168 



CHINA. 



but little. In metals there was a falling off of 

 12 per cent. As compared with 1882 there 

 was a decline in the total value of imports 

 amounting to about 5,000,000 taels, mostly in 

 woolen goods, metals, and sundries. In the 

 opium import there was a slight increase in 

 the Malwa drug in five years, and a consider- 

 able decrease in the quantities imported from 

 Patna, Benares, Persia, and Turkey. The re- 

 turns of the kerosene imports indicate that its 

 use is extending into the interior rapidly. The 

 imports of cotton manufactures have remained 

 at nearly the same amount, a little above 22,- 

 000,000 Haikwan taels, for four years; but the 

 total has only been kept up by increased im- 

 ports of yarns and thread, while cotton piece- 

 goods, discredited through the adulterations of 

 English manufacturers, have declined from 21,- 

 800,000 taels in 1880 to 16,500,000 in 1884. 

 Gray and white shirtings and T-cloths find a 

 steady demand, which does not vary much 

 from year to year. Drills are not imported in 

 half the quantities sold before 1882 ; but for 

 sheetings the demand has grown steadily, and 

 the same is true for prints, chintzes, and mis- 

 cellaneous fabrics. American cottons, though 

 twice as dear as the loaded Manchester fabrics, 

 are imported in increasing quantities. The 

 market would be better if the public had not 

 been prejudiced against all foreign cottons by 

 flimsy, sized Lancashire goods. The clearances 

 of American cottons at Shanghai were 1,348,- 

 600 pieces in 1884, against 974,900 in 1883 and 

 935,000 in 1882, the increase being chiefly in 

 sheetings, which are used for clothing, drill- 

 ings being used partly for clothing and partly 

 for tents and other purposes. At Hankow the 

 import of American drills increased from 39,- 

 645 pieces in 1883 to 43,177 in 1884, while 

 English drills fell off from 79,873 to 39,991 

 pieces. The value of American cottons im- 

 ported at Newchang in 1884 was $920,157, 

 two thirds of the amount of the total import. 



The European residents in the seaports of 

 China in 1884 numbered 5,297. Of these, 2,463 

 were natives of Great Britain and Ireland, 433 

 of the United States, 532 of Germany, and 332 

 of France. There are 340 foreign commercial 

 firms, more than one half of them located at 

 Shanghai. The Russian trade, since the estab- 

 lishment of the Russian patriotic fleet, has 

 been carried on by steamers running to Odes- 

 sa, as well as by the overland route. The im- 

 ports from Russia are only one third in value 

 of what they were before 1855, while the 

 exports of tea to Russia are four times as 

 great. 



The British merchants are commonly young 

 men, well prepared by previous training, with 

 ample credit and connections with strong Brit- 

 ish houses. German manufacturers, by co-op- 

 erating with each other, by testing the market 

 with small shipments, and by watchfulness on 

 the part of consular officials, are rapidly ex- 

 tending their trade in Chinese markets. An- 

 ticipating an increased demand for European 



manufactures upon the opening up of the coun- 

 try to steam communication, they have sent 

 agents with models and patterns all over China. 

 They were the first in the field in soliciting 

 orders for railroad materials. A society has 

 been founded for the promotion of German 

 trade in China and in other parts of Asia and the 

 Mediterranean ports. Imitations of American 

 drills and other cotton goods have lately been 

 fraudulently put into the market as American 

 goods by European manufacturers. The Chi- 

 nese, with whom commercial probity is a na- 

 tional virtue, are inclined to break off dealing 

 upon the slightest suspicion of sophistication 

 and fraud, a circumstance that accounts for 

 the decline in the cotton piece-goods trade. 

 Consul Seymour, of Canton, recommends Amer- 

 ican firms to co-operate in sending out quar- 

 terly or oftener small assorted cargoes to be 

 delivered to retailers from the vessel, chartered 

 by half a dozen or more firms for the purpose. 

 Frequent shipments of provisions, and also of 

 cloths and similar goods, which become dam- 

 aged during the rainy season, would prevent 

 the losses that must be taken account of in 

 sending large consignments of perishable goods. 



Industry and Agriculture. Industry is extreme- 

 ly flourishing throughout the whole of central 

 China. The use of machines and other tech- 

 nical appliances is unknown. Small farms 

 form the bulk of the agricultural distribution ; 

 each plot of land is manured like a kitchen- 

 garden. Vegetables are generally cultivated, 

 as also are rice, wheat, and barley. Tea, cot- 

 ton, silk, and sugar represent important arti- 

 cles of commerce. Industry yields place to 

 agriculture, although manufactures silks, por- 

 celain, various kinds of carved wood-work, as 

 well as mats enjoy a generally high reputa- 

 tion. Agriculture and industry are mainly con- 

 fined to the thickly peopled provinces along 

 the seaboard and the Yang-tse river. The 

 neighboring countries of China are much be- 

 hindhand in point of industrial prosperity. 



Railroads and Communications. Internal com- 

 merce is chiefly carried on by water routes. 

 Many thousands of boats navigate the rivers 

 and canals. The trouble that would result 

 from displacing this industry, and the opposi- 

 tion of the people on that account and on re- 

 ligious grounds, deterred the authorities fron> 

 constructing railroads, until their strategic, 

 political, and economical importance was im- 

 pressed upon them during the French war. 

 Li-Hung-Chang, the progressive Viceroy, then 

 persuaded the central Government to sanction 

 the introduction of railroads in principle, and 

 even to begin the construction of certain lines. 

 In the prospectus of the last Chinese loan spe- 

 cial mention was made of these undertakings. 

 A line is proposed to run from Pekin to Tient- 

 sin, another from Tientsin southward to Chin- 

 Kiang-fu, another to connect Nanking with 

 Hangchow or Shanghai, and a fourth to con- 

 nect Canton with Nanning, near the southern 

 frontier. China possesses, besides the water- 



