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chang, for example, noted in a private letter: "Although up to now Ward has not yet shaved his head or paid me a visit, do I have time to quarrel with foreigners over such petty indiscretion?”*69 To be certain, Li, no less than the throne, sought a means to exercise effective control over Ward; but he did not place much stock in superficial indicators of cultural submission. More important were the administrative, personal and financial ties that bound the barbarian commander to the Chinese. Ostensibly, at least, Ward was held in check by his superiors in the Ch'ing military hierarchy. At the same time, honors from the throne and substantial emoluments provided material incentives for the ambitious and avaricious foreigner. But Ward's closest tie with the Chinese was his special relationship with the merchant-turned-official, Yang Fang, who sponsored the Ever-Victorious Army in its initial stages and later became a co-commander of the force. Ward owed much of his early success to Yang, who in turn benefitted from his association with the vaunted foreign-officered contingent. In 1862, Ward married Yang's daughter and acquired a large tract of land (probably through Yang), upon which he began building a house shortly before his death. He also became Yang's business partner in a few lucrative undertakings (such as steamship rental), and, through Yang's machinations, invested a reported one hundred and fifty thousand dollars in the Ch'ing government's salt monopoly. Such a stake in the established order assured that Ward would remain a loyal, if not always completely satisfied, servant of the dynasty.70
Far from the scene of Ward's operations, the throne could not easily see that he was responding positively to the patchwork of formal and informal controls operating on him at the local level. From Peking's perspective, Ward was valiant and effective, but insufficiently submissive, and anxious edicts from the throne admonished local officials to keep him under tight rein. Prince Kung articulated Peking's fears: "Although Ward exerts himself on China's behalf, he is still a foreigner. His nature is basically unrestrained and his heart even more difficult to fathom."71 Yet when Ward died in battle, whatever doubts Peking may have had about his reliability were all but forgotten, and the American commander became at once a conspicuous symbol of foreign devotion. Li Hung-chang glowingly summarized his career in China, praising Ward's complete dedication to the dynasty and recommending that special temples be erected at Shanghai and Ningpo "to give comfort
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chang, for example, noted in a private letter: "Although up to now Ward has not yet shaved his head or paid me a visit, do I have time to quarrel with foreigners over such petty indiscretion?”*69 To be certain, Li, no less than the throne, sought a means to exercise effective control over Ward; but he did not place much stock in superficial indicators of cultural submission. More important were the administrative, personal and financial ties that bound the bar- barian commander to the Chinese. Ostensibly, at least, Ward was held in check by his superiors in the Ch'ing military hierarchy. At the same time, honors from the throne and substantial emoluments provided material incentives for the ambitious and avaricious foreigner. But Ward's closest tie with the Chinese was his special relationship with the merchant-turned-official, Yang Fang, who sponsored the Ever-Victorious Army in its initial stages and later became a co-commander of the force. Ward owed much of his early success to Yang, who in turn benefitted from his association with the vaunted foreign-officered contingent. In 1862, Ward married Yang's daughter and acquired a large tract of land (pro- bably through Yang), upon which he began building a house shortly before his death. He also became Yang's business partner in a few lucrative undertakings (such as steamship rental), and, through Yang's machinations, invested a reported one hundred and fifty thousand dollars in the Ch'ing government's salt monopoly. Such a stake in the established order assured that Ward would remain a loyal, if not always completely satisfied, servant of the dynasty.70
Far from the scene of Ward's operations, the throne could not easily see that he was responding positively to the patchwork of formal and informal controls operating on him at the local level. From Peking's perspective, Ward was valiant and effective, but insufficiently submissive, and anxious edicts from the throne ad- monished local officials to keep him under tight rein. Prince Kung articulated Peking's fears: "Although Ward exerts himself on China's behalf, he is still a foreigner. His nature is basically unres- trained and his heart even more difficult to fathom."71 Yet when Ward died in battle, whatever doubts Peking may have had about his reliability were all but forgotten, and the American commander became at once a conspicuous symbol of foreign devotion. Li Hung-chang glowingly summarized his career in China, praising Ward's complete dedication to the dynasty and recommending that special temples be erected at Shanghai and Ningpo "to give comfort
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