中国传统手摇轧棉机兴衰考

A Discuss about the Reason Why the Chinese Traditional Hand-driven Cotton Gins Upsurged and Eliminated

中国传统手摇轧棉机兴起于宋元,发达于明清之际,有搅车、轧车、赶车等多种形制。近代以来,随着刀辊式轧棉机、麦卡瑟轧棉机、锯辊轧棉机等西式、日式机械化轧棉机的传入,中国传统手摇轧棉机由于生产效率低下而被逐渐淘汰。不过,它自生产、社会、文化领域几乎彻底消失的主因在于棉种的变化:从19世纪中叶到20世纪中叶,陆地棉取代中棉、非洲棉成为中国的主流棉种,后者则几近消失。传统手摇轧棉机无法为陆地棉的籽棉脱籽,并因此完全失去了生产、利用的价值。党和政府的政治、经济政策显著地加速了棉种更替与现代轧棉机普及的历史进程。

Chinese traditional hand-driven cotton gins appeared in Song and Yuan Dynasty,then developed well in Ming and Qing Dynasty,including Jiaoche,Yache,Ganche and many other types.After Opium War,when modern cotton gins,for example,knife roller gin,MaCarthy gin,and saw gin,were introduced into China,Chinese traditional hand-driven cotton gins were generally washed out due to its relatively inefficiency.However,the decisive reason which caused the disappearance of these gins from the field of production,society and culture is the changing of cotton types:from the middle of 19th century to 20th century,upland cotton replaced the traditional Asiatic cotton and African cotton,becoming the dominant type o£planting cotton in China.Chinese traditional hand-driven cotton gins couldn't cleaning the seeds o£upland cotton as Churka Gin which EH Whitney abandoned in 18th century,so they had no use any more and completely disappearing.The economic politics of Chinese Communism Party and Chinese Government accelerated this historical process.