chinese wool trade
DESCRIPTION
woolTRANSCRIPT
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THECHINESEBORDERWOOLTRADEOF188019371
JamesA.Millward
CONTENTS
I. INTRODUCTION 1
II. PRODUCTION 9
III. COLLECTION 20
IV. TRANSPORT 37
V. BAOTOU 45
VI. TIANJINANDTHEWORLD 55
TABLES,CHARTSANDDIAGRAMS 69
GLOSSARY 78
BIBLIOGRAPHY 80
I.INTRODUCTION
In1879,amannamedGeTuzitraveledfromTianjinthroughtheInner
MongolianOrdosonaninvestigationforBritishmerchantsofthe
commercialpossibilitiesofthenorthwest.InShizuishan,onthewestern
legoftheYellowRiver'sgreatoxbow,Genoticedasmallgroupofthe
1Iamindebtedtotheguidanceandassistanceofseveralpeopleinwritingthispaper.ForemostamongthemareProfessorsDieterKuhnandJonathanLipmanandfellowgraduatestudentFanIchun.
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localinhabitantssmearingwhatlookedlikeearthintohanksofsheep's
wool.Heaskedthemwhattheyweredoing.
"Soakingitwithshittoputonthecrops,"theyreplied.Bemused,
Geaskedthemwhytheydidnotsellthewoolandmakesomemoneyfromit.
Thelocalsanswered,
"Exceptformakingfeltsthisstuffhasnootherusethere'sno
waytosellit.Allwecandoissoakitwithshit."
GeTuzisoonthoughtupawaytoturnatidyprofitoffofthis
messystateofaffairs,andheapproachedhisinnkeeper,amannamedXu
Cunrong,toactasgobetweeninalargepurchaseofwool.Promising
repaymentandaheftycommission,GepersuadedXutoguaranteehis
purchaseoncreditof400,000cattiesofsheep'swoolattwotaelsof
sliverperpicul.Togethertheycollectedthewoolinamonth,andGe2
transporteditonboatsdowntheYellowRivertoBaotouandthenoverland
toTianjin,whereheissaidtohavesoldittotheforeignersforten
timeswhathepaidforit.
Nowarichman,GereachedaformalagreementwiththeEnglish
merchantsandheadedwestagainthistimeamplysuppliedwithcashto
clearhisdebtandtomakefurtherwoolpurchases.Heencountered
troubleinPugebeiwan,wherehisprogressbroughthimtoterritoryunder
thecontrolofthebanditZhangJiayun(alsoknownasZhangSan).Again
2Onecatty(jin)equalsapproximately1.33poundsonepicul(dan)equalsonehundredcatties,thatis,133poundsor60.5kilograms.ThesearethetheoreticalequivalentsinpracticeinChina,particularlyintheborderregions,considerablevariationwaspossibledependingonlocalusageoreventhecommodityunderconsideration.
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availinghimselfoftheresourcesoftheproprietorofalocalinn,Ge
contactedZhangSanandofferedhim1000taelsinreturnforpassage
throughhisterritory.ZhangwasimpressedenoughtowanttomeetGe
Tuzi,andafteraconferenceintheinnthetwoemergedfriends.Zhang
notonlygrantedpassage,butprovidedGewithanarmedescortthrough
theOrdos.
BackinShizuishan,Gepaidoffhisdebtandopenedupshopundera
signthatread"Gaolinyanghang"(CollinsandCo.,Ltd.,foreignfirm).
Thatyearhethrewhimselfintothetaskofcollectingwoolandhides,
purchasingthemdirectlythistime,withcash.Once,havingheardthat
XiningwoolwasofbetterqualitythanthelocalNingxiavariety,he
outfittedandsentZhangSanandhismentotheGansu/Qinghaiborder
region.
OnhisreturnfromTianjinthefollowingyear,Gebroughtwithhim
severalmenfromGuangdongwhoconsolidatedandexpandedthescopeofhis
operationsasabranchofaforeignfirm.Soon,however,Gaolinwas
joinedinShizuishanbyacompetitor,Renjiyanghang(ForbesandCo.,
foreignfirm),whowithgreatercapitalresourcesandemployeesfrom
TianjinsooneclipsedGe'srelativelysmallenterprise.3
***
Theabovestory,toldin1964byanoldmaotou(workerinwool
3LiuTingdong,"DiguozhuyiyanghangzaiShizuishan"(ImperialistforeignfirmsinShizuishan),NingxiaWenshiZiliao,vol.10.(n.p.:n.p.,1981),pp.182184.Note:ChinesecharactersforcitationsofChineseandJapanesematerialsappearinthebibliography.Aglossarylistscharactersfornamesandtermswhichappearinthetext.
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shipping,packingorprocessing)toaresearcherfromtheHistorical
MaterialsResearchCommitteeoftheNingxiaPeople'sPolitical
ConsultativeConference,maynotbestrictlytrueitreadsmorelikea
legendtoaccountfortheoriginsoftheChinesewooltrade.Besidesthe4
implausibliityofthefinancialarrangements(notraveler,freshintoa
Chinesefrontiertown,couldborroweightytaels,letaloneeight
thousand),thereisthequestionofwhyShizuishanpeasants,who
apparentlyvaluedwoolsolittle,wouldhavequantitiesofitonhandat
all.Woolmixedwithnightsoilandcompostedmightmakegoodfertilizer
nonetheless,thedetailofpeasantsrubbingwoolwithdirtorfecesis
reminiscentofapracticecommonduringtheheightofthewooltradein
China.Asweshallseebelow,suchmethodsofadulterationwerecommonly
practicedbyproducersormiddlemeninordertoincreasetheweightof
thewoolbeforeweighingandsale.Amemoryassociatedwithdealingin
woolmayhaveemergedinthisstoryinchangedform.
Despiteitsmythiccharacter,thestoryofGeTuziisenlightening
4Thereareotherlegendaryaccountsoftheoriginsofthewooltrade.InHezhou,Gansu,astorywastoldthatamerchantfromGaoyangDistrictinHebeifirstalertedtheforeignfirmstothepresenceofwoolandhenceprofitstobegatheredinChina.DuringtheGuangxuperiod(18751908)themerchantwasinvolvedinexportingstrawbraidfromTianjinOnce,onatriptoLondon,helearnedthatBritain'stextileindustrywasshortofwool,soonhisnexttripthemerchantbroughtsamplesfromnorthwesternsheepandcamels.TheBritishimperialists"drooled"atthesightofthewoolanddispatchedpeopletoChinatoorganizetheXintaixing(WilsonandCo.)yanghangtoexploitthisresource.QinXianzhou,MaShouli,ZhangZhida,"DiguozhuyiyanghangzaiGansulueduoboxuenongminshiliaosanze"(threepiecesofhistoricalmaterialonimperialistforeignfirms'predaciousexploitationofagriculturalandnomadicpeoplesinGansu),Gansuwenshiziliaoxuanji,vol.8(Lanzhou:Gansurenminchubanshe,1980),p.175.
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inthatithighlightssignificantaspects,albeitinasymbolicway,ofa
flourishingepisodeoftradeinwoolfromChina'sbordersbetweenthe
1880sandthelate1930s.
Firstofall,theattitudeattributedtothenativesofShizuishan
thatwoolisworthlessismorethananarrativedevice.TheChinesevery
earlyinventedspinningandweavingtechnologyandappliedittosilkand
avarietyofbastfibers(suchasramieandhemp)afterthethirteenth
centurycottontechnologybecameimportantandeventuallytookprideof
placefromthebastfibers.YettheChineseneverseemtohaveused
woolentextilesforgarmentstoanyextent.Peopleinthenorthwestern
andwesternregionsofChinadidmanufacturewoolentextilesasearlyas
theneolithicperiod,andwovencarpetshavebeencommoninthenorthwest
uptorecenttimesChineseusedtheskinsofsheepandgoatswiththe
attachedfleeceforgarmentswherethesewereavailable,andwoolwas
feltedtomakehatsandfootwear.Butwoolengarmentswerenever
popular,paddedouterwearofsilk,cottonothervegetablefiberbeingthe
commoncoldweatherchoice.Ananswerforwhythiswassomaybefound
inthe"DiscoursesonSaltandIron,"whichcontaintheremark,"wooland
feltgoodsdonotaddsubstancetosilk,"withinapassagedecryingthe
economicdangersofimportingsuchexoticsintoHanWudi'sempirewhen
theproductsofChina'sfarmerswoulddojustaswell.Thedifficulties
andcostofshippingheavywoolcomparedtothebroadareaofChina
suitableforagriculturalproductionofvegetablefibersdictatedthat
woolwouldnotcatchonthereasitdidinEurope.5
5HuanKuan,YanTieLun,j.1,chapter2,Wanyouwenkued.,vol82
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Itwasonlyinthenineteenthcentury,andthenbyimported
technology,thatwoolbegantobewovenextensivelyinChinaforuseas
clothing.ItwasZuoZongtangwhoasgovernorgeneralofShaanxiand
Gansuestablishedin1879whatwasprobablythefirstChinesewoolen
mill.ZuoemployedGermanmachineryandadvisorstosetupthemillin
Lanzhouwhererawsheep'sandcamels'woolcouldbecheaplyobtained.
(Theoperationwasnotanimmediatenoragreatsuccessthewoolbrought
inwasfilthyandwatersuppliesatthesitewereinadequatebutwhen
SirEricTeichmanpassedthroughLanzhouin1917andwasgiventwo
camels'hairblanketsmanufacturedatthemill,heconsideredthemtobe
of"highquality.")6
Asecondilluminatingfacetofthemaotou'sstoryisthesenseit
(Shanghai:Shangwu1936),p.5.TranslationfromHuanK'uan,DiscoursesonSaltandIron,ed.,trans.EssonM.Gale(Leyden:E.J.Brill,Ltd.,1931),p.15.IamindebtedtoProfessorDieterKuhn,UniversityofHeidelberg,whosepersonalcorrespondenceprovidedmewiththisinformation.Dr.Kuhn,whoisatworkontheforthcoming"Textiles"sectionofScienceandTechnologyinChina,alsoincludedthefollowingremarks."IntheHouHanshu(j.86,pp.285758)ismentionofthe"tribe"Ranmangmakingfeltedarticlesfromthe"wool"ofhornlessyaks(maoniu).TheBookofDocumentsmentions"woollenarticles"(inthetributestoYu).Theyaredifficulttodefine,ofcourse.IntheTiangongkaiwuof1637isashortsubsection"WoollensandFelt."Althoughthereareanumberofreferencestowoolinvarioustextualworksanddictionaries(Shuowenjiezi,Yupian...)Iassumethatwoolasmaterialforgarmentswasregardedasinferior."(11November,1987).
6GideonChen(Ch'enCh'it'ien),TsoTsungt'ang,PioneerPromoteroftheModernDockyardandWoolenMillinChina(NewYork:Paragon,1938),pp.5772.(OriginallypublishedinBeiping:YenchingUniversityDepartmentofEconomics,1938.)SirEricTeichman,TravelsofaConsularOfficerinNorthwestChina(Cambridge,CambridgeUniversityPress,1921),p.116.
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conveysthatthewooltradeinChinabegansuddenly,withthediscovery
byforeignfirmsoftheresourcesofwoolavailableinthemoredistant
hinterlandsofthetreatyports.Asmentionedabove,woolwasnot
consumedtoanynoticeableextentbyChina'ssedentaryHanpopulation
withlittledomesticdemand,then,itawaitedtheadventofaforeign
markettoprimetheenginesofcommercethatbroughtwooldownfromthe
pasturesofTibet,Qinghai,XinjiangandMongolia.Russiafirst
purchasedwoolfromtheAltairegionofXinjiangandfromOuterMongolia
intheearly19thcentury,butitwasnotuntilthelate1870sand1880s
thatsizeableamountsofwoolbegantopassthroughChinafromInnerAsia
totheportsfromwhichitwasexported:Tianjinprimarily,butalsothe
YangziRiverportsfromChongqingdown.Oncestartedthetradegrew
rapidly,increasingfrom4,500piculsexportedin1880to43,000in1885
toover135,000in1891.7
AnothercharacteristicoftheChinesewooltradethatemergesfrom
thetaleofGeTuzi'senterpriseisthelargenumberofintermediaries
involvedinitsoperation.Gehimselfisamiddleman,an
investigatorturnedcompradorefurtheringtheinterestsofhisforeign
employers(alongwithhisown).Despitehisambitionand
resourcefulness,hecanfunctiononthefrontieronlywiththeassistance
ofinnkeeperswhoknowthelocalpeopleandcustoms,presumablyspeakthe
localdialectorlanguageaswellasaformofChinesecomprehensibleto
outsidersandinotherwaysbridgethegapbetweenthenearbyproducers
7BasedonImperialMaritimeCustomsdata.SeetableIV.
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andthemerchantarrivedfromafar.Suchcrossculturalfigureswere
cruciallinksintheChinesewooltrade,andmanywereinfact
proprietorsofinns,theseestablishmentsprovidingconvenientlocalefor
negotiations(asinGe'sliaisonwithZhangSan)andevenexchangeof
goods.Themaotou'sstorydoesnotreferspecificallytotheclassof
intermediariesinvolvedinshippingthewool,bylandcaravanorbyboat
downriverbutsomeofthedangersinherentinthattransportation
processareapparentintheappearanceandroleofthebanditleader
ZhangSanasboththreattoandprotectorofthetradeinwool.
Thefinalclueaboutthenatureofthewooltradetobedrawnfrom
thislegendisitspotentialasalucrativeenterprise,giventhe
plentifulsupplyofwoolatlowpricesintheborderlandsandthebrisk
demandinthetreatyports.Forthisreasonforeignersatfirst,and
later,Chinesemerchants,investedinwooltransactions.Butthe
potentialforprofitinthetradedependedhighlyuponinternational
demand,whichfromthepointofviewofChinesetradersornomadic
producersmusthaeseemedacapriciousmasterindeed.Theprofitability
ofthewooltradealsovariedwiththecostofgettingwooltomarket.
Initiallyattractivebecausetherawproductcouldbeshippedtotreaty
portsfreeoflocalandprovincialtaxes,woolexportbecameless
profitableasthedeclineofeffectivecentralpowerintheseconddecade
ofthetwentiethcenturyputanendtothispriviledge.
IntheremainderofthispaperIwilltraceanddetailtheChinese
borderwooltradethatblossomedbetweenthe1880sandthe1930s.Of
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course,thetypesofcommercialtransactionsandagentsthroughwhich
woolwasrelayeddidnotremainstaticthroughoutthisperiod.AsI
followtheborderwoolgeographicallyandcommerciallyfromsheepto
ship,asitwere,Iwillalsoattempt(whereavailablesourcespermit
thislevelofdetail)toshowhowthepatternofthetradechanged
chronologicallyateachpointofexchangebetweenthehandsofMongols,
TibetansandothernomadstothoseofEuropeans,AmericansandJapanese
inthetreatyports.
II.PRODUCTION
ThestoryofGeTuziissilentaboutonelinkinthechainthatcomprised
theChinesewooltrade:thefirstone.Infact,theproducersofthe
wool,forthemostpartnomadicherdsmenlivingonthefringesofthe
desertsoramongthemountainrangesandplateausofChina'snorthand
west,areleftinhistoriographicshadowbyChineseandJapaneseaccounts8
moreconcernedwithChinesetradersandtheirinteractionwithforeign
firms.Anotherimportantreasonbehindthisisthatthemobilenatureof
nomadicpastoralists'livesandtheremotenessoftheareasthey
inhabitedprecludedcloseobservationoftheirsocietyandeconomy,
especiallywithregardtoquantitativeestimatesofherdsize,wool
8InmanyprovincesofChinapropersmallamountsofsheep'swoolwereproducedbysedentaryHanorHuiasasupplementtotheirincomefromcrops,orinplacesasanexclusiveeconomicactivity.Neitherinquantitynorinquality,however,didthisproductapproachthatcollectedfromnonChinesepastoralnomads.
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production,andsoforth.Forthesereasons,inordertopicturethe
livesofnomadicresidentsoftheborderlandswemustrelyonthe
miscellanyofethnographicinformationcontainedinthenarrativesof
travelerswhopassedthroughtheborderregionsduringthisperiod,the
onesidedaccountsofChineseinvolvedinsomestageofthetrade,the
secondaryreportsofChineseandJapaneseinvestigators.Eventhen,it
isimposibletodomorethanspeculateonhownomadswereeffectedbythe
developmentofaninternationaldemandfortheirherds'wool.9
Nomadsraisednumerousbreedsofwoolbearinganimalsthroughout
thedesert,steppeandmountainenvironmentonChina'sborders.Chinese
sourcesidentifythreemajorclassificationsofsheep,aswellasmany
subbreedsandcrossbreedswithinthesecategories.Thelargest
category,theMongolianorfattailedsheep(sonamedbecauseitstores
fatinitstailforwinteruse)hadthewidestdistributionandlargest
populationin1950mostofthesheepinInnerMongoliaandManchuria,
northernandcentralChina,aswellasintheKhotanregionofXinjiang
werefattailedsheep.ThisbreedwasalsointroducedintotheTsaidam,
byimmigratingMongolbannersattheendofMingperiod.Hardy,fecund
andgoodeating,fattailedsheepwerepopularamongnomads.The
travelingmissionaryEvaristeHuc's"embarassmentwasextreme,"however,
whenin1844hisMongolhostsofferedhimthefattytailalone,that
beingtothemthechoicestparthecouldnotstomachthe"greatwhite
9InwritingthispaperIhavenotconsultedworksinRussianonMongolianandCentralAsianpastoralsociety.Doingsowouldhaveaddedmoreethnographicdetailtomyanalysishere.
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massoffat." Thewoolofthefattailedsheepisshortandcoarseand10
provedoflesscommercialvaluethanthatofotherbreeds.
TheTibetanorsmalltailedsheep,nativetoTibetandfromthere
introducedtoQinghai,southwestGansu,Sichuan,andtheYunGuiplateau,
wastheonlyChinesesheeptorivalthemerino(aSpanishbreednow
raisedinternationally)inqualityandquantityofwoolproduced.(Most
ofthewoolexportedfromChina'snorthwestduringtheboomofthe
1880s1930swasfromthissheep,anditwaspraisedbyforeignwool
merchantsforitscurliness,flexibility,lengthofstaple,clearcolor,
andscarcityofcoarseor"dead"fibers).
Thethirdmajorbreedofsheep,theKhazaksheep,originatedin
whatisnowtheSovietrepublicofKhazakistanandwasbroughtto
Xinjiangbynomadicgroupsveryearly.Itwasdistributedthroughout
Xinjiang(thoseraisedintheAltairegionwereconsideredthefinest)
withsomealsoinGansu,QinghaiandNingxia.Asthenamesuggests,
thesesheepwereherdedprimarilybyKhazaks. 11
ItwasmainlytheMongolswhoraisedtheBactriancamelsthat
10EvaristeHucandJosephGabet,TravelsinTartary,ThibetandChinaduringtheYears184456,trans.W.Hazlitt,2ndrpt.ed.(Chicago,1900),p.65.11Theprecedingdiscussionofbreedsofsheepfollowsthesesources:XuKangzu,Zhongguodimianyangyuyangmao(China'ssheepandwool),2nded.(Shanghai:Yongxiangyinshuguan,1952),pp.1344ZhouZhenhe,Qinghai(Qinghai),rpt.ed.(Taibei:Shangwuyinshuguan,1970),p.233ZhangZhiyiet.al.,Xibeiyangmaoyuxumushiye(ThewoolandpastoralindustryoftheNorthwest)(HongKong:Zhongguoguohuoshiyebaowushe,1941),p.2.SeealsoChinChienYin,WoolIndustryandTradeinChina,mimeo.(Shanghai:Universityl'Aurore,1937).
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providedthemainmeansoftransportationacrossthedesertandsteppeof
MongoliaandXinjiang.Thesebeastsarestrongeralthoughless
aggressivethantheonehumpeddromedariesofArabiaandtheSahara,and
duringthecoldmonthsproduceaheavycoatofwool.Largehooveskeep
thecamelfromsinkingintothesand,evenwhencarryingloadsof300400
cattiesLongeyelashes,doubleeyelidsandavalveinthecurvednostril
passageaffordtheanimalprotectionfromflyingsand.Uptoforty
kilogramsoffatstoredinthehumpsallowsthecameltoliveforover
twoweekswithoutwaterinthedesert.Resilientagainsthunger,thirst,
heatandcold,theBactriancamelwasthusincomparabletransportover
soft,climaticallyextremeterrain.
Ifthecamelwastheshipofthedesert(shamozhizhou),Tibetan
yaksweresurelythebargeofthehighplateau.Theywereinfactnot
fullbloodedyaksatall,butahybridofyakandoxen.Inadditionto
usingthemfortransport,Tibetanswovetheirwoolintoclothfortents. 12
Eachoftheregionsdescribedabovecouldalsosupportgoats,
particularlyinmountainousareas.Thesegoats'long,softundercoat
providedanequivalenttocashmere,butwasmarketedthroughChinaonly
insmallquantities.Theouterhairwastwistedintocord.
Despitetheenvironmentaldifferencesandvarietiesofherd
compositionadoptedbyeachgroup,nomadsinthelandsborderingonChina
sharedasimilarpatternoflife,basedonthenecessitesprovidedby
andtherequirementsoftheherds.Milkandproductsderivedfromit
12RobertB.Ekvall,CulturalRelationsontheKansuTibetanBorder(Chicago:UniversityofChicagoPress,1939),p.54.
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madeupthemostimportantitemsinallInnerAsiannomads'diet.These
weresupplementedbygrain(forwhichthepastoralistsbarteredwool,
hidesandotherproducts)andsomemeat.Animaldungservedastheonly
sourceoffuelinenvironmentswherevegetationwasscarce.Theanimals
alsoprovidedclothingfornomadicTibetans,forexample,asheepskin
drapedoveroneshoulderandcinchedatthewaistservedasgarmentand
bedding. 13
WoolwasoneofthemostimportantresourcesoftheInnerAsian
nomadiceconomy.Evenbeforethepossibilitiesfortradeinwool
increasedinthenineteenthcentury,wool,intheformoffelt,was
crucialasthemateralusedintheconstructionofyurtsandotheritems.
Tomakefelts,nomadswouldfirstcollectthewoolfromthesheepin
placesthiswasaccomplishedbyshearingwithscissors(themethod
preferredbyforeignwoolmerchants)butmoreoftennomadscombed,cut
withknivesorsimplypulledthewooloffwiththeirhands.Althoughthe
irregularstaplelengthcausedbysuchmethodspresentedanobstacleto
spinningandweaving,itwasofnoconsequenceinfeltmaking.Thenomads
beattherawwoolwithsticksatgreatlength,laidthecompactedwoolon
awovenmatorscreenandsoakeditwithhotwater.Next,theyrolled
thematandlayerofwoolaroundawoodenpole,securedit,andafter
fasteningropestotheendsofthepoledraggedthisdevicebyhandor
fromhorsebackforhoursoverthesteppe.Asthewoolrolledinthemat,
13Forphotographsofnomadssoclad,seeJosephF.Rock,TheAmnyeMachhenRangeandAdjacentRegions(Rome:InstitutoItalianoperilMedioedEstremoOriento,1956),platesIX,LXVIII.
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itwascompressedintoasturdysheetoffeltonetothreeinchesthick.
(Somenomadgroups,suchastheKirghiz,accomplishedthisrolling
procedurewitharopemechanismpulledfromoppositesidesbytwo
people.)Woolistheonlynaturalfibertrulysuitedtofeltinginthis
manner.Therearerowsofscalesalongeachfiberthatfacethesame
directionandstaycakedwithgreasewhileonthesheephowever,the
initialbeatingrandomlyalignsandcompressesthefibersthehotwater
removesthegrease,causingthescalestobendawayfromthetrunkofthe
woolfiber.Thefinalprocessofrollingclosesthescalesoncemore,
thistimesothattheyareallfirmlyenmeshedwithotherscalesand
fibers. 14
Theanimalsinnomads'herdsneededagoodsupplyofgrass
throughouttheyear,andthisrequirementdeterminedtheseasonal
migratorypatternoftheirherders.Duringthewarmermonths,thenomads
pasturedtheirherdsintherichergrasslandsofhigherelevationsin
thewinter,mostgroupsretreatedtocampsinvalleys,nearforests,and
otherplacesthataffordedprotectionfromtheweather.Thetimesof
yearwhennomadicgroupstradedtheirwool,hidesandotherproductsfor
itemsfromChinadependedupontheirdistancefrombordersettlements,
difficultyoflocalcommunicationandotherfactors,butwereinvariably
closelylinkedtothescheduleofthenomads'seasonalmigrations,and,
inparticularduringtheperiodweareconsidering,withthetimingof
14ErnestWatson,ThePrincipleArticlesofChineseCommerce,China,theMaritimeCustomsSpecialSeriesno.38(Shanghai:StatisticalDepartmentoftheInspectorateGeneralofCustoms,1930),p.21,25.
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woolproduction.
Inmostplaces,woolwasgatheredfromthesheeponceortwicea
year:inearlyspringandperhapsagaininlatesummerorearlyautumn.
Generally,thewooltakeninthespringwaslongeranddenser,andhence
ofgreatervalueforthelongdistancetrade.(Inplaceswherenomads
"harvested"woolbiannually,suchasinInnerMongolia,theshorter
autumnfleecewasforthenomads'ownuse,orusebylocalborder
inhabitants.)Thusformanynomads,theirmajorexportproductwasready
togoonthemarketinspringorsummer,justastheywerepreparingto
leavetheirwintercampsforthehighpasturesandcouldbrooknodelay
insellingitoff.Norwasthenomad'sneedfortradeasgreatatthis
timeofyearasitwasintheautumn,whentheyhadtoputawaysupplies
forwinter.Inmanyborderareas,nomadsmadetheirpurchasesfrom
sedentarysocietyintheautumn,oncreditChinesemerchants
accomodatedthenomadseagerly,acceptingpaymentwithinterestinterms
ofthefollowingspring'swool.Tibetantradingcaravanssoldundera
similardisadvantage,despitethefactthattheybroughtwooltomarket
intheautumnthetimeofyearwhentravelinTibetwaseasiestandmen
werefreefromherdingtaskstomakethetrip.Theyaksintheir
caravansneededpastureorfodder,andtheformerwasscarceandthe
latterexpensiveontheborder.Withthecaravan'senginerunning,soto
speak,thenomadicTibetanshadtoconcludetheirsalequickly.
Inanotherwayaswell,pastoralnomadicsocietiesinInnerAsia
(orelsewhere),havebeenatadisadvantageintradingwithsedentary
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peoples.Thisisbecauseingeneralherdsmentradeinordertosupply
themselveswithnecessities,whiletheproductstheyhaveofferedin
exchangearenotvitaltosedentarysocieties. Afteracareerdevoted15
toconsiderationofthehistoryoftheinteractionbetweenChineseand
InnerAsianpeoples,OwenLattimorehasgeneralizedthatthroughits
history,theChineseempire'smainreasonsfortradewiththenomadswere
politicalandstrategic,noteconomic. Andindeed,abrieflookatthe16
typesofproductsexchangedbeforetheboominwoolexplainswhythiswas
so.Pastoralistsproducedmuchwoolanddairyproductsneverhighly
desiredinChinaaswellasanimalskins.Tradeinlivestock,meatand
hideswasmoreimportantbutlimitedbythefactthatsellingtheseitems
entaileddepletionoftheherdsman's"capital",hisherds.Inaddition,
nomadscouldoffertheChineseavarietyoffurs,medicinalherbsand
otherproducts,dependingontheenvironmentinwhichtheherders
traveledintheirmigratorycycles.(Forexample,Tibetanscollected
rhubarbandwapatiantlersforsaleontheSichuanborderthenomadsof
MongoliaandXinjiang,notedfalconers,broughtthepeltsofsmall
mammalsandthoseinwesternManchuriasuppliedginseng,waxandhoneyto
northernChina.)Inreturn,thenomadsneededgrain,cloth,metaltools,
weapons,andcookingutensils.(Andsomenecessary"luxuries",suchas
15Foradiscussionofthisquestionthatdrawsuponwiderangingexamples,seeA.M.Khazanov,NomadsandtheOutsideWorld(Cambridge:CambridgeUniversityPress,1984),p.212,passim.16OwenLattimore,"Herdsmen,farmers,urbanculture,"inPastoralProductionandSociety,ProceedingsoftheInternationalMeetingonNomadicPastoralism,Paris,13December,1976(NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress,1979),pp.481,4834.
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thebrickteaconsumedinprodigiousquantitiesbyTibetansand,bythe
19thCentury,Mongolsaswell,orsilksforlamaistsacraluse).These
productsweremoreelementaltonomadiceconomiesthanwerethegoods
nomadsexportedtotheChinese.(Theonegreatexceptiontothis
imbalanceinthehistoryofChinesebordertradewasthesupplyingof
horsesfortheChinesemilitary.SinceatleastShangtimes,theChinese
neededasteadysupplyofthestrong,fasthorsesthatonlythesteppes
couldprovide.Butthislargescaletradetendedtobehandledby
specializedorelitenomadgroups,andprobablyexertedlittleinfluence
onthecommonpastoralist'sbalanceoftrade. )Thisinherent17
inequalityofnomadicChineseexchangeissummedupbyaChinesesaying
inusealongtheMongolianborderaroundtheturnofthecentury:
kouwaisandabao:heicha,chaomi,lanpi'ao. 18
17Theexchangeofhorsesfortea(chamahushi)becamearegularfeatureofTibetanChineserelationsasearlyastheTangdynasty,duringtheSongbecameanofficiallysupervisedandregulatedenterprise,andwascontinuedundertheMingasthechamasi.Interestingly,themostimportantnorthwesternsitesoftheteahorseexchangeduringtheSongandMingperiods(Xining,Taozhou,Hezhou,GanzhouandMinzhou)becamemajorcentersofthewooltradeinlateQingandRepublicantimes.InMongolia,horsefairsatwhichtheMongolnobilitytradedhorsesforsilkandotherluxurieswhilecommonersconductedasidelinetradeinstaplesbeganinthe15thcentury.MorrisRossabi,"TheTeaandHorseTradewithInnerAsiaduringtheMing,"JournalofAsianHistory(Wiesbaden),4:2(1970),pp.135167HenrySerruys,"SinoMongolTradeduringtheMing,"JournalofAsianHistory(Wiesbaden),9:1(1975),pp.4452XieMingliang,GuoJianfan,"Xikangbianchajianshi"(AbriefhistoryofXikang`bordertea'),Sichuanwenshiziliaoxuanji,vol.8(n.p.:n.p.,n.d.),pp.173174. 18JosephusvanOost,DictonsetProverbsdesChinoisHabitantlaMongolieSudouest(Shanghai:Impr.del'OrphelinatdeT'ousewe,1918),p.97.
-
ThethreegreattreasuresinMongoliaarebricktea,roastedmillet,andarottenleatherovercoat.
NotethattwooutofthreetreasuresareoriginallyChinese,andthe
Chinesethinklittleofthethird.
Inthelatenineteenthcentury,woolbecamethemajorproduct
exportedfromnomadicareasintoChina.Yetasanexportwooldiffers
qualitativelyfromhorses,otherlivestock,meat,milkproducts,hides,
furs,andsoforth.Foronething,becausewoolisastapleresourceof
thepastoraleconomy,thefirstsuchtoenjoyademandemanatingfrom
southandeastoftheborderzone,itwasmoreeasilyavailabletocommon
nomadsthanthoseitemsfortradewhichhadtobehuntedorgathered.
Second,woolwasmorerapidlyreplenishablethanlivestockinasenseit
wasinterestonthepastoralists'capital,andtradingwoolawaydidnot
involvesuchrisksasnomadscouldincurwhentheyreducedthesizeof
theirherdsthroughsaleofmeat,hidesoranimalsonthehoof.
Becauseoftheuniquenessofwoolasanitemofnomadicexport,
then,thequestionariseswhetherthenoveltyoflargedemandforwool
perse(asopposedtootheritemssoldtoChinesebynomads),hada
specialeffectonInnerAsiansocietywhereitinteractedwithChina.
Unfortunately,thescarcityofhistoricalandethnographicdataonthe
nomadicsocietiesofChina'sborderlandsatthisperiodprecludesallbut
speculativeanswerstothisquestion.HistoriansofMongoliahave
claimedconvincinglythattheextensiveChineseeconomicpenetrationinto
Mongoliainthenineteenthandearlytwentiethcenturieshadtheeffect
ofimpoverishingthearea,especiallythroughextensivepracticeof
-
usury.OwenLattimorehasevenarguedingeneraltermsthatthedemand
fromtheChinesetreatyportsforwoolandotheritemsacceleratedthis
processbyraisingthepriceinMongoliaofsuchbasicstaples. But19
thiscastsonlyindirectlightontheeffectsontheMongoliannomadic
producersthemselves,andtellsusnothingaboutotherborderareas.In
particular,theQinghaiGansuborderregionwassubjecttomuchless
ChinesemigrationandeconomicpenetrationthanMongolia,yetexportof
woolfromthe1880stothe1930swasmuchgreater.Thereareinfact
hintsthattradeinwoolandotherpastoralproductsforwhichChina's
incorporationintotheworldeconomycreatedincreaseddemandallowedthe
accumulationofasurplusinsilveronthesteppe(seepage25).
However,confidentanswerstothisquestionmustawaitdetailedstudies
ofbordereconomiesbyanthropologistsandhistoriansandwillprobably
varydependingonjustwhereinthenomadicareasonelooks. 20
19OwenLattimore,NationalismandRevolutioninMongolia(NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress,1955),pp.1421,particularlypp.1617.ForanunabashedlypolemicaccountoftheeffectsofChinesepenetration,seeWilliamA.BrownandUrgungeOnon,trans.,HistoryoftheMongolPeople'sRepublic(Cambridge:EastAsianResearchCenter,HarvardUniversityPress,1976).20AcasesimilartothatoftheChineseInnerAsianwooltrademaybefoundinSomaliafromthe1830stothe1950s.Somaliannomadshadexchangedanimalandwildgoods(primarilygheeandgatheredvegetableproducts)foragriculturalandmanufacturedgoodssincebeforethethirteenthcentury.AftertheBritishoccupationofAdenin1839,however,thepresenceofBritishtroopssuddenlycreatedademandformeatwhichSomalianpastoralistsendeavoredtofulfillthroughincreasedlivestocktrade.Theultimateresultsofthetrade(whichcontinuedafterthe1950sduetoArabdemand),asinterpretedbyJeremySwift,were1)strengtheningandconsolidationofaclassofintermediariesandthecreationofawealthyurbanlivestocktradingclassand2)stratificationanddivisionofSomalipastoralsociety,aswellasthebreakdownofmanycustomsandinstitutions(weddinggifts,mutualinsurance,andsoon)rootedinfreeexchangeofanimalsnowinshorter
-
III.COLLECTION
Inthissection,Iwilltracethemovementofwoolseveralstepsfurther
byexaminingthetransactionsthroughwhichthewoolchangedhandsnear
thebordersinpreparationforitsjourneytoBaotouorChongqing.
Accurateassessmentsofthevolumeofwoolproductionandtradefromthe
borderregionsarevirtuallyimpossibleduetothescatteredand
arbitrarynatureofextantstatistics(seetableI). Iamable,21
however,tooutlineinsomedetailthestagesintheprocessofexchange,
whereeachtookplace,thecommercialinstitutionsandsocialgroups
involved,andthechangesthispatternunderwentduringtheperiod
18801938.
Itisusefultoviewthepurchase,concentrationandtransshipment
supply.JeremySwift,"TheDevelopmentofLivestockTradinginaNomadPastoralEconomy:theSomaliCase,"PastoralProductionandSociety,pp.448463.Thiscomparison,whileprovocative,isproblematicbecausethecommodityforwhichthesuddendemandaroseintheSomaliancasewasarelatively"nonrenewable"resource,livestock,whilewoolcouldbetradedinincreaseamountswithoutdangerouslydepletingherdsize.21Estimatesareavailableinmanysources,butdifferastoplaceandtime,sothatcomparisonisimpossible.Moreover,themeansbywhichfigureswereobtainedoftenamountedtolittlemorethanguesswork.Forexample,toestimatetheamountofwoolmarketedintheNorthwest(xibei)inanaverageyearintheearly1930s,theinvestigatorZhangZhiyitookhisestimatesofregionalsheeppopulations,multipliedthembytheestimatedaveragequantityofwoolproducedbyeachsheepinagivenyear,andsubtractedanestimateoftheamountofwoolusedlocallybynomadicandsedentarypastoralists.Tohiscredit,Zhangcitesavarietyofotherestimates,includingproductionfiguresforthevariousnorthwesternprovinceswheretheycontradicteachother,Zhangattemptstoevaluatedifferingresults.Zhang,et.al.,pp.8,10,12.OtherestimatesaresummarizedinTableI.
-
ofwoolfromChina'sborderregionsintermsofaroughhierarchyof
"central"places,inwhichthevolumeofwoolhandledincreasedandthe
typeofcommercialtransactiondifferedateachhigherlevel.Asmight
beexpectedwithtradeinabulkycommoditythroughroughterrain,
"centrality"ofaplaceinthishierarchywasassociatedwithlocation
alongthefewlandandwaterroutessuitableforthetransportofwool.
Thefourtypesofplaceinthehierarchyare1)producers'markettowns,
wherenomads(orsedentarywoolproducerssuchasthoseineasternGansu)
tradedtheirwoolandhides2)collectiontransshipmentcenters,where
largequantitiesofwoolwerebroughtfrom(1)bybrokersandmerchants
tobesoldtoothermerchants,bulkedandtransshipped3)themajor
collectiontransshipmentcentersofXining,ShizuishanandBaotou,which
differfrom(2)primarilyinscale,butalsooccupycrucialpositionson
themajorwesteastwaterwayand,moreover,whereconsignmentsofwool
werenotonlybulked,butalsoprocessedtosomeextentbefore
transshipmentand4),theexportcitiesofTianjinandtheless
important(intermsofwoolhandling)Chongqing,wheretheforeign
companiesthatexportedtheborderwoolwerebased,andwhereevenwool
boundforChinesewoolenmills(inthe1920sand1930s)wasfirst
accumulatedbeforefinalshipment.Therelationshipbetweenfunction
andtypeofplacewasnotasrigidasthisschematicdescription
suggests.Manylargerproducers'markettownswerealsothesiteof
exchangeofwoolbetweentheinitialbuyerandalongdistancemerchant
orevenofabrokeredexchangebetweenproducersandrepresentativesof
-
foreignfirms.Collectiontransshipmentandmajor
collectiontransshipmentcentersalsoservedtheirimmediatehinterlands
asproducers'markets.Iproposethishierarchicalscheme,then,onlyto
aidinexplainingingeneraltermsthecomplextransactionsgoverningthe
borderwooltrade.
InthissectionIwilldiscuss(1),(2),andthemajor
transshipmentcentersexceptforBaotou.Thatuniquetown,andtheview
fromthetreatyports,Iwilltakeupinlatersections.
Inadditiontothesegeographicaldistinctions,atemporaldivision
markedthecourseofthewooltradeinthenorthwest.Fromthe1880s
untilthe1920sforeignexportersofwool,hidesandotherborder
productsmaintainedanindirectpresenceintheGansuQinghairegion,
easternGansu,theAlashan(Ningxiaafter1912),andtheOrdos(after
1912,southernSuiyuan)throughcompradorelikeagentsengagedin
collectingwoolfortheexportmarket.Bythelate1920s,however,faced
withanonslaughtofenvironmentaldisasters,warsandcommunalviolence,
politicalinstabilityandrejuvenatedtaxcollection,theforeignfirms
withdrewtheirpurchasingagenciesfromthenorthwest.Thetasksof
collectingwoolonthebordersandshippingiteastwardforsalewere
thereaftertakenonbysmallHuicompanies.
Producersgenerallytradedtheirwoolforgrainandmanufacturesin
smallmarkettownsonornearthesteppe.(IncentralTibetandQinghai,
nomadsalsodealtfromtheircampswithtravelingHuimerchants,trading
-
theirwoolandothergoodsfortea,cloth,silks,cookingpots,andso
on. )Theseproducers'marketsvariedsomewhatinsizedependingonthe22
depthofthehinterlandtheyserved,theirlocationrelativetomajor
transportationroutes,andsoon.Travelershaveleftussomeaccounts
ofproducers'markettowns,suchasEricTeichman'sdescriptionofEboon
theGansuQinghaiborder.Thephysicalsituationofthissettlementis
analogoustoitseconomicrole:thesmallwalledChinesetownlay
perchedontheedgeoftheQinghaiplateau,astridearoutethat
connectedTibetwiththeGansucorridorthroughtheDubiankoupass.In
alldirectionsextendedthevastgrasslandswhereTibetansgrazedtheir
herdsandpitchedtheirtents.ThecommunityofChinesespeakingHui
whomTeichmanencounteredweresolelyinvolvedincollectionofwooland
othersteppeproductswhichtheytransportedforsaleindistanttowns
belowtheplateau. 23
TeichmanhadalreadytraveledthroughLabrang,amajorLamaist
monasticcommunityontheXiariverneartheGansuQinghaiborder,and
describedthebazaarthatservedasaproducers'marketlargerthanEbo.
Here,inthemid1930s,theChinesejournalistandtravelwriterFan
Chiangjiangnotedthegreatquantitiesofwoolbroughtintothedusty
marketbyTibetansandsoldtoHuimerchantsfromHezhou(nowLinxia).
Interestingly,FancommentedthatmanyoftheTibetansdoingtheactual
sellingwerewomenrightlyorwrongly,Faninterpretedtheunrestrained
22Ekvall,pp.5558.23Teichman,pp.161167.SeealsothestarkphotographsinRock,platesIIIandIV.
-
demeanoroftheseTibetanwomenassignsofa"looserelationship"with
theChinesetraders. 24
TheGuomindangagentMaHot'ienstayedintheMongoliantownof
BayanDalai("Baisingto"),asettlementconsistingofatempleandafew
yurtssetonaplainsparselyinhabitedbynomadsandtheircattle,
camelsandsheep.TenChinesemerchantsfromGansuandBeijinglivedin
thetown,theoutsidesoftheiryurtspiledhighwithstacksofwooland
theinteriorsarrayedwithsuppliessuchaswouldbefitafrontier
generalstoreincountlessAmericanwesterns.Thesetraders,
representingthefirmsofXinYuanHaoandHeYiHe,exchangedtheir
sadlery,boots,hats,rollsofcloth,woodenandironarticlesforwool
andsheepskinswhichtheyshippedbacktoChina.Therehadbeenoverone
hundredsuchtradinghousesinBayanDalai,themerchantscomplainedto
Ma,untilhightaxesfollowingthe1921Mongolianrevolutiondroveall
buttheremainingfewoutoftheMongolianwoolbusiness. 25
Thetradingsettlementsinthesethreedescriptionseachdisplay
theessentialcharacteristicsofwoolproducers'markettowns.Ineach,
nomadicproducerscameintodirectcontactwithChinesemerchants.The
usualmeansofexchangewasbarter,althoughasnomadiceconomiesinsome
areasbecamemonetizedlumpsilverandvariouscurrenciesbegantobe
24Teichman,p.144.FanChangjiang,Zhonguodixibeijiao(China'snorthwestcorner)(Tianjin:DagongBaoguan,1936),pp.8788.JosephRocktookaphotooftheLabrangmarketplacein(plateXVIII).25MaHot'ien,ChineseAgentinMongolia,trans.,ed.JohnDefrancis(Baltimore:JohnHopkinsPress,1949),pp.1718.OriginallypublishedasMaHetian,Neiwaimenggukaochariji(diaryofaninvestigationofInnerandOuterMongolia)(Nanjing:XinYaxiyaxuehui,1932).
-
used.And,althoughthispointisnotmentionedexplicitlybythe
travelers,inorderfortradetobepossibleoneparty,usuallythe
buyer,hadtoenjoysomeproficiencyinthelanguageofthenomadsas
wellasalocalChinesedialect.
Theexchangeofwoolcouldworktothedisadvantageofthe
producers,asanothersayingoftheMongolianborderlandsattests:
Biankeqingdazi,dazichidazi 26
EvenwhenaborderagenttreatsaMongol,
theMongolstillpaysthebill.
Bymostreports,pricesofferedtotheproducerswerelow. Moreover,27
wheneverpossibleChinesemerchantspreferredtoprovidegoodsoncredit,
takingwool,hidesorlivestockasrepaymentwithinterestwhenthese
productswerereadyforcollectionlaterintheyear,usuallyspringor
summer.Withthebuyersdeterminingthetermsofthesale,yearafter
year,nomadscouldnotgetfarahead. Ontheotherhand,somesources28
mentionthatinplacesnomadsenjoyedafavorablebalanceoftradeandat
thesetimesaccumulatedasmallsurplusinsilver. 29
26Oost,p.191.27AccordingtotheinvestigatorZhangZhiyi,beforethestartofthesecondSinoJapanesewar,intheGansuQinghaiborderareaonebrickofteafetchedanaverageoftwohundredcattiesofwool(Zhanget.al.,p.15).SinceoneQinghaisheepproducedtwotothreecattiesofwoolannually,thatpricerepresentstheyearlyproductofeightysheep.28ZhouZhenhe,p.205.OwenLattimore,MongolJourneys(London:JonathanCape,1941),pp.189190.29ZhouZhenhe,p.205.Ekvall,p.58.
-
Oncecollectedbythebuyer,thewoolwaspackedintowhatever
bundlesweremostconvenientforthelocalmeansoftransportation.In
Qinghaiandthenorthwestingeneral,thismeantthatthelongstapled
woolwastwistedintoropesthatfoldedthesofterinnerwithinthe
coarseroutercoat.(Fromthisenfoldingorcoveringprocessderivedone
oftheprevalentnamesforwoolfromthisregion,taomao.)Theropes
werewrappedintobundlesweighingsixtytoseventycattieswithcords
madeofgoathair,thenpackedonthebacksofanimalsto
collectiontransshipmentcenters.Bytheendofthisjourneyandafter
whatithadbeenthroughtogettomarketinthefirstplace,thewool
wasusuallyasodden,filthymess. 30
Althoughcollectiontransshipmentcentersoftenservedasprimary
woolmarketsaswell,Ihavedistinguishedthetwobecause
collectiontransshipmentcenterswerethesiteofthenexthigherlevel
transactioninthewooltrade,thatbetweenlocalprocurersofwooland
themerchantsinvolvedwithmovingwooloverthenext,longeststageof
itsjourney.Thesecenterswereintownsorcitiesofconsiderablesize
andeconomicimportancetheywerenotnecessarilylocatedontheborders
ofwoolproducingdistricts,thoughneitherweretheytoofaraway.Most
important,theylayalongmajorlandandwatertransportationroutes
leadingfromtheborderlandsintoChina.OntheTibetSichuanand
QinghaiGansubordersthecombinedbrokerageinnundersingleownership
becameanimportantinstitutionfacilitatingtheexchangeofwool.
30Chin,pp.46,70.
-
Themostimportantwoolcollectiontransshipmentcentersincluded
DajianluandSongpanalongtheSichuanTibetborderSuzhou(Jiuquan),
Ganzhou(Zhangye),Jingyuan,Datong,Huangyuan,Tangor,Guide,Hezhou
(Linxia),OldTaozhou,Lanzhou,Tianshui,Zhangjiachuan,Pingliang,
Yongdeng,andLiangzhou(Wuwei)inGansuQinghaiZhongning,Zhongwei,
Wuzhongbao,Ningxia(Yinchuan),Shizuishan(Shizuizi),Yingdingyuanand
DengkoualongtheYellowRiverbetweentheAlashanandOrdosKhotan
(Hezhen),Kuchar(Kuche),HamiandBarkul(Zhenxi)inXinjiangYulinand
ShenmuinShaanxiKhobdo,UliassutaiandUrga(Kulun)inOuterMongolia.
31
IntheNorthwest,twocitieshandledwoolinsuchvolumethatthey
maybeconsideredinaclassbythemselves,asmajor
collectiontranshipmentcenters.Xiningcollectedwooltransshippedfrom
northoftheYellowRiverinQinghai,includingtheregionsofthe
TsaidamandaroundtheQinghailake.ShizuishanontheYellowRiverin
InnerMongoliaconcentratedthewoolshipmentsfromsurroundingregions
insideandoutsidetheRiver'sloop.Inbothplaceswoolwasdriedand
thenprocessedsomewhat,eithersiftedtofreeitofimpuritiesor
perhapsfurtheradulteratedtoincreaseitssaleweight.Thenitwas
31Chin,p.4849Liu,passimZhou,pp.199200OgawaKunan,"Hotoniokeruhimoten,hisho"(pimaodianandpizhuanginBaotou),Mantetsuchosageppo21:11(Nov.1941),p.80.Thisisnotacompletelist.Ihaveincludedtownsonthebasisofreferencebytravelersorinvestigatorstothevolumeofwooltransshippedandtypesofcommercialfunctionsundertakenineachplace.BecauseoftheconcentrationofsourcematerialsdealingwiththeGansuQinghaiborder,thisregionisoverrepresentedonmylist,whileIhavefailedtoincludemanycollectiontransshipmentcentersfromotherregions.
-
packedforshipmentoverlandorbyriver(seesectionIV).InShizuishan
after1915theforeignfirmsofXintaixing(Wilson)andRenji(Forbes)
jointlyoperatedaprocessingpackingplantthatemployedover1500
workerstountwistthewoolropes,siftoutexcessdirt,washanddrythe
woolbeforepackingitfortransshipment. 32
Closeexaminationofthecommercialroleof
collectiontransshipmentcentersrevealsthecomplexworkingsof
crossculturaltradeinaction.Dajianlu,twelvedayswestofChengduby
premoderntransportalongtheoldroadtoLhasa,hadservedsincethe
midQingperiodasthemainentrepotfortheexportofChinesebricktea
toTibet.WoolwasonlyoneofmanyproductstradedbyTibetanshere,
includingmusk,deerantlers,golddustandmedicinalherbs.Butby
1896,fiveyearsafterChongqingopenedasatreatyportaBritishfirm
openedagenciesinDajianluandwarehousesinChongqingforhandling
wool. TheYangziRiveroutletforTibetanwooldevelopedfromthistime33
on,suppliedbythemuleandyakcaravansofHanChineseandTibetan
merchantsthatconveyedincreasingquantitiesofthetwistedcoilsof
taomaointoDajianlu.Whenitcameinduringmidsummerorlateautumn,
woolmetteain"ramshackleinns"knownlocallyas"kettlehouses"
(guozhuang). Theproprietoroftheseinns,oftenawoman,servedas34
32Liu,p.192193.33Chin,pp.6162.34TheTibetantermforthenomadicunitthatsharesacampfireandfood(i.e.eatsfromthesamepot)iswaka,literally"kettleat."ChinesetradersinTibetadoptedaloantranslationofthisterm(guozi)torefertotheirown,similar,unit.(Ekvall,p.62.)Theguoinguozhuang,then,maysignifythesocialratherthantheculinarykettle,
-
brokerandinterpretertomerchantshailingfrombotheastandwest.In
additiontotheseservicesandaccommodation,theguozhuangprovided
specialscalesforweighingwool,antlers,medicinalherbs,andsoon.
Theguozhuangprofitedfromthedealsconcludedunderitsroofthrougha
commissionoffourpercent,scalefees,aswellaschargesleviedonHan
merchantsforroomandboard.(ItissaidthatTibetansstayedfree.) 35
Afterexchange,woolwasreadiedfortransshipmenttoChongqing,perhaps
bydryingorrepacking.CleaningthewoolwasdifficultinDajianlu
becauseoftheicywatertemperature.
Thecommercialactivitiesofcollectiontransshipmentcentersin
thenorthwesternwoolproducingregionsweremorecomplexbeforethe
1920scompradoresfortheTianjinforeignfirmswerepresentinforceand
obtainedtheirwoolthroughavarietyofpossiblecommercialchannels,
dependingonthetypeandoriginofthewooltheydemanded,howsoonthey
wantedit,thetimeofyear,thelocationoftheagencyandotherfactors
(seeTableII).Theseyanghangbranchagencies,orwaizhuang,might
themselvessendoutpurchasers(called"smallbosses,"xiaolaoban)to
makeloanstotheproducersandcollectwoolinrepaymentthiswas
commonlythecaseintheareasofInnerMongoliaaroundShizuishan. Or36
theymightdealwiththepredominantlyHuiwoolmerchants(maofanzior
sothattheinnwasa"houseofbusinessfor'kettles'."35Chin,p.63ErnestHenryWilson,ANaturalistinWesternChina,withVasculum,CameraandGun(London:MethuenandCo.,Ltd.,1913),vol.1,pp.205208Xie,Guo,pp.176179.36Liu,p.186.
-
dafanzi)basedincollectiontransshipmentcenters.Uponreceiptofan
orderandanadvanceoftwentytosixtypercentofthepurchaseprice,
themaofanzisenttheirbuyers(xiaofanzi)totheproducers'markettowns
orsmallercollectiontransshipmentcenters.Here,thexiaofanzistayed
inbrokerageinnscalledxiejia.LiketheguozhuangontheTibetSichuan
border,xiejiafulfilledthetriplefunctionofaccommodation,brokerage
andinterpreting.Adifferencelay,however,inthatxiejiatookorders
forwoolandcashadvances.Withthemoney,theinnkeepersortheir
employeesboughtgoodstotradewiththenomadsinexchangeforwool
(whichmightnotbedeliveredtothemaofanziuntilsixmonthsorone
yearlater).Fortheirservices,xiejiatookacommissionoftwo
percent.(English,JapaneseandChineseaccountsofthexiejiaallpoint
outthattheinnkeepersthusreapedthisprofitwithlittlecapital
besidestheirbilingualability.)Maofanzilikewiserequired
compensation,sotheforeignfirmsoftensenttheirownpersoneltodo
businessthroughxiejia.
Whentheyneededwoolurgently(tofillanorderbeforethe
freezingoftheYellowRiverdelayeddeliverytoTianjin,forexample)
theyanghangbrancheshadathirdmethodforbuyingwool.Theycouldbuy
itdirectlyfromwoolmerchantsonthemarketinXining,amajor
collectiontransshipmentcenter.Thismethodhadtheadvantageof
allowingthewaizhuangtoviewthegoodsbeforepurchasingandsavedthem
theriskofadvancinglargesumsofmoneytomaofanziandxiejia.
However,merchantsbringingwoolintoXininghadnoguaranteedmarket,
-
andsochargedahigherpricetocoverpotentiallossontheir
speculation.Ingeneral,thewaizhuangavailedthemselvesofthisXining
spotsalemarketonlyforsmallscalepurchasesofwool(seeDiagramIa).
37
Waizhuangwerelocatedinmanynorthwesterntowns(seeTableII)
andstaffedbycompradorsorcompradors'agents(calledbyoneinformant,
"maibandimaiban").Theseemployeesoftheforeignfirmscorrespondto
the"upcountrypurchasers"relieduponextensivelybysuchconcernsas
AugustineHeardforprocurementofteaandsilk. Mostwerenativesof38
Tianjin,oreven(aswithGeTuzi'sstaff)ofplacesasfarawayas
Guangzhou.Moreover,theyappeartohavebeenprimarilyHanChinese. 39
Inthefirststageofthewooltrade,these
compradors'agentsdidwellbytheirpositions.ThosewhocametoHezhou
37Chin,pp.60,1067Liu,p.186Miyazaki,p.79Zhou,pp.204205.38SeeYenp'ingHao,TheCompradorinNineteenthCenturyChina:BridgebetweenEastandWest(Cambridge:HarvardUniversityPress,1970),pp.7582.39GuangzhouimmigrantsworkedforthelargestforeigncompaniesinTianjin,includingJardineMatheson,ButterfieldandSwire,WilliamForbes,theRussoAsiaticBank,andtheHongkongandShanghaiBankingCorporation.GailHershatter,TheMakingoftheWorkingClassinTianjin,19001949(Ph.D.dissertation,StanfordUniversity,1982),p.57.Atleastthreeoftheseyanghang(Jardine,Forbes,andtheHongkongandShanghaiBank)hadwoolcollectingoperationsintheChineseinterior.Onwaizhuang,seeLiu,passim,andQin,Ma,andZhang,pp.175181.Inparticular,seepage181whereZhangZhidaliststhenamesofseveral"laoban"inchargeofoperationsforvariousyanghanginZhongwei,ZhongningandHaiyuan,inGansu.All,hesays,arefromTianjinnoneofthesurnamesarethosecommonlyassociatedwithHuifamilies(i.e.Ma,HuorAn).
-
neartheendoftheGuangxureignperiod
allboughtofficialposition,woreabrassbandontheircaps,anddidn'tevennodwhentheysawtownordistrictofficials.Theyledextravagant,sumptuouslives.TheXintaixingfirmhadabossinLanzhouIthinkhisnamewasWangSandiewhoentertainedeveryrankofofficialtobefoundinthecity....Athisnightlybanquetstherewerealwaysfamouscourtesansattendingthewine,andmahjoong,andopiumsmoking....[Theagents]spentsolavishly,noofficialcouldcompete....Theforeignfirmsusedonlythebestimportedtools.[Themanagers]dressedelegantlyandchangedthreetimesaday.Allyearlongtheyretainedtailorsintheirhomestomakethemnewclothes. 40
Therewasalsobusinesstobeaccomplished.Wherethewaizhuangagents
didsodirectly,thisconsistedofcollectingwoolandreadyingitfor
shipmenttoBaotouandTianjin.Whereintermediaries,themaofanziand
xiejia,wereinvolved,the"uplandpurchasers"hadtonegotiateprices
andputintheirorders.Thelocalwoolmerchantsmetamongthemselves
tosetaskingpricesforwool,sotherepresentativesoftheforeign
firmsmetaswelltodeterminewhattheywouldoffer.(InHezhouat
least,thewaizhuangcollaboratedtopurchasewool:whenthewoolwas
delivered,itwasallocatedaccordingtohowmuchmoneyeachfirmhad
invested.Xintaixing(WilsonandCo.)wasthelargestbuyer,usually
takingaboutfiftypercentofthewool.)Whenintheautumn(the
hagglingseasonintheNorthwest)thewaizhuangandmaofanziheldprice
negotiations,thediscussions,knownaskaizhuang,wereoften
disputatious.Onceapricehadbeensettledupon,however,theforeign
firms'laobanadvancedthenecessarycash. 41
40Qin,Ma,andZhang,pp.177178.41Chin,p.105Qin,Ma,Zhang,pp.176,181.Between1911and1921,thewholesalepriceforacattyofwoolinZhongningwasabout"sixfen
-
Ihaveuncoveredlittleinformationonhowmonetarytransfersfrom
Tianjinwererealizedwhatisavailabledescribesonlyhowfundswere
suppliedtoforeignagenciesinShizuishan.Becausetheprocurementof
woolrequiredcashadvances,usuallyinsilver,duringthefirstyearsof
thewooltradetheforiegncompaniesundertookdeliveriesofsilverto
thismajorcollectiontransshipmentcenterthemselves,employingthe
servicesofGuihuaarmedescortcompaniesforprotectionenroute.Later
theybegantousethelarger"nativebanks"(qianzhuang)andChinese
goodsmerchants(shangdian)whohandledsomefinancialbusiness.Still
later,theyanghangemployedtheirowngangsofguardstoaccompany
silvershipments,andfinally,aftertheextensionoftelegraphservice
tothenorthwest,theywereabletoconductdirect,longdistance
financialexchangeswithBeijingandTianjinforlocalmerchantsand
governmentinnorthwesttowns.Byprovidingpublicandprivatefinancial
servicessuchascurrencyexchangeandcredit,thewaizhuangwereeven
abletoearncommissionfeesofuptotenpercent. 42
Undertheunequaltreaties,foreignfirmswereallowedtotransport
goodsboundforexportfromthetreatyportsthroughChinawithoutpaying
localtransporttaxes(lijin).TheTianjinofficesoftheyanghang
reportedtheirwoolorderstotheMaritimeCustomsandthetypeand
amountwasrecordedonaformknownasthe"triplecertificate"
ofsilver"(Qin,Ma,Zhang,p.181).InQinghaibetween1919and1926thepricerangedbetweeneightandtentaelsforonehundredcatties(Zhou,p.200).42Liu,p.187.
-
(sanlianbiao).Thesanlianbiaowasdeliveredtothewaizhuanginwool
collectiontransshipmentcenters,anditthenaccompaniedthewoolback
totheportasan"inlandtransitpass"whichintheoryexcusedthe
shipmentfromtaxationenroute.Inthiswaytheforeignfirmspaidonly
theone,modestMaritimeCustomsTaxonshipmentsofwool.
Troublebeganfortheforeignagenciesenjoyingthistaxsystemas
earlyas1913,whenMaQi,theHuiwarlordofQinghai,establishedan
officialwoolandhidebureau:theQinghaiPimaoGonggujuattemptedto
forbidthedirectsaleofwooltothewaizhuangandtoplaceanexport
taxonthecommodity.Thisinterferenceapparentlydidnotimpedetrade
inwoolgreatly,however,fortheyears19191926arereferredtoasthe
"goldenageofQinghaiwool." Thebureaumayevenhaveprovedusefulto43
buyersbyprovidingguaranteeingweight,qualityandultimatedeliveryof
woolorders. 44
ThedujunofGansu,ZhangGuangjian,imposedamoreseriousburden
onthetrade.In1915or1916,justafewyearsafterhisinstallation
intheprovince,Zhangcollected15,000taelsfromeachofninelocal
woolandhidemerchantstoestablishaprovincialwoolmonopoly.This
monopoly,theGansuPimaoGongmaibu,atfirstleviedataxofonetael
perpicultheraterosequicklyoverthenextfewyearsasZhang
consolidatedhisabilitytocollectit.AtaxofficeinShizuishan
between1916and1919tripledtherateoftaxationonoutboundshipments
43Zhou,p.200.44Miyazaki,p.79.
-
ofwoolafterZhangstationedadetachmentof30soldiersthereto
tighteninspectionprocedures.Woolshipmentsthatdidnotcorrespondin
typeorquantitytotherecordonthesanlianbiaowerefinedand/or
confiscated.LocalpowerholdersinSuiyuanandChaharbegantoemploy
similarmethodstoenhancetheirrevenuethroughtaxonthewooltradeas
thecontrolofthecentralChinesegovernmentdisintegratedinthe
warlordstrugglesofthesecondandthirddecadesofthecentury.
Withlocaltaxationandofficialcontrolofthetradecuttinginto
theprofitablityandscopeoftheirinterioragencies,andwithbanditry
andseizurebywarlordarmiesofmeansoftransportationinnorthand
northwesternChinacontributingtotherisksofthealreadyhazardous
processoftransshipingwooleastward,theforeignfirmschoseto
withdrawtothesecurityofTianjin.ThewaizhuangleftHezhouin1920
between1921and1926theyleftShizuishanthoseinZhangjiachuanwere
goneby192627. Chinesecompanies,usuallyHuiownedandoperated,45
tookoverthebusiness.Inplaces,includingtheHuangyuan,Guideand
DatongareaofQinghai,thexiejiaexpandedoperationstoincludelong
distancetradewithBaotou.Elsewherethelocalmaofanziortraveling
merchantsfromothernorthChinatownstookonthetradeinwooland
hidesfromthenorthwest:Hezhou'smaofanziprosperedafterthe
waizhuangdepartedtradersfromHenanandShaanxijoinedlocalmerchants
intransportingandmarketingwoolcollectedinZhangjiachuan,andthey
werejoinedbymerchantsfromXundeinHebeiinincreasingnumbersinto
45Qin,Ma,Zhang,p.178Liu,p.197.
-
the1930s. 46
IV.TRANSPORT
Aftertheconsignmentsofwoolweredeliveredandconcentratedin
collectiontransshipmentcenters,thenextstagewastoshipthem
eastwardtothecitieswheretheyweretobeexportedorusedinthe
manufactureofcarpetsor,later,woolens.Communicationsinthe
borderlandsandinnorthChinaasawholeweremoredifficultthanin
southandcentralChina,whereadensesystemofwaterwaysallowedfor
relativelyrapidandinexpensivetravelandshipping.Nevertheless,
Chinesetraderscouldaccommodatetheincreasedvolumeofeastboundwool
inaflexiblecommunicationsnetworkthatexploitedavailable
geographicalandanimalresources.Becausetransportwithinthisnetwork
requiredspecializedequipmentandexpertiseaswellasherdsofanimals,
merchantsinthewooltradecontractedouttotransporthouses(tuohuor
fashang)fortheconveyanceoftheirwoolandhidestoeasternmarkets.
WoolaccumulatedinSongbanandDajianluwastakenonyakand
mulebacktothenearestnavigablewaterways,andfromtheredownthe
tributariesoftheYangzitoChongqing,whereitwascleaned,driedand
packedforexportbyforeignfirms. Inotherareasthroughwhichthe47
borderwooltradepassedhowever,camelandraftwereitsmainmeansof
46Chin,p.60Qin,MaandZhang,p.178Zhou,p.204.47ForadescriptionoftheroutesfromSongban,seeWilson,p.143.Dajianlu(nowKangting),wasconnectedwithLhasaandChengdubyanimportantlandroute.
-
transportation.
MuchofthewoolproducedinXinjiangandOuterMongolia(andsome
fromtheGansucorridor)founditsultimatemarketsnotinTianjinbutto
thenorthandwest.RussianandUzbekmerchantsinXinjiang,for
example,in1926and1927exported120,000piculsofrawwooltothe
SovietUnion. Nevertheless,someXinjiangwoolwasexportedthrough48
Tianjin.British,AmericanandGermanfirmsinthenineteenteensacted
throughrepresentativesinXinjiangtopurchasewoolandotherproducts,
andthispracticecontinueduntilatleast1930. Woolfromthefarwest49
wasshippedbycameltoGuihuaorBaotoualongtheworld'scaravanroute
parexcellence,theGreatWestRoad(Daxilu).BeginninginUrumchi
(Dihua)andJitai(Guchengzi),thisrouteleadeastward,skirtingbutnot
climbingmountainrangesandpassingthroughwellwateredgrasslands
throughoutitslength.Itwasevenflatenoughforcarttraffic. 50
CaravancompaniesfromGuihuaandBaotouhadpliedtheGreatWest
Routeanditsvariousspurs(anorthernvariationpassedthroughKobdo,
UliassutaiandUrga,andthemoresoutherlySmallWestRoutewasused
duringtimesoftroublealongtheGreat)andsolinkednorthChinawith
48Chin,pp.5556.49TongBao,"WaishangzaiXinjiangdiyanghang"(ThecompaniesofforeignmerchantsinXinjiang),Xinjiangwenshiziliaoxuanji,vol.2(Urumchi:Xinjiangrenminchubanshe,1979),p.16263.50ForanextremelydetaileddescriptionoftheGreatWestRoute,theSmallWestRoute,andtheirvariations,seeShenShide,"Guihuachengdituoyun"(ThecameltransportofGuihua),Neimengguwenshiziliao,vol.12(Tuoketuo:Tuoketuoyinshuachang,1984).SeealsoOwenLattimore,TheDesertRoadtoTurkestan(Boston:Little,BrownandCo.,1929),pp.5052.
-
OuterMongolia,DzungariaandtheTarimsinceQianlongtimes. Afterthe51
1880s,alongwithtransportationhousesbasedinGansu,theytookonmuch
oftheoverlandshipmentofwoolfromalloverthenorthwest.In
additiontotheXinjiangroutes,theseincludedroutesfromtheGansu
corridorpassingtheAlashantoShizuishan,orfromtheXiningareato
ShizuishantownviathebanksoftheYellowRiver.FromShizuishanto
Baotou,caravanseithercutacrosstheOrdosdirectlyorfollowedthe
bankoftheriveraroundtothenorth,throughWuyuan,wherethegrazing
wasbetter.ManyofthecaravancompaniesbasedinInnerMongolia,
particularlythesmallerones,wererunbyHuituohufromLanzhouor
thoseinHuangyuanthatmadeuseoftheTsaidamtopasturetheircamels
werealmostentirelyMuslimoperated. Thisfactisreflectedinthe52
typicaldietseatenby"camelpullers"travelingineachdirection:
throughMongolia,thecaravancrewatemostlymilletfriedwithbuttera
Mongolfood.OnroutessouthofGuihua,however,muttonwasthestaple,
supplementedbynoodles,bothofwhicharetypicalHuifare. 53
Despitethesedifferences,theorganizationandroutineofChinese
51Thehistoryofthedevelopmentofthecaravancompanies(tuohu)thatpliedtheseroutesisamajortopicinitsownright.SeetheentireissueofNeiMengguwenshiziliao,vol.12,whichisdevotedto"LuMengshangDashengkui"(TheDashengkui:travelingmerchantsinMongolia).52Zhangp.22Zhou,p.227.AccordingtoZhangZhiyi,therewerefifteentuohuinLanzhouca.1936,mostofthemHui.AccordingtoaEuropeansource,therewerethirtycaravancompaniesinBaotouin1926,organizedintoaguildknownastheMawangshe.Anonymous,"Paotowchen,theGatewayoftheNorthwest,"ChineseEconomicMonthly,3:5(May1926),p.204.53Shen,p.187.
-
caravansplyingtherouteseastfromXinjiangornortheastfromGansuand
Qinghaiwerebroadlysimilar. "Strings"(lian)oftwelvetoeighteen54
camelswereledbyone"camelpuller"thestringswerepairedintobazi
forthepurposesofloadingandunloading,asthestrengthoftwo
camelpullerswasrequiredtoliftthetwinbundlesofupto200catties
ofwoolontotheframethatheldloadstothecamels'humps.Afang,or
"tent,"consistedofeightbazi,andwasthebasicorganizationalunitof
thecaravan.Whenincamp,thoseofthesixteenherdersnotonwatch
duty,thecaravanleader,thecook,hisassistant,andsevenoreight
dogssleptinafang. Chinesecaravanstraveledbynightandcampedand55
grazedthecamelsfrommiddaytosunseteachday.Whileontheroadthe
camelpullersoftenspunorknitcamels'hair,asurprisingskilltaught
tothem,accordingtoonesource,byfleeingWhiteRussiansoldiers. 56
Thishobbywasmadepossible,inpart,bythefactthatChinesecaravan
companies,unlikeMongols,didnottravelduringthehotseason,but
ratherpasturedthecamels(evenfeedingthemamixtureofgreenmung
beansoupandsesameoiltocooltheir"internalheat")andusedtheir
54MongolcaravansdifferedfundamentallyinmanyrespectsfromChineseones.SeeLattimore'sdiscussioninMongolJourneys,pp.13839,14760.55Thesourceofthisoralaccount,ShenShide,wasclearlyusingfangtomeanboththephysicalstructureandtheunitofmenwhosleptinitandtraveledtogether(Shen,p.186).Insimilarfashion,"tent"or"yurt"isusedamongmanyInnerAsiannomadicgroupstodesignateasocialunit.56Lattimore,1929,pp.38,5758.Asearlyas191011,however,DouglasCarruthersnoticedcamelpullersspinningwool,whichcastsdoubtonthetheoryofaWhiteRussianorigintothispastime.Carruthers,p.454.
-
sparetimetorepairequipmentandgathershedwool. 57
Thisseasonalityofcaravanshippinghadinterestingconsequences
fortheborderwooltrade,foritneatlycomplementedtheyearlyschedule
ofrivertransport.TheYellowRiverfreezesinitsupperreaches
betweenDecemberandMarchandisinfloodfrommidJuneuntilJuly.
Thustheriverwasnavigableforlargewoolladenboatsforonly150200
daysoutoftheyear. Camelcaravanswereslowerandmorecostly, but58 59
couldtakeconsignmentsofwooltoBaotouduringthecoldseasonof
SeptembertoAprilifnecessary.
Woolshipmentsbyriverbegansoonafterqingming,whentheice
brokeup.Workershiredbywoolcompaniestookthewool,whichhadbeen
pilingupinto"woolmountains"aroundXiningonbothbanksoftheHuang
Riversincethepreviousautumn,andloadeditontoskinrafts,the
conveyancemostcommonlyusedontheroughuplandriversofthisborder
regionsinceancienttimes.Theserafts,locallycalledhuntuo(the
Mandarinnameispifa),wereconstructedfromskinsremovedwithout
splittingfromdecapitatedcowsandsheep.Aftertheanimal'sthroathad
beencut,airwasblownintoasmallincisioninahindquarterandthe
57Shen,p.187.58Zhanget.al.,p.15.MaTinggao,"Baotoujiaotongyunshuyegenggai"(AbroadoutlineoftheBaotouCommunicationsandShippingIndustry),Baotouwenshiziliao,vol.5(n.p.:n.p.,n.d),p.102.59Inthe1920sandearly1930s,camelcaravantookfortydaysversustwentyfivebyraftundergoodconditionscaravanshippingcostfromthreetofivetaelsmorethanriverfreightchargesforabout280catties.ImanagaSeiji,Chugokukaikyoshijosetsu(AnintroductiontothehistoryofIslaminChina)(Tokyo:Kobundo,1966),p.101Chin,p.109.
-
carcassfloggeduntiltheskinseparatedfromandcouldbedrawnoffthe
fleshandbones.Thehideswerescrapedcleanandthenformedintobags
bysealingtheopeningsleftbythehead,frontlegsandhindquarters.
Theskinwasthenfilledwithvegetableoilandsaltandsealed,which
curedthehidefromtheinsideout.Beforeinflatingthebagsthe
boatmenorwoolhandspackedthemwithupto150cattiesofwool.(This
prevalentpracticemayhaveoriginatedasawayofsmugglingwoolnot
coveredbyaninlandtransitpassfromtheMaritimeCustoms.)Once
packed,inflatedandsealed,thecowhidebagswerelinedbellyupinto
arraysofonehundredandtwentyandlashedtogether.(Raftsconstructed
withsheepskinsemployedfewerbagsthesehideswerelighterand
sheepskinraftsthereforewereusedprimarilyforshorthauls.)Wooden
planksorlogslaidlengthwiseatopthebagsservedasamakeshiftdeck
forcrew,passengersandadditionalcargo. Likethepontoonrafts60
employedbytoday'sprofessionalriverrunners,thepifahadashallow
drafttocleartheshoalsoftheHuangandupperYellowrivers,was
flexible,couldbesimplyrepaired,andwaseasilytransportedoverdry
landafterdeflation.Unlikepontoonrafts,pifaweremadeoflocally
availableproductsrafttravelontheHuangandYellowRiversthus
representedaremarkableadaptationtoandexploitationofcombined
60Chin,p.108.OgawaKonan,"Hotoniokeruhimoten,hisho"(ThewoolandhidedealersofBaotou),MantetsuChosaGeppo,21:11(Nov.1941),p.75G.R.G.Worcester,"TheInflatedSkinRaftsoftheHuangHo,"Mariner'sMirror,43:1(Feb.1957),pp.7374.Forphotographsoftheserafts,seeW.RobertMoore,"RaftLifeontheHwangHo,"NationalGeographicMagazine,61:6(June1932),pp.74352,andRock,platesLXIXa,b.
-
geographicandanimalresources.
MostboatsputinatXiningandfloateddownrivertomeetthe
YellownearLanzhou.SomeraftscarryingwoolfromTaozhou,Hezhouand
XunhuabegantheirjourneyontheXiariver,joiningtheYellowat
Yongjing.GansuHuiboatmen,manyfromthetownsofGaolanandDaohe,
maneuveredtheraftsthroughrapidstoLanzhou,wherethevesselswere
linkedintolarger,500bagraftscapableofcarrying60,00070,000
cattiesofwool. 61
PastLanzhouthereweremoregorgesandrapidstobeshotonce
belowZhongwei,however,shallowsandfiercewindsfromtheOrdoswere
theproblem.(TeichmanranagroundhereandFanChangjianginhis
sheepskinraftwassobuffetedbywindsthatdespitethefluvialpromise
ofhisnamehedisembarkedandprocededbyshank'smare. )After62
Ningxia,largewoodenscows,theminchuan,joinedtheraftsontheriver,
conveying30,00040,000cattieseachofwoolfromInnerMongoliato
Baotou. AllboatsenteredShizuishan,amudtownwhose
unprepossessingappearancebelieditsroleasajunctureoflandand
waterroutesandmajorcollectiontransshipmentcenterforthewool
trade.Besideswoolcollectionandprocessing,Shizuishansubsistedon
thecustomofriverineandcaravantravelersabouttosetoffuponthe
lastlegofthetriptoBaotou.Onlytheinnkeepersandtaxcollectors,
61Zhou,p.206Ogawa,p.74.MaTinggao,p.103,estimatesthefreightcapacityoftheraftsatonly10,000catties.Raftsofvarioussizescouldcarrybetween20,000and100,000catties(Imanaga,p.101).62Teichman,p.184FanChangjiang,Zhongguodixibeijiao(China'snorthwestcorner)(Tianjin:Dagongbao,1936),p.312.
-
FanChangjiangremarked,weremorenumerousthantheprostituteswho
rushedoutatthefirstsoundofhorseshoovesorcamelbells. Some63
vesselscarryingwoolforforeignfirmswereabletoavoidthetax
barriers,atleast,bymeansofawhiteflagemblazonedwiththe
characters"baohu"(protect),andoftenEnglishorGermanequivalentsas
well. 64
DownstreamfromShizuishanbanditrywasaperennialhazard.
MongolsshotatEricTeichmanfromtheriverbanksin1917After1922,
whentheGelaohuistruckadealwithMaFuxiang,aHuigeneralthen
occupyingBaotou,groupsofmounted,armed"BrothersandElders"occupied
thetownsandcountrysideonbothsidesoftheYellowRiverfromDengkou
toBaotou.Onlythosemerchantswhobought"protection"inBaotoufrom
theGelaohuicouldexpecttheirshipmentsofwoolandhidestoget
throughunmolested. 65
Therewereothermethodsbywhichwoolwastransportedfrom
collectiontransshipmentcenterstoBaotouandTianjin.Woolfrom
southeasternGansu,forexample,traveledbyoxcarttoXianandfrom
therebyrailtoTianjin.WoolcollectedinShaanxi'smainwool
producingregions,YulinandShenmu,waslikewisetransportedtoits
63Fan,p.339.64Qin,MaandZhang,p.177.65Teichman,p.191LiuChonggao,ChengJinghua,andPangZizheng,"Baotoudiqudigelaohui"(TheGelaohuiintheBaotouarea),ed.YiFei,Baotouwenshiziliao,vol.5(n.p.:n.p.,n.d.),pp.4345.
-
destination,Baotou,byoxcart. Butbyfarthelargestportionofthe66
woolshippedtoBaotoufromQinghaiandGansuwasshippedbyriver.
AccordingtoanexpertinthedevelopmentofBaotou'scommunications
network,duringthehighpointofthewooltradewiththenorthwest,
everyyearaboutthreehundredskinrafts,mostlyshippingwool,and
betweeneightandtwelvehundredminchuan,floatedfromQinghaito
Baotou. Afterarrivalandunloadingthere,raftsweredisassembledand67
theskins,emptiedoftheirbootlegwool,packedoverlandbacktothe
borders.Thetimbersweresold,andhidebagstooworntobereused
(usuallyafterthethirdtrip)becameshoeleather.
V.BAOTOU
Theentrepotintowhichthisstreamofeastboundwoolandotherproduce
emptied,aptlynamed"Baotou"headpointofparcelswasatownof"mud
wallsandmudhousesonthesideofatreelesshill"renderedpicturesque
byitsculturaldiversityandboomingcommerce.Becauseofitssituation
betweentheYinMountainsofInnerMongoliaandtheYellowRiver,Baotou
wasthenaturalmeetingplaceforHanandMongolcultureaswellastrade
itemsbothgroupsheldfestivalswithinthetown.Therewasalsoa
sizeableHuipopulationinandaroundBaotou,mostlymigrantsfromthe
lateQingandespeciallyafterthe1923completionoftheBeisuiRailway.
Huitradersfromthenorthwestmadetemporaryhomesherewhilemarketing
66Zhanget.al.,p.16Ogawa,p.74.67MaTinggao,p.102.
-
theirconsignmentsofwool,hides,ormedicinesMuslimrestaurantscould
beidentifiedthroughoutthetownunderthe"QingzhenHuihui"sign,with
itsArabicequivalentpaintedalongside.Batteriesofshopsawaitedthe
customeronthecommercialstreets,eachwithitsownsignboardsand
easilyrecognizedtrademarks:sixfoothighwhite,pinkorredcandles
outsidethechandlers'shopslongbannersandheadsizedblackballsto
representpillsinfrontoftheapothecariesgiantsaddleshungfromthe
saddlers'andfortheMongolcobbler,acolossalleatherboot. 68
Baotou'simportanceasamercantilecitybeganduringtheYongzheng
andQianlongreignperiodsoftheQing,whenthearea,aMongolholding
duringtheMing,wasbroughtunderunifiedChinesecontrol.Merchants
basedinBaotouandinGuihuatotheeasthelpedprovisiontheQianlong
Emperor'scampaignsinChineseTurkestan.Accordingtoanencyclopedic
studybytheMantetsuinvestigatorOgawaKunan,thefirstwoolandhide
merchantsinBaotouweretheChenfamilyfromShanxi,whoestablishedthe
Gongyidianin1832.TheseShanximerchantsboughtwoolandother
productsinBaotouforsaleinShanghai,JiaozhouandNingbo,and
althoughmanyfirmsspecializinginhidesopenedupduringthefollowing
years,thesmallscaleGongyidiananditsoffshootsweretheonlydealers
inwooluntiltheTongzhiperiodanotherindicationoftherelative
unimportanceofwoolinChinauntillateinthenineteenthcentury.
68Wulsin,pp.5463ShinobuIwamura,"TheStructureofMoslemSocietyinInnerMongolia,"FarEasternQuarterly,8:1(Nov.1948),pp.4344.YiFei,"Baotoujiushangjiadehuangzi,zhaopaijiqita"(Baotoumerchants'emblems,shopsigns,etc.),Baotouwenshiziliao,vol.6(n.p.:n.p.,n.d.),p.159.
-
Tianjinwasopenedasatreatyportin1860,however,andwhenBaotou
merchantsfeltthetugofinternationaldemandforChinesewoolandhides
intheearly1880s,woolandhidebrokerscalledpimaodian,alongwith
hidemerchantsknownaspizhuang,beganopeningshopsoneafteranother
toprovidefortheneedsofforeignagenciesnewlyarrivedinthetown. 69
InlateGuangxutherewerefourteenorfifteen,intheearlyRepublican
periodthereweretwentytwoortwentythree,andbytheeveoftheFirst
WorldWarinEurope,therewerethirtywoolconcernsinBaotou. 70
BaotouhadacompetitorforthelongdistancetradefromXinjiang
andMongoliaGuihua(Guisui,modernHohot)hadtraditionallybeenthe
easternterminusofcaravantrafficalongtheGreatWestRoadandother
routes.ButasteledatingfromtheDaoguangperiod(18211850)foundin
atempleinBaotou(theGuandiMiao)containsanadmonitionthat
shipmentsofwool,hides,horsetailsandmedicinesshouldbetaxedin
GuihuabeforecomingtoBaotou.Fromthisstatement,Ogawaconcluded
thatBaotouhadbeensiphoningoffGuihua'sshareofthebordertrade
sincethisearlytime.(In1848theQinglocalauthoritiesstopped
buckingthistrend,andestablishedabranchtaxofficeinBaotou.)The
perennialgrowthintherelativeimportanceofnorthwesternwooland
Baotou'scommandinglocationontheYellowRiveronlyimprovedits
positionvisavisGuihua.Theextensionofrailcommunicationsasfar
69TheseincludedrepresentativesofWilson,Forbes,Tianjude,Tianjuren,Xintaihe,Ruijiandothers(Ogawa,p.74)FortheearlycommercialhistoryofBaotou,pimaodian,andpizhuang,seeOgawa,part1,21:7(July1941),pp.6878Imanaga,pp.8390MaTinggao,pp.99100.70Imanaga,p.86Chin,pp.111112.
-
asZhangjiakou(Kalgan)in1905helpedfurther,foralthoughGuihuais
closertoZhangjiakouthanisBaotou,therailroadbroughtthegoodsof
bothcities"nearer"toeasternports.Itwasin1923,however,withthe
completionofaspuroftherailwayasfarasBaotou,thatthiscity's
supremacyas"GatewayoftheNorthwest"wasfirmlyestablished.Allraft
andboattrafficstoppedhere,andatleastseventypercentofallgoods
shippedfromthewestweretranshippedhereforultimatedestinationsin
BeijingorTianjin.Thepopulationmorethandoubledto150,000,andthe
Shanximerchantsfacednewcompetition:TianjinandBeijingbased
firms. 71
Baotou'sdevelopmentwaslinkedbothtothegrowthofthenorth
Chinatransportationnetworkandthedemandforthewoolthattraveled
alongit.Bythe1930s(theperiodcoveredinOgawa'sstudy)the
pimaodianhadevolvedahighlyspecializedprocessformediatingthe
exchangeofwoolbetweenthexiluke,ormerchantsfromthewestwhocome
tosell,anddongluke,theeasternmerchantswhocametobuy.Weknow
littleaboutintermediatestagesinthisdevelopmentinparticular,
thereisnoinformationaboutthefunctionofthepimaodianduringthe
periodwhenforeignagenciescontrolledwoolcollectionandtranshippment
intheNorthwest.ThesystemIwilldescribebelow,then,isbasedon
71Ogawa,21:7(July1941),pp.73,75Imanagapp.83,86KwanManbun,"TheRegionalEconomyofTianjin"(unpublishedseminarpaper,StanfordUniversity,1982),p.54Ma,pp.101102Anonymous,"Paotowchen,theGatewayoftheNorthwest,"ChineseEconomicMonthly,3:5(May1926),p.202.ForthehistoryoftheconstructionoftheBeisuirailway,akeylinkinthenorthChinacommunicationsnetwork,seeMatsumotoTachio,"Heisuitetsuro"(TheBeisuiRailway),Mantetsuchosageppo,16:4(April1936),pp.12341(summarizedinpartinKwan,p.30.)
-
Ogawa'sdescriptionofwoolbrokerageinBaotouaftertheforeignfirms
hadrestrictedtheiroperationstopurchasingwoolinBaotouorin
TianjinfromChinesemerchants. 72
SellersofwoolcametoBaotoufrommanydirections,aswehave
seenintheprecedingsection.TheyincludedHuiandHanmerchantsfrom
GansuandQinghaitradersofvariousethnicities,suchasUzbekorHan,
fromXinjiangShanxiHanmerchantscartingwoolfromShenmuandYulin
andthetradersoftheMengguhang,againoriginallyfromShanxi,bringing
theirpurchasesfromOuterMongolia. Whethertheyfirstapproachedthe73
cityfromitswestornorthwestgates,orviaGuandukousouthofthe
riverorNanhaizi(Baotou'sriverport),theyweremetbythepimaodian's
runners.These"riverrunners"and"gaterunners"(paochengmenand
paohe)thenreturnedtothepimaodian'sheadquartersinBaotoutoreport
thearrivalofasellerandtheapproximatequantityandtypeofwoolfor
sale,andtofilloutrequiredpaperwork,includingapreliminarytax
statementthatwasforwardedtotheBaotoutaxoffice.Thepimaodian
sentmenbackwiththerunnertoassistinbringingthemerchantandhis
72Itseemslikelythatduringthepre1920sphaseofthewooltradepimaodianplayedarolegenerallysimilartothatIdescribebelow,servingasbrokersbetweensuppliersandbuyers.Infact,oneofthereasonsforeignfirmsopenedinlandagenciesinsuchplacesasShizuishan,HezhouandZhangjiachuaninthe1880smayhavebeentocircumventtheBaotouintermediariesandobtainthesuperiornorthwesternwooldirectly.WiththeirretrocessionandreplacementbyHuimerchantsfromthenorthwest,anotherlayerofbrokeragearoseinBaotoutoaccommodatetheneedsofHuimerchantssellingwoolinthatcity.73AccordingtoOgawa'sestimatesforbeforetheMarcoPoloBridgeIncident(July,1937)therewere300400regularxilukefromGansuandQinghaisellinginBaotouandanother100200fromplaceswithinacloserradiustothecity.Ogawa,21:11(Nov.1941),p.80.
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goodsintothecity,wherehewashousedonthepremisesofthepimaodian
andhiswooltemporarilystoredinthecourtyard.Around1926anEnglish
investigatorvisitedanddescribedapimaodian:
Opentoawideandhighporchisaspaciouscourtyardwithfiveorsixparlorsonthenorthwherebusinessistransacted,andwithaboutadozenbedroomsforvisitingclientsontheothertwosides.Behindtheparlorsstandseveralrowsofhouseswherefoodsarestoredandregularcustomersmaketheirtemporaryabode. 74
Thewoolwasweighedandthentakentoawarehousewherethepimaodian
guaranteeditagainsttheft,loss,ordamage.
Thepimaodianprovidedfoodandlodgingandadvancedfundstocoverall
thesellers'costsduringhisstayinBaotou,includingtaxesonthewool
andtheoutlayrequiredtosupplyhimwithmanufacturesforsaleafter
hisreturntotheborders. Thiswasnecessary,becausemerchants75
arrivingfromthewoolproducingregionsoftenhadinvestedhighlyinthe
woolitselfandhadlittlecashuntilthebrokercompletedthesale.
AsrepresentativesoflargeChineseorforeignfirms,thedongluke
wereinabetterfinancialposition.Theygenerallydidnotrequirethe
financialservicesofpimaodian,norweretheyrestrictedtodealing
solelythroughonebroker.Nevertheless,becauseoftheconvenienceof
residinginthesameplacewheretheytransactedbusiness,manywool
buyersalsostayedinpimaodian.Fortheirpart,thepimaodiandidtheir
74Anonymous,"TheWoolTradeinPaotow,"ChineseEconomicJournalandBulletin,12:1(Jan.1933),p.37.75Foracompletebreakdownoftaxesandcostsfacedbythemerchantsellingashipmentofwoolinthelate1930s,seeOgawa,21:11(Nov.1941),pp.8991.
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besttoenticewoolandhidebuyerstotheirestablishmentsbyoffering
mealsandaccomodationgratisandkeepingtheTianjinfirmsposted
throughouttheyearbyletterandtelegramregardingstocksonhandand
marketconditions.Thelargestofthepimaodian,theGuanghengxi,
stationedanemployeeinTianjinforthispurpose.Moreover,themanager
ofthepimaodian,hisassistant,andaclassofemployeesknownas
"streetrunners"(paojie)canvassedforpotentialbuyersthroughout
Baotou.
Whenithadlocatedapotentialbuyer,thepimaodianbeganatricky
processofnegotiationbetweenbuyerandseller,usuallymediatedbya
runner.Amidthebewilderingvarietyofwoolsavailable,seldomwasthe
sellerofferingwooloftheprecisequalityandquantitydesiredbythe
buyer hencethebrokershadtojugglemultiplebuyersandsellersuntil76
theyreachedafeasiblematch.Thepimaodianthenallowedthebuyerto
inspectthewoolinthewarehouse.Afterexaminingitsplaceoforigin,
type,adulterationwithmiscelaneouswoolsandpercentageofadmixed
dirt,thebuyerofferedapriceperunitatwhichthebargaining,again
relayedbackandforthbyarunner,commenced.Whentheyhadagreedupon
aprice,buyerandsellerfinallymetinthecourtyardofthepimaodian
toweighthewooltogetherontheshop'sscalesandthencalculatethe
76DistinctionsbetweenwoolsontheBaotouandTianjinmarketsweremadeonthebasisoftimeofgathering(springwool,autumnwool),gatheringmethod(combed,clipped,pulled,takenfrompelts),packingmethod(ballwool,ropewool,loosewool),producingregionsandcollectiontransshipmentcenters(Mongolwool,GanziwoolfromGanzhou,SuziwoolfromSuzhou,Xiningwool,Yulinwool,etc.).Andofcourse,therewerealsovarietiesoflambs'wool,camels'woolandgoats'wooltocontendwith.
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totalsaleamount.
Thewoolwasthenentrustedtoindependentwoolpackers(gongmaotou)to
besiftedfreeofloosesandandbaggedinhempengunnysacksin
preparationforthecart,orlater,railjourneytoTianjin.
Foritsservices,thepimaodiantookatwopercentcommissionfrom
eachpartyinthetransaction.Thebuyerusuallysettledwiththe
pimaodianimmediatelytheseller,however,dependingonthemarketprice
ofwoolandthelengthoftimehehadspentenjoyingtheinterestbearing
"hospitality"ofthepimaodianmighttakeanextensionontheloan.It
wastotheadvantageofpimaodiantoextendcredittoxilukeinorderto
assuretheircontinuedbusinessinyearstocome. 77
TheJapanesescholarImanagaSeijihasaddedacomplicating
dimensiontotheaboveviewoftheworkingsofthewooltradeinBaotou
byhighlightingtheexistenceofHuioperatedpimaodianinthecity.Hui
pimaodianranalonglinessimilartopimaodianunderHancontrol,with
twoimportantdifferences.Firstofall,theHuipimaodianprovidedfood
andaccommodationonlytoHuimerchantssellingwoolandhidesinBaotou.
Indeed,therequirementofadherencetoIslamicdietarylawsandmutual
HanHuisuspicionwouldhavemadeitdifficultforHuitoresideanywhere
else,andthiswasprobablyafactorcontributingtothedevelopmentof
theseHuiversionsofBaotou'sinnbrokerageinstitution.Thesecond
differencewasthatHuipimaodianenjoyednodirectrelationswith
77Intheprecedingdiscussionofthefunctionsofthepimaodian,IhavereliedonOgawa,21:11(Nov.1941),pp.87110,andChin,pp.114115.
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buyers,butfoundamarketfortheirclients'woolonlythroughHan
pimaodianandpizhuang.Bycustomaryarrangement,pimaodiandidnot
chargeabrokeragefeetoanotherpimaodianthatassistedincompletinga
deal.ThustheHuipimaodiancouldneverearnmorethanatwopercent
commissionontheirtransactionsandtherefore,accordingtoImanaga,
operatedwithaslimmerprofitmarginthantheirHancompetitors. 78
Theseconddifferencewasinpartaconsequenceofthefirst,since
thebuyerswereallHanandthuswouldnotchoosetostayinaHui
establishment.ButitmayalsohavestemmedfromthefactthatHui
pimaodiandevelopedlaterandconsequentlywereforcedtosqueezeintoan
establishedindustrybyacceptingasmallershareoftheprofits.
Informationonearlypimaodianingeneralisscanty,andmaterialonHui
concernsmoreso.Itisespeciallydifficulttoestablishanexact
chronologyoftheiroriginsanddevelopment.Nevertheless,Imanaga
arguesonthebasisofOgawa'sdatathatHuipimaodianoriginatedasinns
andwarehousesforHuimerchantsfromtheNorthwest,anddevelopedtheir
brokeragefunctionsintandemwiththegrowthofinternationaldemandfor
theborderproducts. Itseemsreasonabletosuggestfurther,therefore,79
thattheHuipimaodiancarvedouttheirnichewhenthewithdrawalof
directforeignpurchasersfromthenorthwestledtoanincreaseinthe
numbersofHuimerchantsshippingwoolfromQinghai,GansuandNingxia.
WiththegreaterinfluxofHuilongdistancetradersaccompanyingtheir
78Imanaga,pp.9495,108,114.79Imanaga,p.109.
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woolandhidesintoBaotou,Huiwarehouseownersandinnkeepersexpanded
thescopeoftheiroperationstoincludethoseadditionalservices
providedbytheestablishedpimaodiantotheirclients:processingof
localpaperwork(especiallytaxforms),creditadvancesandcanvassing
forbuyers.
VI.TIANJINANDTHEWORLD
Althoughinthepost1920sphaseofthewooltradetheyhadlittle
senseofthecomplexchainofcommercialtransactionsinvolvedin
bringingwooldowntothesea, foreignmerchantsfromthe1880swere80
alreadykeenlyawareoftheimportanceofwoolasanorthChineseexport
andtheirroleinmakingitone.Westernersinthetreatyportsalsohad
tales,likethatofGeTuzi,tocreditindividualswithfirstsettingin
motiontheChinesewooltrade.
"Inthelateseventies,Mr.CollinslistenedwithkeenearstothestorieswhichcamedownfromtheplateauandKokonorabout`greatblobsofwool',andboundlessresourcesofhides,peltsandfurs.HisfirmgotintotouchwithawonderfulBelgianmanedGrassel,who,alongwithafellowcountryman,Mr.Splingaard,wasmorethananexpertintheartofdealingwithChinese`borderers'andMongolherdsmen.TheyputupasmallwoolcleaningplantandbegantodosomethingintheExporttrade.GraduallythebusinessgrewandCollinsandCo.,atfirstanoffshootofG.W.CollinsandCo.,waxedgreaterandricheruntilitbecameoneofthegreatest`hongs'inTientsin." 81
80AnonymousarticlesintheChineseEconomicJournalandBulletinandChineseEconomicMonthlydidoutlineinsketchyfashiontheprocessIhavedescribedhere.Seeoccasionalcitationsthroughoutthispaper.81O.D.Rasmussen,Tientsin:anIllustratedOutlineHistory(Tianjin:theTientsinPress,Ltd.,1925),p.83.
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Actually,sporadic,smallscalewoolexportbeganinthe1860s
Likewise,thefirsttrulyexcitingstoriesheardbyBritishmerchants
probablycamenotfromQinghaibutfromnearerafieldtheGerman
consulateinTianjinandthe"blobs"concernedwerethoseofcamels'
wool.In1870theconsulateprocured"nativeproducememoranda"(the
firstofthe"inlandtransitpasses"or"triplecertificates")tocovera
Germanfirm'sshipmentofcamels'woolviaZhangjiakouandGuihua.In
thenextfewyearsGermanexportersrapidlyexpandedthispractice,
takingoutpassestoallowtaxfreetransitofcoal,camels'andsheeps'
woolaswellasotherpastoralproductsincludingyaktails(forwhicha
fadhaddevelopedinSanFrancisco).Surprisingly,Chineseprovincial
officialsforthemostpartrespectedthememoranda,althoughthis
entailedalossoflijintaxincomethatwas,accordingtoJamesHart,
thenMaritimeCustomsofficerinTianjin,"bynomeansinsignificant."
TheGermanfirm(unnamedintheCustomsreports)hadby1873already
installedanhydraulicpressinZhangjiakoutocompactandbalecamels'
woolbeforeshippingittoHongkongandthenLondon,whereitwasusedin
carpetmanufacture. 82
Thetradeincamels'woolenjoyedamodestboomasotherfirms
beganpurchasingconsignments,eitherdirectfromChinesemerchantsin
Tianjin,orunderinlandtransitpass(whichmadebulky,relatively
82ChinaImperialMaritimeCustoms,"Tientsin,"ReportsonTradeattheTreatyPortsinChinafortheYear1873(Shanghai:StatisticalDepartmentoftheInspectorateGeneralofCustoms).Ibid.,1874.ExportsfromTianjinwereseldomshippeddirectly.LaterthemajorityofwoolexportsfromTianjinwerefirstroutedtoShanghaibeforeshippingtodestinationsoverseas.
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inexpensiverawmaterialsfromtheinteriorprofitabletoexport).
Sheeps'wool,however,afterasmallstartintheearly1860s,hadproved
disappointingtotheforeignmerchantsbytheendofthedecade,andin
the1870swasnotexportedinquantitieslargeenoughtomeritmentionin
annualcustomsreports.Besidesarrivingverydirty,asyettheonly
availablesheeps'woolcamefromtheshortandcoarsefleecedMongolian
breed,notthefinerTibetanvariety. 83
Dynamicgrowthintheexportofsheep'swoolbeganinthe1880s.
Collinsgambledonthefutureofthetradebyerectingamodern
presspackingplantinTianjinin1881(itwouldbeusedbyallexporters
untilotherpackingandcleaningplantsopenedinthe1900s). In1884,84
areductionintheUnitedStatestariffonlowgradewoolsprovedCollins
asoundinvestor,sincethischangefirstopenedthelargeAmerican
marketforcarpetwoolstotheexportersoftheChineseproduct.Itwas
thebeginningofalongrelationship:theUnitedStatesboughtthebulk
ofChinesesheep'swooluntilthelate1930s. TheChinesewooltrade85
83Ibid.,18661879.84Theprocessofhydraulicpackingwasemployedonsuchproductsaswools,hides,cottonandjute.Itcouldcompresswooltothedensityofwater,packingfive"nativebags"ofaboutonepiculeachintoonetenththeoriginalbulk.Theresultwasabaletencubicfeetinvolumeand650poundsinweight,heldtogetherbymetalhoops.DecennialreportsontheTrade,Industries,etc.ofthePortsOpentoForeignCommerceandontheConditionandDevelopmentoftheTreatyPortProvinces,18921901(Shanghai:StatisticalDepartmentoftheInspectorateGeneralofCustoms,1902),p.537.85In1911theUnitedStatespurchased87%ofChinesewoolexportsin1915,76%in1920,52%in1925,87%in1930,82%andin1934,90%.Chin,p.101.
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wasthuscloselylinkedtoU.S.demandandtradepolicy,andchangesin
eithercouldresultingoodprofitsfortheexportersorstocksofwool
pilingupinTianjingodownsandBaotouwarehouses.Similarly,tradein
otherpastoralproductswasdictatedbyfashion.Afterabetterquality
camels'woolbegantoarriveinBritain,itsprimarymarket,itbeganto
beusedincreasinglynotincarpetsbutforclothingthereafter,the
demandforcamels'woolinTianjindependedonsalesofJaegercoats.A
greatdemandarosein18801881forgoatskinrugstofurnishafleetof
PullmancarsforAmericanrailways.Oncethecarshadbeenoutfitted,
however,Chinesemerchantswerestuckwithstocksofunsellable
goatskins. 86
Foreignexporterscontinuedtocomplainaboutthequalityofthe
Chineseproduct.WhenwoolarrivedinTianjin,mudmightcompriseupto
fiftypercentofitsweightcheapervarietiesweremixedinwithwhat
hadbeenordered.Evenlambskinswerenotimmunefromtampering,and
curlyfleecesoftenowedmoretoapplicationswithchopsticksofflour
andwaterthantonature.
Despitethesedrawbacks,however,inthe1890ssheeps'woolexports
pulledwayaheadofthoseofcamels'wool,gainingin1894theposition
ofTianjin'ssinglelargestexportbytoppingthe200,000piculmark.
TheCustomsreportforthisyearalsonotedwhatmayhavebeencommon
knowledgeamongdealersforsometime,thatwoolfrom"westKansu"was
86"Tientsin,"ReportsonTrade...,18811884GailHershatter,TheMakingoftheWorkingClassinTianjin,19001949(Ph.D.dissertation,StanfordUniversity,1982),p.41O.D.Rasmussen,p.286.
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superiortothatcollectedclosertothecity.Asimilarproducthad
beentricklingdowntheYangzisincebefore1887andCustomsofficialsin
YichangandHankounoteditafter1891Britishtraders,atfirst
charteringChinesevesselsbecausetheirownsteamerscouldnotnavigate
thegorges,begantoprocurewoolandothergoodsdirectlyfrom
Chongqing.Thistreatyportcontinuedtorunapoorsecondbehind
Tianjininwoolexportsuntilthe1930sitstradeinwoolsuffered
continuallyfromerraticandexpensivesupplyfromtheTibetanborder(a
sceneofincreasingtensionthroughthesedecadesasTibet'spolitical