Page:Eminent Chinese Of The Ch’ing Period - Hummel - 1943 - Vol. 2.pdf/65

 senior vice-presidency of the Board of Works (May 1854), of the Board of Ceremonies (November 1854), and of the Board of Revenue (1855). In the meantime he served as deputy lieutenant-general of one or another of the Banners. Early in 1857 he became president of the Censorate, and in October he was transferred to the Colonial Court. In October of the following year he was made president of the Board of Ceremonies. From February 1859, until a few days before his death, he served as president of the Board of Revenue. In the meantime he served concurrently as an adjutant general (1859–61), as a minister of the Household (1860–61), as an associate Grand Secretary (1861), and in other capacities.

In the last three or four years of his reign Emperor Wên-tsung turned to sensual pleasures to escape from worry regarding the chaotic condition of the empire. Most of the affairs of state, which previously had been decided by the Emperor in conjunction with the Grand Councilors, were now attended to by adjutant generals, particularly Tsai-yüan and Tuan-hua. But since both had indecisive personalities they often turned to Su-shun for advice. In this way Su-shun gradually assumed great power. Being a man of strong convictions, he used drastic measures in dealing with incompetent or corrupt officials. In 1858 he first showed his hand in the case of. When that diplomat met with difficulties in his negotiations with the British and French Allies at Tientsin and returned to Peking without permission, high officials were ordered to deliberate on a just punishment. It was chiefly owing to Su-shun's insistence, that Ch'i-ying was sentenced to die. In another case Su-shun was equally adamant. In November 1858 the directors of the Shun-t'ien (Peking) provincial examination for the chü-jên degree were accused of corruption and partiality. It was found that the chief examiner, Grand Secretary Po-chün 柏葰, at the request of a servant, had withdrawn the papers of a successful candidate and had substituted those of another who had failed. The servant, who presumably had been bribed to make this request, died in prison before the case was closed. There was not enough evidence to show that Po-chün himself had knowledge of the bribery, but on the insistence of Su-shun, Tsai-yuan, and a collaborator, Ch'ên Fu-ên (see under ), reasons were found to punish Po-chün by decapitation (March 17, 1859). Three other officials involved were likewise executed, one being the assistant examiner, P'u-an 浦安. Whether or not such drastic measures were necessary to prevent corruption and inefficiency, they nevertheless resulted in making Su-shun and those in power both feared and hated.

Soon after Su-shun became president of the Board of Revenue (February 1859), he tried to introduce reforms designed to increase the national income, since the financial condition of the government was very unstable owing to the disturbances after 1850. Early in 1853 paper currency (silver notes) had been introduced, and in that year the government began to melt old copper cash to be replaced by new ones of larger denominations. Still later, cash made of iron, and notes to take the place of cash, were also introduced. At first there was some profit for the government, but before long counterfeit money appeared in great quantities, and the new cash became unacceptable outside the walls of Peking. As the currency depreciated and prices rose, the lives of many became miserable. The government tried to maintain the depreciated cash by accepting it from purchasers of official titles. As such transactions required large sums of the depreciated cash, the government banks, which were established to render this service, were permitted to issue notes. Before long, however, some bankers misappropriated the notes and made profits for themselves.

This was the financial situation when Su-shun took over the Board of Revenue in 1859, with the thought of making sweeping reforms. He had had nothing to do with the introduction of these unsound policies, but now had to assume the responsibility of remedying them. In November 1859 he caused the arrest of several managers of the government banks for corruption, and ordered the imprisonment of those clerks in the Board of Revenue who had been affiliated with the banks. A month later, on the report of Tuan-hua, a servant of was arrested for his connection with one of the banks. Late in 1859 the office buildings of the Board of Revenue were almost entirely destroyed by fire, and this Sushun suspected was the work of some desperate clerks who had hoped thus to get rid of incriminating evidence. Following this there were more arrests. But there was no relief in repressive measures for they merely antagonized yet more those princes and officials who had profited by the situation. As the currency depreciated the suffering in Peking became worse, and some 667