Directory_and_Chronicle_1906 — Page 817

688

SHANGHAI

accommodation equal to that of any port in the East. There are five daily news- papers, the North China Daily News, The Shanghai Times, and L'Echo de Chine, morning, the Shanghai Mercury and the China Gazette, evening; five weeklies, the North China Herald, Celestial Empire, Ostasiatische Lloyd, The Union, and Sport and Gossip and two illustrated monthlies the-East of Asia and the Cosmopolitan. There are four native daily papers, the Shun-pao, the Hu-pao, the Sin-wan-pas, and the Universal Gazette, the latter representing the Reform movement. These are sold at the prices of ten and eight cash, equal to about a farthing. Some of them have a circula- tion of 10,000 per day. In one matter, that of postal accommodation, Shanghai is perhaps over-supplied, there being British, French, American, Japanese, German, Russian, and Imperial Chinese Post Offices. The latter was organized by and is at present being conducted under the auspices of the Maritime Customs. The Municipal Local Post was in 1898 incorporated with it. It undertakes the transmission of sniall sums of money and accepts the registration of letters. It will probably be some years before the difficulties inevitable in a country like China are overcome, and foreigners are, justly or unjustly, doubtful as to the inviolability of their correspondence. It is understood that China will apply for admission to the Postal Union. Shanghai was made a port of Registry for British ships in 1874. All foreign hongs and even private houses have to give themselves fancy Chinese names, by which only they are known to the natives. The system is, however, found to have its conveniences. No less than 6,315 jinrickshas, 6,691 passenger and cargo wheelbarrows, 784 ponies, 632 horse car- riages ply for hire in the Settlements, besides large numbers outside. Of private vehicles there were licensed in 1904, 4,857 rickshaws, 875 carriages, 19 motor cars, and 1,100 ponies. The water conveyances licensed numbered about 890 foreign cargo boats, 9,505 native cargo boats, 533 ferry and passenger boats, 16,911 other boats, 2,364 sampans and 94 steam launches. There are 21 native theatres within the Anglo-American Settlement.

The currency of Shanghai is the tael weight (equal to one and a third ounces avoirdupois) of silver cast into "shoes" of fifty taels, more or less.

shoes" of fifty taels, more or less. The foreign banks issue notes of the value of one dollar and upwards for both taels and dollars. Smaller transactions are conducted in clean Mexican dollars, smaller subsidiary provincial silver coins and copper cash. There are eight foreign and numerous native banks in the Settlement. In 1896 the Imperial Chinese Bank, under Chinese and European management, was opened by Imperial Decree.

TRADE AND COMMERCE

Shanghai is the great emporium for the trade of the Yangtsze and Northern and Corean ports, and to some extent for Japan. The total import and export trade of 1868 amounted to sixty-five million taels. It steadily increased each year until 1881, when it reached Hk. Tls. 141,921,357, but afterwards showed a great decline, the total for 1884 having been twenty per cent. less than that of 1881. There has since, however, been a rapid recovery, the total trade in foreign bottoms, import and export, for the last eight years, as given by the Customs Statistical Depart- ment, being:

1897... Hk. Tls. 265,678,990 at Ex. 1.50 Mex. $398,518,485 at Ex. 2s. 113d., £39,575,099 1898...

1899...

1900...

39

1901...

· 1902... 1903... 1904...

""

27

251,205,837 300,701,390 243,606,777 298,454,780 346,122,864

1.51

"}

79

1.53

"}

""

1.55

97

"1

1.52

""

$379,320,814 $409,253,127 $377,590,504 $453,651,266

""

"1

"

1.51

"}

"

$522,645,525

""

351,200,609

1.54

"1

$541,348,938

405,064,260

1.55

"

$627,849,603

""

""

2s. 10žd., £36,241,775 3s. Old., £46,164,949 3s. 1d., £37,809,802 2s. 11d., £44,224,159 2s. 7., £44,995,972 2s. 7 d., £46,338,969 2s. 10 d., £58,059,210

The following tables show the export of Tea and Silk for six years:-

1900...

1901... 1902... 1903... 1901...

"

""

""

Tea-Black Brick Green 1899...piculs 133,775 151,985 201,839 210,912 230,623 196,542 178,075 168,877 192,277 185,255 101,643 250,560 231,025 181,832 294,861 182,810 137,532 243,341

Silk Wild Waste Cocoons 1899...84,720 17,583 52,008 9,016 1900...48,355 13,068 39,157 6,484 1901...71,358 14,115 36,668 4,823 1902...63,370 10,819 1903...38,162 15,945 1904...54,135 27,276

39,515

9.493

45,692

15,633

35,626

6,958