To the Editor of the "Norrs-Cxa Datty News."
Sm,—As I fear the commission now sitting im Shanghai may, after all, not follow my advice and adjourn to thi rious port, I venture to wiv as those of a merchant who has had prac cal experience of likin in the interior, with some suggestions that this experiences calls forth.
Tu elucidating the question of tacit' re sion the tt point. it appears to me. is to have a clear idea of the object for which we are striving; the second is, how best to attain that object.
The object I take to be the extension of our import trade; the means proposed are the increase of our import duties.
Te. is assumed that likin as it exists today is the grand obstacle to the extension of our trade, and that the removal of this opening up of the country in freedom and Given this, we should obtain not only a quid pro quo, but an ultimate incalculable gaia to our whole import trade.
Br freedom I mean that a foreigner shall be free to d awful act i parsnit of his legi our treaties with China be so far amended as to enable a foreigner to establish indus-of China, subject only to of Common Law in his dealings with his neigitours: that he be free to enter into industrial partnerships ith Chinese and to aid them i mproved methods of producto security L mean that, foreigners shall fat liberty to lease Jand for all such underings, arranging the terms themsel with the native owners; and that such leases be registerable at the nearest Consular Court. The Chinese would not suffer by the granting of this privilege, fur it is notorious that a foreigner buying" or leasing land in China pays, as a rule, ten times as much as a native would pay under similar circumstances.
But the country will never be really open obstacle is worth the sacrifice which the until a clean sweep is made of all custom addition of ten per cent to the present houses and likin stations in the interior of import tariff will impose. Before we accept China, of every description whatsoever. Uf it this sacrifice we should ascertain what this be worth while to abolish likin on our goods likin amounts to. This is not an easy at the cost of the proposed fifteen per cent matter in a country where accuracy of or duty, we must bear in mind that the detail is a neglected quantity, but we know evils of likin will not hay been really enough to enable us to answer the question in general terms.
As far as the Yangtze Valley is concerned, which is the only region of which I have personal knowledge, transit passes, for which a tax equal to one-half the import duty is paid, are generally accepted by the officials; {hat they are not universally employed is due to the fact that it is the interest of the likin to undersell the transit pass. Lotishui, or destination tax, is enforced in addition at many places, but vigorous remonstrauice on the part of our Consular officials is usually efficacious in obtaining its removal. Still where it exists, I have never known it to amount to over 24 per cent; hence, if we put Jikin and lotishui together, we have a total taxation never exceeding, seldom equalling, five per cent. To replace this by anew import duty of ten per cent will not advantage our import trade.
Our object being to increase our import trade, and it being admitted that an inerense in the import tariff will not help us to attain that object,—what other course is open to The increased cost brought about by the fallin exchange has, as yet, not arrested the growth of our import trade, which roves that the purchasing power of the chinese is slowly increasing; to the increase of this purchasing power we must look for the future expansion in the sale of imports. How can this increased purchasing power be best stimulated and fostered?
We all know that the encouragement of the export trade and the development of the resources of the country is the only way to increase the purchasing power of the poor and thrifty Chinese consumer, and that this can only be done toa serious extent by the eld story—the opening up of the country to foreign enterprise. To make such enterprise good the introduction of capital is the first necessity; for foreign capital to be freely introduce! we have two main requisites,—freedom and security. Neither of these requisites do we possess at resent. Can the Commission now sitting in Shanghai induce the Chinese to grant them? When these two requisites shall have been granted. then the other great obstacles to trade,—absence of roads and the power of official ohstracti mi to nullify enter prise, native as well as foreign—will in time Aisappear of themselves. Hence, although in favour of granting an addition of ten per cent to the import duty in exchange for the abolition of likin and all other internal dues, we should, I think, at the same time press, as far as we can, for the real abolished as long as the salt and opiwa likin stations remain. As every one who has had experience with likin Knows, it is not the amount of the likin that we surer from; it by examination of our goods, and the frequent injury caused by such examination by the salt and opium likin stations, as" well as by the numerous stations of the Foreign Customs, that so seriously hamper our trade.
These, latter are uow established along the whole course of the Yangtze River. If the obtaining of the freedom and security, which I think we ought to ask for, is not practicable, at least let us not bind ourselves to this pro} duty without stipulating that all trade in the interior shall be absolutely free. The salt tax (a cruelly injurious tax to the masses) might well be collected as an excise at the place of production, and the opium tax in the same way from the cultivator; then, as all foreign goods, exported as well as imported, must necessarily pay duty at the coast when landed or shipped by ocean steamer, the need for the inland stations of the Imperial Maritime Custons would fall away, with the result that trade would be free everywhere ithin the limits of the eighteen provinces. Yo bring about such a consummation is worth a sacrifice, even if the addition of freedom and security to industry should have to wait for another war and a new treaty 'A concrete instance will best show how, as things now stand, progress in the country is impeded, and concessions so called are made unworkable. After years of struggle we gained leave to navigate the Upper Yangtze. The concession is rendered null and void by the fact that a " foreign registered" steamer has to sail from Ichang to Chungking under sealed hatches and is not at liberty to trade at the numerous way-ports. Without which liberty, owing to the natural difficulties of the navigation, it is impossible that a steamer can pay het way. Asour treaties now run, a foreigner is not at liberty to lease land at the rapids effect improvements to simplify their ascent. Thus this so called concession is worthle: arrange! it Claude Maeda:
The navigation of the inland rivers, as!
by {announced three years ago with flourish of trumpets; but the cone absolutely illusory, as far as the Upper Yangtze is concerned, and has been rendered by purposely obstructive regulations. An "inland registered" steamer must not ply at an imperial Maritime Customs Port. Hence a British subject cannot run a steamer, say, from Wahien to Suifu, that fine stretch of 400 miles smooth water above the rapids, because in doing so he has to pass the Foreign Customs' station of Chung ki vhither he may we. Wherefore I reps.
give us freedom." The pr kes on all movement in the interior must be taken elf if we desire seriously to push wade and increase the parehasing power of the people. i admit the difficulty, viz. that the Chinese officials do not increased trade if it is to be awociated with the presence of foreigners; I do not blame em: but we have our interests to look after, and which T maintain, thougle some to the statement, are equally i ople at The province of Szechuan is one vast eld; mach of its cowl is of exeallent quality; yet it is only used, and in trifling quantities, locally. A foreigner is not at liberty to ship coal in one bottom direct from the mine to Ivhang; he must with the regulations of the Imperial Maritime Customs and pay export duty, the additional cost of transhipment and detention, with consequent loss in weight thereby incurred hampers, where is does not absolutely prevent, what might otherwise prove a profitable trade to the province.
Everyone can see for himssIf in your issue of 16th April, which gives a transcript of the New Mining Regulations of 17th. March it, Ww re held out by the Chinese officials for the introduction of foreign capital and the enrichment of this impoverished country But to return to the Tariff question pure and simple, I would venture to sty to the cosmopolitan community of Shang!
ive your hearty support to the Commis sion now sitting and to Sir James Mackay's bold proposition to raise the import dues to fifteen per cent as a condition of absolute Free Trade throughout the whole interior." Beware, however, at the same time of the deception of wor The word "likin" often raises emotions where the blessed words "customs dues" slip glibly past. What gain is it to a trader who desires to ship, sty wheat from Ichang to Shashih (a distance of 80 miles) and pays 74 per cent duty to the LIN. Customs noder the scoapted term of "Customs dues," that a 24 per cent "likin" between Ichang and Thibet has been abolished in his favour? Imports, as matters now stand, are doubtless favoured by the establishment of Maritime Custom Houses inland; but trade in exports is sadly hampered by them, whereas we know that further increase in our import trade is dependent upon the stimulus given to exports in particular, and generally upon the Tree movement of produce from place t place in the interior of Chian.
Let other burning questions, such as the establishment of " gold standard of currency ala ion of the present onerous Mining Regulations, stand asi until the opportunity we now hold of re-Fiteraal Free Trade, has been happily lating the most vital question of all,
availed of.
Lam, etc.,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.