The Hawaiian gazette., 1884-09-03
China.

The government Of the Chinese Empire, as
far as known, is a semi-military, semi-patrlar-
chal despotism. The sovereign, called Ia
hwang IT," or the Great Emperor, is regarded
rs the father of his people, and has unlimited
power over all his subjects. The fundamental
laws of the empire are laid down In the Ia
stlng-hweitien, or COLLECTED Regulations or
the Great Pure dynasty" which prescribe the
government Of the state to be based upon the
government Of the family.
The present sovereign is the 9th Emperor OF
China Of the Tartar dynasty of Ta-tsing, "Ihe
SubIimely Pure" which succeeded the native
dynasty Of Ming in the year 1914. There ex-
lists no law of hereditary succession to the
throne, but it is left to each sovereign to APP
point his successor from among the members
of his family A late Emperor, on designating
his son, minor, as his successor, ordered that
he should be kept, till the time Of his majority,
under the guardianship of eight high officials,
who were to carry on the government in his
name But in consequence Of palace revo-
luton, occurring soon after the accession Of
the young ruler, Nov. ?, 1851, three out OF the
eight appointed imperial guardians were killed
and the rest banished, while the supreme power
was taken possession of by two of the wives
of the deceased sovereign, THAN, the First
consort," aud Tzi-ssi, the mother OF the new
Emperor. They associated themselves with
Jih-su, Prince of Kong, uncle Of the young
Emperor, who was nominated head OF the
Council of ministers, and became virtually Re-
gent of the empire.
The Emperor is spiritual as well as tempo
raj sovereign, and, as high priest Of the en-
pre- can alone, with his immediate represent
stives and ministers, perform the great relig-
ious ceremonies. No ecclesiastical hierarchy
is maintained at the public expense, nor any
priesthood attached to the Confucian or State
religion.
The administration Of the empire is under
the supreme direction of the Interior Council
Chamber" comprising four members, two of
Tartar and two Of Chinese origin, besides two
assistants from the Han-lin, or Great College,
who have to see that nothing is done contrary
to the civil and religious laws Of the empire,
contained in the Ta-tsing -hwei-tien, and in the
sacred books of Confucius. These members
are denomiuated "Ta-hyo-si," or Ministers of
State. Under their orders are the Li-poo, or
six boards of government, each of witch q
presided over by Tartar and Chinese. They
are: |. The board of civil appointments,
which takes cognisance Of the conduct and ad-
minstratiOn of all civil officers; .. Tho board
of revenues, regulating all financial affairs; ).
The board Of rites and ceremonies, which en-
forces the laws and customs to be observed by
the people; T. The military board, superin-
tending the administration Of the army; ,.
The board of public works; and 6. The high
tribunal Of criminal jurisdiction.
Independent of the Government, and theo-
retically above the central administration, is
the Tu-chah-yuen, or board of public censors.
1t consists of from 10 to so members, under
two presidents, the one of Tartar and the other
of Chinese birth. BY the ancient custom of
the empire, all the members of this board are
privileged TO present any remonstrance to the
sovereign. One censor is to be present at the
meetings Of each Of the six government boards,
without taking any part IN the deliberation,
and others have to travel through the various
provinces of the empire to inspect and super
intend the administration Of the chief public
functionaries.
The estimates Of the public revenue of China
vary greatly, and while they are stated by
some to exceed 100 millions sterling, are held
by others not to come up 10 half that amount
The public revenue is mainly derived from
three sources, namely: customs duties, licenses,
and tax upon land. The customs duties fall
more upon exports than imports; their total
produce at the thirteen treaty ports open to
Europeans amounted TO S,G9l,s taels, or
E2,S97 ,272, in 1863 and 10 9,425 $50 taels, or
E3.l4l 1856, in 1865. To the amount collected
in 1865 the foreign trade contributed 5000, ISL
taels, or e., 667, 5s4, while the portion paid by
Great Britain and British colonies in the same
year was G,7O6,3G5 taes, or e., 235, 455, or over
So per cent. Besides this sum, the British
trade paid transit duties to the amount Of
El,ll7,72I in 1855, SO that the total cUntribu-
ton Of the same to the Imperial Exchequer
was E3,353,7s2
The population of China is very dense, but
nothing accurate is known respecting the nun.
Der of inhabitants, although official enumera
tions Of the same are stated to have taken
place at intervals since the year 1903. or for more
than eleven centuries. One Of the causes of
uncertainty regarding the population of the
empire is that its limits are underlined, the i'm
perial government claiming the allegiance of
the inhabitants of many of the neighboring
territories, which appear to be more or less
independent According to the most reliable
estimates, together with Chinese official re-
turns, the area Of the empire and its Dependent
cies, real and asserted, moy be set down in
round numbers, at about 900 geographical
square miles, with a popolution Of nearly 300
millions