EUROPEANS IN CHINA

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 13 July 1925, Page 7

EUROPEANS IN CHINA

•FOREIGN SETTLEMENT. THE HISTORY OF SHAMEEN. ORIGIN OF THE CONCESSIONS. The frequent references to Sliameen in the cablegrams from China dealing with the present unrest in that country have led to many queries whether the word is used to denote any place where European, live. Some information about Sliameen and its history was supplied to the Auckland Herald by tne Rev. W. Mawson. who spent many vears in Canton and its neighbourhood, should help to clear up several points about foreign concessions in China. ”In the first place," said Mr. Mawson “let me say that Sliameen js only the name of a locality at the bank of the Canton River in front of the western suburbs. It was bare at low tide, and Sliameen simply means ‘sand flat,’ the name it bore before it was appropriated in 1858 by the British and French for the purposes of a foreign concession . 1 1 di He is from Hong Kong, which it a British possession, and is administered as a British Crown Colony with its own Governor and .Legislative Council. Nor it i s leased like the mainland immediately opposite Hong Kong, which is held by the British on a- 99-years term for the purpose of food supplies and defence. 0

“Shameen and the concessions in other treaty ports are simply areas of land granted to foreign Governments as places of residence for their nationals who come to China for trade or other purposes. From the first the difficulties arising from differences of language, civilisation and. customs have been frankly recognised and the foreign concession is a practical arrangement by which the officials and traders of the two nations could he in contact and do business and yet not be Intermixed. Friction was thu s reduced to a minimum. RECIPROCITY IN TRADE.

“The history of tlie West in the East is an interesting study. Rhymesters may say that never the twain shall meet, but as a matter of fact the West has been irresistibly drawn to the East. The lure of Chinese silks and teas, spices and porcelain, drew the British adventurer over 200 years ago into the Eastern seas. Nor was the Chinese merchant slow to appreciate the quaTlties of British steel goods and cotton fabrics, not to speak of the goodly profit to be made on more doubtful articles of commerce brought to his shores. In later years the Chinese have reciprocated our visits. They have emigrated almost as widely as the British and have settled down with us in almost every part of our far-flung Empire.

“In the early days foreign trading ships were kept anchored at the islands in the estuary of the Canton River, but they suffered' from piracy, and toward the'end of the 17th century we find the Chinese merchants in Canton conniving to circumvent the official policy of exclusion of the foreigner. Be it noted that the Chinese merchants have always been loyal in the freemasonry of trade. The cry to turn out the foreigner has always come from the official and liberty classes, backed up by such of the populace as they could manage to stir up. After the storm had passed the Chinese merchant generally managed to devise means to get liis confrere from abroad back into the community again.

"Thus for nearly 200 years the foreign merchants lived at what was calUd “Tlie Thirteen Factories,” the residence of the factors, or agents, of the various foreign nations trading at Canton. It consisted of an area of about 15 acres situated on the banks of the river in front of the city. The Chinese name of the Factories. ‘Shap Saan Hong,’ is still retained in the name of one of the main streets. Outside this area the foreigner was not supposed to go without permission, and tlie Chinese ‘Hong’ merchants, licensed to trade with him. were also his sponsors and protectors and intermediaries between him and the officials of the city. LIFE IN THE FACTORIES.

“When the merchantman arrived annually from the west there were bustling times, hut life over long periods must have been monotonous. There were occasional times of international excitement, but on the whole it was wonderful living under this arrangement. East and West managed to live alongside each other and trade with mutual profit. It is curious to read, in these troublous days, the description of life in The Factories by an old Chinese hand who spent many years there. “ ‘The Hong merchants,’ he says, ‘formed a body of intelligent infiuental and well-bred men, and were most friendly and courteous in their daily relations with the foreign residents. The Hong pursers, or clerks.- were intelligent. quick at figures, and correct. Coolies and boat people who served us were uniformly good-natured and insolence was never met with, while sobriety was their unalterable characteristic.’ “During tlie second Chinese War, in 1856, The Factories were entirely destroyed by fire. At the close of the war it was arranged that the sand flat, known ae Shameen, a little west of the old Factories site, should be handed over to tlie British and French for tlie purposes of a new foreign settlement. Round this sand flat a stone embankment was built and the whole surface raised well above the flood- level with sand dredged from the river. In area it was about 1000 yards long and 200 yards at its widest across. Two fine bridges with iron gates span the- canal separating it from the Chinese city. “Thus what was originally a barren sand flat, lias, in the course of 60 years, under European management, become a beautiful model settlement, with imposing blocks of business houses, banks and consular offices. Tlie wide avenues are shaded with long lines of beautiful tropical trees. On the south side facing tlie river are tlie gardens, tennis courts, bowling grfeen, football ground, and even a playground for the children. One-fifth of the area at the east end is under tlie jurisdiction of the French, the rest is British. It has its own municipal council with the British Consul-Gen-eral as chairman. Tlie settlement is guarded by well-trained Chinese police, under a British sergeant. GUNBOATS ON PATROL.

"Nearby on the river you will usually find a British gunfioat, perhaps one or two other nationalities. These patrol the rivers of South China keeping unobtrusive, but firm, watch over the lives and interests of their nations in that region. ‘ ‘Forty years ago there was room enough in Shameen for all the Europeans and Americans resident in Canton. Nowadays the numbers have increased from a few hundreds to over 1000, and many have removed to sites 1

leased from the Chinese in the suburbs. All are still, however, under the legal jurisdiction, not of the Chinese, but of their own consuls. “A concession is, therefore, a piece of territory granted by the Chinese Government and placed under the jurisdiction of some foreign Power or Powers, as a place of residence and business for their nationals in China. It has grown up from a variety of conditions, desire for trade, the old official policy of exclusion, the recognised difference ' of language, customs and civilisation. It has proved for several centuries a good working solution of a' difficult problem in international relationships. “Friends of Cliin.ii, are to note that with the progress of time conditions have so improved that many business people, as well as missionaries, reside outside the foreign concessions, and students live on good terms among the Chinese people. But when the students ask that all foreign concessions be resumed by the Chinese Government, the question naturally arise s whether the Chinese Government is stable enough and strong enough to give the justice and protection the European expects, a protection she is too often unable to give to many of her own people.”