86

THE  CHINESE  EMPIRE

northern  frontier  question  and  no  navy,  and  the  remittances
to  the  capital  were  required  only  for  the  maintenance  of
the  Court  and  garrison  and  for  the  metropolitan  administration. ­
  Two  hundred  years  ago,  in  1713,  the  Emperor,  quite
in  keeping  with  the  Manchu  practice  of  considering  and
conciliating  their  Chinese  subjects  in  every  way,  decreed
that  the  land  tax  throughout  the  Empire,  as  shown  by  the
records  of  that  year,  was  to  be  fixed  and  immutable  for  all
time,  no  increase  being  permitted  under  any  circumstances.
This  permanent  settlement  endures,  in  theory,  to  this  day.
the  tax-note  for  each  lot  of  land  to-day  gives  the  rate  of
assessment  of  1713,  and  the  returns  of  the  total  collection
are  based  upon  the  permanent  settlement,  subject  to
authorised  reductions  for  the  effects  of  rebellion,  drought,
and  flood,  and  to  re-augmentation  on  recovery  when  reported ­
  by  the  provincial  authorities.
The  primary  unit  in  China  for  fiscal,  as  for  administrative
and  judicial,  matters  is  the  hsien  or  township,  commonly
called  district,  constituting  what  in  America  would  he
called  an  incorporated  city  with  the  surrounding  country
and  its  villages.  The  Chih-hsien  or  Magistrate  (ofteU
called  simply  the  Hsien),  in  addition  to  his  other  numerous
functions,  is  registrar  of  deeds  and  assessor  and  collector  of
taxes.  All  ownership  and  all  transfers  of  land  are,  in  theory,
registered  in  his  office,  against  a  fee  (see  under  5,  Miscelhv
neous  taxes),  and  validated  by  his  seal  affixed  to  the  deeds  &gt;
the  seal  being  impressed  in  vermilion  ;  these  regularised  deeds
are  called  “  red  deeds."  In  practice  this  obligation  is  often
evaded,  and  the  deeds,  not  being  sealed,  are  then  called
“  white  deeds."  This  evasion  is  so  common  that  the  Hs#
and  his  officers  ordinarily  disregard  the  register  of  titles  and
go  direct  to  the  occupant  ;  and  so  much  is  the  payment
land  tax  an  incident  of  possession,  especially  in  the  case  oi
farm  lands,  that  holding  land-tax  receipts  for  three  successive
years  is,  in  the  absence  of  deeds,  accepted  as  prima  fa ciß
proof  of  ownership.  The,  tax-collector  goes  to  the  taxpay ef
and  delivers  the  tax-note  itemised  in  accordance  with  1&amp;^
(the  permanent  settlement)  and  precedent  (the  accretion 5