peror may use the public treasury for private expenditures. This is the sign of a government, either good or bad.

Second, the salaries of the officials included the administrative expenditure of their offices. Just as the income of the head of the government included the general expenditure of the state, so the income of the officials included the particular expenditures of their departments. There were two kinds of officials: most of the high officials were granted the public land and collected the land tax at a certain rate for their salaries, the other or low officials received salaries directly from the government. In both cases they were responsible for their administrative expenditure. Therefore the land tax from the first hundred miles square might be sufficient to supply the general needs of the various offices. If the officials were good, they spent liberally of their salaries for the public expenditures; if they were bad, they did the opposite, for their personal use, but they might lose their offices. The salary of the officials was the chief item of public expenditures, because it included administrative expense; but its larger part was not paid out by the public treasury at all, because the land tax which belonged to the officials went directly to them.

Among the nine standard rules of a government, Confucius gives the fifth as "kind and considerate treatment of the whole body of officers." As to the details and purpose of this rule, he says: "According to them a generous confidence, and making their salaries large: this is the way to encourage the body of officers." In fact, when the officers do not own any public land and receive salaries directly from the government, Confucius advocates the principle of giving them large salaries. For the salary-system of Con

1

1 Classics, vol. i, pp. 408-410.

fucius, we have already referred to Mencius and the “Royal Regulations."1

Third, the military expenditures were small in comparison with modern times. (1) There was no special class called soldiers. All the men at a certain period of life were soldiers, so there was no need of expenditures for the support of a standing army. (2) The people furnished much of their own equipment for military service, while the government paid neither salaries nor wages. (3) There was no transportation of food. When the army went out, the men carried some food, but except for this, it was supported by the feudal states through which it passed or in which it stayed. Therefore, military expenditures were not an important part of public expenditures, and it was chiefly for this reason that only a small amount of public revenue was needed.

Fourth, religious expenditures were too great. The ancients spent a large part of public money for the service of spiritual beings, and such expenditures were really private expenditures of the monarch. In the "Royal Regulations," Confucius sets the limits to such expenditures, as we indicated above. Since sacrifices are regular, the expenditure for them is limited to a tenth of the total expenditure of one year; and, since funerals are irregular and infrequent, the expenditure for them is confined to a tenth of that of three years. Although the expenditure appropriated for funerals is greater than that for sacrifices, the former is really smaller than the latter when we compare them through a period of years. But, during the time of mourning, most of the sacrifices are omitted. This is one reform of Confucius. Yet, according to his ideals, the limits for the religious expenditures set forth in the "Royal Regulations" are

1 Cf. supra, pp. 491-3.

still too large. In fact, they serve as a check for the ancients only, and they should be narrowed to the smallest limit as society progresses.

In conclusion, we may say that the chief part of public expenditure is shifted according to the Three Stages: In the Disorderly Stage, the greater part of public expenditures is spent for the monarch himself, including religious expenditures; in the Advancing Peace Stage, for the state, military expenditures being the chief item; and in the Extreme Peace Stage, for the people, the fostering of their physical, mental and moral welfare being the chief aim. This is the principle of the Three Stages of Confucius. And we may judge the nations or ages by this standard and see in which direction they are tending.

CHAPTER XXXIII

TAXATION IN GENERAL

SOME of the Socialistic policies which we have discussed provide special sources of public revenue. But, according to the principles of Confucius, those policies should be adopted not for the sake of getting revenue, but for that of distributing equal wealth to the people. Therefore we shall not consider them in our discussion of sources of revenue. Under this head we shall take up only taxes..

I.

DEVELOPMENT OF TAXATION IN THE EARLIEST TIMES

Some information in regard to the development of taxation is given by the terms applied to the tax systems of the Three Dynasties. According to Mencius, the tax system of the Hsia dynasty was called kung, "tribute;" that of the Yin dynasty, tsu, "assistance;" and that of the Chou dynasty, ch'ê, "assessment." Mencius does not explain the word kung, because it is clear by itself. He comments on the other two words as follows: "Ch'ê means an exaction [from the people], and tsu means dependence [of the government]." "

During the Hsia dynasty, when the central government was first well organized, the people were glad to pay their tax as a present. Hence the tax system was called kung, a voluntary gift of the people to the government. During the Yin dynasty, the people felt that they were doing the government a favor. Hence it was called tsu, an assistance of

1 Classics, vol. ii, pp. 240-241.

the people for the government, or a "dependence dependence" of the government upon the people. During the Chou dynasty, the government had the independent power to tax the people. Hence it was called ch'ê, a universal assessment upon the land, and a compulsory exaction from the people. It is interesting to see that these three terms are sufficient by themselves to indicate the historical development of the tax system.1

Although the system of the Chou dynasty reached the highest development, the Confucians preferred the system. of the Yin dynasty. The "Royal Regulations" says: "Anciently, the public fields were cultivated by the united labors of the farmers, who paid no tax from the produce of their private fields." Mencius says: "If a ruler require the farmers' assistance for cultivating the public fields, and exact no other taxes from them, then all the farmers of the world will be pleased, and wish to plough in his fields." "

The reason why the Confucians preferred the system of Yin grows out of their concern for the good of the people. When the people render their labor to the public fields without paying other taxes, it does not necessarily mean that they would neglect their duty. On the contrary, if there were a good government, they would care first for the public and then for their private interests. The Canon of Poetry says: "May it rain first on our public fields, and then come to our private!" This is the sentiment of unselfish people under a good government. Therefore, Ku-liang's Commentary says: "When the crop of the private fields is not good, the officials should be blamed; when that of the

1 Cf. Seligman's Essays in Taxation, pp. 5-7.

2 Li Ki, bk. iii, p. 227.

3 Classics, vol. ii, p. 200.

4 Ibid., vol. iv, pt. ii, p. 381.