由代收税捐看清末苏州商会的“代表性”问题

Representing Merchants in a New Form of Identity: The Process of the Tax Collection through the Chambers of Commerce of Suzhou in Late Qing

在晚清开办厘金和海关税之前,商业税收在清代全国财政岁入的比重一直不高,远低于农业税入的比重。但商业税收在清代乾隆、嘉庆年间其实有大幅增长,由雍正二年(1724)的5.4%,到嘉庆十七年(1812)的14.6%,增长将近三倍。为向商人加税,清前期即有愈来愈多言论强调"惠商""恤商"才能"裕课",不少官员提醒改善商人经商环境以增加政府岁入。当政府为了兼顾"裕课"与"恤商"两项目标时,商人也更能透过联名陈情、罢市抗税以及会馆、公所的私下运作,来保障自身权益。当清末政府主动立法鼓励商人成立商会,透过商会和会馆公所的合作,包含苏州商人在内的商业群体,才有更坚实的团体力量为后盾,向政府抗争税收问题。清末商会参与抗争税收的过程反映了重要的历史转变:商人团体由原先会馆、公所时代作为在实际上保护商人权益的"代表",演变为商会时代能同时在实际上与名义上保护商人的"代表"。

The ratio of business tax in Qing central government had grew three times from 5.4% to 14.6% during the period from 1742 to 1812, and the growth continued to accelerate in the next century until the demise of Qing Empire in 1911. Accompanying the growth of business tax, the goal of making policies beneficial to merchants had not only been set as high on the agenda in the central and many local Qing governments, but also had brought about more collective actions including shopkeeper＇s strikes, petitions, and supports from the merchant groups such as Huiguan and Gongsuo in order to bargain tax collections with the local governments. As many Chambers of Commerce had been established in favor with Qing government after 1903, Suzhou merchants may benefit from both the Chamber of Commerce and Huiguan/Gongsuo in the process of bargaining business tax, thus forging a new identity of representing merchant＇s collective interest. We should not underestimate the contribution of Huiguan and Gongsuo in a long running historical perspective.