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the general tariff rate on imports to an effective five per cent.

Another source of revenue is the native customs. The foreign maritime customs, described above, take cognisance of cargoes carried in ships of foreign build only,—whether foreign-owned or Chinese,—the vast quantities of goods transported by junks being under the control of native custom-houses, situated at many places on the coast and in inland waters. Some of the richest of these collectorates are given by the Court in Peking to Manchu nominees, but with the exception of Canton all are managed through the local authorities and all render their returns in the usual way. The total sum thus collected is officially shown as four million taels annually. Obviously that amount represents only a fraction of the actual revenue. Considering the immense area of China and the vast fleet of junks plying on her littoral and inland waters, it is an idle jest to pretend that the customs duties paid by them aggregate only four million taels. Speaking of Shanghai in this context, Mr. Consul-General Jamieson says: "It needs but a glance at the forest of masts that line the banks of the river to show that the native junk traffic is still of very considerable proportions. Many of the boats, too, are of large size, carrying eight thousand to ten thousand piculs (say five hundred to six hundred tons dead weight). They bring cargoes of native produce from Newchwang, Shantung, and Foochow,