Chapter I. The Basic Argument

a. It so happened that in the sixth year of the shih-yüan era 1 an Imperial edict directed the Chancellor 2 and the Imperial secretaries3 to confer with the recommended Worthies and Literati, 4 and to enquire of them as to the rankling grievances among the people. 5

b. The Literati 6 responded as follows: It is our humble opinion that the principle of ruling men lies in nipping in the bud 7wantonness and frivolity, in extending wide the elementals of virtue, 8 in discouraging mercantile pursuits, and in displaying benevolence and righteousness. Let lucre never be paraded before the eyes of the people; only then will enlightenment flourish and folkways improve.

c. But now, with the system of the salt and iron 9 monopolies, the liquor excise, 10 and equable marketing,11 established in the provinces and the demesnes, 12 the Government has entered into financial competition with the people, 13 dissipating primordial candor and simplicity and sanctioning propensities to selfishness and greed. As a result few among our people take up the fundamental pursuits of life, 14 while many flock to the non-essential. 15 Now sturdy natural qualities decay as artificiality thrives, and rural values decline when industrialism flourishes. When industrialism is cultivated, the people become frivolous; when the values of rural life are developed, the people are simple and unsophisticated. The people being unsophisticated, wealth will abound; when the people are extravagant, cold and hunger will follow. We pray that the salt, iron and liquor monopolies and the system of equable marketing be abolished so that the rural pursuits may be encouraged, people be deterred from entering the secondary occupations, and national agriculture be materially and financially 16 benefited.

d. The Lord Grand Secretary said: 17 When the Hsiung Nu rebelled against our authority and frequently raided and devastated the frontier settlements, to be constantly on the watch for them was a great strain upon the soldiery of the Middle Kingdom; but without measures of precaution being taken, these forays and depredations would never cease. The late Emperor, 18 grieving at the long suffering of the denizens of the marches who live in fear of capture by the barbarians, caused consequently forts and seried signal stations to be built, where garrisons were held ready against the nomads. When the revenue for the defence of the frontier fell short, the salt and iron monopoly was established, the liquor excise and the system of equable marketing introduced; 19 goods were multiplied and wealth increased so as to furnish the frontier expenses.

e. Now our critics here, who demand that these measures be abolished, at home would have the hoard of the treasury entirely depleted, and abroad would deprive the border of provision for its defence; they would expose our soldiers who defend the barriers and mount the walls to all the hunger and cold of the borderland. How else do they expect to provide for them? 20 It is not expedient to abolish these measures!

f. The Literati: Confucius observed that the ruler of a kingdom or the chief of a house is not concerned about his people being few, but about lack of equitable treatment; nor is he concerned about poverty, but over the presence of discontentment.21 Thus the Son of Heaven should not speak about much and little, the feudal lords should not talk about advantage and detriment, ministers about gain and loss, but they should cultivate benevolence and righteousness, to set an example to the people, and extend wide their virtuous conduct to gain the people's confidence. Then will nearby folk lovingly flock to them and distant peoples joyfully submit to their authority. 22 Therefore the master conqueror does not fight; the expert warrior needs no soldiers; the truly great commander requires notto set his troops in battle array.23 Cultivate virtue in the temple and the hall, then you need only to show a bold front to the enemy and your troops will return home in victory. The Prince who practices benevolent administration should be matchless 24 in the world; for him, what use is expenditure?

g. The Lord Grand Secretary: The Hsiung Nu, savage 25 and wily, boldly push through the barriers and harass the Middle Kingdom, massacring the provincial population and killing the keepers of the Northern Marches. 26 They long deserve punishment for their unruliness and lawlessness. But Your Majesty 27 graciously took pity on the insufficiency of the multitude 28 and did not suffer his lords and knights to be exposed in the desert plains, yet 29 unflinchingly You cherish the purpose of raising strong armies 30 and driving the Hsiung Nu before You to their original haunts in the north. I again assert that the proposal to do away with the salt and iron monopoly and equable marketing would grievously diminish 31 our frontier supplies and impair our military plans. I can not consider favorably a proposal so heartlessly dismissing the frontier question.

h. The Literati: The ancients held in honor virtuous methods and discredited resort to arms. Thus Confucius said: If remoter people are not submissive, all the influences of civil culture and virtue are to be cultivated to attract them to be so; and when they have been so attracted, they must be made contented and tranquil?32 Now these virtuous principles are discarded and reliance put on military force; troops are raised to attack the enemy and garrisons are stationed to make ready for him. It is the long drawn-out service of our troops in the field and the ceaseless transportation for the needs of the commissariat that cause our soldiers on the marches to suffer from hunger and cold abroad, while the common people are burdened with labor at home. The establishment of the salt and iron monopoly and the institution of finance officials to supply the army needs were not permanent schemes; it is therefore desirable that they now be abolished.

i. The Lord Grand Secretary: The ancient founders of the Commonwealth made open the ways for both fundamental and branch industries 33 and facilitated equitable distribution of goods. Markets and courts 34 were provided to harmonize various demands; there people of all classes gathered together and all goods collected, so that farmer, merchant, and worker could each obtain what he desired; the exchange completed, everyone went back to his occupation. Facilitate exchange so that the people will be unflagging in industry says the Book of Changes. 35 Thus without artisans, the farmers will be deprived of the use of implements; without merchants, all prized commodities will be cut off. The former would lead to stoppage of grain production, the latter to exhaustion of wealth. It is clear that the salt and iron monopoly and equable marketing are really intended for the circulation of amassed wealth and the regulation of the consumption according to the urgency of the need. 36 It is inexpedient to abolish them.

j. The Literati: Lead the people with virtue 37 and the people will return to honest simplicity; entice the people with gain, and they will become vicious. 38 Vicious habits would lead them away from righteousness to follow after gain, with the result that people will swarm on the road and throng at the markets. A poor country may appear plentiful, not because it possesses abundant wealth, but because wants multiply and people become reckless, said Lao-tzŭ. 39 Hence the true King promotes rural pursuits and discourages branch industries; he checks the people's desires through the principles of propriety and righteousness and provides a market for grain in exchange for other commodities, where there is no place for merchants to circulate useless goods, and for artisans to make useless implements. Thus merchants are for the purpose of draining stagnation 40 and the artisans for providing tools; they should not become the principal concern of the government. 41

k. The Lord Grand Secretary: Kuan-tzŭ is reported to have said: A country may possess a wealth of fertile land and yet its people may be underfed — the reason lying in lack of an adequate supply of agricultural implements. It may possess rich natural resources in its mountains and seas and yet the people may be deficient in wealth — the reason being in the insufficient number of artisans and merchants.42 The scarlet lacquer and pennant feathers 43 of Lung and Shu, the leather goods, bone and ivory of Ching and Yang, the cedars, lindera, 44 and bamboo rods of Chiang-nan, the fish, salt, rugs, and furs of Yen and Ch'i, the lustrine yarn, 45 linen, and hemp-cloth of Yen and Yü, 46 are all necessary commodities to maintain our lives and provide for our death. 47 But we depend upon the merchants for their distribution and on the artisans for giving them their finished forms. This is why the Sages availed them of boats and bridges 48 to negotiate rivers and gulleys, and domesticated cattle and horses for travel over mountains and plateaux. Thus by penetrating to distant lands and exploring remote places, they were able to exchange all goods to the benefit of the people. Hence His late Majesty established officers in control of iron to meet the farmer's needs and provided equable marketing to make sufficient the people's wealth. Thus, the salt and iron monopoly and the equable marketing supported by the myriad people and looked to as the source of supply, cannot conveniently be abolished.

l. The Literati: That a country possesses a wealth of fertile land and yet its people are underfed is due to the fact that merchants and workers have prospered unduly while the fundamental occupations have been neglected. That a country possesses rich natural resources in its mountains and seas and yet its people lack capital is because the people's necessities have not been attended to, while luxuries and fancy articles have multiplied. The fountain-head of a river cannot fill a leaking cup; mountains and seas cannot overwhelm streams and valleys. This is why P'an Kêng practised communal living, Shun hid away gold, and Kao Tsu forbade merchants and shopkeepers to be officials. 49 Their purpose was to discourage habits of greed and fortify the spirit of extreme earnestness. Now with all the discriminations against the market people, and stoppage of the sources of profit, people still do evil. What if the ruling classes should pursue profit themselves? The Chuan says, When the princes take delight in profit, the ministers become mean; when the ministers become mean, the minor officers become greedy; when the minor officers become greedy, the people become thieves.50 Thus to open the way for profit is to provide a ladder to popular misdemeanor. 51

m. The Lord Grand Secretary: Formerly the Princes in the provinces and the demesnes sent in their respective products as tribute. The transportation was vexacious and disorganized; 52 the goods were usually of distressingly bad quality, often failing to repay 53 their transport costs. Therefore Transportation Officers have been provided in every province to assist in the delivery and transportation and for the speeding of the tribute from distant parts. So the system came to be known as equable marketing. A Receiving Bureau has been established at the capital to monopolize 54 all the commodities, buying when prices are low, and selling when prices are high, 55 with the result that the Government 56 suffers no loss and the merchants cannot speculate for profit. 57 This is therefore known as the balancing standard.58 With the balancing standard people are safeguarded from unemployment; with the equable marketing people have evenly distributed labor. Both of these measures are intended to equilibrate all goods and convenience the people, and not to open the way to profit and provide a ladder to popular misdemeanor.

n. The Literati: The Ancients in levying upon and taxing 59 the people would look for what the latter were skilled in, and not seek for those things in which they were not adept. Thus the farmers contributed the fruits of their labor, the weaving women, their products. Now the Government leaves alone what the people have and exacts what they have not, with the result that the people sell their products at a cheap price to satisfy demands from above. Recently in some of the provinces and demesnes they ordered the people to make woven goods. The officers then caused the producers various embarassments and bargained with them. What was collected by the officers was not only the silk from Ch'i and T'ao, or cloth from Shu and Han, 60 but also other goods manufactured by the people which were mischievously sold at a standard price. Thus the farmers suffer twice over 61 while the weaving women are doubly taxed. We have not yet seen that your marketing is "equable". As to the second measure under discussion, the government officers swarm out to close the door, gain control of the market and corner all commodities. With commodities cornered, prices soar; with prices rising, the merchants make private deals by way of speculation. Thus the officers are lenient to the cunning capitalists, and the merchants store up goods and accumulate commodities waiting for a time of need. Nimble traders and unscrupulous officials buy in cheap to get high returns. We have not yet seen that your standard is "balanced." For it seems that in ancient times equable marketing was to bring about equitable division of labor and facilitate transportation of tribute; it was surely not for profit or to make trade in commodities.

Notes

1. In the second month of the sixth year of Chao Ti's reign according to the Ch'ienhan-shu, ch. VII (81 B. C.). See Introduction.

2. 丞 相. Chang [Note: References to the principal editions and commentators will be given hereafter as Chang (Chang Chih-hsiang), Lu (Lu Wên-chao) and Wang (Wang Hsien-ch'ien). The various editors are discussed under "Editions of the Yen T'ieh Lun" in the Introduction.] inserts a note based upon T'ien Ch'ien-ch'iu's 田 千 秋 biography to prove that T'ien was the "Chancellor" of the debate; also known as 車 千 秋.

3. 御 史: Yü-shih, i.e., Sang Hung-yang 桑 宏 羊, the "Lord Grand Secretary", and his assistants. Son of a shop-keeper of Loyang, he was made a 侍 中 at the age of thirteen due to his ability in "mental arithmetic" 心 計. In 110 B.C. he was promoted 搜 栗 都 尉. For his biography, cf. Ch'ien-han-shu, XXIV, 6.

4. 所 舉 賢 良 文 學: the Worthies and Literati who took part in the debate had been selected and recommended in the preceding year, (Ch'ien-han-shu, ch. VII). Persons so designated were first called upon to discuss official affairs in the 11th month of the second year of Wên Ti's reign. See the edict in Ch'ien-han-shu, ch. IV., where the Emperor summons them to 以 匡 朕 之 不 逮.

5. 民 間 所 疾 苦; thus the actual subject for discussion was not specifically "the salt and iron monopolies", as indicated in the title of the work.

6. Presumably a "spokesman" from among the Literati group assembled.

7. 防...本; Chang reads 坊. Cf. K'ang Hsi Dictionary on 坊.

8. For 道 德 the T'ung-tien reads 教 道 (導), "education".

9. 鹽 鐵. As to the establishment of the salt and iron control, the Shih-chi (Chavannes, Mém. hist. III, 570—71) relates that in 119 B. C. two wealthy manufacturers of salt and iron, Tung-kuo Hsien-yang 東 郭 咸 陽 and K'ung Chin 孔 僅, were designated to organize the state administration of these two commodities throughout the Empire. A special office 官 府 within the Treasury 大 農 was created for this purpose. For the political rôle of salt in ancient China to the establishment of a definitive system of state control in the Early Han era, see E. M. Gale, Proceedings of the Pacific Coast Branch of the American Historical Association (1929), "Historical Evidences Relating to Early Chinese Public Finance"; also O. Franke, in Sitzungsberichten der Preussischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, (1931), XIII, "Staatssozialistische Versuche im Alten und Mittelalterlichen China".

10. 酒 榷; evidently a system of state supervision and taxation (excise) imposed upon the wine trade. The term 榷 has been preserved in this special sense in connection with the transportation, distribution and sale of salt in the officially supervised "salt transportation offices" in the four central China provinces. These bureaux are designated 榷 運 局, where salt transported by private merchants is sold by official agency and a tax collected. Cf. E. M. Gale, The Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, (Vol. 152, November, 1930) "Public Administration of Salt in China: A Historical Survey".

11. 均 輸. I have adopted the term equable marketing to designate this interesting attempt to solve the problem of distribution in Han times. It has also been translated as "equalized transportation", "adjusted taxation". It appears to be also the name of the officials charged with the administration of the system. The Shih-chi (chap. XXX) assigns its institution to K'ung Chin and Sang Hung-yang. The institution of chün shu dates from the second year of yüan-ting (115 B. C.). These functionaries were distinguished as 令 (principals) and 丞 (assistants). They were under the "Treasury" 大 農. Their actual duty was to equalize or balance prices by transporting commodities from such places as they were abundant to where they were scarce. The two characters signify "to equalize and to transport". Cf. Chavannes, Mém. hist., III, 579, note 4; also, Franke, op. cit.

12. 郡, 國. For definitions see glossary.

13. Chang's explanatory note gives the quotations from the Ch'ien-han-shu, XXIV, 6, and Shih-chi, XXX, clarifying these technical terms.

14. In Wên Ti's time the same warning had been sounded, but it was as yet qualified by the word `perhaps' 或, cf. edict in the 9th month of the second year of his reign: 農 天 下 之 大 本 也 民 所 恃 以 生 也 而 民 或 不 務 本 而 事 末 …

15. Pên 本 and Mo 末; the "fundamental" ("radical", "constitutional") industry of the Empire was considered to be agriculture, while manufacture and trade were considered "non-essentials" ("secondary", "branch" industries). 商 and 工, trade and industry, were, of course, recognized early as legitimate occupations by the Confucian Literati, who, however, always warned the ruler against over-developing them to the detriment of agriculture. Shih Huang-ti had boasted of having 上 農 除 末 and having enriched the people thereby (cf. Shih-chi, K'ang-hsi Dict. sub 末). 末, therefore, should be taken as designating both the secondary professions (legitimate, though circumscribed) and industrialism, industrialization (condemned in toto) vs. rural life, rural values, rural pursuits. Cf. Duyvendak, The Book of Lord Shang, 15, 43, for a discussion of these terms as employed by the jurists in earlier times.

16. 廣 利. The first term usually refers to the extension of acreage, while the second is applied to the disposal of the crops (distribution).

17. The "inferiority" of the Lord Grand Secretary is indicated by some Confucian editors, as in Chang Chih-hsiang's edition, by beginning paragraphs one space lower in the column than those in which the Literati are the interlocutors.

18. Han Wu Ti 漢 武 帝 On his "grieving" cf. Ch'ien-han-shu, VI, rescript in Spring of 2nd Year of yüan kuang 元 光 , 邊 境 被 害 朕 甚 閔 之.

19. The historical reasons for the introduction of these financial expedients are given in the Introduction.

20. 贍; has 澹.

21. Lun-yü, translation, XVI, i, 10, p. 781. 聞 . . . . `I have heard', omitted.

22. Lun-yü, XIII, xvi, a concept of early Chinese political writers, that the Ruler could obtain the submission of distant peoples by an example of virtue.

23. A frequently used quotation of uncertain source. The T'ung-tien, ch. 148, 11 r., ascribes it to 老 氏 (老 子?). The passage is indeed reminiscent of Lao-tzŭ. Cf. Tao-tê-ching, ch. 68.

24. Confucian truism; cf. Mencius, VII, ii, iv, with his condemnation of "expert warriors", 有 人 曰 我 善 為 陳 我 善 為 戰 大 罪 也 .

25. 桀: Chang says, murderous, 賊 人 多 殺. It is of course the posthumous name of the traditional tyrant, Chieh, last of the Hsia.

26. Or the Shuo-fang 朔 方 commandery established by Wu Ti. The name Shuo-fang as designating the Northern region occurs in the Odes.

27. 陛 下: beneath the steps [of the Throne], "he at whose feet I am", "Your Majesty". This direct address to the Throne would indicate that the Emperor himself, although only thirteen years of age at the time (81 B. C.), was present at the debate.

28. 元 元: a term commonly used in Imperial edicts.

29. Wang suggests omitting 縱.

30. 被 堅 執 銳: "put on strong (armour) and seize sharp (weapons)", referring apparently to the Emperor himself.

31. 憂 邊 用: Lu thinks this an error. However, as Wang observes, it can very well be taken in the sense 邊 用 絕 乏 可 憂.

32. Lun-Yü XVI, i, ii, Legge's rendering.

33. 開 本 末 之 途.

34. Paraphrase of the I-ching 繫 辭 下. (Legge, Sacred Books, vol. 16, p. 383, para. 15).

35. I-ching 繫 辭 下 (ibid., para. 14). This passage is quoted in Wu Ti's edict of the 3rd month of first year of yüan shuo 元 朔, Ch'ien-han-shu, VI.

36. 委 財 緩 急 : 委 is "to amass". Cf. 委 府, "Receiving Bureau" as below.

37. Paraphrasing the Lun-yü, II, iii.

38. 薄: better perhaps, "fickle", "volatile".

39. A quotation unidentified as to its source.

40. Saturation of a market with local products is apparently meant.

41. The Literati, the representatives of the ju-chia 儒 家 or Confucian school of the Han period, do not oppose a necessary minimum of exchange and trade. See Introduction.

42. The passage is not found in the present Kuan-tzŭ text. This work has been traditionally attributed to Kuan Chung 管 仲, the celebrated minister of Duke Huan of Ch'i 薺 桓 公, of the seventh century B. C. It is now held that the original work was written at the end of the Warring States era (IV—III centuries B.C.) by perhaps several of the so-called jurists or writers on legislation. Maspero classes it as a roman philosophique of the second half of the fourth century B. C. As to the modern pseudoKuan-tzŭ, perhaps some portion of the original work remains, but intermixed with excerpts from other ancient works, as well as with entirely new interpolations. It is possible, accordingly, that Huan K'uan's citations are from a text now lost. For discussions of the composition of the Kuan-tzŭ, cf. Maspero, Journal Asiatique, CCX, 1927, 144—152; and Karlgren, Bul. of the Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities, No. 1, 1929, 165—183.

43. 丹 漆 旄 羽 : 丹 砂 毛 羽, in the T'ung-tien and the Yü-lan.

44. 柟 "cedals", Machilus Nanmu; 梓 "lindera", Lindera Tzumu, according to H. Giles, Chinese and English Dictionary.

45. 漆 絲 could mean also lacquer and silk; lacquer has already been mentioned and besides is not a product of Yen. The two characters are often used together and may have designated some sort of glossy silk.

46. Lung 隴, Shu 蜀, Ching 荆, Yang 陽, Chiang-nan 江 南, Yen 燕, Ch'i 齊, Yen 兗, Yü 豫; see glossary for these geographical names.

47. The whole sentence is greatly reminiscent of the Shih-chi Ch. CXXIX, preface. Some of these geographical divisions retain the names given the nine Chou of the Shu-ching, Yü-kung.

48. For this passage cf. the I-ching (繫 辭 下 ). `Availed them of boats and bridges', lit. `of the use of ....' 舟 撠 之 用.

49. 盤 庚 , 舜, 高 祖 ; see glossary for these names. A variant for the last is 高 帝 (Chang) which would alter the reference from the founder of the Han house, who is held to have enacted discriminatory regulations against merchants, to the practices of the "ancient Emperors".

50. The source of this quotation is uncertain. 傳 may simply mean a transmitted saying. This question is discussed in the Introduction.

51. 為 民 罪 梯 者: a phrase employed in the Kuan-tzŭ, as Chang points out.

52. 雜: Lu suggests 難, so the T'ung-tien, which is a good emendation according to Wang.

53. 或: omitted by the T'ung-tien, which Wang approves.

54. 籠: `cage', 包 舉 `gather together', K'ang Hsi Dictionary, cf. Ch'ien-han-shu, ch. XXIV: 籠 貨 物 籠 鹽 鐵.

55. 賤 即 買 貴 則 賣: for 即 Lu suggests 則. In old texts both characters are used as practically synonymous.

56. 縣 官: "the Government of the Emperor".

57. 無 所 貿 利: for 貿 Chang and the T'ung-tien have 牟. So also the Shih-chi, ch. XXX, 富 商 大 買 無 所 牟 大 利.

58. 平 準: this was the organ (and the designation of the officials in charge) established at the Capital to regulate the delicate mechanism of the 均 輸. The measure, for which Sang Hung-yang was responsible (adopted in 110 B.C.), is described in the Shih-chi (Chavannes, Mêm. hist., III, 598). There would be established in the Capital p'ing chün who would have charge of deliveries and shipments for the whole Empire. The several officers of the ta nung were to buy up all merchandise and commodities of the Empire. When they were dear, they would sell; when they were cheap, they would buy. Thus it would follow that the rich traders and the big shop-keepers could not make great profits and would return to the fundamental occupations; and furthermore commodities would no longer undergo fluctuations in price; by this means there would be regulation of prices throughout the whole Empire. The famous chapter XXX of the Shih-chi obtains its title from this expression, p'ing chün.

59. 賦 稅: a binomial compound representing both levies on the people (計 口 發 財 ) and taxes on grain and merchandise. Chavannes, Mêm. hist., III, 541, note 6, explains these terms.

60. Ch'i 齊 T'ao 陶, Shu 蜀, Han 漢: see glossary.