Vlangaly to Sir Rutherford Alcock, K. C. B., Envoy Extraordinary and, August 26, 1868

H.

My Dear Colleague: The minister of France having replied to you directly upon the subject of your letter of the 5th instant, and of the Chinese memoir annexed to it, I hasten to send you adjoined the communication of our colleague of Prussia, adding to it my own impressions.

But before entering upon the question, permit me to express to you my profound gratitude for the obliging communication which you have made us on the result of the inquiry which has been arrived at by the mixed commission which you had established by agreement with the Tsungli-yamun. I had scarcely hoped that the Chinese ministry would consent to the modifications and to the concessions emunerated in the documents which you have had the goodness to communicate to us; notwithstanding which, I doubt if they will satisfy the demands of foreign commerce, which are very frequently excessive.

The tendency to put native merchants on the same footing as foreigners is very equitable, and we cannot but encourage the Chinese government to march in this direction, so beneficial to all.

One of the principal demands of foreign commerce is the privilege of residing in the interior. I think this is the only remedy against the abuses of custom-houses and of internal barriers. Since foreigners are permitted to travel in the interior, I do not see why they should not be permitted to buy there the products of the country for exportation, and to sell foreign imported goods. I freely admit that the Chinese government would not wish to permit to individuals not subject to its jurisdiction the purchase of landed property outside of the ports open to commerce; but I think that foreign merchants may be permitted, without serious inconvenience, to make purchases of merchandise for exportation upon the spot of production, by paying the transit duty established for that purpose. The same in regard to imported goods; it is not just to prohibit the foreign merchant, who has paid the right of transit, from taking his goods to the places where he expects to sell them most easily.

It would then be desirable that the Chinese government should permit foreigners to have deposits of their goods in whatever places they may find convenient; whether in the centers of production or in the localities of the great fairs. It is necessary that the merchant, as he buys, should place in deposit some of the acquired productions; and likewise that, as he brings in foreign goods, he should have a place to store them. As there can be no property held outside of the ports open to commerce, he must necessarily hire store-houses, which is so far a disadvantage as compared with the native Chinese merchant, who, besides being able to own his own store-houses, has the means of renting them at fairer prices, and, above all, of opening shops and selling by retail not only foreign merchandise, but also the productions of the country whose sale may happen to be prohibited to foreigners.

I would even go further and say that we might provisionally forego the conceded privilege of transit, and consent to pay the duties charged at each barrier or custom-house in the interior, provided the amount of the imports were previously, and from a year in advance, made known to the consuls and to the public. This measure would also be a restraint upon the vexations to which Chinese merchants themselves may be exposed by the lesser mandarins of the customs barriers.

As to what relates to the difficulty presented to the Chinese government by the right of ex-territoriality which foreigners enjoy, I think that certain cases might be specified in which the local authorities of the country might be empowered to arrest a foreigner and conduct him to the nearest consulate, or even set seals upon merchandise, on condition of immediately turning over the matter to the consul, as in the previous case. These grave occurrences not being numerous, it would not be difficult to regulate the mode of procedure.

The permission of navigating the interior waters with sailing vessels is certainly a great concession on the part of the Chinese government, but for it to be profitable to foreigners they ought at least to be permitted to have little steam-tugs on the great lakes, as this would remedy the slowness of transport, of which there is so much complaint.

There is still another question which I do not fully comprehend, i. e., the proposal of the yamun to double the imposts on tea and silk, in compensation of some other diminutions in the tariff. Among the objects of exportation, tea and silk occupy the first places. I can understand that the forced exportation of silk may prove prejudicial to the manufactures of the country, and that the latter industry should seek encouragement in this way; but tea is upon a footing entirely the reverse, and the direct advantage of the country would require the encouragement of its production and exportation. The teas exported from China include species not used by the natives, so that they are, so far, a product purely for exportation. Besides, the imports on tea are already considerable, even much more than 10 per cent. ad valorem, and if there were to be any modification in the direction which the yamun desires, it would be rather to classify the teas in several categories, according to their values, since at the present time the yellow and green teas of highest value pay but the same duties as the black teas very inferior to them.

These are, my dear colleague, the principal points which, according to my ideas, would complete the work of the mixed commission mentioned at the outset of this letter. I think that they are essential, and that they would assure in a greater or less degree the execution of the commercial spirit of the treaties.

As to the memorandum of the yamun, of which you have obligingly transmitted me a copy, I shall have but two remarks to make, and those of slight importance. In article 7, instead of leaving as a temporary deposit a sum equivalent to the transit duties, that, according to what is done in other cases, the merchant may execute a bond to the required amount; and further on, the delay of three months indicated for the confiscation of the deposit made at the barrier or at the custom-house seems to me insufficient.

Deign to accept, upon this occasion, my dear colleague, the assurances of my high consideration.