摘要
AN arid climate and infertile land kept Dingxi City in Northwest China’s Gansu Province,on the upper reaches of the Yellow River,in a state of poverty for centuries.Qing Dynasty(1644-1911)governor Zuo Zongtang(1812-1885)said in a letter to the emperor in 1876 that the area was the poorest in the country.Throughout its long history。
AN arid climate and infertile land kept Dingxi City in North- west China＇s Gansu Province, -on the upper reaches of the Yellow River, in a state of poverty for centuries. Qing Dynasty （1644-1911） gov- ernor Zuo Zongtang （1812-1885） said in a letter to the emperor in 1876 that the area was the poorest in the country. Throughout its long history, Dingxi＇s inhabitants primarily made their liv- ing by farming, but due to low rainfall and frequent drought, the wheat yield was only 750 kg per hectare a year. Lo- cal residents hence always lived under a lurking threat of starvation.
