of the Prussian Treaty[1] be followed, the following ports were declared opened to trade: Canton, Swatow, Amoy, Foochow, Ningpo, Shanghai, Chefoo, Tientsin, Niuchuang, Chinkiang, Kiukiang, Hankow, Kiungchow (Hainan), and Taiwan and Tamsui in Formosa. Five of these had, of course, been opened by the Nanking Treaty of 1842.
Among the important items of the British Treaty must be mentioned the Tariff revision, which was acknowledged as part and parcel of the Treaty. Rule V. of this Tariff reads: "The restrictions affecting trade in opium, etc., are relaxed, under the following conditions: Opium shall henceforth pay 30 taels per picul import duty." This was to prevent the Chinese excluding the trade by the imposition of a more heavy duty. Comment is not needed.
In addition to the opening of the ports mentioned above, the right to travel, with passport, throughout the eighteen provinces was granted, the protection of foreigners and Chinese propagating or adopting Christianity was promised, while the Chinese translation of the French Treaty gave special permission to French missionaries " to rent and purchase land in the provinces and to erect buildings thereon at pleasure." Although the French text, which was the final authority, did not contain this clause—it having been surreptitiously inserted by one of the French priests into the Chinese text, an action not unnaturally severely criticised—the Chinese never raised any serious objection and were guided by their own translation.
Period of Penetration, 1860-1877
To follow in detail the development of Missions through the succeeding years is increasingly difficult, and naturally quite impossible within the limits of a brief introduction. The Treaty of Tientsin was recognised as a loud call to the Churches at home to do more for the evangelisation of China. During the lull between the signing of the Treaty
- ↑ Nanking being in the hands of the Taipings when the British Treaty was drawn up, the British Treaty does not name the Yangtse ports.
