Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China/Foochow
FOOCHOW.
OOCHOW, or Fuh-chau-fu, the capital of the province of Fokien and seat of the Viceroy, stands on the northern bank of the River Min, about 34 miles from its source, and nine miles from Pagoda Island, the nearest anchorage for foreign coasting steamers.
The trade of the port, according to the latest available returns, reached the net value of Tls. 16,693,583 in 1906; as compared with Tls. 17,447,135 in 1905, Tls. 17,226,968 in 1904 and Tls. 16,738,718 in 1903. The Customs revenue has fallen in less than two decades from about Tls. 2,000,000 to Tls. 912,892 in 1906.
The chief article of export in former days was tea, and a great stimulus was given to the trade by the opening of Foochow under the Treaty of Nanking in 1842, as prior to that date the choice Bohea, for which the neighbourhood was famous, had to be transported by the difficult overland route to Canton for shipment. The output steadily increased until, in 1880, it reached a total of 737,000 piculs; but from that time the stress of competition with the Indian and Ceylon teas began to be felt, and the industry gradually declined. In 1906 the quantity exported had fallen to 233,990 piculs, or, excluding black, brick, and stalks, to only 116,177 piculs. For the finest flowery Pekoes, Lapsings, Souchongs, and Sen Moros, which maintain their old-fashioned good qualities, there is still a fair demand, but the supply is limited. The kinds which have suffered most are the medium grades of Panyongs, as, at a price of, say, 7d. to 11d. per pound the consumer prefers the strong and pungent British-grown teas. Prices have ruled so low of late years on all the consuming markets that tea from Foochow can hardly be shipped to cover cost, bearing as it does heavy incidental expenses and dues from the tea gardens to the port, then a heavy export duty, from which Indian and Ceylon teas are practically free, and finally being subject to higher freight charges than teas shipped from ports nearer home. All these factors have combined to make the trade unprofitable to native and foreign merchants alike, with the result that thousands of acres have gone out of cultivation.
With the decline of tea has come a rise in the camphor industry. Some Japanese settlers in the interior discovered camphor forests, and erected stills, and the natives, seeing that the trees might be made a source of profit, turned their attention to camphor refining. At first only the camphor made direct from the wood was dealt with, but as time went on it was discovered that the camphor oil, the residue from the camphor crystals, which hitherto had been sent to Foochow for sale, could be utilised for refining purposes. As a result there are now in Foochow a number of small distilleries at which this oil is refined, and an excellent quality of pure white camphor is produced. The export of this commodity has risen from 1,144 piculs in 1903 to 1,210 in 1904, 4,037 in 1905, and 11,370 in 1906. There is, however, a strong feeling locally that the industry is not destined to last long.
There are at Foochow a match factory, a tea factory, and one or two saw-mills, but, with the exception of one of the saw-mills, all are now closed owing to the heavy dues and to the general stagnation of trade.
Amongst the native population the manufacture of lacquer-ware still flourishes, chiefly because the finest work of Foochow cannot be produced in any other town, the secrets of the lacquer being in the hands of a few Chinese families, who carefully guard it. Another minor industry is that of carving soap-stone ornaments. The people excel in the cutting of miniature temples, pagodas, cannon, &c., from this substance, and also in the making of artificial flowers and birds.
A large amount of timber, chiefly fir-poles, is cut in the interior of the province, and rafted down the River Min to Foochow, ready for shipment to northern ports. Much of it is transported in junks, but in the early spring about a dozen steamers call for full cargoes for Tientsin.
The city, which has a circumference of about six miles, is enclosed by a wall about 30 feet high and 12 feet thick. It embraces three small hills, whose well-wooded slopes add much to the beauty of the city. The population is estimated at about 750,000. The European Settlement is situated on the island of Nantai, which is formed by a divergence and reuniting of the river, and has a length of about 15 miles. Communication with the city is maintained by what is known as the Long Bridge, or the Bridge of the Ten Thousand Ages. The scenery in the vicinity is striking in its resemblance to that of some parts of Europe, the river running through towering cliffs rising sheer from the water's edge. Several temples of interest are to be seen, among them the Min Monastery, the Moon Temple, and the Kushan Monastery, all of which are beautiful examples of Chinese architecture. Foochow possesses a mild and delightful climate during the greater part of the year, and even in the summer, when the heat is rather trying, the mountain of Kuliang affords a pleasant and cool retreat, to which foreign residents may go to recuperate. At Sharp Peak, also, there is a bathing resort—a great boon in the hot weather. Near the east gate of the city are several hot springs, believed to be efficacious in combating various skin diseases.
The European community do not lack recreation and means of social intercourse. There is a racecourse, in the centre of which tennis, football, hockey, and cricket can be played under the most pleasant conditions; there is a good club, and a Masonic lodge has been established. A small daily paper, the Foochow Echo, is published in the town.
The Viceroy is the supreme authority; under him is the Taoutai, and, in command of the military forces, are two prominent generals. Other officials are the Provincial Treasurer, the Provincial Judge, the Grain Taoutai, and the Board of Foreign Trade Taoutais. Most of the leading foreign Powers are represented by consuls or their deputies. Money for local circulation is coined at the Viceroy's mint, the output of which is limited by the Imperial Government.
The Provincial Fort at Foochow has a small-arms and cartridge factory, where a large quantity of rifles and ammunition are produced. Near the Pagoda anchorage is the Mamoi Arsenal, capable of building and fitting out cruisers of from two to three thousand tons, but the work has been somewhat in abeyance recently, as the authorities have sent away the staff of French engineers who formerly carried on all the working management. The dry dock is about 300 feet in length. The Kimpai Pass, near the 838 TWENTIETH CENTURY IMPRESSIONS OF HONGKONG, SHANGHAI, ETO. entrance lo the Min River, is strongly forti- fied with modern heavy guns. Foochow has still some attractions to offer to the sportsman, for game abounds in the neighbourhood, and a little further in (he interior tiger and panther are common.
MR. 6. M. H. PLAYFAIR. Mr. George Maci)os.li) Home Playfair, the British Consul at Foochow, has been in the Consular service of China for nearly forty years. Born in 1850. he graduated at Dublin University, and, being successful in the usual competitive examination, was appointed a Student Interpreter in 187^. He remained in Peking for some time acting as Assistant Chinese Secretary. He carried out the duties of Consul at Taiwan in 1877, and at Pakhoi from 1881 to 1883. In 1886 he was promoted first-class assistant, and since that time has been attached, in various administrative capacities, to a large number of places in different parts of the Chinese Empire, including Tainan, Tamsui, Shanghai, Ningpo, and Swatow. He was appointed Consul at Foochow in 1899, and acted as Consul-General at Hankow from 1903 to 1904, after which lie returned to his post at Foochow.
DR. S. L. GRACEY.
Dr. Samuel L. Gracey, who, except for an interval of three years during the Cleveland administration, has been Consul for the United States of America at Foochow since 1890, comes from an English stock, his ancestors having gone to America with William Penn. Born on September 6, 1835, at Philadelphia, he was educated at public schools of that city and at Boston University. He is a Doctor of Divinity, and was for a number of years minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Boston, Chelsea, Cambridge, Lynn, Salem, and other cities in Massachusetts. For three years he served as chaplain in the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry during the Civil War. He was a member of the Massachusetts Legislature for two terms. The whole of his Consular service has been spent at Foochow, and for assistance rendered during the Boxer troubles he was decorated with the Order of the Double Dragon. Dr. Gracey has been twice married. His first wife was Leonora Thompson and his second wife Corda Perkins Pratt, of Massachusetts, who is a direct descendant of the Mayflower pilgrims on both her father and mother's side. Dr. Gracey has, with one exception, served longer than any other American Consul in China or the Far East. He commands the highest respect of his nationals. His son, Wilbur T. Gracey, is the United States Consul at Tsingtau.
DR. T. RENNIE.
Dr. T, Rennie, who has a large private practice in Foochow, was born in West Aberdeenshire in 1850. He graduated at Aberdeen University and took his M.B. and CM. Degrees in 1872, becoming M.D. three years later. Before coming to Foochow he was stationed in Formosa for six years. He is a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Public Health ; Member of the British Medical Association ; Medical Officer to the British Consulate and the Imperial Maritime Customs ; and Hon. Medical Officer to the Foochow Native Hospital.
ME. H. BAKER. Mr. H. Baker, who was born in Wiltshire in 1854, and educated privately in Germany, came to Foochow in 1875 to join Messrs. Newman & Co., and, in 1881, transferred his services to the local branch of Messrs, Butterfield & Swire. He was associated with Foochow during the old tea days, and has been engaged for six years in Shanghai and Hankow as a tea-taster. He is fond of shooting and riding, and often enters ponies in the Foochow races.
MR. C. F. ST. C. STOCKWELL.
Mr. Stockwell is a member of a family which has been resident in China practically ever since the establishment of Hongkong as a British Colony. His maternal grandfather, Captain S. Clifton, was present at the bom- bardment of Canton in 1840, and accompanied the 70th Foot Regiment to Hongkong in 1849. He was the first Captain-Superintendent of Police in Shanghai, and his wife has the reputation of being the oldest European lady residing in the country. For a term of fifty- nine years, between 1845 and 1904, she divided her time almost equally between Hongkong and Shanghai. Mr. Stockwell's father is the son of Dr. James Stockwell, Medical Officer to the Government Civil Hospital, Hongkong. Mr. Stockwell himself is the representative for the British-American Tobacco Company, Ltd., in Foochow. His has been an active career. He holds a commission in the King's Colonial Imperial Yeomanry and, attached as interpreter to the Russian Army, went through the Boxer trouble of 1900. He holds two certificates, sliowing that he has passed the School of Musketry and the Cavalry School. A good linguist, he has travelled in every continent.
MR. J. C. OSWALD.
Mr. J. C. Oswald, the chief partner in the firms of Bathgate & Co. and Fairhurst & Co., was born at Croydon in 1857,' and was educated at Heidelberg. He has been engaged in the tea trade all his life, for at the age of sixteen he joined a firm of importers in London, and, after remaining with them for thirteen years, came to Foochow, where he has since been engaged in superintending the export of tea. Mr. Oswald is an enthusiastic sportsman. In his younger days he established a high reputation as a cyclist, and was awarded in 1882 a gold medal for a hundred miles record. Now riding and shooting constitute the chief recreations of his leisure.
MR. M. J. ISAACS.
Mr. Morris J. Isaacs, the agent in Foochow and Formosa for the Sun Life Assurance, of Canada, has had a training and experience which fit him admirably for the post. The manager of the head office in Montreal, Canada, and the general manager for Eastern Asia, Dr. R. H. Macaulay, often refers to his success in establishing a connection since he took over the work in December, 1906. Horn in Bombay in 1880, he came to China when quite young, and was educated at Queen's College, Hongkong. From the age of fifteen he has been connected with insurance work. A clever linguist, he speaks the Cantonese dialect, Hindustani, Arabic, and several other Oriental languages fluently.
MR. PESTONJEE B. JOKHEE.
Mr. Pestonjee Bomanjkk Jokhee is managing partner in Foochow for Messrs. Mchta & Co., opium, yarn, and camphor merchants, and commission agents. He was born in Surat, and came to China quite early in life.
MR. H. TIENSINFOO.
Mr. H. Tieksinfoo was born in Foochow in 1870, and educated at the Anglo-Chinese College. At the age of twenty-four he started in business as a timber, rice, and tea merchant. In addition to carrying on this business, he has charge of the Foochow branch of the Standard Oil Company, whose interests in the district are being rapidly developed. Mr. Tiensinfoo holds the Chinese Order of the Fifth Rank. ME. CHOET CHEN PONG. Mr. Choey Chen Pong, who is the pro- prietor of the famous Choey Wo Long Fairy Boat brand of tea, which has a large sale in England, was born in Canton in 1855 and educated in Hongkong. On leaving school he went to Foochow and entered the tea trade. Besides the tea business he has lately taken an interest in camphor.
ME. H. MANNCHOW.
Mr. H. Mannchow was born in Canton and educated at Hongkong, where he subsequently joined the Great Northern Telegraph Company. After a few years' service he came to Foochow and obtained employment with the Eastern Extension Telegrapli Com- pany. He relinquished his connection with this Company in order to become chief Chinese assistant to Messrs. Gibb, Livingston & Co. in Foochow, but he now combines with his other duties the positions of super- intendent of and electrician to the Fokien Telephone Company,. Ltd. This Company, which is under Chinese administration, has only recently been formed, but it has already one hundred and fifty subscribers.
MESSRS. PAUL PETTICK & CO.
The oldest and largest store-keepers at Foochow are Messrs. Paul I^ettick & Co. Established since 1888 they enjoy an excellent reputation amongst both the Euro- pean and native population. Of recent years they have disposed of their retail business to the Foochow Trading Company, and have concerned themselves solely with the wholesale import and export tr,ide. They import goods from England, America, France, and Germany, and export native produce, such as camphor, feathers, lac-
quered wares, bamboos, curios, &c. The 
M. W. GREIG & CO.
This firm are the successors of the well-known firm of Russell & Co., who failed in 1891. Mr. M. W. Greig was the manager of the Foochow branch of that firm at that date and only retired from business on December 31, 1907, after more than forty years of strenuous life in Foochow. The present partners are Messrs. Ronald Greig and Geo. L. Greig, brother and eldest son respectively of M. W. Greig. They carry on the business of tea merchants, camphor exporters, and oil importers. They are agents, also, for the Pacific Mail Steamship Company and allied companies; the Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company, Ltd.; the Shire Line of steamers; the Royal Insurance Company. Ltd., of Liverpool; and the well-known Yangtsze Insurance Association, which was organised by Russell & Co. Mr. Ronald Greig, who is in charge of the business, was born in Hants in 1854. He came to China in 1876, and was with Deacon & Co., of Canton, for eleven years. Afterwards he left for Canada, but in 1896 returned to take up his present responsibilities.
SIEMSSEN & KROHN.
This firm, known formerly as Siemssen & Co., have a variety of interests under their control. They export large quantities of tea and carry on a general agency business, representing, among other important undertakings, the Norddeutscher Lloyd and the Hamburg-Amerika lines. A saw-mill and feather-cleaning works are operated by them. The head of the firm, Mr. G. Siemssen, is Consul for Germany and Vice-Consul for Sweden.
DODWELL & CO., LTD.
This firm, originally Adamson, Bell & Co., was taken over in 1891 by Dodwell, Carlill & Co., and it is only since 1901 that the business has been conducted under its present name. The Company are the largest tea exporters in Foochow, and are now interesting themselves in camphor. They are agents of the Anglo-Saxon Petroleum Company, Ltd.; the Asiatic Petroleum Company, Ltd.; the Messageries Maritimes; and the principal shipping lines to America, and a number of other important undertakings.
