Research on the Fishery Economy of the Middle and Lower Reaches of the Yangtze River during the Ming and Qing Dynasties

Author: Yin Lingling
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Publishing Date: 2004-07-01
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II. Changes in the River and Lake Water Systems in the Mid and Late Ming Dynasty
Before the Ming Dynasty and before Chenghua (1465), the cultivated land per capita in Minyang Prefecture was relatively extensive, with fewer embankments and deeper rivers and lakes. After Chenghua, embankments competing for land with lakes gradually increased. Minyang Prefecture is low-lying and prone to floods, so the harvests were often poor, and the people were generally impoverished. However, lakes are prone to siltation, and vast, uncultivated land is easily developed. "Its land is located in a marshy area, with only muddy soil. Yet, Jingling and Yundu have many high-lying fields, and the people gradually cleared them and turned them into fields." Due to the varying elevations, dikes were built as barriers. Larger ones spanned tens of miles, while smaller ones spanned over ten miles, collectively known as "yuan," with over a hundred such areas. However, at that time, the large lakes in the region had not yet been fully silted and remained deep and wide. By the late Zhengde period (1517–1521), the large and small lakes had been silted and accumulated with sand during the floods in the Chenghua and Hongzhi periods (1465–1505), raising the lake beds, shallowing the rivers and lakes, and blocking waterways. "Minyang Lake was originally a confluence of rivers from Jianghan, but since the Chenghua and Hongzhi periods (1465–1505), the Han River silted up and overflowed, causing the lake water to stagnate. The silt settled, the state sand gradually rose, and tenant farmers and merchants gathered, engaging in farming and reclamation. As a result, half of the lake became flat." The vast Taibai Lake, spanning over two hundred miles and belonging to both Minyang and Hanyang, gradually turned into flat land over forty years after the late Zhengde period, with the muddy currents forming channels and flowing downward like Weiyang, the deep marshes gradually expanding into plains. Therefore, people like Dai Jin sighed, "When the canals were exchanged, the land and water swapped their heights and depths... The transformation of fertile fields into vast seas, the past returning to the present." The lakes in Minyang Prefecture, such as Muguofan, Lao, Nanwan, Shawan, Jitou, Yuanchang, Sandunwan, Yanglin, Shentai, Maotai, and Qingshuikou, as well as Huangjing Lake flowing into the Han River from the north and Baihu Lake from the east, and the lakes such as Matan, Douhu, Hehu, Shuanghu, Shiquan, Lanni, Sanjiao, and Gongjia in the north, all flowed into the Chenlaohao, Baijiawan, and Laotaita in the Han River. By the early Jiajing period (1522–1532), most of them had been silted into farmland. Qianjiang County, where the Han River flows downstream, has experienced several floods since the Jiajing period. When the river floods, farmland is submerged, and people are forced to relocate. Land submerged leads to unclear boundaries, and relocation results in the loss of livelihood. Half of the embankments were breached, and tributary rivers were further silted. Jingling County also saw the partial siltation and flattening of lakes such as Sijacha and Zhutai since the 26th year of the Jiajing period (1547), and the waterways of Zhutong River and Niao Bay were silted. After the lakes silted and turned into land, the soil became fertile and easy to cultivate. Here are descriptions and definitions of the process and characteristics of lake fields: "Embankment dwellers often cultivate millet, early rice, and late rice on the water's edge outside the embankments. When the water level is low, the channels are blocked, and over time, the silt gradually forms into farmland. When the water level is high, they have no means of rescue, and this is called lake fields. Lake fields are exempt from taxes, and with a three-year harvest, they yield double the profit." Newly formed lake fields were not subject to rent, so not only local people quickly reclaimed them, but also migrant farmers came to build embankments and cultivate them. Most lake fields were silted, yielding several dozen zhong annually, and vagrants took advantage of the situation to claim land. Minyang Prefecture, with many lakes and fertile, uncultivated land, provided food supplies, attracting people from other places, especially to the right bank of the Yangtze. The more embankments were built, the worse the flood storage and drainage capacity of the lakes became, leading to more frequent floods, faster siltation, further siltation of the lakes, and a new round of reclamation, creating a vicious cycle. Due to this vicious cycle, the river and lake management offices in the region were severely merged, reducing from 31 in the early Ming Dynasty to 16 in the mid Wanli period, nearly half of which were merged, and the merging occurred relatively early compared to other regions. In February of the 12th year of the Zhengtong period (1447), eight river and lake management offices in Minyang Prefecture, Huguang were abolished, and their taxes were merged into nearby offices like Zhibu Lake, etc., as requested by the Right Commissioner of Administration. According to the Jiajing Annals of Minyang Prefecture, in the 10th year of the Zhengtong period (1445), the Fengbo Lake office was merged into the Haotai Lake office, the Baishi Lake office was merged into the Renkou River office, the Longxia River office was merged into the Duanxia Xiaogang office, the Guogang Lake and Luozidu offices were merged into the Zhibu Lake office, the Xigang Lake office was merged into the West Lake office, the Wuliu Lake office was merged into the Zhangjiachi office, and the Qianjin Lake office was merged into the Baishuo Lake office. In total, eight river and lake management offices were merged, which should be the same as those recorded in the Ming Annals, though with slight differences in the years of abolition. In October of the 10th year of the Zhengde period (1515), the Huangpeng Lake and Sai Lake offices in Minyang Prefecture, Huguang were abolished due to their low revenue and impoverished people, as requested by the Assistant Censor-in-Chief Ren Han. The Huangpeng Lake office was merged into the Xujiachi office, and the Sai Lake office was merged into the Zhibu Lake office. The Li'er River, Duanxia Xiaogang, and Yangming Lake offices were abolished in the late Jiajing period, while the West Lake and Xiaozhang Lake offices were abolished in the Longqing period. According to Table 1.3.1, the order of lake siltation in Minyang Prefecture was as follows: most lakes in the south and southeast of the prefecture were silted first, followed by a few lakes in the east and northeast, while lakes in the northwest and northeast were less silted, with most still existing in the mid Wanli period.
III. The Qing Dynasty
In the early Qing Dynasty, some river and lake management officials still existed in the counties of Yuezhou Prefecture, such as in Linxiang County, where there was one official in 1656, receiving 12 taels of silver annually, and they were also provided with xiaoli, each receiving 7.2 taels of silver per year. However, starting from 1642 and 1662, the silver allocated for river and lake management, inspection posts, and post stations were gradually reduced. In 1656, the fishing taxes of Linxiang County included delivering dry fish to the northern and southern capitals, totaling 32.4 taels of silver; collecting cash silver from Jiayu County of Wuchang Prefecture, totaling 42.8 taels of silver, with an additional 0.95 taels in leap years; collecting silver for thread, glue, etc., totaling 135.3 taels of silver; collecting silver for thread, glue, etc., from Jiayu County of Wuchang Prefecture, totaling 34.6 taels of silver; and collecting silver for crucian carp, loach, and sturgeon samples, totaling 7 taels of silver, though this had been exempted. Except for unproductive land, the total collected silver and transportation fees were 664 taels of silver, with an additional 4.5 taels in leap years. In the middle Kangxi period, there were still 21 river and lake management offices across the country, including inland freshwater waters and coastal seas, with three in Yuezhou Prefecture—Anxiang, Yumiaoyang, and Chutanghu—accounting for one-seventh of the total. The remaining river and lake management offices had dedicated officials, while the merged ones were managed by local authorities. Their taxes were collected from fishing households or included in land taxes. However, by the middle and late Qing Dynasty, the situation had changed greatly. Water disasters were relatively light during the Qianlong and Jiaqing periods, but after the late Daoguang period, the situation worsened, and by the Xianfeng and Tongzhi periods, it became uncontrollable. In the second year of Xianfeng, the Jiang River broke its banks on the southern shore during low water levels and was not repaired, eventually breaking through the in the 10th year of Xianfeng, creating a new channel. During the Tongzhi period, it broke through the Songzi River mouth, resulting in four outlets—Hudu, Diaoxian, Songzi, and—flowing southward, leading to deeper floods in the Dongting Lake Plain. Historical records show: during the Qianlong and Jiaqing periods, when the lakes were relatively prosperous, the Hudu River was only about ten zhang wide, and the Diaoxian River was half a li wide, with clear water and shallow silt, capable of accommodating the floodwaters. Although the floods were worse than before, they did not reach the level of Huaiyang and Xiangyang. In the 10th year of Xianfeng, the width of the Town breach was equal to the width of the river itself. The muddy, fierce currents surged southward, and with the increased water volume and shallow lake beds, Huarong County, where the mouth was located, turned into islets, and the lake dried up in winter, allowing people to cross barefoot. With ten times the flow from the north and no capacity to absorb it on the south, the water disasters increased in recent years. The vast Dongting Lake, originally known for its eight hundred miles of expanse, had been filled with silt over countless times by the late Qing Dynasty, leaving it dry in winter with large islets exposed. The Dongting Lake Plain had numerous channels in the east, and the West Lake was wider but also significantly silted. As a result, people sighed, "The Dongting of today is not the Dongting of three decades ago." Therefore, the original fishing taxes were often difficult to maintain, with a large portion becoming uncollectible, while others were transformed into taxes on farmed lake islets. For example, in the Guangxu period, the miscellaneous taxes of Huarong County under the Ministry of Revenue included dry fish from the north and south, dry fish from Jiangnan, and fishing taxes from the prefecture, as well as new taxes on silted lake islets, totaling 146.93 taels of silver, with 9 cents of transportation fees added for each tael of fishing tax. However, 96.82 taels of silver were originally unproductive and uncollectible, and 7.3 taels of silver from the newly added Maocao Gang silted lake land taxes were allocated to Heshou County of Hubei for collection due to unclear land and grain issues. In actuality, only 43.8 taels of silver were collected, with an additional 1.5 taels in leap years. The sturgeon, eel, and sturgeon roe taxes originally collected by the Ministry of Rites had long been exempted, and the taxes on flax, wrought iron, and thread collected by the Ministry of Works had long been completely uncollectible. Yet, the fish-rich Huguang region still had a certain scale of fishing industry. For example, in the Republican period, Anxiang County exported 200,000 jin of fish annually, with a value of 20,000 yuan, and other counties like Huarong, Yueyang, and Linxiang also had significant production.
Trade and Distribution of Aquatic Products Processing in the Ming and Qing Dynasties
During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, trade was more developed than before, and aquatic products not only circulated locally but also were exported to distant places, with prosperous trade. The following is a brief elaboration based on available data. As mentioned in the previous chapters, the two lake regions of Huguang, due to their dense river and lake systems and vast, nutrient-rich freshwater waters, had a thriving fishing industry, making fishing a crucial part of the regional economy. This region could be considered the largest producer of freshwater aquatic product processing in the country. According to the Ming Annals, people from Henan, Shanxi, and Gansu often relied on Huguang for relief during famines, so the government lifted trade restrictions to facilitate commerce. However, Huguang, as a land of fish and salt, suffered from taxes and levies by various royal houses and administrative divisions. "The emperor agreed. Restrictions were imposed on royal houses, including the collection of ship tolls, the seizure of fishing profits, and the demands of garrison officials on salt merchants." This shows that the fish and salt goods of Huguang were widely sold to Henan, Sichuan, and Shaanxi provinces. The court had previously granted many river and lake management offices to the royal house of Chu, and the royal house had seized fishing profits, as mentioned earlier. Therefore, Emperor Jiajing of the Ming Dynasty issued an edict hoping to replace granary relief with normal commercial trade. For example, Changde Prefecture had a large amount of dried fish. Salted fish were dried and sold everywhere, considered a delicacy. All counties produced them, with Yuanjiang being particularly abundant. This processed product had a broad market and was highly valued in all directions. Huarong County of Yuezhou Prefecture processed dried fish, with merchants drying and trading them throughout Jianghuai. The smoked and sun-dried fish were sold far and wide in Jianghuai. Based on these two examples, it can be inferred that the quantity and quality of dried fish processed in Yuezhou and Changde were remarkable, though neither was the most prosperous fishing region in Huguang during the Ming Dynasty, which was in the Jianghan Plain in the north, including Hanyang, Minyang, and Wuchang prefectures and states. Therefore, it can be deduced that the trade of aquatic product processing in these prefectures and states was even more prosperous. In Anqing County of Anhui, the trade of processed products was also quite flourishing. For example, the silverfish dried by foreign merchants or local merchants in Susong County were purchased annually, with the largest markets in Jiujiang, Jingdezhen, and other places in Jiangxi and neighboring Huizhou regions. Shrimp was also sold and transported similarly to silverfish, with some shrimp sold without removing the shells, measured in dou and hu, and sold widely. Fish were sold fresh or dried, with dried fish merchants first buying fresh fish, salting them thoroughly, drying them in the sun, and packing them in bamboo baskets for sale in Jiangxi or neighboring Huizhou regions like Cixi, Qimen, Jixi, and Qiupu. This shows that the local silverfish dried and shrimp had a wide market and large sales, with active merchants, primarily in Jiangxi and neighboring Huizhou regions. The active Huizhou merchant groups of the Ming and Qing Dynasties have been extensively studied by scholars and have become a prominent field of research. It is believed that many Huizhou merchants were involved in the trade of processed aquatic products. The local specialties of Anqing were renowned far and wide, with fish marinated in to resemble amber in color and taste like mellow wine. When presented to officials in the capital, they were proudly displayed, with gatherings of officials to enjoy them, known as "South fish." The quickly fermented fish, called "," were even more delicious and easier to change, making them difficult to send far. The saying goes: "Congyang tofu, Tongcheng, the fame of local products has long been established!" The fish and fish were considered delicacies, and their fame had become a saying, making them local specialties. The processed fish products of the Taihu region, such as dried shad, dried silverfish, and hebao, were also sold far and wide. The zui fish, also known as dao fish or lake shad, was distinguished from river shad; a smaller variety, called meishad, was widely sold in the mountains of Zhejiang Province. There was also silverfish, which could be transported far. The "" referred to fish pressed and dried for transport, meaning they could be sold far. In Suzhou, during April and May, shad eggs were dried and named "mantis eggs," and there was also a smaller variety called huweibu, both considered shad that could be transported. Silverfish, from Taihu, were white, scaleless, and could be transported.