December 28, 1905.]
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
443
duplicate and sent it to the dealers. Witness | KOWLOON TRADE REPORT, 1904 at its destination, in an uns leable condition, had no reason to suppose that anything was short.
His Worship adjourned the inquiry nntil Thursday in order that the steward's evidence may, if possible, be forthcoming, and to give time for stock to be taken of the balance of provisions.
DISTINGUISHED AMERICAN AT HONGKONG.
INTERVIEW WITH MR. BRYAN,
For a whole week. Mr William Jennings Bryan, Mrs. Bryan, and their son and daughter, have stayed at the Hongkong Hotel, breaking their tour to enable Mr. Bryan to deal with arrears of work. In addition to his contribu tions to The Commoner, a weekly journal of which he is the proprietor, Mr. Bryan is under contract to supp'y a syndicate with his impressions. Being a very busy journalist, and his wares having a high market value, he did not give much away to the interviewer sent from the Daily Press office; but chatted amiably enough is g'obetrotter fashion.
He is a man of remarkable pers nal appear ance and caracter, and is consid red to be one of the most eloquent speakers in a land where oratory is still valued. He has been twice nominated for President of the United States, 1896 and 1900; his advocacy of free silver coinage was his most noted asset; but in addition he is an anti-Imperialist and a hater of Trusts,
|
瞳
with the result that the principal (American) market has ben, at any rate partially, closed to the product. Another reas in given for the falling off in our Returns under this heading is that the matting from the Taiping to disputes as to freight by junk, now goes district (a large productive centre), owing
to Canton for export. A decline has to be recorded in Coarse and Fine Chinaware, Trimmed and Untrimmed Palm-leaf Faus, Furniture, 1st Quity Paper, Pottery, and Timber. Fi.crackers also decreased as a result, it is said, of au itorensed tax in Annam, where a large quantity of this commodity fiud a market. Bamboo Canes, Dried and Salt Fish, Straw Mets, Ground-Nut Oil, 2nd Quality Pa- per. Samshu, and Silk and Cotton Shoes exhibit rises The export of Brown-nd White Sugar and Sugar Cane" showed an increase of 25 per cent. on the preceding your's figures, due to a rush of the commolli to Japin during the middle of the year.
on the aunouncement of ад
Rexport-Nil.
4 deg. Cast Trad Coastwise.Nil.
Original Shipment
Coastwise Arrivals (ie., produce exchanged between Chinese ports rii the Kowloon Stations.) The value of this trade for the year shows an increase on the figures for 1903, which is, however, largely accounted for by the increased traffic in (due to a dry season and consequent large production) and enhanced value of Salt, the trade in which vải the Station‹ totalled 2,557|318 pieuls, of a v lue of over 3 mi lion taels,
Inland Transit,-Nil.
The Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs Report for 1904 includes the following: Import trade was valued at a little over 17 Foreign Trade-Imports.-The total Foreign
millions, ngainst 16 millions in 1903 and 22 millions in 1902. Rice was inported in larger quantity than during the previous 12 months, in spite of very fair crops in the distri t, and it is probable that this enhancement of our figures | for the cereal's import is dus mainly to fewer Rice-carrying steamers from the North and South having gone direct to Cautoo, and the cons quent transhipment into junk at this port. The import of Rice Bran rose from 1,804,502 to 2,311,658 piculs. Ground-nuts, owing to a deter. the province, increased from 74,7-3 to 98,981 ioration of the plant in the greater part of | picu's. The figures for the Yarn trade show an increase of over 70 per cent, on the previous year's total, and this commodity was imported | increased Duty to be levied after the 1st to the extent of 698 piculs. This, however, is | October. an insignificant quantity compared with thos of previous years. As pointed out in my predecessor's Report for 1903, there is no advantago in shipping this cargo by juuk now that the control of the Native Customs at Canton has come under Foreign supervision and the relate formerly granted there has been don
away with. M-tals showed but little improvement: Brass and Yellow Metal Sheets, Old Brass, Iron Bars, Iron Hoops, Nail-rod Iron, Iron Plates. Iron Sheets, Iron Wire, Steel Bars, and Tinned Plates all exhibit a decline. In Copper Sheets and Old Copier, however, a rise is visible. Uuder Sundries, in addition to Rice Bran, etc., already me 1- tioned, Foreign Leather shows an advance of all but 4 per cent. on the previous year's figures. He had just come down from the Peak when
The Co 1 import increased but slightly; it is interviewed, and was enthusiastic.
UOW, ile had
however, very nearly double that of five never seen finer scenery, he said, and thought the extent of close upon a million gallons -an years ago. Sumaira Oil passed the Stations to the grouping of mountains, islands; and s-a would remain lastingly impressed upon his
enhancement on the previous year's figures and those of 1902; but the import is small when American and Russian Oils fell to 24 million gallons, against over 4 millions in 1903, The trade in these Oils is becoming more and more confined to junks under Foreign flags and Fghters steam-towed. Au im, ort of 430,000 gallons of Colza Oil from Japan appears in the Returns for the first time. This commodity, I Boycott? No, he had not come into touch oil maunfactured from the ground-nut. De- am told, is extensively used for adulterating the with any sort of anti-American feeling. So creases have to be recorded in Betel-nu's, Bicho far as the Chinese were concerned, there was a de Mar, Raw Cotton, Japan Matches, Rattans, reason; since he and his party approached .h-m
Paddy, White Sugir, Foreign Salt, Salt Fish, and as purchasers, not as sell-rs, They seeu! Rosewood. Native Imports aggregated a total ready enough to take American money." And value of Hk.Tls, 5,290,776, which figures exhibit with some justice, Mr. Bryan add d that he was not always recognised as
a slight improvement on those for the preceding an Americ in. Ha
year, and this trade was fairly steady throughout looks more like a benevolent Irish priest. But
the 12 months. Sesamum Seed showed an in- he is thoroughly American in some way, Не
crease of over 16 per cent. on the import of rejoiced to think that au American had some- 1903. Diet and Salt Fish ros: by nearly 10,000 thing to do with the introduction of ricsha. piculs, though the import's value exhibited a and was positively pleased by an intelligent fall of approaching Hk. Tls. 200,000. Nativa Chin man who said he liked America better Leather, 100, rose from 9,179 piens, of a valua than England, bec use America did not grab of Hk. Tis. 238,008), to 12,72% piculs, valued at territory nor iut oduce opium.
over half a million taels. The impor. of Ground- nut Oil vi our Stations in the Canton River estuary increased to more than five times that of 193. An enhanced import of Fungus and White Wax has to be noticed whilst Fish in Brine, Dried Lily Flowers, Medicines, Tin. foil, and Vermicelli show decline.
Shipping. Lunches reported at the Satations to the number of 4,0 8, ågainst 4,549 during the previous year, a de roase of 541. Janks. the falling off in the number of which is exhibited in the Returns from our eastern Station, Samen, and is largely due to piracy ia that setin of the district-to alled 36,585,
meutal retina. He was surprised at first at the compared with the over 4 million gallons in 1901 / agaiust 40,088 during the pr cading 12 months,
un-English appearance of the houses, but was able to realise that local requirements had influenced the Eglish notions of architecture.
He had vis'td Canton, and compared with Peking and Shanghai naive city he thought it was the most Chinese place he had seen. For "Chinese" the interviewer might under- stand "oderous," if he liked,
It Was
The Linchow affair was mentioned, and Mr. Bryan's sympathies were with the missionaries. He admitied but excused their intolerance; sid it was natural in the case of people who have ideals; and more to be applauded than the tolerance of the men-y-grabbing merchant, which was really nothing better than a callous indifference t spiritual matters, Worse when they professed Christianity. and did not support the missionaries The curious thing was that both achieved similar resalts by different ways. helping the Chinese to a true knowledge of the foreigner, his methods and his ideals; and in turn learning to know the Chinese. A better mutual acquaintance was a desirable thing. He attributed entirely to their philosophy the present position of the Chinese; and equally assigned the Western progress to Christian ideals,
Both were
Mr. Bryan and family are going next to Manila, then to India, and so home again; the grand tour being as much for the improving of the mind as for pleasure.
our
Passenger Traffic. -Tue figures under this heading show that passengers passed Stations to the extent of some 70,000 less than during the previous year.
Treasure. Nil.
Opium. -The year's import into China vid the Stations-624 piculs of the Foreign raw drug-shows a decrease of some 13 per cent. on the figures for 1903. The shriekage is most apparent in the arrivals of Patna, which fall from 31
Boiled to 253 piculs. No Opium passed through during the 12 months. At the commenc ment of the year the stock of the various kinds of Opium in Hongkong aggregated a total of 5, 194 chests. The arrivals during the year were 45,23 chests, making ja total of 507243 chests to be acconute for. Shipments to Shanghai, east coast ports, Macao, Canton, west coast ports (and local consumption) totalled 44,179 chesis, and on 29th December
|
6,5 quests remained in stock. Native Opium passed through the Colony to the extent of 123 chests. Prices for the Bougal drug in Hong- kong opened at $1,250 for both Paton and Benere, and the year closed with the former varisly at 81,145 and the latter at $1,100. Prices fluctuated very largely thronghont the 12 mouths, and Native dealers did not do well, and the steady rise in silver towards the end of the year did not tend to improve th busines-already of a very speculative Exporis. The value of Native Exports-uature. Mawa opened at $950 for new Hk. Tls. 15,89089 – shows a shrit kage on the | and $1,070 for jo'd. The end of Decemb r previous year's figures of over 11 million taels, saw the price for t a former at $1,70 and the which is chiefly rot ceable in the expor s ria latter at $1,30 Ther marks anent the business our Canton River Stations. But few commo- in the Bengal drug apply also to that in Opium dities exhibit any material improvement, Raw from Bombay, though it is said that the Trade and but one pieul of Wild Silk appears; all other White Silk disappersentirely from the Returns, in the latter variéty was not quite so unprofitable
as that in the produc's from "Calcutta. classes of Silk goods exhib ́'t decreases, and Misellaneous-Piracy in the locality showed Cassia Lign-a is all but absent from the tables. no signs of apa ing. 10 cases were reported at Matting, too, formerly exported to the extent of our western and 16 cases at our eastern stations, nearly half a million rolls per annum, has during though the e figures, of coure, represent but the last two years fallen very rapidly, and the a tithe of the doings of the nirates throughout year's export is but one-fifth of that of 19 0 gad
the year. The presence of Foreign gun-boats 1901. The reason given for the decline is that, as a and rmed launches in sud around some of * rest of litigation between the employers and t! eir haunts seems to have little d unte these. the employed in the trade, the Matting was past, whose ravages in the eastern section of exported when not properly dry, thus arriving the district have already very materially
į
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.