The Middle Kingdom, Volume 1 (of 2)

CHAPTER I.

GENERAL DIVISIONS AND FEATURES OF THE EMPIRE.

The possessions of the ruling dynasty of China,--that portion of the Asiatic continent which is usually called by geographers the CHINESE EMPIRE,--form one of the most extensive dominions ever swayed by a single power in any age, or any part of the world. Comprising within its limits every variety of soil and climate, an...