2. In the case of Exports.-On the arrival of the produce at the north or south barrier, notice must be given at the custom-house at Shanghai, and transit duties paid in the manner laid down with regard to imports: the collector of customs will then issue a certificate, which will be exchanged at the barrier for a memorandum, and the goods passed. This memorandum must be handed in when the goods are reported for exportation, as transit duties will be levied on all produce unprovided with these papers before permission is granted to export it.

The whole business being new to both parties, many difficulties arose, as might have been expected, and complaints, on the part of the foreign merchant, against illegal exactions, which in almost every case were found to have arisen from his not having complied with the regulations. The property brought from the interior must be in the name of the foreigner to whom it belongs, and no native property is rightfully covered by these certificates.

Section 10.

PORT OF TANGCHAU OR CHIFU.

THIS port lies on the northern side of the promontory of Shantung. The prefecture of Tangchau is divided into ten districts, and includes nearly the whole promontory; the city itself lies in the western part of the prefecture, and is the residence of a tsungping or brigadiergeneral, a tautai or intendant of circuit, the chifu or prefect, and the district magistrate of Punglái. Tangchau is beautifully situat ed on the seaside, nearly opposite Miautau I.; the harbor or roadstead is not very safe, and the town has very little maritime trade; the population is estimated at 120,000 inhabitants.

There are several harbors on the north side of the promontory. Chifu or Chífau is about 30 miles east of Tangchau, and may be regarded as its port. Wei-hái-wei a military station, lies near the east end of the promontory, protected by the island of Liú-kungtán; and Kí-shan-so is between the two, near Kung-kung táu. The anchorages on the southern shores have not been carefully

examined; Shih-tau 石島 and Li-tau 利島 are two ports in the district of Wan-tang. The junks from the south often winter at Lítau, and the large walled town of Tsing-hai-wei further westward, is the post of a garrison. The prefect city of Kiau-chau

lies far to the west, at the head of a deep inlet; and was recently destroyed by insurgents. Its port is Lingshan, which is accessible only at high tides to small craft.

The foreign trade is carried on at Yen-tai i. e. Smoke Terrace, a village lying near Chífu cape; it contains upwards of 10,000 inhabitants, and is attached to the district of Fuh-shan, whose chief town lies about ten miles inland. The name of Chifu seems to

have been first applied to a range of hills that forms the boundary between Fuh-shan and Wan-tang districts; an ancient legend states that Chí Hwangtí, B.C. 230, ascended it, and erected a pillar and a temple. The village of Chü-ki lies farther inland. The trade of this port is trifling, compared with Tientsin, and there is little prospect of a rapid increase. Beans and bean cake, medicines, ginseng, tobacco, fruit, and a peculiar sort of wild raw silk, and some maunfactured silk, are among the exports-the first article more than double in value to all the others.

The surface of the promontory of Shantung is hilly, rising into high mountains in various parts, and the soil demands continual labor from its hardy and turbulent population to supply their wants. Mines of iron, lead, and silver are known to exist, and salt, tea, gypsum, soapstone, and many kinds of shell and dried fish are enumerated among the products.

Section 11.

PORT OF TIENTSIN.

WHEN the treaties with the four great Western Powers were signed at Tientsin in June, 1858, the Chinese authorities refused to include it among the new ports to be opened to foreign commerce, under the plea that its distance from the sea and the difficulties of access by reason of the Bar, rendered it unsuitable; their real dislike to its being opened probably arose from their fears at the proximity of foreigners to the capital. By the Convention of October, 1860, it was however, included among the open ports, and soon after opened to trade, which has rapidly increased, and promises to draw to itself a large share of the traffic of the northeastern provinces.

The city of Tientsini. e. Heaven's Ford, is the capital of the prefecture of Tientsin, and next to Peking the largest town in the province of Chihlí. It lies at the junction of the Grand Canal with the Pei-hoor White River, in lat. 39° 10′ N., long. 117° 3′ 55′′ E., distant 28 miles from Taku by land, and 80 from Peking. The prefecture extends from the Pei-ho south and easterly as far as Shantung province along the shores of the Gulf of Pecheli, and contains one chau and six hien districts; the present divisions and names were established in 1732, previous to which Tientsin was merely a wei or cantonment, whose garrison protected the traffic on the Grand Canal. The district of Tientsin hien reaches from the city eastward to the sea.

The entrance of the Pei-ho is obstructed by a bar, on which the water ranges from 18 inches to 14 feet at spring tides; but the channel up to Tientsin enables any vessel to come up that can cross the Bar. The water is surcharged with silt, that is gradually filling up the Gulf, and the appearance of the coast-line indicates that much of the present shore has been only recently rescued from the sea. Ta-ku, Tung-kú 東沽 西沽 and Sí-kú are villages near the mouth of the river,

213

Koh-kú and Pang-kú, lie a few miles up the stream. The first named is the largest, and draws to it much of the business of those junks whose cargoes are sent up the river in lighters; a customhouse office is established near the town. Two or three foreign pilots cruise off the port, who receive five dollars per foot for taking vessels up to Ta-kú. The river thence to Tientsin is so crooked that sailing vessels do not often undertake the trip.

The city of Tientsin contains about 400,000 inhabitants, of whom rather more than one-half reside within the walls; the largest suburb extends along between the Grand Canal and the northern wall, around to the East gate. Another large suburb also lies on the east side of the Pei-ho opposite the city, extending along the banks down to the salt mounds. Shops and houses also reach from the city to Tsz'-chuh-lin i. e. Red-bamboo Grove, a distance of two miles, all of them built on embankments raised from five to eight feet above the level; it is said that the whole city and suburbs have been gradually raised in the same manner to protect them from the inundations, which occasionally flow over the plain. The foreign settlement is located at Tsz'-chuh-lin, and no ships go above the custom-house there; the river is much crowded by junks from that up to the bridge of boats, and its channel constantly narrowed by the people throwing offal upon the banks. The country around Tientsin is flat and naked; much of it is uncultivated, owing to the nitrous efflorescence of the soil, and the difficulty of irrigation. The houses of the poor are built of mud plastered on a framework of millet stalks, and are dark and dirty in the extreme.

The superintendent of the trade of Chifu, Niuchwang, and Tientsin resides at the latter port, and has published the following regulations:

TIENTSIN CUSTOM-HOUSE REGULATIONS.

I. Ships' Papers.-Masters must deposit their ship's papers, &c., with their consul, or, if they have no consul, with the Customs.

Vessels anchoring inside the Bar (Lan-kiang-sha) must be reported to the consul within forty-eight hours after arrival; in the case of vessels whose draught of water necessitates their anchoring outside the Bar, the time for lodging the papers, &c., is extended to seventy-two hours.

II. Discharge Permit.--The import manifest must contain a true account, with all particulars, of the nature of the cargo on board, and must be handed to the Customs before permission to break bulk can be granted. A permit will thereon be issued for the discharge of the goods specified in the manifest.

III. Landing of Cargo.-Upon the issue of the "discharge permit," the articles of merchandise therein specified may be placed in cargo-boats. In the case of vessels anchored at Ta-ku or outside the Bar, the cargo-boats, when laden, must go alongside the Customs' junk at Ta-ku, where their hatches will be sealed and permission given to proceed to Tientsin.

Upon arrival at the customs' jetty at Tsz'-chuh-lin, the consignee of the merchandise on board the cargo-boat must make application for a "customs' memo.," which should, to expedite the clearance of the goods, contain a full account of the nature, marks, and numbers, &c., of the cargo-boat's contents. payment of the duty, the cargo-boat will be permitted to leave the jetty and discharge her On the production of the bank receipt for the

cargo.

IV. Shipment of Caryo.-Goods intended for exportation must be sent for examination to the Customs' jetty, and must be accompanied by an application (containing a full account of the nature of the merchandise with quantity, marks, and all other necessary particulars.) a 66 'customs' memo. to leave the jetty. Upon payment of the export duty, the cargo-boat will be allowed

for

C.G. 29

In the case of goods intended for vessels anchored within the inner port limits, a Cus'toms' officer will accompany the cargo-boat. The hatches of cargo-boats conveying export goods to vessels anchored at or off Ta-ku, will be sealed by the Customs at the Tsz-chuhlin jetty; upon arrival at Ta-ku, the cargo-boat must go alongside the Customs' junk, where the hatches will be opened and the boat permitted to repair to the ship concerned.

V. Cargo-boat Limits.—Until further notice, the lading of export and discharging of import cargo-boats can only take place to the north of the Tsz'-chuh-lin customs' jetty. Any departure from this regulation will render the goods concerned liable to confiscation. VI. Transhipment.-No transhipment can take place without special written permission.

VII. Drawback and Exemption Certificates.-Application for drawback and exemption certificates must specify the nature, marks, numbers, &c., of the goods concerned, the ship by which imported, the date of payment of duty, &c.,; and the merchandise to be reexported must be sent to the Customs' jetty for examination, in the same manner as other goods intended for shipment.

VIII. Export Manifest.-Upon application for the grand chop, (customs' clearance) the Customs must be furnished with an export manifest.

IX. Exclusion of Cargo.-Cargo for which a permit has been issued, but which cannot be received on board, must be brought to the customs' jetty for examination before being relanded.

X. Anchorage Limits.-Ships remaining at Ta-ku must anchor below the Customs' junk; the inner port limits are the Tsz'-chuh-lin jetty on the north and Liang-kia-yuen on the south. The discharge or landing of cargo at any place not within

the anchorage limits will expose the goods to confiscation.

In consequence of the frequent presentation at the custom-house of exemption certificates, when they did not accompany the goods they purported to cover, the superintendent of customs at Tientsin issued a notice in June 1862, that the regular tariff duty would be levied on all goods unaccompanied at the time by their proper exemption certificate, and a receipt would thereupon be furnished by the Customs which could be presented to the custom-house at the port whence the goods came, there to be accepted as a drawback for the amount, if returned at the same time with the original exemption certificate.

By Art. X. of the Regulations for the overland trade, Russian merchants carrying Chinese produce through Tientsin to Russia, pay at Tientsin the coast-trade duty (half duty) for such produce. Should, therefore, a Russian merchant have already paid on such produce the full and half duty at the port of shipment, he will, if exporting it to Tientsin, receive from the Customs at the port of payment a drawback (tsunpiau) for recovery of the half duty.

The chief exports from Tientsin are pulse, fruit, deer's horns, furs, wools, wax, flint-steels, and rhubarb. In the course of a few years, if peace be maintained in the northern provinces, it is probable that their amount and variety will be vastly increased. During the half-year ending Dec. 31, 1861, the total value of the produce exported in foreign bottoms was only 461,573 taels, which was not one-half the value of the import of opium alone, and not one-tenth of the entire import trade; the balance was paid for in specie.

During the year 1862, the value of the import trade was 7,095,811 taels, not including 91,042 taels of re-exports. Of this amount, opium formed 2,520,120 taels, cotton and woolen goods 2,927,602 taels, and sundries 1,648,089 taels. The exports were 407,489 taels, or less than during the previous half-year; the leading articles were, dates, 30,370 taels; medicines, 70,836 taels; tobacco, 40,752 taels; and soap 30,250

The currency at Tientsin consists of copper cash and paper-money; the latter is usually reckoned at double the rate of the former. Chopped dollars pass current in small amounts at about 7 mace. Gold and silver bullion are easily procured.

By Rule VIII. of the Commercial Regulations, foreign trade is prohibited at Peking. This city is under a separate jurisdiction from that of the province, and octroi duties are levied on everything which comes in through the gates; the effect of this system has been to stifle the enterprise of the citizens, and to increase the importance of Tung-chau, its port on the Pei-ho, twelve miles distant. The opening of the city to general traffic would interfere with this local regulation, and diminish the revenue of its municipal officers, and is probably one reason why the Imperial Commissioners claimed the exemption.

Section 12.

PORT OF NIUCHWANG OR YINGTSZ'.

THE port of Niu-chwang was included in the recent treaties among those to be newly opened to foreign commerce before anything definite was known of its importance, resources, or precise location. It is situated on the eastern bank of the River Liáu, within the district of Hai-ching, one of the subdivisions of Fungtien-fu 奉天府 or the prefecture of Mukten, about 35 miles up the river. The name Niu-chwang i. e. Cattle Farmstead, perhaps indicates what was originally the chief article of its trade; but whatever was its former size or prosperity, it has latterly dwindled away to a few hamlets, so that it is now little more than an official port for the revenue. The river has gradually filled up, too, so that junks cannot reach it; and the traders who resorted there were obliged to take paper money in exchange for their produce; these causes have driven the traffic down the river to Yingtszi. e. the Cantonment, a town lying about five miles from its mouth, or only two miles across the country. The river at this place is called Muh-kau-ying, and disembogues into the Gulf as a large and rapid stream. In approaching the Bar off its mouth, steer N.E. N. for junks at the entrance, until the water shoals to 16 feet at low water. Then steer N.N.E. if the flood is running, but if it is ebb tide, N.N.E.E., until the junks, or west extreme of the outer E. stakes, bear N.E. by E. Then steer that course, and after follow the stakes. Native pilots are procurable, who know the channel better than they do how to manage a ship.

The country around Yingtsz' and Niu-chwang, like that along the Pei-ho, is flat and sparse of trees, but well cultivated and sprinkled over with villages. The people chiefly raise yellow and Barbadoes millet, hemp, wheat, pulse, and indigo; the two last are exported. The dwellings are chiefly constructed of mud, and most of the inhabitants are only able to obtain a bare subsistence. Wood and coal for fuel