碩士 / 國立暨南國際大學 / 歷史學研究所 / 89 / This dissertation aims at studying the underlined “spirit” of The Chinese Maritime Customs. Such a spirit was built up and upheld by the first three leaders (the Inspector Generals). They are Horatio Nelson Lay, Robert Hart, and Francis Aglen. The period under discussion is from the 1850s to 1927.
First chapter introduces the issues of loyalty and identity relating to the foreign employees of the Chinese Maritime Customs by analyzing previous scholarships on Horatio Nelson Lay. In the second chapter, it is designed to make an inquiry into the lengthy career of Sir Robert Hart, to show his thought and action in the Customs administration, and to apply my findings to verify the exactness of the view that the Inspector Generals were loyal to Chinese government. The third chapter deals with the changing attitudes of the central and the provincial governments towards their Maritime Customs during the fifty years after the new Customs administration was established. Researches on Aglen have yet been limited, however. Therefore, in the last chapter, basing on the findings that I have obtained in previous ones on Lay and Hart, I reconstruct some biographical information about Francis Aglen, and examine his loyalty toward the Chinese government.
As far as revenue was concerned, Chinese government had not paid much attention to customs incomes before the 1850s, even though the financial situation was not sound at that moment. Later on, however, the foreigners-administered Maritime Customs made a good impression to the Chinese government through its efficiency in many aspects. The Inspectors General also had their careers in China in minds, and devoted themselves to work hard for China. All these brought confidence of the Chinese government to the Customs administration. In consequence, the “new” Maritime Customs administration gained more and more trust and supernumerary works from its superiors. These supernumerary works were relating to China’s modernization, in which China’s interests were also at stake.
Although the Inspectors General took orders from the Chinese government, they were however executed at their own discretion. As the idea that China had to be modernized grew stronger in the Chinese minds, the Chinese also became more anxious to get those modernization concerns under their own control. The style of behavior and the work ethics embodied in the underlined “spirit” of the new Customs administration was to face serious challenge when nationalism came to prevail during the latter part of the period under discussion.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:TW/089NCNU0493005 |
| Date | January 2001 |
| Creators | 張勝勛 |
| Contributors | 陳國棟 |
| Source Sets | National Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations in Taiwan |
| Language | zh-TW |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | 學位論文 ; thesis |
| Format | 136 |
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