The national customs, heretofore called the “Imperial Customs”, managed from Peking in succession by the British knights, Robert Hart, Bredon and Aglen, continue to be the financial pillar of China, the basis of foreign loans, the payer of the hated indemnities, the provider of armies, pensions, and nearly all the machinery of government and even “graft”. Until a reorganization of the taxes is effected, the customs might be raised to double what they now are so as to get China on her feet. The department has been honestly managed, and is a monument to the late Sir Robert Hart, the sinologue. Where a missionary or a Buddhist monk is not at hand to take care of a needy traveler, there will be found a national customs cadet, generally a Briton, an American or a German. How China is neglected by London, the world’s banker, is illustrated by the following investments of new capital in a normal year, 1910. China was given only $3,500,000 in 1909, and $8,000,000 in 1910, whereas to nearly a billion already loaned, Japan was given $30,000,000 more in 1910; Mexico a like amount; Argentine, $112,000,000; Russia, $20,000,000; and even little Denmark, Greece, Turkey and Cuba each received as much as dormantly opulent and vast China. The neglect of China by America reveals a similarly regrettable situation. Trade follows the loan as much as it follows the flag and the missionary, as England’s trade relation with Argentine proves. The famous Russo-Chinese Bank, which was the catspaw for the Russians in securing from the Chinese the troublesome concession for the Chinese-Eastern railway, which largely led to the war with Japan, was absorbed in a new institution in October, 1910, called the Banque Russo-Asiatique, which is largely financed by the Banque du Nord and the _Société Générale_ of Paris. The old Russo-Chinese Bank had a capitalization of 21,000,000 rubles, one-third of which was subscribed by China. The capitalization of the new bank is double that of the old. [Illustration: Copyright, 1913, The Bobbs-Merrill Company. The oldest and strongest bank operating in China; the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. It has branches throughout China, on the British banking plan. The building in the background is the Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China. ] [Illustration: Copyright, 1913, The Bobbs-Merrill Company. The abundant use of street advertising by the new commercial China.] [Illustration: Copyright, 1913, The Bobbs-Merrill Company. Court of the splendid Swatow guild house at Canton. These are their chambers of commerce and clubs combined, and are a power in the new commercial China, almost equal to the new assemblies. The heir of a tea magnate rides the statue of a griffin. ]