清末至北洋政府时期区乡行政制度考略

District and Township Civil Servicein China during Three Decades in Early 20^(th) Century

中国古代 ,国家正式职官的设置止于县 ,县以下没有国家行政。清末至北洋政府时期 ,这种情况发生了根本性变化。由于传统乡里制度的历史演变和地方社会近代化的时代要求 ,各地陆续生成了区乡一级行政。这一期间的区乡行政可以分为两大类 :一是清末以来新生的区乡行政 ;二是由清代旧乡地演变而来的区乡行政或准行政。就职能而言 ,前者又可以分为单一职能类型的区乡行政 (教育行政、警察行政和保卫团政 )和职能全面类型的区乡行政 ;后者或系由旧乡地直接转化为新型的区乡行政 ,或系以旧乡地而充当新生区乡行政的下级区划和组织 ,或基本保持着旧乡地的原有性质和职能。就主体性质而言 ,这一时期的区乡行政还存在着“自治”行政与“官治”行政的区别。这一时期的区乡行政大多具有常设机构 ,其行政人员一般按法定程序任职并具有职业化的公职身份 ,大多具有建立在法定公共财政或公共收入基础之上的经费制度 ,承担着地方社会的各种现代性行政职能 ,因此已经基本上具备了现代性质。但同时在各方面也仍然带有传统色彩。

The civil service of the counties was the bottom of the political administration in ancient China. In other words, there was no civil service in the district and township level below counties. However, the fundamental changes in this aspect took place during the last decade of the Qing's regime and thefirst two decades of the Northern Warlords'rule in the early 20^(th)century. The district and township civil service grew and took shape gradually as the results of theevolution of traditional administrationin the local communities below counties and the demands of themodernization of local society. This system can be divided into two categories. One was that of the newly appeared. The other transformed from thetraditional one. The former, as far as function is concerned, can be subdivided into the single-functional, such as educational, police and military, services, and multi-functional. The latter, as far as sources are concerned, can be divided into three subdivisions. The first was the newly-styled one transformed directly from traditional administration. The second was the old administration functioning as the sub-organizations under the new services. The third the old remained unchanged in both nature and function. Subjectively speaking, the civil service can also be grouped into autonomous and centralized. It generally had long-standing organizations. Its civil servants were appointed in legal process. They were occupational servants. It had a financial system based legally on a public fiscal system. It undertook the responsibility for almost all the modern administrative functions for the local communities. Because of these, it can be said to have fundamentally the modern nature, with some traditional elements albeit. The growing of thesystem marked an important aspect of themodernization of thelocal administration in the 20^(th)century China.