| Cotton is an important economic crop,and the cotton textile industry is the largest pillar industry in modern China and a symbol of modern Chinese industry.It occupies an important position in the country's economy,politics and social life,and is an important driving force for modern Chinese social and economic reforms.Northwest Shandong is the birthplace of cotton in Shandong.It was the core cotton growing area in Shandong during the Ming and Qing Dynasties.Commercialization appeared in the Ming Dynasty,professionalized in the Qing Dynasty,and tended towards scale in the Republic of China era.Since the founding of New China,it has gone through four stages:recovery period,lingering period,development period,and shrinking period.Among them,the two most volatile stages are the 1980s when it became a national commodity cotton base and the period after 1990 when it gradually withdrew from the market.This paper selects the period from 1906 to 2006.It comprehensively surveyed the tortuous course of the cotton planting industry in the past century in northwestern Shandong and Its impact on the regional economy and society,from the perspectives of ecological environment,historical evolution,variety improvement,technological innovation,market circulation,the ups and downs of the cotton textile industry and social life.From the inspection of the ecological environment and historical evolution,northwestern Shandong is the most suitable area for cotton planting in Shandong,which is the biggest advantage of the original ecology.The region has relatively sufficient natural resources such as climate,temperature,sunlight,and soil.Although it is restricted by the lack of precipitation and frequent natural disasters,it can be appropriately improved through irrigation.Northwest Shandong,as the core cotton planting area in Shandong,is a pilot area for technological improvement.The technological changes in cotton production are mainly reflected in two aspects:variety improvement and farming technology innovation.From the trial planting of American cotton during the New Deal of the late Qing Dynasty to the establishment of a test field for variety improvement during the Republic of China,from the forced breeding when Japan invaded China to the famous Lumian No.1,from the irresistible insect pests to the emergence of insect-resistant cotton,variety improvement has always been the focus of technological innovation.Among them,the purpose of early improvements was to improve quality to meet the needs of the textile industry,while after the founding of New China,the main goal was to pursue high production.Variety improvement in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China was intermittent due to war and other factors.In general,American cotton was successfully promoted in northwestern Shandong.After the founding of New China,cotton varieties have undergone five planned and organized changes,and U.S.cotton eventually replaced Chinese cotton.From the perspective of farming and management,Northwest Shandong carried out large-scale water conservancy project construction,land improvement and fertilizer accumulation during the collectivization period.These "hardware" provided a strong guarantee for increasing cotton production.The changes in cotton farming technology are mainly reflected in the aspects of changing from no watering to ensuring irrigation,from relying on natural production to scientific farming,from manual insect catching to prevention and forecasting,and the widespread use of new farm tools,but the promotion and use of large-scale mechanization is very embarrassing.In the 1980s,mechanical farming during the collectivization period went back to primitive human and animal farming.Since the 1990s,the cultivation and harvesting of wheat and other food crops has basically been mechanized,while cotton has still not made progress in mechanical harvesting.From the perspective of the form of production organization,cotton management has roughly experienced family-collective-family alternation.Specifically,there are several typical organizational methods:production and marketing cooperative organizations during the Republic of China,mutual aid groups,cooperatives and cotton planting groups during the collectivization period,and professional households after the reform and opening up.Organizational forms in different periods have a greater impact on the cotton output rate,and the production responsibility system is a form of production organization that cannot be ignored by families and collectives.From the perspective of market construction and reorganization,the cotton market in northwestern Shandong has undergone three reorganizations.The typical feature is that it has realized the transition from rural market trade to exporting to the international market,and cotton production is ultimately marginalized in complete marketization.The first reorganization was due to the government's advocacy,the introduction of U.S.cotton,and Japan's plunder.The traditional cotton transportation network was changed from domestic transportation to indirect or direct access to the international market.At this time,the market price fluctuates,but in general it is In short supply,the cotton production and marketing cooperatives also responded effectively to the international market,enabling cotton planting to increase farmers' income.The second reorganization is the implementation of the national monopoly policy,which is completely governed by national mandatory policies.The local market is basically decoupled from the international market.There is no market price fluctuation,and farmers' production is relatively comfortable.However,the adverse effects on farmers in the later stage of the monopoly are also obvious.For example,it has led to the weakening of the commercialization of cotton in the private sector,the difficulty of farmers in selling cotton,and the failure to honor the incentive sales policy.The third reorganization is the reform of the national cotton circulation system:the market is completelyliberalized,and local cotton directly enters the international market.The pure family production model will face severe international competition at all stages of production,and ultimately be marginalized in competition in factors such as cotton quality,cost and income.With the evolution of cotton production,the cotton textile industry in northwestern Shandong has experienced a process from center to shrinking and then to rise.During the Ming and Qing Dynasties,as a cotton-producing area in Shandong,it became the center of Shandong local cloth with its natural advantages.With the penetration of foreign capital in the late Qing Dynasty,foreign yarn did not have a large local market.The local handmade cotton textile industry continued to develop and began to explore machine spinning,but it was at a disadvantage in the textile market competition.Especially since the establishment of large-scale spinning mills in Qingdao and Jinan,because the canal was cut off,and the Jinpu Railway was chosen to avoid this place,resulting in traffic congestion,northwestern Shandong mainly played the role of raw cotton supply and since Weixian was in the advantage of Jiaoji Railway,the cotton textile industry has developed rapidly,and the status of the home-made cloth center of northwestern Shandong has been relatively weakened.During the Anti-Japanese War,due to the closure of textile factories and the advantage of cotton resources,the traditional handmade cotton textile industry continued to develop until the collectivization period.Before the "Great Leap Forward" reform and opening up,cotton production in the region fell into a trough,and the cotton textile industry was also shrinking.After the reform and opening up,cotton production in northwestern Shandong reached its peak,which brought the regional cotton textile industry back to life.From the 1990s to the beginning of this century,due to the shrinkage of cotton production and the reform of the national industrial system,the cotton textile industry in northwestern Shandong was diverted.Some were eliminated in the integration,and some emerged after reorganization.The withdrawal of local cotton production not only did not affect the development of the cotton textile industry,but gained new development due to the liberalization of the cotton market.On the whole,in the era of unified purchase and marketing,the state supports the construction of local textile industry,but local cotton areas have also made certain sacrifices to serve the national textile industry.As the most basic producer of raw materials,farmers have also made huge contributions to the country in the development of the textile industry.Since the beginning of the new century,with the adjustment of cotton production policy,the reform of the market circulation system and the reform of the textile industry system,this kind of interest relationship between the state,locality and farmers has been broken,and reorganized cotton textile enterprises have gradually emerged in market competition.The changes in the cotton planting industry have had an important impact on the regional society.From the perspective of agricultural production structure,the increase or decrease in cotton area has a profound impact on the local agricultural production structure,especially during the prime of cotton,which emphasizes the importance of cotton while ignoring other crops.Due to the region's insistence on cotton production,the pace of industrial restructuring in Liaochengis very slow.When the country proposed the development of diversified operations,it failed to keep up with the pace of policies,and urban industrial development was relatively lagging.From the perspective of farmers'income levels,the rise and fall of the cotton planting industry in Liaocheng is closely related to the income of farmers.The level of farmers' income is positively correlated with changes in the cotton planting industry.When cotton recovers,farmers' income will reach the national average level,and the decline in cotton production will cause the income below the average level.It seems to verify the folk proverb of Northwest Shandong that "cotton is prosperous,and all industries are prosperous." Generally speaking,the heyday of cotton production played a role in promoting the development of local society.For example,as the center of cotton technology dissemination,it has attracted much attention.It has established a regional cotton industry knowledge and technology system,which has become the focus of the province,the country,and even the world.The changes in the regional employment structure have caused great ups and downs of state-owned cotton factory workers,cotton farmers turning into private entrepreneurs,housewives walking into the factories,and women becoming the main force in cotton production.They grow cotton and became rich,which attracts people from outside of the region.Local farmers have special feelings for cotton.They add social and political features to cotton,which was originally economical.From the Republic of China to the time before the reform and opening up,the local cotton theft incidents reflected the conflict and adjustment among the interests of the state,collectives,and farmers.Since the beginning of cotton planting in northwestern Shandong,the economic and commodity characteristics of cotton have gradually become the link between the state,market,technology and farmers.Especially in modern times,the introduction of American cotton has become a breakthrough point for Northwest Shandong to go international.For a century,cotton production has undergone a trajectory from the center to the periphery under official control.The traditional cash crops that have lasted for more than 600 years and have almost withdrawn from the stage of history.The process is full of twists,turns and complexity.Its main characteristics are:the factors affecting cotton production are diversified,and the impact on the regional economy is malleable;the impact on the regional society reflects the phases,and the emotions between farmers and cotton are full of complexity.From the perspective of influencing factors,the ecological environment is a prerequisite for cotton production,national policy(government behavior)is the leading factor in cotton production,market mechanism is the weather vane that affects the progress and retreat of cotton production,economic benefits are a key factor that affects farmers'willingness to produce,and technical innovation is an important factor affecting cotton planting efficiency and cotton quality.Among them,the two most decisive factors are the market and revenue.From the historical changes in the cotton planting industry in northwestern Shandong,it is not difficult to find that the relationship between the state and farmers has undergone complex changes,and the relationship between the interests of the state and farmers has been continuously adjusted with the pace of national development.Since the founding of the People's Republic of China,from the unconditional contribution of farmers and agriculture to industry during the people's communes,to the establishment of the household contract responsibility system in farmers' conscious resistance,to the complete abolition of agricultural taxes,the state and farmers have constantly adjusted the strategy in their interests.Whether cotton production can be continued,how to organize agricultural production,and how to give full play to government control policies are issues worthy of continued research. |
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