CHINA
519'
both the Ordinary and Extraordinary Receipts $473,048,764. The total Extraordinary Expenditure was $181,035,114 and the grand total of both the Ordinary and Extra- ordinary Expenditure $472,838,584. If figures were published now they would be greatly in excess of these.
The Maritime Customs and the Salt Gabelle are the only two sources of revenue for which exact figures are so far available. The Customs receipts for 1917 amounted to Hk. Taels 38,189,000, an increase of Hk. Tls. 425,000 as compared with 1916. It can scarcely be hoped that the figures for 1918 will be as good. The net receipts of the Salt Gabelle for 1917 were $70,627,249, a decrease of $1,813,310 as compared with 1916. All obligations secured on the Salt Revenue were fully met, and the release of surplus funds handed over to the Chinese Government during 1917 amounted to $68,613,370, or roughly 12 million dollars more than in 1916.
China had no foreign debt till the end of 1874, when a loan of £627,675, bearing 8 per cent. interest, was contracted through the Hongkong and Shanghai Bank, under Imperial authority, and secured by the Customs revenue. Up to 1894 the total foreign debt of China was inconsiderable, but subsequently extensive borrowings had to be made to meet the expenses of the war with Japan and the indemnity, which was Taels 200,000,000 (at exchange of 3s. 31d.), with a further Tls. 20,000,000, for the retrocession of the Liaotung Peninsula. The last instalment was paid in 1898, and the total indebtedness of the country up to 1900 was £55,755,000, the principal loans being the Russian of 1895, the Anglo-German of 1896, and the Anglo-German of 1898, each of £16,000,000. The country's obligations in 1901 were increased by a sum of Tls. 450,000,000, the amount of the indemnity paid to the Powers to meet (1) the expenses of the Expeditionary Forces, and (2) claims for compensation for losses to missions, corporations, individuals, etc. Several Loans were subsequently obtained, chiefly for railway construction, and, as a result of the Revolution, China's indebtedness was increased by an international loan of £25,000,000. It is estimated that China's foreign debts outstanding amount to £200,000,000. Only the Land Tax remains as unpledged security for further foreign loans.
The foreign debt secured on Imperial revenue outstanding December 31, 1914, is shown in the following table:-
Rate
Original Outstanding
Principal of Interest.
No.
Nature of Loan.
Amount
Dec. 1, 1914.
1
2
"Cassell Loan" of Apr. 1895 (Chartered Bank)... "Arnhold, Karberg Nanking Loan," 1895 (Three
German Banks)
6% £1,000,000 £
70,702
1,000,000
70,702
3
Russian Loan" of 1895 (French Group)
4 %
15,820,000
10,588,252
4
Gold Loan of 1896 (H'kong., S'hai. & German Banks) 5 Gold Loan of 1898 (H'kong., S'hai. & German Banks) 6 Imperial Railways of N. China Loan, 1899 (Hong-
kong & Shanghai Bank)
5%
16,000,000
11,685,925
44%
16,000,000
13,382,000
5 %
2,300,000
1,725,000
7 Shansi Railway Loan, 1902 (Russo-Chinese Bank)... 8a Kaifeng-Honan (Pien-Lo) Rly. Loan, 1903 (Belgian) Sa 2nd issue of same, 1907 (Belgian)
9 Shanghai-Nanking Railway Loan, 1903 (H.&S. Bank) 10 Gold Loan, 1905 (H'kong., S'hai. & German Banks) 11 Hankow-Canton Railway Redemption Loan, 1905
(Hongkong Government)
12 Honan Railway (Pekin Syndicate) Loan of 1905 13 Canton-Kowloon Railway Loan, 1907 (H. & S. Bank) 14 Tientsin-Pukow Railway Loan, 1908 (Hongkong,
& Shanghai and German Banks)
15 Shanghai-Hangchow-Ningpo Railway Loan, 1908
(Hongkong & Shanghai Bank)....
16 Gold Loan of 1908 (Peking-Hankow Railway Redemp- tion) (Hongkong & Shanghai and French Banks). 17 Kirin-Changchun Railway Loan, 1909 (Y. 2,150,000) 18 Hsinmintun-Mukden Railway Loan, 1909 (Y.320,000) 19 "Birchal" Peking-Hankow Railway Redemption Loan, 1910 (London City & Midland Bank for Dunn, Fischer & Co.)
19a 2nd issue of same, 1914
1,600,000 1,600,000
""
1,000,000
1,000,000
$40,000
640,000
+
3,250,000
2,900,000
1,000,000
50,000
46%
5 %
%%
1,000,000
440,000
700,000
700,000
1,500,000
"
1,500,000
"
5,000,000
5,000,000
1,500,000
1,500,000
**
5,000,000
5,000,000
11
220,599
220,599
17
32,834
29,185
7%
450,000
450,000
216,000
216,000
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