The Democratic advocate., 1878-12-28
Chinese Merchants.

ed the foreign trade went into English an
American hands, but in few years tn
Germans came in and took a large shar
of it. They could live and work cheape
than their competitors, and for consider
able while they fourished. But when tn
Chinese came to the front all others suf
fered alike, as the new competitor coulC
beat each and every one of them in thu
ability to get along with small profits. A
Chinese official said one day to friend o.
mine :-"Englishman and Mclean mar
come here makee big pigeon; bimeby Ions
come German man eatee up Englishmar
and Mclean man; Chinaman come now
he makee cat up German man; some time
you makee see Chinaman eatee every
ting" There is every reason to believe
that his prediction will be fulfilled in the
main; that the "eatec up" is going OIL
pretty rapidly great many persons car
testify.
In Hong-Kong the Chinese houses are
increasing annually, while the English and
other foreign ones are decreasing. Rows
of stores formerly occupied by English
merchants have been given up to Chinese
and the number grows and grows with
each recurring season. Nineteen-twen-
tieths of the population of Hong.Kong
are Chinese, and there is not branch Of
business into which they have not entered.
They have shipping and commercial houses,
steamship, banking and insurance compan-
les, as 1 have already mentioned, and you
can buy in their shops nearly every article
of foreign manufacture that you can buy
in the English stores, and almost invaria-
bly, at lower price. The complete free
trade established at Hong-Kong has been
good for the English manufacturer, but
not so for the English merchant who es-
tablished himself in the colony.
So much for John on his own soil. Let
us see what he has done in carrying the
war into the enemy's country.
We are all pretty well aware of what he
has done in California, and SO | will not
take up that branch of the subject. In
all the open ports of Japan the Chinese
are thickly established. Their competi-
tion is more with Europeans than with the
japanese, and they have succeeded in
making very large inroad into the profits
of the foreigner, though less SO than at
Hong-Kong, Shanghai or the other Chi
nese ports. Going west from Hong Kong,
we come to Cochin China, the French pos
session, of which Saigon is the capital.
There the Chinese have been steadily cut
ting into the trade, until they have by far
the best of it, and have driven some for
eign houses out Of business. During 1876
the Chinese shipped nine-tenths of the rice
crop, amounting to nearly 100000 pic
uls (133 lbs. to the picul.) All other ar
ticles of export were shipped by them, with
a very few exceptions, and they have at
least five-sixths of the import trade. Much
of the shipment is to Hong-Kong, and a
great portion of it is in Chinese vessels,
while many of the English ships find it
expedient to employ Chinese agents. The
Hong-Kong agency of the only line of
steamers running to Bangkok, Siam, is
Chinese, and when I purchased my ticket
by one of the company's ships, was oblig-
ed to apply to the head of the Yuen Fat
Hong, and make my negotiations with him.
The captain told me that all the rice car
ried by him or his companion vessels was
on Chinese account, and | found on reach
ing Bangkok a Chinese line of steamers
running to Singapore. Foreign business
at Bangkok grows smaller each year, while
Chinese business increases. The Celestial
has much of the LOCAL trade in Bangkok.
I was told that the Government licenses
for the sale of spirits were in the hands of
a Chinese, while another had the monop-
oily of gambling houses.
At Singapore there are more than l00,-
900 Chinese, one-fourth as many Malays,
and about 1000 Europeans. The Chinese
have gained in numbers, while the Euro
peans have lost, in spite of the steadily
increasing importance of Singapore. While
I was there quarrel arose between the
Chinese and foreign merchants rather
it was in progress when l arrived-con-
cerning the delivery of pepper, gambler,
and other articles of merchandise which
the former sell to the latter, The disput-
ed point was on a matter of delivery, the
latter demanding and the former refusing
to make delivery at the foreign go-downs
(warehouses.) The foreigners united, and
agreed not to buy until the point was
yielded to them; the Chinese united, and
refused to sell except at their own 60
downs. See the advantage of Chinese
combination over foreign one; when |
left Singapore two of the foreign houses
had broken from the combination, and
were buying pepper and gambler on the
terms of the Chinese, while the latter were
as firm as the rock of Gibraltar. I don't
know who won the fight, but 1 think it is
not hard to guess, especially as there had
been similar troubles before, In which the
Chinese came out ahead. Certainly they
are most indefatigable lot of merchants,
and it is really wonder how SO many of
the natives of the Flowery Kingdom man
age to make living on the little island of
Singapore. There is not much to choose
in that city between the Chinese and the
Malay. Deal with epe, and you will gen.
orally wish you had dealt with the other
-or neither Thomas KnOr, IN Har-
per's Maodzine.