632
TIENTSIN
churches (Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Union). June, 1905.
Electric lighting was introduced in
Distilling is one of the largest local industries; it is chiefly from kowliang (sorghum) or millet. Although a spirit, it is called "wine," and is exported to the south in large quantities. The manufacture of coarse unrefined salt by the evaporation of sea water is also carried on near Taku; the produce is stacked some distance down river at the first cutting, where all the salt junks now go. The trade in salt is a Govern- ment monopoly. In 1909 the salt export was valued at nearly six and a half million taels. Carpets, shoes, glass, coarse earthenware, and fireworks are also made in large quantities in the city, but Tientsin is at present essentially a centre for distribution and collection rather than for manufacture. The exports include coal, wool (from Kokonor, Kanshu, etc.), bristles, straw braid, goat skins, furs, wine, etc. The export trade is a creation of the last 15 or 20 years, and is largely due to foreign initiative. Wool cleaning and braid and bristle sorting are the chief industries in the foreign hongs except those of the Russians, who are exclusively engaged in the transit of tea. The imports are of the usual miscellaneous nature: arms, tea for the Desert and Siberia, mineral oil, matches, and needles figure next to piece-goods. The fine arts are unknown to the Tientsinese except in the shape of cleverly-made mud-figures; these are painted and make really admirable statuettes, but are difficult to carry away, being remarkably brittle.
The export coal trade may be expected to develop rapidly, as the Chinese Corpora- tion has been replaced by a strong combination of British and Belgian capitalists registered as an English limited liability company. The output and sale of the Kaiping collieries is about 3,500,000 tons a year, of which about 400,000 tons annually are brought to Tientsin for disposal to local consumers and to native craft navigating the Grand Canal and other inland waterways. Tientsin is the principal sea out- let for the entire trade of the provinces of Chihli, Shansi, Shensi, Kansuh, and part of Honan, with a population not far short of 100,000,000, but the trade of the port for some years past has shown little tendency to increase. Following are the comparative statistics for the years 1914, 1915 and 1916:-
Net total imports-
Foreign
Native...
...
...
Total exports of local origin
1914
1915
1916 Tls. 68,710,413 Tls. 52,859,966 Tls. 57,606,509
""
...
""
20,227,657 34,701,706
""
""
22,333,528 49,859,964
"
""
26,703,768 48,710,122
Net value of trade of port ... Tls. 123,639,776 Tls. 125,053,458 Tls. 133,020,399
DIRECTORY
***** Ching-ching-chi-ch'i-ch'ang ADAIR, GRAHAM & Co., Structural, Heating, Sanitary and General Engineers, Ship Repairers, Boiler Makers, Founders and Contractors, Office and Works-British Bund; Teleph. 1195; Tel. Ad: Adair: Codes A1, A.B.C., Lieber's, Bentley's, and Engineering
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H. March, representative
F. M. Thomson
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