PRC CITY BRIEF SU-CHOU

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP86T00608R000600130001-2
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 9
• Document Creation Date: November 11, 2016
• Document Release Date: March 3, 1999
• Sequence Number: 1
• Publication Date: November 1, 1975
• Content Type: BRIEF

 Approved For Release 1999/09/26 :CIA-RDP86T00608R000600130001-2
PRC CITY BRIEF
Sig-thou %~ *~
CIA/~GCR/sD
PN 61.2684/75
Approved For Release 1999/09/26 :CIA-RDP86T00608R0006001N.~?Q~~le~ 1975
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(pronounced su-joe)
Chinese rornani zed sys tern
of spelling:
Suzhou
Meaning in Chinese:
plentiful water
Location:
31?20'N 120?37'E
(approx. latitude of
Savannah, Georgia)
Elevation:
Population:
30 feet above sea level
800,000 (estimated)
Climate:
Jan
APr,i l
July
Oct
Mean daily maximum
47
67
91
75
temperature (?F)
Mean daily rni ni mum
32
49
75
56
temperature (?F)
Mean number of days
10
13
11
9
with precipitation
Mean monthly
1.8
2.7
5.4
1.2
precipitation (inches)
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Genera ~I
Sri-chou, about 50 miles west of Shanghai, is an important
cultural and conunerc~ial center of approximately 800,000 people
in southern Kiangsu Province. The city is noted for its scenic
beauty -- and traditionally for the beauty of its women -- and
probably ranks second only to I-lang-chou, about 90 miles 'to the
south, as a tourist attraction. Su-chows gardens are especially
well-known and several of them represent the best of the Chinese
art of garden architecture. As a favorite holiday spot for Chinese
and foreigners alike, Su-chou is one of the most accessible urban
areas in the PRC: the city 'is on the main railroad line between
Shangha; and Nan-Ching; road transport to the city is good, and
tvo navigable canals also connect it with Shanghai.
Su-chou is situated on the flat delta plain of the Yangtze
River. Thousands of swamps, ponds, and lakes dot the surface and
the entire area is crisscrossed by a maze of canals. Practically
every agricultural conmune in the Su-chou area is accessible by
canal and most villages have their own wharves ar,~ docking facilities.
Except for a few smal~ hills west of the city, the land in the
vicinity of Su-chou is ~~ ntensi vely cultivated and the enti re
region (known locally as Chiang-nan -- south of the Yangtze) is
one of China's most fertile and densely settled agricultural areas.
Rural population densities of 1,000 people per square mile are
not unusual and exceed 2,500 in some localities.
Rice, wheat, and rape are the main crops; tea is grown as a
specialty crop. Total `ood production from this region is large
but per capita output is small. Most of the work is done with
traditional tools and methods, the high water table precludes
the use of mechanized farm equipment. Silk production is also
important locally and the Su-~"ou region ranks as China's most
important s~i lkworm breeding area. In recent years much effort
has reportedly gone into rejuvenating and expanding the areas
devoted to mulberry orchards, particularly along the shores of
nearby T'ai Flu, a large but shallow lake noted for its scenery
and abundant fishery resources. The mulberry plots, usually
located near ponds and canals, are distinctive features; so much
mud has been dredged from the waterways and plastered on these
sites as fertilizer that they comn.~nly are from 3 to 6 feet abovQ
the level of the adjoining ricefields.
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Fall, which lasts from October to mid-November, is the best
time to tour the Chiang-nan region. The heat of summer has
dissipated somewhat and the days are pleasantly warm. Daily
nraximunr temperatures average about 70?F' and drop 20 degrees during
the night. Rain occurs on about every 4th day. The relatively
short spring (April and May) is another pleasant season, although
temperatures are slightly higher than in the fall and rain is more
frequent. Daily maximum temperatures average in the low 7Os and
it rains about every 3 days. Although Su-ch!~u is near the east
coast and at a latitude comparable to Savannah, Georgia, winters
in Su-chou -- which last until late March -- can be surprisingly
cold. The most uncomfortably cold month is February when dry
winds flow southward into the area from the much colder North
China Plain and temperatures drop to slightly below freezing
for short periods. Probably the worst season for travelers is
summer, temperatures and humidity are oppressively high and rain-
fall is frequent. Summer begins in June with the onset of the
"Plum Rains" -- a period of prolonged, drizzly, gray weather that
frequently waterlcgs fields, floods reservoirs and lowlying areas,.,
and disrupts the local agricultural schedule by delaying the
planting of summer rice.
The Ci ty Today
Founded in the fifth century B.C., Su-chou remains a uniqur~ly
Chinese city that ryas reserved much of its traditional appearance
and has largely retained its economic focus based on handicrafts.
Surrounded by a carnal , the old city is densely populated and
remarkably undisturbed by new construction or motor vehicle traffic;
many of the city streets are so narrow that vehicles cannot p~-.ss.
Unlike most large Chinese cities, Su-chou has experienced a ~i~::latively
small and controlled suburban industrial growth in recent ye.+?rs.
The suburbs in Su-chou have few factories or workers apartmE;r~~s
and pagodas are almost as common as factory chimneys.
A distinctive feature of Su-chou i s its extens i ve nett,~~~irk
of canals which serve as major thoroughfares. As early as r.he
15th century under the. Ming Dynasty, Su-chou became a national
center of trade, fi nan~:e, and i ndustry and traffi c flowed i rito
the town by at least 20 main canals, each with its owr~ city gate.
Although several waterways have been filled in recent years to
accommodate the increasing road traffic, they still play an
important role in the transportation of a large proportion of
the city's freight. The numerous canals -- spanned by arched
bridges and l i nod with houses that rise directly from their edges --
impar?t a Venetian flavor to the city, known by many as the "Venice
of the Orient." The most fans us local waterway is the Grand Canal,
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located innrediately west of the city. The largest internal waterway
in the world, it was constructed to carry tribute rice from the
Yangtze plain north to Peking. While the canal is no longer used
for long-distance hauls, that portion adjacent to Su-chou is
heavily trafficked and provides an important means of conmunica-
tion in this watery environment. The canal's embankments are
generally well-constructed rrrasonry structures with a towpath
located on top -- used almost exclusively by people in harness.
The width of the canal averages 100 feet but narrows to about
30 feet at the numerous picturesque stone bridges that .arch
gracefully over the waterway. Depths average 7 to 10 feet during
the high water season, adequate for small river steamers. There
are no locks on the Grand Canal in the vicinity of Su-chou and
long lines of cargo barges carrying agricultural products and
raw material s from conurrune fields en route to urban processing
plants or warehouses are corrurron sights.
Aside from food production, silk manufacturing has been the
leading industry since the 14th century and the few local mills
produce a large share of China's best quality silk textiles and
embroideries destined for export markets. Other traditional
industries include food processing and the production of handicraft
iterrs, such as tapestries, velvets, and sandalwood fans.
The Tientsin Treaties of the mid-18OOs opened Su-Chou, along
with several other major Yangtze river basin cities, to foreign
concessions, and an active modern industrial trade soon developed
in the sou~~hern part of the town. Some of the well-landscaped,
spacious re~?idences and several of the factories of the foreign
business representatives are still standing in this sector.
Foreign interESts also developed a second commercial/industrial
district north-northwest of the city when the railroad connecting
Nan-chi ng and Sf?~anghai was built i n the latter part of the 19th
century. A third industrial district, dating largely from 1949,
has been established west of the city and contains most of Su-chow s
showplace factories and apartments. One of the largest plants
in this area builds flat-bottomed concrete lighters for use on
the regi on's complex web o'` waterways . Other i ndus tri es i ncl ude
a few small chemical, metal fabrication, and ceramics plants.
Gardens, Resorts, and Epicurean Traditions
Excursions to Su-chows celebrated Sung, Yuan, Ming, and
Ch'ing Dynasty gardens are a must for many vi sitors . The city
boasts over a hundred gardens, but only about a doyen are open
for public viewing and probably only halt' that number can be seen
at a leisurely pace in a single day. N~~merous pavilions, pagodas,
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and temples are also locatQd throughout the city and its outskirts
and add to Su-ci~ou's impressive catalog of tourist sights.
An interesting overnight trip can be taken to the picturnsque
T'ai Flu, only about 15 miles to the west of Su-thou. 1'he delightful
scenery, hot springs, and relatively! plush vacation resorts also
attract vacationing Chinese from other parts of the country.
Glftile the guest lists at most of the resorts are filled with the
namr~s of Ch~~nese government and military officials, some of the
hotels have accommodations reserved exclusively for comport workers,
sent here on all-expense-paid vacations by their factories as a
reward for exemplary work efforts.
Su-chou has a deserved reputation as a place for good eating.
The city's restauran is -- usually small and spartan in furnishings --
have tradi tional ly attracted many regular patrons front as far
away as Nan-ching and Shanghai. The restaurants do an espECially
brisk business during the city's numerous food festivals, the most
popular ones coinciding with the change of seasons. Fish and rice,
the two items that dominate the region's food output, are generally
featured.
One of the most esteemed festivals, a crab feast, occurs in
early autumn. Area fishermen congregate at Yank-ch'eng Hu, a
small shallow lake 5 miles to the northeast of Su-chou, and armed
with bamboo traps, capture crabs as they emerge from crevices where
they have just laid eggs. The pr~apared crabo~at, called Ta-cha-
hsieh, is ^onsidered a delicacy by gastronome and farmer alike.
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