June 26, 1909.]
advisers, China has "lost" the rights, which as a nation properly belonged to her, of issu- ing her own national coinage, and having her own monetary currency. As a patent fact, China never at any period of her existence possessed a national currency, nor a national coinage the nearest approach to such being her issue of copper cash, a thousand of which at the time when grain was cheapest were required to purchase a picul of rice. Such a currency when attempted to he made use of in wholesale transactions at once broke down, owing to its small intrinsic value preventing its carriage from one market to another. Merchants and banks had to step in, and silver bullion, at first merely an article of barter, came to be elevated into a quasi but the one thing assiduously currency; avoided in this substitute currency was any government mark as a signal of its issue under imperial authority. The national government was, in fact, of all other things the most to be dreaded, as dearly bought experience had long taught the nation.
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
It is thus that China has "lost the sover- eign rights" which she never was able to grasp, of her judiciary, her tariffs, ber postal service, and last but not least of her currency and coinage. So soon as the Gov- ernment has taken to heart the old proverb that "honesty is the best policy," so soon China will discover that there is no need of foolish protests, and that without any exer- tions on her part the "sovereign rights will come back of their own accord, nor need any pressure from the party of the reactionaries.
MACAO HARBOUR.
(Daily Press, 23 June.)
"
now
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the cardinal virtue wanting with the Chinese | port and indicated the works necessary issues of being genuine, and representing to remedy the evil. But nothing was their full face value.
done to give effect to his recommendations. Other engineers have been seat out from time to time and made similar reports, The community by public petition has more than once earnestly appealed to the Government at Lisbon to authorise the purchase of dredgers by the Colonial Government out of the Colonial revenue. But the policy has been to drain the Colony of all its surplus revenue either for the benefit of Timor or to augment the revenue of the Home Government; and now that Masao has no surpluses to deal with the authorisation has come for an expendi. ture of $180,000 on harbour improvements. The provision of the money may not Had the be the only difficulty. undertaking been commenced years ago, So often during the past thirty years have no obstacle would have presented itself, The people of Macao been told that the but now that Young China is clamouring Government at Lishon has approved an for the recovery of "lost sovereign rights," appropriation for the dredging of the harit will probably be found that even if funds bour, and then left the local Governmentwith absolutely no funds for the work, that very little serious notice appears to have been taken in the Colony of the recent news that the Home Government has voted for this purpose eighty-nine contos, equivalent to about $180,000 Mexican. Where, it is asked, is this money to come from? The news reached the Colony by cable, and it is generally supposed that the meaning of the announcement is not that the Hom" Govern- ment will contribute this sum, but that it h's simply approved the expenditure out of the funds of the Colonial Treasury, which, as everybody knows, is in a sadly depleted e ndition. However, His Excellency the GOVERNOR apparently lost no time in taking steps to start the work as soon as the sanction of the Home authorities was received.
54
A!!
In fact, for upwards of two centuries foreign merchants trading with China hav been unanimous--perhaps the only thing in which they have ever been unanimous in pressing on China the advisability in her own, no less than their, interests of issuing a regular coinage on whose purity and weight the merchants and pe ple could depend. It was thus that in all past ages foreign coins have found favourable accept ance in China, and the only compulsion ever used was the untrustworthy nature of her own issue. Yet this did not proceed from ig- norance. So long ago as the time of HAN WU-TI, when China of her own accord opened up to trade the whole of Western Asia, the superiority of the foreign coinage of the old Greek Kingdoms was a subject of admira tion. Each coin, says the old historian fficial was dispatched to Kobe, to buy a bore on its face the image of the reigning dredger,and he has now returned with a dredg. monarch, which was changed at his death. ing implement which our correspondent The contrast between this money and the, describes as a grab." As the cost of it even then, dehased money of China was a is stated to be only $10,000, we can recognise common subject of remark. At various it as something very inadequate for the times reformers have urged on the Govern purposes of the undertaking. Indeed, the ment of China the strong advisability of entire appropriation for harbour works i reforming its currener, and at times China not more than enough to purchase a suitable has listened and eagerly grasped the ide. dredger at second hand. When the Hong- But the end has alwars been the same, kong Government, about eighteen months Without sufficient intelligence to grasp the ago, wanted a dredger to prepare the site of subject, the Government has from time to the new typhoon shelter at Mongkoktsu time taken in hand the issue of coins; but they acquired one from the contractors for with that perversion of right that clings the Naval Extension Works for $170,000, through the centuries to Chinese govern- and considered that they had made a good mental measures, no sooner has a successful bargain, as the dredger cost originally issue been made than the process of debase about twice that sum. Even were there entm again sets in; until, as in the case of no doubt about the $180,000 for the the iron cash issue of HIENFUNG, the Gov- | work at Macao being forthcoming, ernment coins have become actually worth, it is only necessary to mention the cost less, and by an offended people have been of dredgers to indicate what justifica- thrown out in the streets, for any one to picktion exists for the belief expressed by our up. It cannot be pleaded that in the present day affairs have in any manner changed for the better, as the recent issue of ten cent pieces, urged by Peking as a matter of financial reform, goes to prove. The ill-faith of the Government has in this case so far reflected on itself, that it now perforce has to stand by while it sees its example followed by the provincial banks in the unrestricted issue of bank notes, already becoming a drug on the market. We have not space to go into the interesting story of how for nearly a century the Spanish pillar dollar came practically to be the cur- rency of China. We are, however, quite justified in pointing out that the only compulsion exercised in the matter was the innate baduess of the pretended currency of barbour China, which drove her merchants and peo-anchorage." The engineer submitted a ple to adopt as their own the coinage of a report of 140 pages, in which he graphically foreign country; which, however, possessed described the deplorable condition of the
are available, political difficulties are not unlikely to arise. It is an open secret that the Chinese authorities do not view with complacency the claim of the Portuguese to exercise entire control over the inner harbour of Macao, and possibly something may be heard on this subject now that the Delimitation Commissioners are about to to discuss the vexed question of the boundaries of the Colony. Perhaps when these matters are finally settled we may hope to see ૉ. more serious attempt made to improve the harbour, but we very much fear that the undertaking is now beyond the financial resources of the Colony.
meet
THE FRENCH POSTAL STRIKE.
(Daily Press, June 24th) The upshot of the Postal strike which recently occurred in Paris, and which attracted so much attention at the time, is worthy of study as showing that whatever inconvenience such movements may occasion, they are not altogether of so serious a character as might upon general consider- ations be imagined. That the whole telegraph system, not merely of France, but of the world, should be put out of gear even for a single day would seem so grave a matter that it can scarcely be imagined that such an event could be allowed to be possible in any civilized country, or that it could occur without results that would be of the most far-reaching character. And yet the event has actually occurred, and in the course of few days the whole uiatter was at end and things had resumed their normal
course.
The feeling of most people when the news was first received was that law and order were at an end in France and that the country had fallen entirely into the hands of irresponsible associations, and might before long be in that of the mob. More or less this really seemed to be the state of affairs;
cause
Macao correspondent that "no serious progress is possible with this work unless the Government entrusts it to a competent foreign firm or a responsible public company.
and the Head of the Postal Then we may have some confidence in this much-needed improvement being effected. Department did not fail so to represent it
when
It But, as it is, the purchase of a ten-thousand
speaking in the Assembly. dollar 'grab' is simply throwing dust in the appeared beyond doubt that there had been eyes of the public." It can hardly be errors of administration which gave just pleaded that the Portuguese authorities at
for discontent to the employees-- a considerable amount of Lishon are ignorant of the character of the among them work which needs to be done. Nearly thirty favouritism in appointments and promotions years ago an engineer was sent out "to-but it was forcibly and justly observed report on the works necessary not only that any such shortcomings could not be for the improvement of the harbour considered sufficient ground for the adop- of Macao, but also to prevent the continuous tion of so extreme a step as combining to silting up which renders access to the disorganise a public service upon which the
difficult and deteriorates the
the commercial and (private interests and even the very safety of the The feeling in the country depended. Assembly was so strong that the Governy
whole of