明代漕運の一齣 : 茶城附近の河防問題

Abstract

The transport of official grain (ts'ao-yun 漕運) during the Ming 明 period, especially during its latter half used a stretch of the Yellow River between Hsu-chou 徐州 and Huai-an 淮安. Although this had advantages, it also had one major weakness. The main channel of the Yellow River in the eighth year of the Hung-chih 弘治 period (1495) reached down to Hsiao-fu-ch'iao 小浮橋 on the northeastern corner of Hsu-chou city, where it was joined by the Ssu River 泗水 (or the Cha-ts'ao 閘漕). However, in the last years of the Chia-ching 嘉靖 period (1522-1566) it only reached Ch'a-ch'eng 茶城, thirty li north of the city, and after the Lung-ch'ing 隆慶 (1567-1572) period this area became the confluence of the Yellow River and the Cha-ts'ao. But every summer and autumn the increases in the amount of the reverse flows resulted in intense silting of the junction, which became a great obstacle for the passage of the transport ships. In order to prevent this, new channels were dug in the neighbourhood of Ch'a-ch'eng, separated from the old river. So, new artificial tributaries were dug during the Wan-li 萬暦 period (1573-1620). They were : T'ashan 塔山, dug by Shu Ying-lung 舒應龍 in the early years ; and Yangshan 羊山, dug by Ch'en Ying 陳瑛 in the eleventh year (1583), which resulted in the founding of the Chen'k'ou 鎭□ watergate at its mouth in the sixteenth year of this period (1588) by Ch'ang Chii-ching 常居敬. But the silting up of the Yellow River at the Chen-k'ou watergate, as before, could not be prevented, and it was not until the Chia River 泇水 was dug in Wan-li 32 (1604) that grain transport no longer met with these difficulties. Furthermore, one has to note that ships passing Hsu-chou were restricted by the established custom known as the "kuo-hung ju-cha 過洪入閘" limit, "Kuo-hung" (passing the high waters) meant to pass the Hsu chou-hung 徐州洪, and "ju-cha"(entering the Cha) meant to enter the Cha-ts'ao. In the sixth year of the Lung-ch'ing period (1572) the last day of the third month was designated a time limit, and its importance lay in the fact that the transport boats were hard pressed to reach this point before the waters of the Yellow River swelled up.