NEW CHINA’

[Music] this film is a record of visits made to peking nanking shanghai and kuang chao [Music] china today is as large as the whole continent of europe three thousand miles east west 3400 north to south the sub-continent is inhabited by 750 million people two out of five of whom are under 18 years of age [Music] the chinese people are led and inspired by their leader chairman mao peking has been the capital of china almost continuously since ad 1267 [Music] over the centuries as emperor after emperor added palaces and shrines it became a glorious museum of chinese art and architecture the greatest concentration of these treasures lies within the oldest section of p the inner city in the manner of chinese boxes the inner city contains the imperial city which in turn surrounds the forbidden city the palace was reserved only for the court [Music] most of the existing buildings are 18th century comprising three great halls the hall of supreme harmony the hall of perfect harmony the whole of preservation of harmony [Music] the three rear palaces are named the palace of heavenly purity the whole of union and the palace of earthly tranquility [Music] the summer palace was the retreat of successive emperors who retired there to escape the heat of summer the jinn emperor wen yang yang built the first palace in 1153 a.d but in 1860 european troops sacked the palaces that had been built by successive emperors the area was in ruins when the dowager empress sushi decided in 1888 to spend money intended for the improvement of the navy in rebuilding naming it the garden where peace is cultivated [Music] the fushanko pagoda 150 feet high is a focal point it was founded under ming and later rebuilt inside are statues of buddha the joy and longevity palace and the palace of orderly clouds are linked by a covered way 900 yards long exquisitely painted with historical and mythological scenes [Music] so [Applause] [Music] so [Music] [Applause] as the empress used funds intended for the navy the stone boat on the kunming lake is an amusing symbol [Music] the great wall of china some fifteen hundred miles in length once provided protection against invaders it came into being in the 3rd century bc and is today the only man-made feature on the earth that can be distinguished from outer space it was from the protection of this wall that for centuries chinese civilization developed and flourished today it is a popular spot for chinese and foreign visitors [Music] when you enjoy the truly great moments in life pause a while for a truly great cigar castella the enjoyment even on the great wall itself is an unforgettable experience castellas 31 or 52 pence a box [Music] close to the great wall are the ming tombs these elaborate mausoleums have been found to possess many exquisite and priceless treasures [Music] once a capital of imperial china nan king is situated some 200 miles up the yangtze river its chinese name means southern capital during its turbulent history the city was captured and sacked by the japanese in nineteen thirty seven later some one hundred thousand revolutionaries were executed by order of the guamin dang the city is well laid out with wide avenues lined with plane trees imported from france today the parks and general atmosphere are peaceful the road and rail links between peking and shanghai pass through nan king in times past a train ferry linked the north and south banks across the yangtze river in 1960 a new road and rail bridge was started it took seven thousand engineers and an army of fifty thousand peasants eight years to construct at a cost equivalent of forty five million pounds the bridge is supported by ten arches and nine underwater piers each 70 meters deep the bridge itself measures 1577 meters and with approaches 4589 meters it takes a hundred men seven years to paint it [Music] so shanghai is not only the biggest city and port in china but the fourth largest city in the world the city was formerly a paradise of adventurers particularly evident along the famous bund on the bank of the wang po river cheap labor long hours and low wages plus appalling living conditions resulted in a workers rising in 1927 led by johan lai the nationalists suppressed the movement with much bloodshed today shanghai is the leading industrial center of china responsible for about one-fifth of the nation's output [Music] so [Music] this short clip of film shows scenes of the appalling conditions of china in the twenties among the filth and squalor some 250 000 prostitutes lived on barges on the city's waterways all have gone and today venereal disease is practically unknown between 1937 and 1949 the nationalist government increased the supply of banknotes by more than 140 000 million times commodity prices rocketed and goods which originally cost one yuan had to be bought with 8.5 million yuan early in 1949. today the currency is claimed to be the most stable in the world [Music] hmm [Music] at present the chinese economy is geared to agriculture light and heavy industry the farming communes have been formed out of 125 million farmers and their families amounting to over 550 million people their industry and new irrigation and dam projects make china self-sufficient today moreover the peasants improving constantly methods of work encouraged by the thoughts of chairman mao have diversified some of their activity into light industry within the farming communes themselves thus in the space of less than 25 years china has performed the largest sociological revolution of the 20th century her 750 million people are adequately fed clothed housed and provided with free education and medical services attached to the commune outside shanghai there are a number of workers housing estates organized on a cooperative base on this one some fifteen thousand people or three thousand families are housed hospitals and clinics are available to the inhabitants as well as schools catering for all educational levels here some of the children perform their dancing [Music] [Music] [Music] the old town is surrounded by walls with a circumference of between two or three miles the mandarin's garden was laid out in 1537. several temples some later converted into palaces remain today and the government spends a great deal of money in their upkeep and restoration [Music] canton lies north of the pearl river delta the cantonese were the first people to come under western influence in 1926 mal tong and chuen lai organized and ran the peasant movement from this city the area was formerly one of great poverty which today has disappeared each spring and autumn the chinese open their shop window the canton trade fair visitors come from all over the world to buy such things as handicrafts and works of art textiles processed food sporting goods etc but the time has come to leave china today across the famous low bridge which leads to kowloon the farewell message in chinese offers advice now you are about to re-enter the west beware of pickpockets and thieves [Music] [Music] you