New-chwang

New-chwang, or NIU-CHWANG, a city of China, in the province of Manchuria, stands on the river Liao, 20 miles from its mouth and 120 from Mukden. By the treaty of Tientsin (1858) New-chwang was opened to foreign trade. From the accumulation of alluvial soil in the lower reaches of the river, vessels are obliged to load and discharge at Ying-tzu, at its mouth. It is there the Europeans are settled, and they call Ying-tzu by the name of the treaty-port New-chwang—which latter is now a greatly decayed place. Ying-tzu imports cotton, woollen, and silk goods, sugar, paper, metals, opium, tobacco, &c. to the annual value of £600,000, and exports beans, silk, ginseng, skins, and horns to the annual value of £1,500,000. The import of Indian opium has fallen from £572,000 in 1866 to £8000. The port was captured by the Japanese in March 1895; in 1896 provision was made for connecting it with the Siberian railway; and by 1898 it was, like the rest of Manchuria (q.v.), almost wholly under Russian control. The port is closed four or five months from November with ice. Since 1872 Scottish Presbyterian missionaries have been working here; there is also a Roman Catholic mission. Pop. 60,000.