Twentieth Century Impressions of Hongkong, Shanghai, and other Treaty Ports of China/Weihaiwei
WEIHAIWEI.
EIHAIWEI was probably first brought to the notice of the British naval and military authorities at the time of the Anglo-French Expedition of 1860. The possibility of making use of Weihaiwei was then considered, and in his "Narrative of the War with China in 1860," General Wolseley gives an interesting account of his visit to the place with a view to testing its resources. First impressions are proverbially deceptive, and those of the gallant General are no exception to the rule. He wrote: "The harbour is a bad one, being open both to the north-east and south-east winds, so that the nautical portion of the expedition did not look upon it with very loving eyes.… Towards noon all returned, having failed to discover any running water, and even wells were found to be scarce.… What strikes one as so strange in a country essentially agricultural is the small number of birds to be seen; even the universally-met-with sparrow is, comparatively speaking, seldom found here, and if swallows are necessary to 'make a summer' one might almost doubt the existence of such a season in these regions. Unlike the towns in the south, there were but very few pigs or dogs.… The great scarcity of water appeared to check even animal fecundity." "The Island of Lung-meau-Loweah (sic), which shelters the harbour on the east side," also seems to have been waterless. How very inaccurate these statements were and how unwise it is to make dogmatic assertions of this nature, based on a few hours' cursory and perfunctory survey, is amply shown in the subsequent history of Weihaiwei. Admiral Freemantle, who was Commander-in-Chief on the China Station for three years, writing to The Times, in February, 1902, stated: "Personally, I have always thought Weihaiwei well suited to our wants. It is admirably situated, the harbour is good and capable of improvement.… For our purpose Weihaiwei is a far more valuable possession than Kiao-chou or Port Arthur.… We are about to develop Weihaiwei as a commercial port, under an energetic colonial administrator, and I venture to prophesy that a few years hence our interests there will have increased to such an extent that it will be necessary to take some defensive measures."
Weihaiwei, like Port Arthur, formed one of the "twin gates" of the Pechili Gulf, and both places were strongly fortified by the Chinese Government with the aid of foreign military experts. When the Chino-Japanese War of 1895 broke out Japanese strategists at once recognised the necessity of reducing both fortresses as preliminary steps to the invasion of the metropolitan province. In fact it was the surrender of Admiral Ting at Weihaiwei, following on the fall of Port Arthur, that convinced the Chinese of the futility of further resistance. In this short war the one redeeming feature in the sorry exhibition of Chinese impotence was the heroic, if hopeless, defence of Liu-kung-tao and the harbour by the naval forces of China. The garrisons of various forts on the mainland in most instances deserted en masse. Had the army offered anything like the resistance shown by the sister service, a very different complexion might have been put upon the war. The army of Japan numbered nearly twenty-five thousand troops and there is no evidence to show that either the invaders or the besieged garrison had any difficulty in obtaining water of excellent quality.
Weihaiwei remained in the possession of the Japanese for more than two years. On payment of the final instalment of the war indemnity it was surrendered in 1898 to the Chinese Government, who promptly transferred it to Great Britain, "for so long a period as Port Arthur remains in the occupation of Russia," and "in order to provide Great Britain with a suitable naval harbour in North China, and for the better protection of British commerce in the neighbouring seas."
It was at first intended that under the British flag Weihaiwei should out-rival Port Arthur and Tsingtau as a naval base and fortress harbour. Royal Engineers planned batteries on Liu-kung-tao, one or two of which were practically finished. The foundations of a naval hospital were laid, and the building materials were collected. The 1st Chinese Regiment was also established to garrison the Colony. Unfortunately, however, for Weihaiwei the enormous cost of the Boer war compelled economy in other directions, and a complete change took place in the British official attitude towards our newest Eastern possession. This change was announced in the following passage from the Colonial Office List, 1902:—"It is not the present intention of His Majesty's Government to re-fortify the station, but to retain it as a flying naval base, and as a depôt and drill-ground and sanatorium for the China Squadron in North China."
The Chinese Regiment was established in the early days of British tenure (1899). At that time Russia, Germany, and England laid claim, respectively, to Manchuria, Shantung, and the Yangtsze Valley, as "spheres of influence," and it seemed very probable that a partition of the dominions of the "sick man" of the Far East would eventually take place. Our War Office, with commendable foresight, intended the Chinese Regiment to be, not merely the garrison of Weihaiwei but also the nucleus of the body of military police which would be needed if, and when, we took over the government of our "sphere of influence." The unexpected dénouement of the Russo-Japanese War, while giving a new, if temporary, lease of life to the "sick man," also negatived the prognostications of the European chancelleries, and with the decision not to fortify Weihaiwei the raison d'être of the regiment also went, and its brief, but not inglorious career closed in 1906. The Chinese Regiment contributed two companies towards the international force which, during the Boxer outbreak, marched to the relief of the Legations at Peking. Their knowledge of local conditions enabled the officers and men of this small contingent to render invaluable aid to the British force in collecting transport, &c., and it may safely be stated that of all the different sections composing that heterogenous army none was so well supplied with interpreters and means of transport as the British force. That these two companies of the regiment also did their share of the harder and more serious business of war is silently attested by the small monument that now stands at the main entrance to the barracks of the defunct regiment and bears the following inscription:—"Erected by the Officers of the 1st Chinese Regiment in memory of the Officers, N.C.O.'s and Men of the regiment who were killed when serving with the British Contingent, China Field Force, between June and November. Capt. A. J. Hill, Capt. L. A. E. Ollivant, 21 N.C.O.'s and men."
In particular, their gallantry in the attack by the Allied Forces on Tientsin city seems to have received well-merited praise, and led to the adoption by the regiment of a Chinese city gate as its badge.
On sentimental grounds the disbandment of the regiment and the discontinuance of the interesting and, to a certain extent, successful, experiment of turning the Chinaman into an efficient soldier under British officers are regrettable, but for other and more weighty reasons it will generally be agreed that it was justifiable. Latterly, if not from the beginning, the cost to the British taxpayer of this military experiment was out of proportion to its usefulness.
Commissioner, Weihaiwei.
The Territory of Weihaiwei consists of the "Island of Liu-kung, all the islands in the Bay of Weihaiwei, and a belt of land, ten English miles wide, along the entire coastline of the Bay of Weihaiwei." In addition to this, "the region east of the meridian 121° 4′ E. of Greenwich," is a neutral zone, in which Great Britain has certain rights, and which none but British or Chinese troops may occupy or traverse. The area of the territory "leased" to Great Britain is rather less than 300 square miles, say, twice the size of the Isle of Wight.
The Weihaiwei School.
Main Gate, Native City.Port Edward on the Mainland.
Street Scene in the Native City.
The district is very hilly, and the hills are to a considerable height terraced out by the patient and diligent local husbandman, who succeeds admirably with his primitive methods in making the most of hill-sides which the European farmer would consider scarcely fit for cultivation. In rotation he grows wheat, barley, millett, the giant "kaoliang," the sweet potato, and ground nuts. The climate also permits of the production of the usual fruits and vegetables which the Englishman is accustomed to find on his table.
During the "rainy season" (July and August) most of the valleys and gullies of any size are furnished with "running water," and at all times of the year any one who takes the trouble to dig a well a few feet deep on low-lying ground, or in a valley, will find an ample supply of good water.
Unfortunately, the Chinaman of the north has apparently little love of scenery and no knowledge of forestry. To provide fuel for heating the family brick-bed in winter, he turns his whole family out to rake up even the grass by its roots. At the approach of cold weather, he cuts down, ruthlessly and indiscriminately, all available trees and shrubs. For a superstitious reason, apparently, he will allow trees to grow in the village graveyard, and he has sufficient taste to tolerate them in the village itself. Weihaiwei, therefore, shares with the rest of the province, a bleak and barren aspect, especially in winter, and, as Sir Frank Swettenham has put it, a visitor's first impression is that he has come to a "colder Aden."
The Government has already done a great deal towards remedying this defect, and many trees have been imported and planted, especially along the road-sides. A great deal more could be done—and probably would be done—in this direction if the British tenure of Weihaiwei were more assured.
By far the greater part of the rainfall occurs in July and August—the "rainy season." The average rainfall for the five years ending December, 1906, is 32·5 inches per annum, and the number of days on which snow or rain fell during these years averaged 82. Even in the warmest weather the thermometer seldom records 90° Fahrenheit in the shade. In winter, when the "north blow" is at its height, severe cold is usually experienced. But these cold spells are separated by intervals—sometimes of weeks in duration—of exhilaratingly bright sunshine and calm. In fact, the climate of Weihaiwei is essentially that of a "white man's country," and, in some respects, is distinctly superior to that of England. It is mainly through its high reputation for salubrity that Weihaiwei Is becoming increasingly popular with the British communities in the Far East as a seaside resort in the hot weather. For this reason, too, it is popular with the Navy. A certain type of naval man may feel inclined to grumble in moments of depression at the absence of facilities for indulging in the festivities which he enjoys at many other ports in the East, but even he generally admits that, from the point of view of healthfulness, Weihaiwei in summer is not to be equalled. And it is no doubt due in part to the excellent facilities for gun practice and general training for war that exist at Weihaiwei that the China Squadron took the lead in the gunnery competitions of the British Navy in 1907, and the flagship, H.M.S. King Alfred, broke all previous records in target practice with her big guns.
Summer visitors to Weihaiwei find excellent accommodation at King's Hotel, Port Edward, under the management of Mr. J. W. Loureiro; at Messrs. D. Clark & Co.'s hotel on Liu-kung-tao; or at the hotel opened by the same firm, 
The Stores.The Hotel on the Mainland.
The Aerated Water Factory.The Bakery.
Apart from recreations in and on the water, the visitor may, for a small monthly subscription, indulge in the "ancient and royal game" on the links of the Weihaiwei Golf Club at Liu-kung-tao, or on those of the Port Edward Golf Club. The public highways and the newly constructed Government roads afford the cyclist and pedestrian the opportunity of making pleasant excursions in various directions. Excellent snipe shooting may be had in August on the marshy districts in the neighbourhood of the lagoons, a few miles from Port Edward. Large numbers of birds are to be seen. Apart from those that are always here, wild duck, geese, snipe, curlew, and quail pay toll on their bi-annual migrations to the local sportsman. The pheasant and partridge, also, were to be met with on the hill-side at one time, but the industrious Chinaman, who found a ready and profitable market for game in the early days of British occupation, has practically exterminated them. Stringent regulations, enforced by substantial fines, now require a "close season," and it is hoped that the pheasant and the partridge will return.
The trade of Weihaiwei is a negligible quantity, and consists mainly of the export of ground nuts to Hongkong and Canton. A certain amount of salt and rice—imported from other parts of the coast—is spasmodically re-exported to Vladivostock. The presence of the China Squadron for a few months each year naturally creates a certain amount of business. The principal commercial firms are on the Island, and are few in number. A ferry launch runs several times a day between Liu-kung-tao and Port Edward under a subsidy from the Government, which also subsidises the China Navigation Company, Ltd., at the rate of about £1,000 per annum for carrying mails to and from Shanghai, and the Eastern Extension Telegraph Company, Ltd. at the rate of £4,000 per annum for maintaining the cable connection between Weihaiwei and Chefoo.
The administration of the Territory of Weihaiwei remained in the hands of naval and military authorities till January, 1901, when the Colonial Office took control with General Sir Arthur Dorward, K.C.B., D.S.O., the officer commanding the troops, as Acting-Commissioner. In the following year a direct representative of the Colonial Office, the Hon. J. H. Stewart Lockhart, C.M.G., formerly Colonial Secretary at Hongkong, was appointed Commissioner, and he still administrates the Territory. Mr. Lockhart's previous experience in Hongkong specially qualified him for the pioneer work of establishing settled administration in the new dependency. Revenue under the previous regime was low, necessitating a correspondingly large grant-in-aid from imperial funds. In the year 1902–3 the contribution reached its "high-water" mark—£12,000. The revenue raised locally in the previous year amounted only to $22,220 (Mexican). Under Mr. Lockhart's administration it has become possible to reduce considerably the demand upon the British taxpayer. The Russo-Japanese War brought a large, if temporary, increase of trade to Weihaiwei. Cattle, mules, and provisions were in great demand for both the combatants at the seat of war. The revenue for 1905–6 benefited accordingly, and there was a corresponding decrease in the grant-in-aid, which that year amounted only to £3,000. The disbandment of the Chinese Regiment effected a very substantial reduction in the expenditure of the War Office, but a small force of military police—partly mounted—became a necessary substitute. The Colonial Office contribution has, therefore been raised again to £10,000, but the net saving is still very considerable.
The local Government Staff consists of His Honour the Commissioner, who resides at Government House, Port Edward, the administrative capital of the territory; Mr. R. Walks. Secretary to the Government and Magistrate at Port Edward; Mr. R. F. Johnson, who lives in the interior of the territory, and administrates justice as District Magistrate in the remoter districts; and Mr. E. Carpmael, a cadet of the Colonial service. Dr. H. Hickin is medical officer for the island, and Dr. W. Muat for the mainland. The Rev. A. E. Burne, of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, who lives at Port Edward, is the resident Chaplain, and conducts the usual services at St. John's Church. The staff also includes three inspectors of police, and a financial secretary, who has charge of the Government accounts.
The annual report for 1906 states: "The headman system has been reorganised. The Territory has been divided into 26 districts, each district containing an average of 12 villages. To each district a district headman has been appointed who receives a small salary from the Government, and who is able to help the magistrates and district officer in the discharge of their duties by acting, when necessary, as an intermediary between them and the village headman, and by keeping them informed generally regarding the affairs of the Territory." This system saves labour and is inexpensive—a matter of the first importance in the case of a Colony that is not yet self-supporting. It remains to be seen whether it will be a success. It may be objected that the Chinaman in an official position is not infrequently dishonest, and that the villager engaged in a lawsuit will probably find it necessary to give way to "squeeze pidgin"—a well-established custom in the Chinese official world—before he can get justice done, or secure his end.
That the rendition of Weihaiwei to China will shortly take place, is a rumour that periodically goes the round of the newspapers. As often as not it may be traced to Chinese sources, the wish being father to the thought. Almost as often the rumour receives formal and official contradiction. Still, the wording of the Convention granting the lease of the territory to Great Britain, "for so long a period as Port Arthur remains in the occupation of Russia," is, as events have turned out, most unfortunate. Insecurity of tenure has created a state of stagnation. As an instance of official cynicism and indifference on the part of a central government towards a distant possession, it would not be easy to quote one that equals the reply of Lord Elgin, Secretary of State for the Colonies, to a recent petition from the dependency. The petitioners—many of whom, relying on official assurances, have invested capital in land and houses—asked if there was to be any compensation to property holders in the event of the rumoured rendition taking place. His lordship replied that His Majesty's Government did not feel called upon to discuss hypothetical questions, and in any case, there would be no compensation! This announcement has put an effectual check upon development. Given security of tenure, Weihaiwei, with its splendid climate, its fine harbour—considered by many to be the best on the China coast north of Hongkong—its favourable situation at the mouth of the Pechili Gulf in the direct line of steamers passing north and south, would rapidly develop under the British flag and become a "second Hongkong."
LIU-KUNG-TAO.
The island of Liu-kung, the naval station of Weihaiwei, is about 2½ miles long, and three-quarters of a mile in greatest breadth. It has a backbone of low hills, the highest being Centurion Hill (five hundred feet), from the summit of which approaching ships are signalled and the weather forecasts from Siccawei Observatory are indicated.
Situated almost east and west, with its western extremity less than a mile from the mainland, the island serves to form a splendid natural harbour capable of anchoring a large fleet, and it has been of incalculable value to the British China Squadron. It was used during the Boxer rising of 1900 as a supply and hospital base for both the naval and military forces.
The small dockyard is capable of replenishing depleted stocks of coal, water, provisions, and stores for His Majesty's ships, as well as of executing fairly large repairs to machinery. Connected with the yard there is a distillery and an iron pier six hundred feet long.
The Squadron usually arrives in May, and remains in the vicinity until October. During this period full advantage is taken of the excellent facilities for naval exercises. The time is passed pleasantly and profitably in big gun firing, torpedo running, and tactics afloat; in landing parties, field gun practice, firing at the two rifle ranges; and in indulgence in the customary British sports.
The Island is policed by a European inspector and 14 Chinese constables, furnished by the Colonial Government. The Island Guard consists of 36 Marines under a Lieutenant, in addition to which all the Naval ratings and Admiralty employes are supplied with arms, making a total of about eighty rifles for emergencies. Including the guard and a few Naval men, the British population does not exceed 120. Of natives there are about 1,200, and they find employment in the dockyard, shops, and hongs; and in cultivating the terraced hill-sides.
His Honour the Commissioner and Naval Executive Officer of the Island exercise a dual control on behalf of the Colonial Government and the Admiralty respectively. Apart from the residences of officials, and small naval and marine barracks, which were formerly old Chinese houses, the only buildings of importance are the United Service Club for officers, the Naval Warrant Officers' Club, and the large group of buildings at one time the Chinese Naval Reception Yamen, and now serving as the Royal Naval Canteen. The Queen's Hall, included in this last group, is capable of seating five hundred persons, and is used as a church, theatre, gymnasium, boxing-saloon, and ball-room. A special building, however, is being erected for divine worship. The naval hospital has accommodation for forty patients.
The street names are neither very appropriate nor euphonious. For instance, Fleet Street divides two coal yards, and Bond Street is flanked by dead walls. Other names include Shoe Lane, Drain Street, Thick Street, Short Street, Weak Street, Blank Lane, &c.
There are on the island two football and two cricket grounds, as well as racquet courts, innumerable tennis courts, and a fine golf course. The mile stretch of sandy beach on the south side affords fine bathing, and if the Home Government would arrange for the retention of a little colony, development would rapidly follow and Weihaiwei would stand almost unrivalled in the East as a summer resort.
WEIHAIWEI SCHOOL.
This school was founded in 1901 and provides a sound education on English boarding-school lines for the sons of those who make their homes in the Far East. Hitherto it has been the practice of those parents who desire to give their sons a valuable education to send them to England—often at a very tender age—and thus to deprive them of parental oversight and home influences at that stage in life when, perhaps, they are most needed. Boys can now receive at Weihaiwei School at least a preparatory education, and the hardship and the evils of long separation from home and parents may be materially lessened, if not altogether obviated. The standard of education aimed at is that of the average grammar school in England, and the educational results, as tested by public examinations, have been highly satisfactory. The health record of the school is particularly good, and the scholars have been peculiarly immune from the infectious sickness so common in English schools. This is due in part, no doubt, to the excellent climatic and sanitary conditions that prevail at Weihaiwei.
The new school house was ready for occupation in 1904, and provides accommodation for 40 boarders. At present it contains 36 pupils. The premises occupy an excellent situation on the northern shore of the harbour, and are effectually sheltered in winter from the northerly gales by a range of hills immediately behind the school. In addition to the usual school games, boating and sea-bathing are popular recreations. There is also a cadet corps of 16 members in connection with the school.
The staff consists of Mr. Herbert L. Beer, L.C.P., the headmaster, and Mr. Owen Lloyd Jones; and of Mrs. H. L. Beer and Mrs. E. Hamblin (matron) in the domestic department.
D. CLARK & CO.
Messrs. D. Clark & Co. first established themselves on Weihaiwei Island in 1898, and have since made considerable developments in their business along widely divergent lines. They have now a large general mercantile business, and are naval and military contractors. They have held the naval contract for nine years, undertaking practically the whole of the supply of the British Fleet, when stationed at Weihaiwei for the summer. The firm are proprietors of two hotels—one on the Island, with accommodation for 30 guests, and the other on the mainland; they have established two post offices—one on the Island and the other on the mainland; they carry on an aerated water factory, with a capacity for 1,500 dozen bottles a day; and they have a steam bakery, with a capacity of 1,000 lbs. of bread an hour. Even this formidable list does not exhaust their activities, for they are coal merchants and shipowners, and supply from their own gardens large quantities of fruit, both for local consumption and for export. Their head offices are situated on the Island, and they have extensive stores and godowns on the Island and on the mainland.
Mr. D. Clark, the founder of the business is one of the oldest and best known residents of Weihaiwei. He combines with a keen business instinct a large measure of practical philanthropy, for he was instrumental in establishing the free school, supported by the firm, for the instruction of Chinese boys in the English language.