Untitled

186
EAST ASIA.
just as the inland seas west of Shantung have already become dry
land. Its
navigation is already much obstructed by the shifting sand-banks, as well as by the
dense fogs in which these shallow waters are frequently wrapped. The Chinese
limit the^rm " Yellow Sea " to the portion discoloured by the alluvia, applying
Fig. 84. YELLOW SEA.
Scale 1 : 7,000,000.
120 EoFG. 12.6
to 82 Fett 82 to 164 Feel. I(i4 to 828 Feet. 328 Feet and upwards.
j Submarine Sand-banks. 1g$f- Banks exposed at low water.
.^_^^^^^__^_ 150 Miles
the expression " Black Sea " to the marine waters preserving their natural
purity.
The extensive plains stretching between the Lower Hoang-ho and Yang-tze are
traversed by the sluggish Hoa'i, which, notwithstanding its great length and volume,
can scarcely be regarded as an independent river. From age to age it has never
ceased to oscillate from right to left in search of a fixed channel. At one time it
flowed to the Hoang-ho, at another to the Yang-tze, while occasionally throwing off
branches in both directions. At present it discharges into Lake Hang-tzew and the
other lacustrine basins, which are the remains of the ancient inlet penetrating
northwards between Shantung and the mainland.