廣東洋行考 : 洋行に關する新舊史料を通じて

Abstract

This paper is an inquiry into the transformation of the hong merchant system at Canton, based on an examination of primary sources, both published and unpublished. Based on these sources, the author first identifies some of the hong merchants in the early 1730's, such as Suqua, Ton Hungqua, etc., whose identities and activities have not as yet been sufficiently analyzed by previous studies. Secondly, these sources reveal the existence of a system of zonghang 總行 in this same period, within which the Security Merchant/Cohong system originated. The establishment of the Cohong system was intimately related to the class hierarchy of hong merchants at Canton. This hierarchy was structured according to ranking of wealth, and included the positions of waiyang-hang 外洋行, ben'gang-hang 本港行, Fu-Chao-hang 福潮行, or shopkeepers. This hierarchy, on which the so-called Canton monopoly system was based, until the early 19th century changed into a hierarchy comprising two distinct parts, one concerned with the conduct foreign and one with domestic trade. This bifurcation occurred because the shopkeepers directly dealt with foreign merchants under the name of waiyang-hang merchants and because Fu-Chao-hang absorbed ben'gang-hang. This latter absorption occurred due to the Fu-Chao junks' takeover of the Southeast Asian trade which had hitherto been managed by the ben'gang, or Canton junks. Thus, the change in the hierarchy of hong merchants, providing the basis on which Native and Foreign Customs were established during the late Qing period, was a reflection of the Canton trade in transition, Sino-Western or intra-Asian.