River-
courses, mountain-ranges, climate and soil, no doubt assisted in
governing this expansion, but commercial and financial greed was
the principal force. Of this we have an exceedingly interesting
and conclusive illustration in the struggle still proceeding
between the three Manchurian provinces, Fengtien, Kirin and
Heilungchiang, to seize the lion's share of the virgin land of
Eastern Inner Mongolia which has an "open frontier" of rolling
prairies. Having the strongest provincial capital--Moukden--it
has been Fengtien province which has encroached on the Mongolian
grasslands to such an extent that its jurisdiction to-day envelops
the entire western flank of Kirin province (as can be seen in the
latest Chinese maps) in the form of a salamander, effectively
preventing the latter province from controlling territory that
geographically belongs to it. In the same way in the land-
settlement which is still going on the Mongolian plateau
immediately above Peking, much of what should be Shansi territory
has been added to the metropolitan province of Chihli. Though
adjustments of provincial boundaries have been summarily made in
times past, in the main the considerations we have indicated have
been the dominant factors in determining the area of each unit.
Now in many provinces where settlement is age-old, the regionalism
which results from great distances and bad communications has been
greatly increased by race-admixture.
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