Directory_and_Chronicle_1913 — Page 900

SHANGHAI

855

Six daily newspapers: the North-China Daily News, the Shanghai Times, L'Echo de Chine and China Press, morning; the Shanghai Mercury and the China Gazette, evening; and the weeklies include the North-China” Herald, Celestial Empire, Ostasiatische Lloyd, The Union, Sport and Gossip. There are upwards of a dozen native daily papers, the leading ones being the Shun-pao, the Hu-po, the Sin-wan-pun, the Shi Po, 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 circulation of 10,000 per day. In one matter, that of postal accommodation, Shanghai is over-su, plied, much to the disadvantage of the resident community, there being British, French, American, Japanese, German, Russian, and Imperial Chinese Post Offices. The latter was organized by the Martime Customs and is at present being conducted under the auspices of the Board of Communications. 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. 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 6,508 jinrickshas, 5,310 passenger and cargo wheelbarrows, 682 ponies, and 535 horse carriages ply for hire in the se.tlements, besides large numbers outside. Of private vehicles there were licensed in 1911, 4,603 rickshas, 742 carriages, 217 motor cars, and 930 ponies. The water conveyances licensed numbered 72 foreign cargo boats, 1,380 native cargo boats, 60 ferry and passenger boats, 1,643 other boats, 237 sampans, and 107 steam launches. There are 19 foreign and 21 native theatres registered within the Anglo-American Settlement.

The currency of Shanghai is the tael weight of silver-equal to 579.84 grains troy, of fineness 0.916, but reckoned at 98. That is to say, that an actual weight of 8 taels is counted as 100. The Shanghai tael thus contains, or should contain, 52.43 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 set lement. 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, 57, 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 :-

1903... Hk. Tls. 351,200,609 at Ex. 1.54 Mex. $541,348,938 at Ex. 2s. 7jd., £46,338,969

2s. 103d., £58,059,210

1904...

1905...

405,064,260 443,954,262

1.55

**

"7

1.55

"

*

$627,849,603 8688,129,106

1906...

421,956,496

1.54

"}

"

* 649,813,033

"}

1907...

"}

392,731,600

1.51

"

"

$593,024,716

"

1908...

1909...

397,106,850

1.48

>>

"

>>

$587,718,138

"

28. 0d., £66,778,120 3s. 3 d., £69,447,006- 3s. 3d., £63,818,885 3s. 8d., £52,947,580

11

449,242,406

1.48

99

カラ

$664,-78,760

**

2s. 7 d., £58,378,114

1910...

1911...

""

471,071,623

1.48

"

"

$701,896,718

"

484,202,222

1.48

"

$716,619,288

"

2s. 8d., £63,422,924

2s. 8 d., £96,295,716 Digitized by

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