Page:The empire and the century.djvu/789

 the good government and security of a 'settlement' with a population of close upon 400,000 souls within an area of nearly 9 square miles. The rates and taxes which it levies provide a revenue of about £200,000, which defrays the expenses of a mixed body of police—European and Asiatic—of a volunteer corps about 700 strong, and of an efficient fire-brigade, besides different administrative departments, the most important of which are, perhaps, those of public works and public health. Of the wealth of the community, whose interests are committed to this municipal body, some slight idea may be gathered from the fact that the land tax of 5 per mill. is levied on property assessed at a value in the aggregate of about £9,000,000, and the general rate on house property—10 per cent, on actual or assessed rentals—represents nearly another £10,000,000 worth of real property. Of the enormous amount of capital invested in trade, finance, and industry, centred at Shanghai, it is difficult to frame an exact estimate; but it may safely be computed at over £200,000,000. More than half the import and export trade of China passes the port of Shanghai, to the value, in 1908, of about £40,000,000, and it is the chief centre of the growing native cotton industry.

Though no other 'settlement' or 'concession' in China approaches Shanghai in importance, it would be easy to show that many others reproduce on a smaller scale results similar to those which British energy and the British aptitude for self-government have achieved in the 'Model Settlement.' I have dwelt at some length on this aspect of British interests in China because it is not easily realized by those who have not had an opportunity of seeing with their own eyes these robust offshoots of the British tree transplanted with all their indigenous vitality on to Chinese soil. The conditions under which they have grown up are, moreover, changing so rapidly that the methods which have hitherto sufficed for their protection are breaking down under the pressure of new forces.