2
matter to the Taotai, pointing out among other things: (1) that a transit pass for opium was a non-existent document; and (2) that, whereas the total dues now charged on opium shipped through the foreign Customs were 5.28 taels li-kin, 20 taels export or departure duty at Chungking and 52 taels arrival duty at Ichang, these would under the new arrangement, whereby the Szechuan departure duty became payable to the li-kin authorities, be augmented by the payment of an arrival duty of 20 taels to the Imperial Maritime Customs at Ichang on shipment of the drug on board steamer at that port. In other words, the total duty charged would be 97.28 taels in lieu of 77.28 taels. He also endeavoured to make it clear that the dues on the drug not destined for places beyond Shanghae had all along fallen to the share of the li-kin authorities, and that, seeing that Szechuan had now as competitors in the opium production of the Empire the Provinces of Shantung, Honan, Anhui, Kiangsu, Kwangsi, Yunnan, and Kweichow, the policy of increasing the dues on the opium shipped through the Imperial Maritime Customs to Shanghae, the south and the coast ports, was a suicidal one, involving an increase in price to the consumer of the Szechuan article and a consequent fall in the demand.
In the end, the Proclamation was withdrawn and a return made to the practice hitherto in force. I may here mention that, were Wan Hsien an open port, it would be the natural outlet for the opium produced in the Liangshan and Fengtu districts, which would thus be spared the up-river trip to Chungking to permit of shipment through the foreign Customs.
On the 16th ultimo a further Proclamation was posted notifying the inauguration of an export li-kin on goods leaving Chungking by the three main land routes.
These are:-
1. Through the Chao Tien gate, and thence across the Little River to Chiang-pei from which, following along the course of this waterway, it runs viâ Hochou and Suining to Chengtu.
2. Through the Nan Chi and Tung Yuan gates viâ Fu Ton Kuan to Yung Chutan, Pi Shan Hsien, Chiang Chin, Ta Tsu, Jung Chang, Lang Chang, &c., and Chengtu.
3. Through the Taiping and Ch'u Ch'i gates to Hai T'an Ch'i across the Yang-tsze, thence to the Kweichow Province.
The rapacity displayed by Chao Chian, the deputy in charge of this collection, did not stop short of the smallest article passing through the gates mentioned to the places indicated. His p'iao were for as infinitesimal a sum as 1 cash, and not even a box of matches, pair of shoes, hat, piece of ribbon, &c., purchased by peasants and coolies were exempt. In the prosecution of his scheme he detained, as a li-kin payment on a consignment of bristles purchased by the Chungking Trading Company and passing through the Taiping gate, a case and basket of these goods which were about to cross the river to the godowns of the Company on the opposite side. Mr. Nicholson, the local representative of the firm at once requested me to obtain their release, which was duly effected. Mr. Chao's life was a short one: the populace was becoming so enraged at his impositions that the sacking of his Yamen was determined upon. On hearing of this, the Tantai sent a hasty wire to the Viceroy; the Commandant of the local militia had his men under orders to appear on the scene at the first sign of disturbance and to attempt, by exhortation-not by use of arms-to prevent the people achieving their purpose; while the deputy in charge of the Lao li-kin (import), whose office is situated in the same street as that of his confrère, lost no time in putting up a Proclamation to the following effect: "It is not me: these are not my ways. It is the man next door: vent your wrath upon him." The Viceroy saved the situation by telegraphing the dismissal of Chao and placing the Chungking Prefect temporarily in charge.
It will be seen from the above how determined is the effort being made to stimulate the li-kin collection, the work, as I have already stated, of the Chief of the Head Li-kin Office at Chengtu. On the 25th March last, Messrs. Jardine, Matheson and Co. reported that a consignment of their goods, properly furnished with transit passes for Chengtu, had there been detained for li-kin and requested me to obtain their release. Having satisfied myself that the case was a bona fide one, I communicated by telegraph with His Majesty's Consul-General, who at once effected the required release.
(Signed)
H. E. SLY,
British Acting Consul.
Chungking, May 24, 1904.
(This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.)
469
CHINA TRADE.
[August 20.]
CONFIDENTIAL.
SECTION 1.
No. 1.
Acting Consul Sly to the Marquess of Lansdowne.-(Received August 20.)
(No. 8. Confidential.) (Extract.)
Chungking, June 30, 1904.
I HAVE the honour to inclose herewith copy of a Report on the trade of Thibet with the Province of Szechuan, through Kuan Hsien, Mao Chow, and Sungp'an, written by the Commissioner of Customs at this port, and which that gentleman has kindly allowed me to transmit for your Lordship's confidential information. Mr. W. C. H. Watson has been stationed for three years in Chungking, and is well acquainted with the commercial conditions of the province.
(Confidential.)
Inclosure in No. 1.
Report on the Trade of Thibet.
Kuan Hsien.-The trade of Kuan Hsien is of considerable importance, as may be seen from the figures given in the table. Situated as the town is on the border-line dividing Chinese Szechuan proper from that portion of the province inhabited by the Mantzu tribes, the chief business of the place consists of dealings in wool, soda, indigo, and of the medicines of the Chinese pharmacopoeia for which these districts are noted. It is also the centre of many coal mines, the produce of which is in demand on account of the excellence of the output. Medicines are brought in by merchants who periodically visit the tribesmen for purposes of trade and with whom dealings are conducted by a system of exchange and barter. A Chinese merchant will come into Kuan Hsien with the stock he has thus procured, proceed to one of the many inns, and inform the inn-keeper of what he has for sale. The inn-keepers act as a sort of brokers; they have the daily price of staples posted up in their establishments, and introduce customers. Customers thus introduced, mostly agents for Chengtu firms, buy on credit of one or two months, as the case may be, and the innkeeper is responsible to the seller for the payment of goods when due. For his services he charges a fixed rate of 3 per cent. on all transactions taking place at his inn. Ready money dealings are rare and do not appear to be appreciated.
ESTIMATED Annual Quantities of Goods passing inwards through Kuan Hsien.
Description Classifier of Quantity Quantity Value Medicines Value Taels. 180,000 Young deer horns Catties 1,500 30,000 Old deer horns Piculs 1,500 6,000 Musk Taels 16,000 216,000 Wool Piculs 5,000 55,000 Indigo Value 160,000 Soda 150,000 Timber 60,000 Total 847,000[2108 u-1]
2
matter to the Taotai, pointing out among other things: (1) that a transit pass for oprum was a non-existent document; and (2) that, whereas the total dues now charged on opium shipped through the foreign Customs were 5.28 taels li-kin, 20 taels export or departure duty at Chungking and 52 taels arrival duty at Ichang, these would under the new arrangement, whereby the Szechuan departure duty became payable to the li-kin authorities, be augmented by the payment of an arrival duty of 20 taels to the Imperial Maritime Customs at Ichang on shipment of the drug on board steamer at that port. In other words, the total duty charged would be 97-28 taels in lieu of 77:28 taels. He also endeavoured to make it clear that the dues on the drug not destined for places beyond Shanghae bad all along fallen to the share of the li-kin authorities, and that, seeing that Szechuan had now as competitors in the opium production of the Empire the Provinces of Shantung, Honan, Anhui, Kiangsu, Kwangsi, Yunnan, and Kweichow, the policy of increasing the dues on the opium shipped through the Imperial Maritime Customs to Shanghae, the south and the coast ports, was a suicidal one, involving an increase in price to the consumer of the Szechuan article and a consequent fall in the demand.
In the end, the Proclamation was withdrawn and a return made to the practice hitherto in force. I may here mention that, were Wan Hsien an open port, it would be the natural outlet for the opium produced in the Liangshan and Fengtu districts, which would thus be spared the up-river trip to Chungking to permit of shipment through the foreign Customs.
On the 16th ultimo a further Proclamation was posted notifying the inauguration of an export li-kin on goods leaving Chungking by the three main land routes.
'These are :-
1. Through the Chao Tien gate, and thence across the Little River to Chiang-pei from which, following along the course of this waterway, it runs viâ Hochou and Suining to Chengtu.
2. Through the Nan Chi and Tung Yuan gates viâ Fu Ton Kuan to Yung Chutan, Pi Shan Hsica, Chiang Chin, Ta Tsu, Jung Chang, Lang Chang, &c., and Chengtu.
3. Through the Taiping and Ch'n Ch'i gates to Hai T'an Ch'i across the Yang-tsze, thence to the Kweichow Province.
**
The rapacity displayed by Chao Chian, the deputy in charge of this collection, did not stop short of the smallest article passing through the gates mentioned to the places indicated. His p'iao" were for as infinitesimal a sum as I cash, and not even a box of matches, pair of shoes, hat, piece of ribbon, &c., purchased by peasants and coolies 'were exempt. In the prosecution of his scheme he detained, as a li-kin payment on a con- signment of bristles purchased by the Chungking Trading Company and passing through the Taiping gate, a case and basket of these goods which were about to cross the river to the godowns of the Company on the opposite side. Mr. Nicholson, the local representative of the firm at once requested me to obtain their release, which was duly effected. Mr. Chao's life was a short one: the populace was becoming so enraged at his impositions that the sacking of his Yemen was determined upon. On hearing of this, the Tantai sent a hasty wire to the Viceroy; the Commandant of the local militia had his men under orders to appear on the scene at the first sign of disturbance and to attempt, by exhortation-not by use of arms-to prevent the people achieving their purpose; while the deputy in charge of the Lao li-kin (import), whose office is situated in the same street as that of his confrère, lost no time in putting up a Proclamation to the following effect: "It is not me: these are not my ways. It is the man next door: vent your wrath upon him." The Viceroy saved the situation by telegraphing the dismissal of Chao and placing the Chung- king Prefect temporarily in charge.
It will be seen from the above how determined is the effort being made to stimulate the li-kin collection, the work, as I have already stated, of the Chief of the Head Li-kin Office at Chengtu. On the 25th March last, Messrs. Jardine, Matheson and Co. reported that a consignment of their goods, properly furnished with transit passes for Chengtu, had there been detained for li-kin and requested me to obtain their release. Having satisfied myself that the case was a bond fide one, I communicated by telegraph with His Majesty's Consul-General, who at once effected the required release.
H. E. SLY, British Acting Consul. Chungking, May 24, 1904.
(Signed)
(This Document is the Property of His Britannic Majesty's Government.j
469
CHINA TRADE.
[August 20.]
CONFIDENTIAL.
SECTION 1.
No. 1.
Acting Consul Sly to the Marquess of Lansdowne.-(Received August 20.)
(No. 8. Confidential.) (Extract.)
Chungking, June 30, 1904.
I HAVE the honour to inclose herewith copy of a Report on the trade of Thibet with the Province of Szechuan, through Kuan Hsien, Mao Chow, and Sungp'an, written by the Commissioner of Customs at this port, and which that gentleman has kindly allowed me to transmit for your Lordship's confidential information. Mr. W. C. H. Watson has been stationed for three years in Chungking, and is well acquainted with the commercial conditions of the province.
(Confidential.)
Inclosure in No. 1.
Report on the Trade of Thibet.
Kuan Hsien.-The trade of Kuan Hsien is of considerable importance, as may be seen from the figures given in the table. Situated as the town is on the border-line dividing Chinese Szechuan proper from that portion of the province inhabited by the Mantzu tribes, the chief business of the place consists of dealings in wool, soda, indigo, and of the medicines of the Chinese pharmacopoeia for which these districts are noted. It is also the centre of many coal mines, the produce of which is in demand on account of the excellence of the output. Medicines are brought in by merchants who periodically visit the tribesmen for purposes of trade and with whom dealings are A Chinese merchant will come into conducted by a system of exchange and barter. Kuan Hsien with the stock he has thus procured, proceed to one of the many inns, and inform the inn-keeper of what he has for sale. The inn-keepers act as sort of brokers; they have the daily price of staples posted up in their establishments, and introduce customers. Customers thus introduced, mostly agents for Chengtu firms, buy on credit of one or two months, as the case may be, and the innkeepeer is responsible to the seller for the payment of goods when due. For his services he charges a fixed rate of 3 per cent. on all transactions taking place at his inn. Ready. money dealings are rare and do not appear to be appreciated.
ESTIMATED Annual Quantities of Goods passing inwards through Kuan Hsien.
Description.
Classifier of Quantity.
Quantity,
Value.
Medicines
Value
Taels. 180,000
Young deer horns
Catties
1,500
30,000
Old deer horns
Piculs
1,500
6,000
Musk
Taels
16,000
216,000
Wool
Piculs
5,000
55,000
Indigo
Value
160,000
150,000
Soda
1:
60,000
Timber
"
847,000
Total
B
[2108 u-1]
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