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Excerpt from "Mr. Chen Panling Memorial Collection" (陳泮嶺先生紀念集) , page 22
Please note: Extra words added to the posture description for clarity, as well as additional notes and comments, appear in [square brackets]. Text in (regular parentheses) is the author's text. Highlighted text indicates text where I am not confident in the translation.
九 導黃計劃
洪河、在我西平的故鄉，是我在少年時嬉戲游泳的地方。於每年的汎濫期中，隨從先君督導防洪的工作。先君在治水方面，顯出了他的才能及利人之心，啟發了我以後的社會事業，所以在北大時，攻讀土木工程學系，已抱著克服洪水的志願。
民十年(卅歲)，北京大學畢業後，回河南開封，即創辦水利工程測繪學校，自任校長，更兼任河南省政府實業廳技士之職，我一生之社會事業從此始。
水利工程測學校學生二年畢業，僅一屆即停辦，然所有學生在畢業回籍後，分佈各縣市，多任水利局長或工程師，河南省之水利之有組織、有計劃、有教育者亦從此始。嗣後在十七、十八年間，治理黃河工程之展開，貢獻甚鉅！
在省政府實業聽技士之職務上，曾對河南全省之水利，與黃河之水道系統，曾作詳細之調查與計劃。（一）導黃河入惠濟河。（二）導黃河入賈魯河。（三）導黃河入衛河。黃河百害，我治理黃河的原則，不祇求去其百害，而是除百害而興百利，築堤防汎，並非根本解決辦法。黃河每日挾億萬噸泥沙，從黃土高原沖積而來，故黃河之河床，高出平原，所謂黃河天上行，水道因之時常變易，所以為害。在宋時，黃河曾一度改道，滙入淮河，淮河獨流入海，經此次黃河挾帶的泥沙，淤積吐口，竟使淮河之水，停儲於洪澤湖中，由運河入長江，每逢夏季水漲，宣洩不通，便是黃河之帶來災害。總理孫中山先生治淮計劃是：開闢北支入海，和整理南支入江，以洪澤湖之吞吐，調節水量。所以濬治黃河，築堤防汎，祇在治標；保持上游水土，整理中下游河床，方為治本。所以濬治黃河，疏導為先，防堵為次。
開封城之水道，無排洩處，淤積臭污，害於衛生。惠濟河源出開封，但無舟楫之利，如導黃河經開封入惠濟河，則開封之污積隨以清潔，專濟河得黃河水，可通舟楫。再從開封之西，導黃河入賈魯河；從黃河之北，導入衛河。惠濟河流入渦河，渦河注入淮河；賈魯河亦東向注入淮河；衛河北行，注入天津海河。將黃河之水注入惠賈衛三水域，可以減去黃河水勢而去其害；由惠、賈二可交通水運，可達淮河流域；衛河則入海河至天津，因此更增交通運輸之便利，且更轉移泛濫成災之黃河，移作惠、賈、衛三水域上源之大利。不幸此一苦心計劃，竟被當時有影響勢力之耆紳們，迷信風水，恐對己不利，固執不可施工作破壞性之建議，因之未付諸實行，可見當時國人，對科學智識尚淺薄，尚迷信無稽之風水，其愚可笑！亦復可憫！
十八年(卅八歲)，又復創辦河南水利工程專科學校，為全國所僅有。（另有一河海工程學校）培育水利青年人材，遍及國內，對全國水利上之貢獻至鉅。
民十六年(卅六歲)，在任河南省水利局局長時，曾先後完成豫省水利測量，劃分各水系範圍，切實治理防洪與灌溉，並提倡建教合一，由河南推廣至黃河流域及長流流域。在以前任實業廳技士職內，所擬之導黃計劃，雖未完全實現，但由開封鑿水道通黃河，長十餘公里之水渠，清除開封的污水，增進衛生，也算遂行其一半。
[Note: In 1128, the Song troops breached the southern dikes of the Yellow River in an effort to stop the advancing Jin army. The resulting major river avulsion allowed the Yellow to capture the tributaries of the Huai River. For the first time in recorded history, the Yellow River shifted completely south of Shandong Peninsula and flowed into the Yellow Sea. By 1194, the mouth of the Huai River had been blocked. The buildup of silt deposits was such that even after the Yellow River later shifted its course, the Huai could no longer flow along its historic course, but instead, its water pools into Hongze Lake and then runs southward toward the Yangtze River.]
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellow_River
9. The Yellow River Project
The Hong River, in my hometown of Xiping, is where I played and swam as a teenager. During the flood season, I accompanied my late father as he supervised the work to control flooding. He showed talent and interest in harnessing the flood waters, which became the inspiration for my future in public service. Therefore, I majored in Civil Engineering at Peking University with the desire to help overcome the flooding problems.
In the 10th year of the Republic of China [~1922] (at 30 years of age), I returned to Kaifeng in Henan Province to help establish the School of Surveying and Mapping for Water Conservancy Project, where I served as the school’s [first] president. I also worked in various offices in the Industrial [Engineering Works] Department for the Henan Provincial government. It was at this point that my life in public service began.
Hydraulic engineering school students [at the school where I was president] graduated in two years, with only one term off. After graduation, all of the students were assigned to each city in the province to serve as water conservancy directors or engineers. Thus, this began the project to organize, plan and educate the people in Henan Province about water conservancy. For the next 17 or 18 years, the project of harnessing the Yellow River made great contributions!
While performing my duties as an industrial technician for the provincial government, I made detailed investigations and plans for water conservancy in Henan Province and the canal system for the Yellow River, including: (1) the diversion of the Yellow River into the Huiji River; (2) the diversion of the Yellow River into the Jialu River; and (3) the diversion of the Yellow River into the Wei River.
The Yellow River is extremely dangerous. My governing doctrine with regard to the Yellow River is not only to eliminate all of its hazards, but to also use it to our advantage. Merely building dikes and embankments is not the fundamental solution [to all of the problems].
The Yellow River carries hundreds of millions of tons of silt everyday from the Loess Plateau. Because the riverbed is higher than the plains, it is said that “the Yellow River is moving towards the sky”. The path of the water flow frequently changes, thus causing damage. During the Song Dynasty, the Yellow River was once diverted and merged into the Huai River, with the Huai River by itself flowing into the Sea. After the sediment of the Yellow River built up, the water of the Huai River stopped flowing and instead pooled into Hongze Lake. Then, it entered the Yangtze River via a canal.
Every summer when the water level rose and could not be drained, there would be a disaster brought about by the Yellow River. Prime Minister Sun Zhongshan’s plan for harnessing the Huai River was to open the northern branch [of the Yellow River] so that it could enter the sea. At the same time, [the plan called for] sorting out [i.e., dredging and redirecting] the southern branch so as to use Lake Hongze to regulate the intake and outtake of water.
Therefore, to control the Yellow River, it not only requires the building of dikes and embankments to deal with the symptoms of the problem. It also requires water and soil management upstream, as well as sorting out [i.e., dredging and redirecting] the middle and lower riverbeds, in order to address the causes of the problem. Therefore, in order to control the Yellow River, you must first dredge and then prevent [the silt from building up].
The sewers in the city of Kaifeng had no places for drainage, and as a result it was smelly with dirty silt, which was harmful to [people’s] health. The Huiji River originated in Kaifeng, but could not be accessed by boat [from other areas]. If the Yellow River was opened and diverted into the Huiji River that passed through Kaifeng, then the accumulated pollution in Kaifeng would be cleared, and the Yellow River would be accessible by [Kaifeng] boats. Then from the west of Kaifeng, the Yellow River would be diverted into the Jialu River, and from the north the Yellow River would be diverted to the Wei River.
The Huiji River flows into the Guo River, and the Guo River flows into the Huai River; the Jialu River also flows eastward into the Huai River; and the Wei River flows northward into the Hai River in Tianjin. Pouring the waters from the Yellow River into the rivers comprised of Huiji, Jialu and Wei could reduce the amount of water in the Yellow River, thereby reducing potential damage that might be done. Via the Huiji and Jialu Rivers, [boat] traffic could reach the Huai River basin. Also, the Wei River flows into the Hai River at the city of Tianjin, which makes it more convenient for transportation [by boat]. Moreover, diverting the flood waters of the Yellow River to the Huiji, Jialu, and Wei Rivers would be a great benefit.
Unfortunately, this painstaking plan was unexpectedly hindered at the time by gentry [i.e., landowners], who were superstitious about Feng Shui and feared that it would be unfavorable to themselves. They stubbornly refused to grant permission and destroyed the project, and for this reason the plan was not implemented. It can clearly be seen, at this time, the people did not have a good understanding of science and were superstitious about Feng Shui. They were being ridiculously stupid! What a pity!
In the 18th year of the Republic [~1929] (when I was 38 years old), the Henan Water Conservancy Engineering College was re-established, which was the only [Hydraulic Engineering College] in the country (although there are River and Oceanology Engineering Schools). Its goal was to cultivate young water conservancy talents throughout the country in order to make a great contribution to national water conservancy.
In the 16th year of the Republic [~1927] (when I was 36 years old), I was promoted to director of the Henan Provincial Water Conservancy Bureau. At this time, I successfully completed the water conservancy survey of Henan Province, divided the water systems of each area, effectively managed flood control and irrigation, and advocated for the integration of industry and education, which extended from Henan to the Yellow River basin and Changliu River Basin.
In my previous position as an industrial technician for the provincial government, the planned Yellow River Project was not fully realized. However, the path from Kaifeng to the Yellow River was opened with [the construction of] a canal more than 10 kilometers long, allowing the sewage to be cleared away and improving sanitation.
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