A Study On The Lixu System Of Qing Dynasty

On the study of the Chinese pre-modern bureaucracy, the academic has given much attention to the study of the general bureau system, civil examination system and official system, left the study of Lixu system in a state of neglect though the latter play an unelectable role in the function of bureaucracy. In a dynasty's bureaucratic system, although officials are superior to Lixu, but the Lixu are greater in number, and they are also the true administrator of the ruling system, in some sense, they have the real power in hand. At the same time, they act as intermediate between the officials and the people. They gather and coordinate the information for the officials of all levels; they are the channels for the communication between the officials and the people. It is safe to say that the machine of the bureaucracy would be hard to work without them. So the study of the living situation of Lixu, their inner function, the Lixu system's practical function, Lixu's situation in the social structure and the influence they bring the dynasty's administration helps to know the structure, mechanism, and administrative function of ancient Chinese bureaucracy, to understand the political circumstance of autocratic patriarchal clan system and the advantages and disadvantages of bureaucracy.This article is restricted in Qing Dynasty for the following reasons: 1) It is in Qing Dynisty when the Lixu system reached to its acme and then came to its finality. So it's more typical to use the Lixu system of Qing Dynasty as object.2) The studies on Lixu system are rather abundance on Yuan Dynasty and scarce in Qing Dynasty: We could find few articles but no works on this subject.3) On consideration of some deficiencies in the history study. The traditional political history study is characterized by depicting the big political events and the important persons of high rank. The study of today should give more attention to the people of lower rank and other trade. The concern to the Lixu is consistent with the new trend of the history study.This article uses the basic traditional approaches of Chinese history study, and, at the same time, adopts the theories and methods of politics, administration, sociology, and culture, investigates the Lixu system comprehensively. The main contents of the research are the following:(一) Studies the relationship between the bureaucracy and the Lixu system and the status the Lixu have in the bureaucracy system. Bureaucracy, an organization with its rational elements, is the condition and background that the Lixu exist, without it, there would be no flourishing of the Lixu. Lixu is a component of the bureaucracy. Traditionally, there are decision-makers, and administrators in the bureaucratic system, if the decision-making is the heart of administration, executive is the extremities of the organization. Lixu is the transactor of court affairs. The officials and Lixu are two component of the bureaucracy, two inseparably factors of the administration.(二) Analyzes the reasons that Lixu system's flourishing in the late period of the traditional society and the characteristics, historical limitation of Lixu system. First, since the Tang and Song dynasty, the court's intention to watch out for the officials was increased as the speed up of the centralization and the complication of the law and the ordinance. Because the laws and the ordinances are too complicated for the officials to know well, they had to rely on the professional Lixu. The set up of the laws and the ordinances are originally the basic trait of the bureaucracy, with its necessity and positive effect, but there were still some maladjusted elements in it. The overfull of the law, and malpractice are the results of dissimilation of the bureaucracy. Second, the flourishing of the Lixu system was due to the expansion of the administration system and the administrative function, and the need of the professional people because of the separation of the jobs. The border of the Han and Tang dynasty in China extended incessantly, the information from outbound and inbound boomed, the affairs that need to be dealt with by the bureaucratic system piled up. The situation called for more exchange of information with the world around and the improvement in the profoundness and content of work. This necessarily brought expansion of the bureaucratic system. At the same time, as the growth of the social economic in the late period of the traditional society, the system of the organization became more complicated, more attention has been paid to the efficiency of the work. The appearance of Lixu, especially the clerks as specialties to take care of the administrative affairs, has its necessity and dominance. Third, it has something to do with inefficiency and the idle ethos in the officialdom. The idleness of officials, the shot-term of officials and the incapability of the officials are all the reasons that made part of the power passed down in the hand of Lixu, and the officials rely on the Lixu.This article starts from the Qing Dynast, digging the historic limitation of Lixu system. First, the emperor and the bureaucracy effectively conform the civil service system. Lixu, especially the clerks, are the compent of the civil service, yet they were excluded outside of the civil service, denied the status and the power which Lixu were entitled to. Their reasonable expectation could not be fulfilled. So the set-up of the Lixu system got into irrational. Second, every organization needs stimulating mechanism, so does the civil service. The deficiency of Lixu system in Qing dynasty is it lack of this kind of mechanism, it failed to provided Lixu with the propriety material and spiritual stimulation. Most important of all, the Lixu had no hope of promotion, the way up to the ladder was blocked. As civil servants, Lixu has neither guarantee for their career nor opportunity for promotion, the spirit of enterprise was quenched, thus endangered the court. Third, the standard of hire the Lixu was too low. As the Court of the Qing Dynasty did not give Lixu the entitled political and social status, the standard of employment was on the low side, thus the unqualified person interfused into the Lixu system.(H) Studies the origination of Lixu, searches for the responsibility, employment, treatment, motivation, diathesis of Lixu in Qing Dynasty. First, notices the margin between the authorized number of Lixu and the real number of people. Second, summarizes the pass of employment, the terms of employment and the inner transformation, points out the disadvantages in the employment, and the phenomenon which the practice deviate the system. Third, on the treatment of Lixu, the author holds that except the clerks in the Xuzhou yamun, the clerks in the central, provincial, intendant, prefectures, and yamun all have meal money, the authorized clerks always have meal money, although very slender. Fourth, studies the educational background, moral diathesis and other personalities of Lixu, this used to be the weak point of the Lixu study.(03) Studies the status the Lixu have in the social structure of Qing dynasty. As a kind of social group Lixu have their own group interest, and have set up their relationship with the tie of blood, hometown, vocation, or interest. Use this kind of political power, they gained support and refuge from the group, they also got some dignity which the social system denied them. This article also studies the relationship Lixu have with the officials, private secretary, personal servant and the country society. Pays close attention to the weak official, strong Lixu phenomenon, the author holds that the so called weakofficial, strong Lixu is a kind of trend rather than a matter of fact though Lixu threatened the officials with cases, beclouded the officials and did a lot of harm, but the officials are still in the dominate place in their relationship. The trend of weak official, strong Lixu is caused by the incomprehensive system and abnormal relationship between Lixu and the officials. From the relationship of Lixu, private secretary and personal servant we can see that the regional management system is not yet comprehensive, and their authorities are overlapped. This means that it is necessary to add the power of personal servant and the private secretary, as personal influence of official, to the legal official system, in order to stratify the official, clerk, secretary and the servant, and improve the the administrative efficiency(3D Analyzes corruption of Lixu, this article points out the fact of corruption, the reason and the result of corruption ,at the same time, analyzes the criticism of the people in Qing Dynasty. The author holds that Lixu's corruption is the typical reflection of the disadvantage of the Lixu system in Qing Dynasty, the abuse of the power is its main formation. The punishment the people of Qing dynasty put forward to stop the Lixu's corruption showed their full cognition of the fact.(A) From the study of the Lixu system in Qing Dynasty, the author summarizes and looks for the appeal of the society of that time to the new political form. The existing of large number of Lixu showed the need of professional persons in store for the coming administrative reform. The problem of Lixu implies a weak plea for distinguishing between politics and administration, politician and administrator. The separation of administration and politics, politician and administrator is one of the most important symbols of the modern times. The crisis of the civil examination system and the appeal for the new employment are behind the Lixu's problem. It implies the system of electing few elites will be replaced by the concentration on general, vocational, and professional education.