The levy is
authorized in general terms by an imperial decree, but all details are
left to the local authorities. The yield of this tax is estimated at
taels 13,000,000 (Ll,950,000), a sum which probably represents
one-third of what is actually paid by the merchants, the balance being
costs of collection.

4. _Imperial Maritime Customs_.--The maritime customs is the one
department of finance in China which is managed with probity and
honesty, and this it owes to the fact that it is worked under foreign
control. It collects all the duties leviable under the treaties on the
foreign trade of China, and also all duties on the coasting trade so
far as carried on by vessels of foreign build, whether Chinese or
foreign owned. It does not control the trade in native craft, the
so-called junk trade, the duties on which are still levied by the
native custom-house officials. By arrangement between the British and
Chinese governments the foreign customs levy at the port of entry a
likin on Indian opium of taels 80 per chest, in addition to the tariff
duty of taels 30. This levy frees the opium from any further duty on
transit into the interior. The revenue of the maritime customs rose
from taels 8,200,000 in 1865 to taels 35,111,000 in 1905.

5. _Native Customs_,--The administration of the native customs
continues to be similar to what prevailed in the maritime customs
before the introduction of foreign supervision. Each collector is
constituted a farmer, bound to account for a fixed minimum sum, but
practically at liberty to retain all he may collect over and above. If
he returns more he may claim certain honorary rewards as for extra
diligence, but he generally manages to make out his accounts so as to
show a small surplus, and no more. Only imperfect and fragmentary
returns of the native collectorates have been published, but the total
revenue accruing to the Chinese government from this source did not
appear up to 1900 much to exceed two million taels (L300,000). In
November 1901 native customs offices within 15 m. of a treaty port
were placed under the control of the maritime customs, their revenues
having been hypothecated for the service of the Boxer indemnity. The
result was that the amount of the native customs collected by the
commissioners of customs increased from taels 2,206,000 in 1902 to
taels 3,699,000 in 1906.

6. _Duty on Native Opium_.--