A32
TIENTSIN
mum qualification for any voter, irrespective of nationality, is the payment of Tis 200 per annum in respect of land tax or rental assessment tax or the occupation of premises of an assessed annual rental value of Tls. 600.
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A feature of Tientsin which arrests the attention of visitors is the open-air storage of cargo on the British and French Bunds, which have thus become in effect a general godown." A great deal of confusion and congestion formerly existed from this practice, but the British Municipality has since elaborated an excellent scheme whereby the Bund is divided into numbered steamer-sec- tions and storage-spaces, and the roadway is now kept clear of cargo. The result has more than justified expectations, and the orderly storage of goods in marked-off spaces not only allows a proper control to be kept over all such cargo but has facilitated communications by keeping the carriage-way clear of obstructions.
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The Racecourse is situated about 3 miles to the west of the Gordon Hall and comprises a very valuable property of about 1,227 mow of land. New betting buildings of reinforced concrete, which surpass anything of the description in the Far East, were constructed in 1921.
In spite of the general trade depression, the Chinese Government Tele phone Administration registered an increase both in activity and in revenue for the year 1930. An extension of lines was made in the west end of the na tive city in May, and another was made in the Hopei district in December. There was a partial change to automatic machines, which are greatly appre ciated by the subscribers. At present there are 11 long-distance lines operat ing between Tientsin and places as far afield as Peiping and Shenyang, while a relay service was established between Tientsin and Antung, Dairen, Port Arthur, and Japan.
TRADE IN 1937.
Had it not been for the outbreak of Sino-Japanese hostilities in July, the year 1937 would undoubtedly have been a prosperous one for Tientsin. Brighter prospects and peaceful conditions synchronised with the revival in world trade, while stable exchange, resulting from the currency reforms of 1935, linked the area-China's second largest trade centre with the general upward economic trend. From January to July total importations were valued at $69 million, exceeding those for the same period of the previous year by nearly 100 per cent, while the value of exports abroad reached $98 million, representing an increase of over 50 per cent when compared with the corresponding period of 1936. Exports in all lines were at higher levels, and this factor, combined with the bumper crops of 1936, enhanced the purchasing power of the peasantry in the interior, with the resultant corollary that the import trade also benefited. In
August, however, and the months following the picture underwent a complete
change, military operations bringing in their wake the usual stagnation of trade. Importing firms lost heavily, partly through the inability of customers to obtain funds and partly due to their inability to locate their customers in the interior. In many cases also, goods destined for Tientsin were landed en route and sail- ings for South China were curtailed, while orders already placed abroad had to be cancelled. The lot of exporters was no better, disruption of railway com- munications and other means of transport completely cutting off Tientsin from its sources of supply, while unfavourable offers from markets abroad for all commodities also served to hamper the export trade.
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The value statistics for the port as recorded by the Customs were as follows: direct foreign imports, $84.1 million as compared with $72.6 million in 1936; coastwise importations of Chinese merchandise, $93.2 million as against $116.2 million; direct exportations to foreign countries, $128.9 million as compared with $117.8 million; and coastwise exportations of Chinese produce, $52.2 million as against $58.2 million.