[33236]
41
No. 86.
(No. 278.) Sir,
Mr. Alston to Sir Edward Grey-(Received July 19.)
Peking, July 4, 1913.
I HAVE the honour to report that the "Peking Daily News" has published a summary of the Budget for the first six months of 1913, which has been before the Chinese Parliament. Though the figures given are merely estimates compiled for the consumption of the House of Representatives, they may be taken to reflect more or less the present state of China's finances. The deficit shown for the present half-year is 117,486,572 dollars or nearly 12,000,0007, amount to 51,336,880 dollars (over 5,000,000l.), do not of course take into account The receipts, which only payments received from the Reorganisation Loan, which should reduce the item of 79,199,844 dollars (8,000,0007.) for national debts by more than half. On the other hand, as far as adininistrative expenditure is concerned, the 5,500,0001, allotted by the quintuple group for this purpose is to cover the expenses for the six months from April to September inclusive, and, therefore, two-thirds of this cannot be apportioned to the relief of the anticipated deficit for the first half of this year, while an extra interest charge of 1,250,000l. per annum will have to be found on account of this loan.
their means.
The financial situation thus revealed is therefore a serious one, especially when it is remembered that the present budget only includes the actual expenditure of the Central Government, and that the provincial Governments are all living far beyond Thus the total expenditure of the Ministry of War which is put at 22,836,758 dollars (or 3,000,000l.), only provides payment for the troops, about 70,000, which are under their present control. The remainder, about four times that number, are living on the provinces in which they are quartered, and being paid out of salt and land revenues which should by rights be forwarded to Peking. After repeated urgent telegraphic requests to the various provinces the Government appears to have extracted from them reluctant promises that a total sum of 18,501,846 dollars (1,900,0001.) should be remitted between January and June. The sources of these contributions are not mentioned, but the largest amount promised by any province is 5,370,531 dollars (over 500,0001.) from Kiangsu a province which is supposed to produce more than three times this sum a year in salt revenue alone. The annual contributions promised under the loan agreement, pending the reorganisation of the salt gabelle were as follows:-
Chilli-1,600,000 taels (240,0001.) secured on the land tax, the tax on title deeds, and the taxes on spirits and tobacco.
Honan-2,400,000 taels (360,0002.) secured on the land tax, grain tribute, and tax
on title-deeds.
Shantung.-2,400,000 taels (360,000Z) secured on the land tax, grain tribute, Lien-ch'ing native customs revenues, tax on tobacco and spirits.
Kiangsu.-3,600,000 taela (540,000%) secured on the land tax, grain tribute,
and li-kin.
The above four provinces have contributed their full quota, but it is hardly to be expected that they will desire to continue indefinitely to shoulder the burden of the whole country. Kuangtung, especially, having been foremost in advocating the establishment of a republic, not only contributes nothing towards the common funds, but is ceaselessly pressing Peking for money to redeem its depreciated paper issues, for payment of troops and for administrative expenses.
There is of course the political reason for this. By remitting money to Peking, the southern provinces would merely strengthen the ascendancy of the north to which they are implacably opposed; while for Peking to have remitted money to the now dismissed Tutus of Kiangsi, Anhui, and Kuangtung, would have been to provide them with the sinews of war against the Central Government
Only three salt districts are mentioned in the budget, and they were estimated to produce the following sums during the first half of the year:-
[1089]
Changlu salt district
Shantung
Fengtien
:::
:::
dollars.
1,572,542
180,000 115,000
M
247