THE CRISIS IN THE GRAIN TRIBUTE SYSTEM (1845-65)

2017 ◽  
pp. 16-38
Keyword(s):  
Tribute System

Pearl Thieves and Perfect Order

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Schlesinger
Keyword(s):  
Freshwater Mussels ◽  
Ecological Crisis ◽  
Local Administration ◽  
Qing Empire ◽  
Administrative Structure ◽  
Perfect Order ◽  
Tribute System

Something strange happened in Manchuria under Qing rule: its freshwater mussels disappeared. Stranger still, the Qing empire did everything in its power to preserve them: draft soldiers; fortify passes; patrol rivers; send boats and horses and silver and men. It streamlined the bureaucracy and revamped the local administration. “Nurture the mussels and let them grow,” the emperor ordered; let Manchuria have mussels. Chapter explores what happened: the collapse of the pearl fishery the attempts, in the language of the Qing court, to “nurture the mussels.” The court put its full weight behind efforts to create a long-term sustainability: it reorganized the administrative structure, empowered territorial governors, and created militarized off-limits areas. Poachers were arrested; the mussels allowed to rest. Through a detailed description of the tribute system, the ecological crisis, and the court’s response, the chapter documents how a reinvented Manchuria came to be.

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