How many people were paid in a county government office in the Qing Dynasty? What are the expenses for all the staff in the county government? These are two questions that readers have sent private messages to. Considering that many friends may be interested in this, I will briefly describe them in this article.
Who in the county government has a salary?
Before answering this question, some prerequisites must be set. The reason is simple. There were more than 1,300 counties in the Qing Dynasty, and the staffing situation in each county was different. Taking the official website as an example, counties with complex affairs have county magistrates, chief administrators, and dianshi ; counties with simple affairs do not have county magistrates, chief administrators, and dianshi, but only one dianshi.
Let's take Laoting County, Zhili Province, as an example. The county's formal staff, that is, the people who receive state salaries, are:
There is one county magistrate, with an actual salary of 45 taels of silver; a classic salary of 31.52 taels of silver; Each person in the Confucian teachings and teachings paid a total of 80 taels of silver; 2 people in the disciples paid 12 taels of silver for work and food, plus 1 tael for leap months; 14 Zaoli people paid 84 taels of silver, plus 7 taels for leap months; Wu Zuo2 people, a total of 12 taels of labor and food silver, plus 1 tael for leap months;
also: 8 people in Ma Kuai, actual expenditures of 134.4 taels; 8 people in Minzhuang, actual expenditures of 40 taels, plus 4 taels in leap months; sedan umbrella workers There are 7 people in Shiyin, with actual support of 42 taels, plus 3.5 taels in leap months; 4 people in Kuzi, with actual support of 24 taels, plus 2 taels in leap months; 4 people in Dou level, with actual support of 24 taels, plus 2 taels in leap months; 6 vegetarians, The actual expenditure is 64 taels; there are 2 cooks and the actual expenditure is 13 taels.
It can be seen from the salaries of Laoting County government officials that there are very few people in the county who can actually receive salaries, and the salary base is very low. All expenses added up are only more than 700 taels.
However, in the county government of Leting County, there are many people working on it. For example, there are a large number of scribes, secretaries, chief attendants and some officials who are unpaid.
Although the imperial court had regulations on the number of scribes hired by each county, ranging from a few to nearly 30, local governments were not allowed to increase the number without authorization. But in fact, the number of scribes in various places far exceeds the legal quota. Sometimes, the county government will hire copywriters to copy documents. There are also some nominal scribes. It is estimated that there are 1,000 scribes in large counties, 700 in middle counties, and 200 in small counties.
Specifically in Laoting County, there were more than 400 scribes. These scribes and more than a hundred government officials outside the official establishment, plus secretaries and long-term followers, number more than 500. These people do not have legal wages, which means that their expenses are determined by the local government and are not listed in the list. Report from the Household Registration Department.
Let’s talk about the expenses of all county government personnel.
Before Xianfeng , the imperial court had absolute financial control over local governments. Starting from the Shunzhi Dynasty, the imperial court continued to reduce local reserves, and most of the tax revenue had to be transferred to the Ministry of Household Affairs in the capital. , the fees reserved for local public use are pitifully small.
Therefore, there was a big gap in the funding of each county government in the Qing Dynasty. For example, in Henan Province, the average annual expenditure of each county was about 10,000 taels, but in fact it was less than one-third. Just imagine that a county only has more than 3,000 yuan of funds each year. What can it be used for? Therefore, the county magistrate must find a way to make up for it. The most effective and fastest way is to take ideas from the people.
In the literature, it is rare to find the specific methods used by state and county officials in the Qing Dynasty to make up for the lack of funds. This is also understandable. After all, these methods are not on the table and are not included in general county annals and official historical materials.
Fortunately, Volume 4 of the "Extended Chronicles of Dongming County" in the Republic of China records the "County Department Cashier's Accounts" twenty years after Guangxu of the county, from which we can learn a thing or two.
Dongming County levied an additional 5,000 taels of silver from "small households" who paid less than 2 taels for grain. This money was used to distribute to clerks and service staff in each room. In addition, the county government levied various miscellaneous taxes from merchants, totaling more than 3,000 taels. With this extra-legal income of more than 8,000 taels, Dongming County can basically guarantee various expenses.
The two most special groups in the county government are the curtain friends and the long followers. The standards for the number of secretaries hired by county magistrates also vary, depending on the complexity of government affairs. In counties where the general affairs are simple and poor, one person is often enough to handle criminal, money, and bookkeeping; in counties with complex affairs, four or five are needed.
The screen friends are hired by the county magistrate. The relationship between them is not that of superiors and subordinates, but a simple employment relationship. The price of a staff member in the Qing Dynasty was also uncertain. The price of a staff member in a county government generally ranged from 100 taels to 200 taels, which was on average about three times the annual salary of a county magistrate.
Chang Sui is the confidant of the county magistrate. Some secret and ulterior matters are often handled by Chang Sui in detail. Their formal income is not high, roughly around 20 taels to 30 taels. But after all, Chang Sui is the spokesperson of the county magistrate, and his extra-legal income is sometimes higher than that of his friends.
Regardless of whether they are friends or long-term followers, their salaries must be paid by the county magistrate out of his own pocket. Since the Yongzheng Emperor, in addition to the statutory salary of 45 taels, the county magistrate has also added the Yanglian Silver, which generally ranges from 800 taels to 1,500 taels. This amount of money is enough to hire curtain friends and pay wages to long-term followers.
The above are only the salaries of county government personnel, which are only part of the county government’s expenses. In addition, there are many public expenses. The Ministry of Household Affairs allocates very little public expenditure to county governments every year, and the county magistrate has to figure out the shortfall. Anyway, no matter how the accounts are calculated, the county magistrate will definitely not use his own money. In the final analysis, the people still have to pay the bill.
