sty, from his native province, the Han. It was destined to
continue for centuries in power.

The new emperor showed himself a worthy successor of the builder of the
Great Wall, while he made every effort to restore to the nation its
books, encouraging men of letters and seeking to recover such
literature as had survived the great burning. In this way he provided
for his future fame at the hands of the grateful literati of China.
Amnesty to all who had opposed him was proclaimed, and regret expressed
at the sufferings of the people "from the evils which follow in the
train of war."

The merit of Kaotsou lay largely in the great public works with which he
emulated the policy of his energetic predecessor. The "Lofty and August
Emperor" (_Kao Hoangti_), as he entitled himself, did not propose to be
thrown into the shade by any who had gone before. On taking the throne
he chose as his capital the city of Loyang (now Honan), but subsequently
selected the city of Singanfoo, in the western province of Shensi. This
city lay in a nest of mountains, which made it very difficult of
approach. It was not without advantages from its situation as the
capital of the empire, but could not be reached from the south without
long detours. Possibly this difficulty may have had something to do with
its choice by the emperor, that he might display his genius in
overcoming obstacles.

To construct roads across and to cut avenues through the mountains an
army of workmen, one hundred thousand in number, became necessary. The
deep intervening valleys were filled up to the necessary level by the
spoils rent from the lofty adjoining mountains, and where this could not
be done, great bridges, supported on strong and high pillars, were
thrown across from side to side. Elsewhere suspension bridges--"flying
bridges," as the Chinese call them--were thrown across deep and rugged
ravines, wide enough for four horsemen to travel abreast, their sides
being protected by high balustrades. One of these, one hundred and fifty
yards long, and thrown over a valley more than five hundred feet deep,
is said to be still in perfect condition. These suspension bridges were
built nearly two thousand years before a work of this character was
attempted in Europe. In truth, the period in question, including several
centuries before Christ, was the culminating age of Chinese
civilization, in which appeared its great religious reformers,
philosophers, and authors, its mos