunate than
many of its oriental neighbors; for
with little more than 14% million
people to support in an area of
about 261,610 square miles, there is
an adequate food supply of the
East’s chief staple—rice. More than
two-thirds of all cultivated land in
Burma is devoted to rice production,
which provides a large exportable
surplus sent not only to populous
India and other Far Eastern coun
tries but also to Europe.
A largely one-crop economy, how
ever (of secondary importance are
other products such as peanuts, cot
ton, millet, sesame seeds), presents
problems of its own. There is need
for new industries to provide more
diversity and help solve the unem
ployment problem. Os Burma’s
millions, less than 90,000 now are
employed in industry.
After farming, the famous teak
industry is Burma’s next best means
of livelihood.
Without Caste System.
The Burmese have developed into
a group different from either Indian
or Chinese, yet with traces of the in
fluence of both. They are without
the caste system' and their women
go unveiled. Although their main
religion came from India, their dia
lects are related to those of the Indo-
Chinese. Most travelers agree that
the people of Burma are easier to
understand than other Orientals; for
while their manners are those of
the East, they have also a frank
ness and direct sense of humor akin
to that of the Westerner.
Yet despite geographic, racial and
other differences that set it apart
from India, politically Burma was
divorced from the larger country
only two years ago. Today this coun
try, as a crown colony of Great Brit
ain, has its own senate and house of
representatives, although the legis
lation of these bodies is subject to
veto by the English governor who
also, controls national defense and
foreign relations.
Odd Regulations
Give Protection
To Auto Driver
Traffic Safety Rules Vary on
Highways of Foreign
Nations.
Prepared by National Geographic Society.
Washington, D. C.—WNU Service.
While many traffic safety
regulations are similar the
world over, some countries
have evolved unusual and
even comic measures for
the safety of their people.
Though comic many of these
rules are none the less effec
tive.
In England there is no
speed limit on highways ex
cept in the congested areas.
In'Bucharest authorities have re
cently instituted a drive for pedes
trian control. A special court has
been set up to try offenders. This
safety regulation has been success
fully used in other European and
American cities.
The traffic board of Calcutta pot
long ago passed a rule banning ra-
^l4l
NOISELESS COP. You can't
blow your automobile horn in
Rome, and the traffic cops don’t
have any whistles, but they stand
on a pedestal in the middle of the
street. So the old excuse about not
having seen them doesn’t go at all
in traffic court.
dios or phonographs in automobiles
as distractions to motorists and
therefore traffic hazards. Officials
of Riga, capital of Latvia, quieted
traffic by prohibiting the unneces
sary tooting of horns and ordering
that all milk cans be silenced by
wrapping them in sacks or straw.
Americans visiting large European
cities are often amazed by the
lack of traffic noise due to such
“non-tooting” regulations.
Several countries have adopted
the use of posters as a means of
reducing accidents. In Sweden post
ers are used to combat jaywalking.
One Swedish sign warning pedestri
ans against jaywalking shows a hen
scuttling precariously across a busy
street. The sign reads: “Don’t be
a Laura!”
Flashing red and green signals
are the usual world-wide traffic
symbols denoting stop and go. How
ever, there are found many and
amusing variations in style and col
or. In Lisbon, on narrow streets,
policemen hold up paddles painted
red on one side and green on the
other. In Singapore the traffic
“cops” have a long horizontal, white
board attached to their backs. To
regulate traffic, the policemen turn
not a light, but themselves.
BAKER COUNTY NEWS
OUR COMIC SECTION
WAS NO DOUBT THE CAUSE
y&W
--q ^>7
“What’s made that politician so
bow-legged?”
“Straddling the fence, I suppose.”
Events in the Lives of Little Men
Fast Growing Spuds
“P’taters is good this morning,
madam,” said the market gardener,
making his usual weekly call.
“6h, are they?” retorted the cus
tomer. “ThaJ reminds me. How is
it that those you sold me last week
were so much smaller at the bottom
of the basket than at the top?”
“Well,” replied the man, “p’taters
is growin’ so fast now by the time
I get a basketful dug, the last ones
is about twice the size of the first.”
EXPLAINED HER MAKE-UP
XI
She—All the world’s a stage.
He—That explains your make-up,
I suppose.
Shelf Edging Dresses
Up Kitchen Windows
By RUTH WYETH SPEAKS
COME of us can remember see
ing our mothers cut scalloped
shelf papers. Dextrously they
folded and snipped the edge in
points or curves; sometimes add
ing a cut out diamond in the cen
ter of each scallop. For many
there is more satisfaction in this
creation of their own hands, than
in using fancy lace edge paper
by the roll. Today, we find that
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CURTAIN-.
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same satisfaction when we choose
oilcloth shelf edgings—-thinking in
terms of color has a fascination
even beyond scallops with dia
monds in the center.
The suggestion sketched here
for using shelf edging to dress up
kitchen windows was sent in by a
reader. The busy homemaker
will appreciate the fact that the
curtains are perfectly straight and
plain and easy to remove for laun
dering. When windows and
shelves match the effect is es
pecially good. Banded towels
may be of the same color, and
tin containers for bread, sugar,
and spices may be painted with
bright enamel, to match.
The new Sewing Book No. 3 by
Mrs. Spears is packed full of use
ful, money saving ideas, that al
tnost any homemaker may put to
practical use. Every idea is
clearly illustrated with large
sketches. You will be fascinated
With the variety of interesting
things to make for the home and
for gifts. The price is only 10
cents postpaid. Send coin with
name and address to Mrs. Spears,
210 S. Desplaines St., Chicago, 111.
U aW I To Quickly check exces-
I HAY I s>ve nasal secretion—
I CEUEn I P ut i ust " 2 drops” In
lr LVEK J each nostril. Ask for
PENETROL
Sad Sight
A fool attempting to be witty is
wa object of profoundest pity.
mbe miserable with
MALARIA
and COLDS when
RRR c ^ ec ^ MALARIA fast and
UUU gives symptomatic cold relief.
liquid, tablets, salve, nose drops
Self-Confident
Doubt whom you will, but never
doubt yourself.—Bovee.
Timlin 1
■ R 11 J =our==s J
"Ca p-Brush" A ppi icator , ■
JUST A “BLACK LEAF 40^
DASH IN FEATHERS^\^ FABTHP>
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good wa
stores J
LARGE I
BOTTLE
t -mIA ▼V A 1 M I
•^604
Brave and Tender
The bravest are the tenderest.—
Bayard Taylor.
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