The author is an assistant professor of Chinese history at Rutgers University, The State University of New Jersey, and is publishing a book on Militarism in Modern China.

The research for this paper was made possible by a grant from the East Asian Institute, Columbia University, in the academic year 1969–70. The author wishes to acknowledge the assistance he has received from Donald Klein and Mr and Mrs Wu Chang-chuan.

¹ See T'ung-tsu, Ch'ü, Local Government in China under the Ch'ing, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1962.Google ScholarWatt, John, ‘Leadership Criteria in Late Imperial China’, Ch'ing-shih wen-t'i, Vol. III, No. 3, 07 1970, pp. 17–39,Google Scholar and ‘Ch'ing Emperors and District Magistrates’, Ibid., Vol. I, No. 8, May 1968, pp. 16–23. Teiwes, Frederick, Provincial party personnel in Mainland China, 1956–1966, N.Y.: East Asian Institute, Columbia University, 1967.Google ScholarOksenberg, Michel, ‘Local Leaders in Rural China, 1962–65: Individual Attributes, Bureaucratic Positions, and Politiacal Recruitment’, Chinese Communist Politics in Action, edited by Barnett, A. D., Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1969, pp. 155–215.Google ScholarGamble, Sidney D., Ting Hsien: A North China Rural Community, Sranford: Stanford University Press, 1968, 2nd ed.Google Scholar

² The following issues of the Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu are available in East Asian Library, Columbia University: 1836, 1837, 1881 1898 1906, 1917, 1919, 1923, and one issue of Chung-chou chien ming t'ung lu, 1903. The 1909, 1914 and 1919 issues of the Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, or Ho-nan t'ung-kuan lu, as it is sometimes named, are available in Harvard-Yenching Library, Harvard University. For Provinces other than Honan, there are a number of issues in the East Asian Library, but practically all of them in the Ch'ing period.Google Scholar

³ For a theoretical framework, I have consulted Taylor, Lee, Occupational Sociology, N.Y.: Oxford University Press, 1968Google ScholarLipset, S. M. and Bendix, R., Social Mobility in Industrial Society, Berkeley: University of California Press, 1966, 5th ed.Google ScholarBlau, Peter M. and Duncan, O. D., The American Occupational Structure, N.Y.: John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1967.Google ScholarSlocum, Walter L., Occupatioal Careers: A Sociological Perspective, Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co. 1966,Google Scholar and Reiss, Albert J. Jr., Occupations and Social Status, N.Y.: Collier-Macmillan Ltd, 1965, 2nd ed.Google Scholar

⁴ Fa-ling ta-ch'üan, edited by Shang-wu, yin-shu kuan pien-i so, Shanghai: Shangwu yin-shu-kuan, 1919, 9th ed, Section III, Kuan-kuei, pp. 170–1.Google Scholar

⁵ Ibid., p. 172.

⁶ Ibid., pp. 173–4.

⁷ Fa-ling ta-ch'üan, edited by yin-shu, Shang-wupien-i so, kuan, Shanghai: Shang-wu yin-shu-kuan, 1919, 9th ed, Section III, Kuan-kuei, p. 175.Google Scholar

⁸ Ibid. p. 176.

⁹ Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, 1923.Google Scholar

¹⁰ The Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, 1923 indicates that only 6 of the 14 magistrates, hsien chih-shih, had passed the magistrates' examination, while 14 of the 53 Acting Magistrates, Shu-li hsien chih-shih, and 13 of the 43 Acting Magistrates, t'ai-li hsien chih-shih had already passed the examination.Google Scholar

¹¹ Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, 1923.Google Scholar

¹² Ibid. The data are obtained from Shang-shui hsien-chih, 1918, Ch'ueh-shan hsien-chih, 1931, Hsü-ch'ang hsien-chih, 1923, Cheng-yang hsien-chih, 1936, Meng-hsien chih, 1932, Hsia-i hsien-chih, 1920, Hsi-p'ing hsien-chih, 1934, Hsü Wu-chih hsien-chih, 1931, Kung-hsien chih, 1937, Mien-ch'ih hsien-chih, 1927, Hua-hsien chih, 1930, Huai-yang hsien-chih, 1933, Hisu-wu hsien-chih, 1931, Chung-hsiu Hsin-yang hsien-chih, 1936, Ho-yin hsien-chih, 1918, Hsü An-yang hsien-chih, 1933, K'ao-ch'eng hsien-chih, 1924, Feng-ch'iu hsien-Hsü-chih, 1931, Huo-chia hsien-chih, 1935, T'ai-k'ang hsien-chih, 1933, Ch'ang-ko hsien-chih, 1930 and Hsin hsiu Wen-hsiang hsien-chih, 1932.

¹³ In comparison with the figures in the Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, 1917 and 1923, the percentage for the whole period is too low. It is diffcult to find out from the materials if a particular magistrate actually possessed no examination degree or if it was unknown whether he had a degree. Therefore, we have to assume that he was not a degree-holder, if the degree was not reported in the materials. It also applies to the data on modern-trained magistrates.Google Scholar

¹⁴ Some magistrates did mention in their career statements in the Chung-chou t'ung kuan lu, 1923, that thay studied law and economics in the univetsity. Others just put down the name of the university.Google Scholar

¹⁵ Ch' üan-kuo chuan-men i shang hsüeh-hsiao chih-nan, edited by Shang-wu, yin-shu kuan pien-i-so, Shanghai: Shang-wu yin-shu-kuan, 1923, Section I, pp. 28–9, and Section on Special Schools, pp. 1–4.Google Scholar

¹⁶ Ibid., Section 3, pp. 1–4.

¹⁷ Fa-ling ta-ch'üan, Section 3, Kuan-kuei, pp. 172–3, Items 5 and 17.Google Scholar

¹⁸ Ibid., Section 3, Kuan-kuei, p. 179.

¹⁹ The data are obtained from a random sample of 7 districts, Sui-chung, Tung-hua, Li-shu, T'ai-an, Chi-an, Liao-yang, An-tung, in Fengtien, 8 districts, Pa-hsien, Ching-ho, Kung-tsung, Wen-an, Nan-p'i, Ting-hsien, Chi-hsien, Hsiung-hsien in Chihli, 4 districts, Fu-ning, Pao-shan, K'ao-ch'un, Hsien-ch'eng in Kiangsu, 3 districts, Lung-men, K'ai-p'ing, Ch'ih-ch'i in Kwangtung and 5 districts, Ta-chü, Sung-pan, Nan-ch'uan, Ho-chiang, Chieh-ko, in Szechuan in the period 1911–28.Google Scholar

²⁰ In the period between 1911–28, 18 out of 89 magistrates in Kwangtung were serving in the same district, 7 out of 165 in Szechuan, 2 out of 62 in Kiangsu, 1 out of 76 in Fengtien and 1 out of 126 in Chihli. The data are obtained from the same districts listed above in Note 19.Google Scholar

²¹ Except in Anhwei, Kwangsi, Yunnan and Chihli, the number of native magistrates, as shown in the Chih-yüan lu, 1923, is very low, while there was no native magistrate recorded in Kiangsu, Hupeh, Kwangtung, Jehol and Sinkiang. Honan was reported to have only I native magistrate, but the Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu recorded 53 native magistrates in the same period—1923.Google Scholar

²² Tsai-su, Liu, Chih-shih mu-liao mu-fan hsing-cheng ch' üan-shu, Shanghai: Shih-chieh shu-chü, 1926, Section I, pp. 3a–3b.Google ScholarHsü, T'ien-tsui, Chao, Hsiu-yen, Hua, Hsü-chih and Yin, Hung-sheng eds, Hsien-cheng ch' üan shu, Shanghai: Cheng i ho-tso she she, 1928, 5th ed., Vol. 2. pp. 60a–61b.Google Scholar

²³ Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, 1923. 33.9 per cent had been employed in 2 provinces, 14.4 per cent in 3 provinces, 14.4 per cent in 4 provinces, 4.2 per cent in 5 provinces, 1.7 per cent in 6 provinces, 1.7 percent in 7 provinces and 1.7 per cent in ‘various provinces’.Google Scholar

²⁴ Chung-hsiu Hsin-yang hsien-chih, Vol. 6, pp. 20–4.Google Scholar

²⁵ Yü-hsiang, Feng, Feng γü-hsiang jih chi, Peking: Min-kuo shih-liao pien-chi she, 1930, p. 49.Google Scholar

²⁶ For example, Shih Chih-chuan of Feng-ch'iu district and Wang Ching-lin and I Teng-ao of T'ai-k'ang district in Honan.Google Scholar

²⁷ At the end of 1921 when Wu P'ei-fu took over Hupeh, many magistrates lost their positions. In order to retain thir offices, some magistrates entertained and attended upon Wu. One was forced to ‘donate’ Y$50,000 to Wu's treasury. Another requested the American Vice Consul, J. C. Huston, to speak a good word to Wu in his favor. See my dissertation, Militarism in Modern China: as Exemplified in the Carrer of Wu P'ei-fu, N.Y.: Columbia University, 1970, pp. 146–8.Google Scholar

²⁸ This conclusion is drawn after studying the turnover rate of the districts listed in footnote 19 in Fengtien, Chihli, Shantung, Kiangsu, Kwangtung and Szechuan. See Table 6 and 7.Google Scholar

²⁹ Chung-chou t'ung-kuan lu, 1923. The information is gathered from the career statements of 118 district magistrates.Google Scholar

³⁰ For example, at one time, Hsiao Yao-nan, the Hupeh military governor, dis-patched a number of offcials to different districts to borrow money from the people. Local magistrates were forced to provide the security.Google Scholar

³¹ Tsai-su, Liu, op. cit., Vol. I, pp. 5b–6a.Google Scholar

³² Fa-ling ta ch' üan, Section 3, Kuan-kuei, p. 235.Google Scholar

³³ Liu, Tsai-su, op. cit., Section 4, Fa-ling, p. 1. See Regulation 44, the Regulation for Magistrate Awards, 31 December 1913.Google Scholar

³⁴ Mallory, Walter H., China: Land of Famine, American Geographical Society Special Publication, No. 6, N.Y.: American Geographical Society, 1926.Google Scholar