RATE HIN 
HANKOW. 
The Plain of the Middle Yangtse.—This is a -fertile, low, 
alluvial plain studded with lakes, and liable to be partly flooded: whenever 
the melting of the snows on the western highlands or the summer rains 
zause the river to rise higher than usual. The chief products are cereals, 
silk, cotton, china grass, and tea, while cattle are reared in the north. 
The cotton-plant is generally grown as an annual from seed, 
which is sown in the spring, and is seldom allowed to grow over 3 feet 
bigh. It requires a good deal of moisture and heat, though not an excess 
of either. During the autumn, the balls of fluffy cotton-wool which lie 
within the secd-vessels are picked ; but before the raw cotton can be 
used it has to be separated from the seeds it envelops. Oil can be 
extracted from these seeds, and the refuse, pressed into cakes, forms 
wood cattle fodder or can be used as manure. As most of the Chinese 
wear cotton garments, which are padded for winter use, there is a large 
home market for the cotton industry, which is being gradually developed 
Dy the introduction of machinery. 
China grass is a species of nettle, from which a strong fibre is 
produced, suitable for the manufacture of summer clothing. Important