Page:Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China.djvu/301

Rh the chief contributing centres, but practically all the producing districts furnish their quota. The value of the export is a little over Tls. 1,000,000 a year, Japan (including Formosa) being the chief customers.

WASTE SILK.

Waste silk includes a variety of by-products. One of these is the fluffy silken nest in which the cocoon hangs. This is picked off before the silk on the cocoon can be reeled, and is known as "floss" silk. "Frisson," or "husk" silk is the impure silk coming first from the cocoon during the brushing and reeling process; it is the most valuable of all the waste products, being worth from Tls. 100 to Tls. 150 per picul, according to the market. Then there is what is known as "boiled waste," i.e., the inner layer or two of silk in a cocoon which cannot easily be reeled. The chrysalis and the skin of the silkworm are picked out and themselves form a by-product as manure; while the "boiled waste" is washed, baled, and exported for use in the manufacture of "noil" yarn as distinct from cotton yarn. Again, amongst the cocoons there sometimes occur what are known as "doubles," formed when two silkworms enclose themselves in one cocoon. Although the silk is perfectly good, these "doubles" have to be classed as waste, because they are difficult to unwind. The "perforated" cocoons from which the moths have emerged are also useless for reeling, though the silk is unimpaired; and, lastly, a small percentage of cocoons is spoiled by the agency of a parasite which inhabits the body of the silkworm, and, on coming to maturity, eats its way out of the cocoon. The table shows the principal districts from which waste silk is exported and the countries to which it is sent.

PIECE GOODS.

Silk piece goods are woven on hand-looms by small weavers, who either buy raw silk from the farmers and sell the manufactured articles themselves, or weave to order silk supplied them by merchants. The whole of the producing districts contribute to this heading of export, but the figures given below do not afford any indication of the amount of silk actually woven in the country, for by far the greater proportion of the finest silk—that woven from the first crop of raw silk—finds a market within the borders of the Empire among the official and wealthy classes. Between two and three hundred kinds of silk piece goods are woven in the provinces of Kiangsu and Chekiang, the industry centring chiefly round Soochow, Wusieh, and Nanking in the former province, and around Showshing and Hangchow in the latter. Each weaver produces one particular kind of silk, and the various descriptions are bought by collectors sent out by Chinese silk brokers, who classify them and dispose of them to Chinese and foreign merchants. From the districts named come all the very finest white pongees, brocades, plains, crepes, &c., as well as the bulk of the heavier kinds and coarse common silks. The Canton products are in less variety and of poorer quality. Yellow silk piece goods are derived principally from Szechwan and Shantung Provinces. Formerly the dyes used in colouring silk were purely Chinese vegetable dyes, which kept their colour well, and rendered the silk more durable; but now, owing to the demand for cheaper silk, foreign dyes are largely employed. Of recent years the foreign market has shown a preference for machine-made Japanese and European silks, because of their superior finish, but the product of the hand-looms of China will probably never be excelled for strength and durability.

WASTE.

Original Export from principal Customs Districts.

Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels.

Newchwang 125,458 175,663 185,334 115,104 256,190

Chefoo 227,661 165,042 194,575 196,200 219,526

Hiaochau 224,285 218,665 331,841 187,496 51,078

Kankow 236,241 260,253 244,988 186,617 115,246

Shanghai 1,127,285 896,296 925,823 735,701 962,790

Hangchow 49,967 174,613 357,598 446,657 552,293

Canton 2,470,595 1,468,381 1,849,469 1,413,412 2,702,570

Wuhu — — — 90,997 97,459

Chief Countries to which Exported.

Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels.

Hongkong 2,437,601 1,454,776 1,849,469 1,413,538 2,705,475

Great Britain 638,134 286,428 764,568 620,446 589,516

France — — 1,280,841 838,785 1,653,405

Italy — — 235,363 206,189 403,886

SILK PIECE GOODS.

Original Export from principal Customs Districts. 1903. 1904. 1905. 1906. 1907.

Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels.

Nanking 1,510,938 2,281,457 2,123,725 2,538,429 2,497,099

Chinkiang 542,440 759,000 889,621 781,801 657,491

Shanghai 6,254,522 6,992,199 7,184,251 5,958,056 5,823,854

Soochow 316,270 403,180 776,753 811,982 1,088,637

Hangchow 1,472,167 1,776,703 2,244,824 1,774,496 1,805,529

Canton 8,306,361 6,222,372 5,663,424 5,603,934 6,836,420

Kowloon 773,127 521,555 394,014 413,175 457,435

Chief Countries to which Exported.

Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels.

Hongkong 10,526,012 8,427,129 7,098,082 6,708,002 8,383,035

Singapore, Straits, &c. 435,192 395,059 343,899 345,741 413,740

Great Britain 56,878 118,635 79,012 89,960 124,313

Korea 639,269 713,013 717,694 439,883 907,584

SHANTUNG PONGEES.

Original Export from principal Customs Districts. 1903. 1904. 1905. 1906. 1907.

Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels.

Chefoo 2,005,920 1,178,587 1,076,519 1,178,906 1,352,610

Kiaochau 1,521 56,735 79,401 271,000 1,136,414

Shanghai 10,143 9,632 32,348 47,141 12,751

Chief Countries to which Exported.

Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels. Taels.

Hongkong 359,746 378,304 389,745 371,424 500,464

Great Britain 262,770 110,647 125,899 248,432 384,246

France — — 202,041 399,793 1,032,055

SHANTUNG PONGEES.

Shantung pongees are commonly known as "Chefoo" silk, and are made from wild silk, the produce of silkworms fed upon oak leaves. They are esteemed for their cheapness and durability, and are much used by Europeans in the Far East for summer wear. From the foregoing tabular statement it will be seen that Chefoo's predominance is now being challenged by Kiaochau.