100  THE  CHINESE  EMPIRE
ment,  or  on  transfer,  or  retirement,  and  as  the  Wardens  of
the  Gates  of  Peking  hold  the  keys,  the  tax  is  usually  paid
without  much  hesitation,  amounting  sometimes  toTls.50,000,
and  on  occasion,  for  the  incumbent  of  an  especially  lucrative
post,  to  as  much  as  Tls.  100,000.  Having  secured  entrance
to  the  city,  the  official  will  then  have  to  open  his  way,
through  quite  another  set  of  guardians,  to  the  Palace  ;  and
then,  through  the  Chamberlains,  to  the  Audience  Hall-The
  form  to  be  taken  in  expressing  practical  thanks  to  his
Sovereign  for  the  honor  of  an  Audience,  and  for  his  appointment, ­
  is  a  matter  of  conjecture.  The  total  collection,
so  far  as  reported,  for  the  frontier  and  all  other  inland
stations,  amounts  to  Tls.460,000.  In  1903  the  Russian
statistics  showed  an  export  to  China  exceeding  the  Chinese
Customs  import  by  over  Tls.15,000,000,  and  an  imp° rt
from  China  exceeding  the  Chinese  Customs  export  by  ov#
Tls.30,000,000  ;  it  is  unlikely  that  this  trade  passed  entirely
untaxed,  both  on  the  inward  and  the  outward  traffic.

4.  Salt
If  the  collection  of  the  land  tax  is  veiled  by  obscurity;
of  the  grain  tribute  by  equal  obscurity,  and  of  the“  Regular
Customs  by  greater  obscurity,  the  greatest  obscurity  covers
the  revenue  from  the  salt  gabelle,  owing  to  the  mixture  0
the  official  and  the  mercantile  element  in  its  collection.  Salt
is  everywhere  under  the  strictest  Government  control,  an d
is  taxed  at  every  stage—in  its  manufacture,  purchase  at  th e
vats,  transport,  sale  at  the  depot,  and  sale  to  the  people
For  productive  administrative  and  descriptive  purpos eS
the  Empire  is  divided  into  eleven  Salt  areas  :
1.  Shengking  :  sea  salt,  supplying  Manchuria.
2.  Chang-lu  (Long  Reed)  :  sea  salt,  supply^
Chihli  and  the  northern  part  of  Honan.
3.  Ho-tung  (“  East  of  the  Yellow  River  ”)  :  l&amp;M
salt,  supplying  Shansi,  the  western  part  of  Honan,  a n
the  south-eastern  part  of  Shensi.
4.  Hwa-ma-chih  (“  Piebald  Horse  Pool  ”)  :  ^