264  THE  CHINESE  EMPIRE
he  commands  the  waterways  of  the  province,  all  of  which
converge  to  that  point.  The  development  of  the  steamer
traffic  is  shown  by  the  following  figures  :—

Imports.  Exports.  Total.
Tls.  Tls.  Tls.
1898  .  .  2,976,807  1,244,951  4,221,758
1904  .  .  7,806,436  3,277,791  11,084,227
In  addition  the  value  of  the  trade  by  junk  was—
Imports.  Exports.  Total.
Tls.  Tls.  Tls.
1904  ..  882,758  9,315,039  10,198,797
making  the  total  trade  of  the  port  in
1904  amount  to  21,283,024

Of  the  total  foreign  import  by  steamer  in  1904  entitled  to
them,  with  a  value  of  Tls.7,487,289,  no  less  than  80  per
cent,  was  sent  inland  under  transit  passes,  thereby  escaping
likin  taxation,  13  per  cent,  within  the  province,  59  per  cent,
into  Kweichow,  and  8  per  cent,  into  Yunnan.  In  1904  the
principal  exports  were  aniseed  and  aniseed-oil  (Tls.410,000),
cattle  (11,126  valued  at  Tls.251,000),  poultry  (Tls.351,000),
and  hides  (Tls.591,000).
Lungchow  (22 0  22'  N.,  io6°  45'  E.),  “  Dragon  City,’
is  of  the  type  of  frontier  port  which  will  be  described  under
Mengtsz.  It  was  opened  to  foreign  trade  in  1889  in  the
hope  that  the  trade  of  Western  Kwangsi  might  pass  through
it  to  Tonkin,  by  the  railway  which  it  was  the  intention  of
the  Trench  Government  to  promote.  The  railway,  built
in  Tonkin,  has  not  been  extended  beyond  the  frontier  over
the  40  miles  of  much  accidented  country  which  intervene
between  it  and  Lungchow,  and  the  trade  which  it  was  to
attract  continues  to  find  its  way  to  Canton,  by  a  river
journey  of  800  miles.  The  Customs  officials  stationed
there  find  little  to  do  except  to  admire  the  picturesque
scenery,  the  value  of  the  trade  in  1905  being,  imports
Tls.163,330,  exports  Tls.67,122,  total  Tls.230,452.  The
principal  imports  were  timber  and  dye-yams,  and  the