New Forces in Old China: An Inevitable AwakeningBrown, Arthur Judson
History
New Forces in Old China: An Inevitable Awakening
Brown, Arthur Judson
China -- Commerce; China -- Foreign relations; China -- Politics and government; Missions -- China
Politically, the Province is divided into ten prefectures, each
under a prefectural magistrate, called a Chih-fu, and with a
capital which has the termination ``fu.'' I-chou-fu, for example,
is a prefectural city. Each fu is subdivided into ten districts
under a district magistrate or Chih-hsien, the capital, or
county seat as we should call it, having the termination ``hsien''
or ``hien'' as for example Wei-hsien. There are 108 of these
hsien cities. Between the fu and the hsien cities are a few chou
cities as Chining-chou. They are practically small fus, Chining-
chou having four hsiens under it. The magistrate is called a Chou-
kwan and is responsible directly to a Tao-tai who is an official
between the prefectural magistrate or Chih-fu and the Governor.
There are three Tao-tais in the province. At the
provincial capital are the treasurer or Fan-tai, the Nieh-tai or
judge, the Hueh-tai or commissioner of education and the salt
commissioner, Yen-yuen. These are all high officials. Over
all is the Governor, virtually a monarch subject only to the
nominal supervision of the Imperial Government at Peking.
He is appointed and may at any time be removed by the
Emperor, but during his tenure of office he has almost unlimited
power.
My tour of China included two interesting months in this
great province. As I approached Chefoo on the steamer from
Korea, I was impressed by the beauty of the scene. The water
was smooth and sparkling in the bright spring sunshine. The
harbour is exceptionally lovely. The shore lines are irregular,
terminating in a high promonotory on which are situated the
buildings of the various consulates. To the right, as the
traveller faces the city, is the business section with its wharves
and well-constructed commercial buildings, while on the left is
the wide curve of a fine beach on which front the foreign hotel
and the handsome buildings of the China Inland Mission.
Beyond the city, rises a noble hill on the slopes of which stand
the buildings of the Presbyterian Mission. From the water,
Chefoo is one of the most charming cities in all China.
Big, lusty Chinese in their wide, clumsy boats called sampans,
swarmed in the harbour. Sculling alongside, the boatman
caught the rail of the steamer with his boat-hook and with
the agility of a monkey scrambled up the long pole, dropped it
into the water and began to hustle for business. The babel of
voices bidding for passengers was like the tumult of Niagara
hack-drivers, but we were so fortunate as to be met by Dr. W.
F. Faries and the Rev. W. O. Elterich of the Presbyterian
Mission and under their skillful guidance, we were soon taken
ashore.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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