770
SHANGHAI
All
is at present being conducted under, the auspices of the Maritime Customs. The former Municipal Local Post was in 1898 incorporated with it. It undertakes the transmission of small 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. 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 8,204 jinrickshas, 7,386 passenger and cargo wheel- barrows, 812 ponies, and 642 horse carriages ply for hire in the settlements, besides large numbers outside. Of private vehicles there were licensed in 1907, 5,625 rickshaws, 993 carriages, 96 motor cars, and 1,239 ponies. The water conveyances licensed numbered 77 foreign cargo boats, 761 native cargo boats, 66 ferry and passenger boats, 1,500 other boats, 189 sampans, and 110 steam launches. There are 12 foreign and 22: native theatres registered within the Anglo-American Settlement.
The currency of Shanghai is the tael weight-equal to 579.84 grains troy, of fineness- 0.916, but reckoned at 98. That is to say that an actual weight of 98 taels is counted as 100. The Shanghai tael thus contains, or should contain, 520.43 gr. troy of pure silver, but varies owing to the crude methods of assay. This is however the mean. The silver known as "sycee" is cast into "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, or equivalent dollars from the various provincial mints, 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 was however, a rapid recovery up to 1905; the total trade in foreign bottoms, import and export, for the last nine years, as given by the Customs Statistical Depart- ment, being :-
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Ofd., £46,164,949 3s. 1 d., £37,809,802 2s. 11d., £44,224,159 2s. 7 d., £44,995,972 2s. 7 d., £46,338,969 2s. 103d., £58,059,210 3s. 0d., £66,778,120 38. 3 d., £69,447,006 3d., £63,818,885
1899... Hk. Tls. 306,701,390 at Ex. 1.53 Mex.
1890...
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243,606,777
1.55
""
1901...
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298,454,780
1.52
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29
1902...
346,122,864
1.51
""
1903...
351,200,609
1.54
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"
1904...
""
1905...
1906...
1907...
405,064,260 443,954,262 421,956,496 392,731,600
1.55
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1.55
"
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$469,253,127 at Ex. 3s. $377,590,504 $453,651,266 8522,645,525 $541,348,938 $627,849,603 $688,129,106
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""
1.54
31
""
1.51
"}
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649,813,033 $593,024,716
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3s.
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The following tables show the export of Tea and Silk for seven years:-
Tea- Black
1902...
1903... 1904... 1905...
1906...
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Brick Green 1901...piculs 178,075 168,877 192,277 185,255 101,643 250,560 231,025 181,832 294,861 182,810 137,532 104,323 98,389 175,803 269,485
Silk Wild Waste Cocoon s
1901...71,358
14,115 36,668 4,823 1902...63,370 10,819 39,515 9,493 1903...38,162 15,945
45,692
15,633
243,341
1904...54,135 27,276
35,626
6,958
1907...
197,824 311,138
259,077 1905...45,766 19,201 223,837 1906...50,520 18,865 49,708 279,031 | 1907...54,031 16,952
55,570
9,247
8,443
71,438 8,850
The Import trade in Foreign Goods for 1907 was as follows:-
From Foreign Countries and Hongkong
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From Chinese Ports
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Hk. Tls. 192,765,079 1,703,068
Hk. Tls. 194,468,147
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