明清泰山香稅新考

The Pilgrim Tax Levy at Mont Tai during the Ming and Qing Dynasties: A New Perspective

泰山做為華北重要的宗教聖地，進香者絡繹不絕，每年約有數十萬人，多時甚至達80 萬。約在成化三年（1467），泰安州官員開始稽核廟宇香錢。其後官方將其轉入藩庫，並開徵入山香稅。為妥善收取入山香稅、檢查單據並掌管這筆收入，由泰安州以外的官員擔任總巡官與分理官，負責每四個月一次的監督任務。另外，為盤點廟宇的混施香錢，每年四月、九月的月底，又由總巡官與另一重新委任的官員會同打開殿門，清點信眾施捨的銀兩和貴重物品。這樣一個制度化的設計，在明代歷史上、甚至是中國歷史上，都是少見的。混施香錢與入山香稅，被稱之為泰山「香稅」，是個人捐款國家化、地方稅收中央化的重要例子，其運作規則較為完善，收入也最多。泰山香稅每年所收金額不一，16 世紀約收到20,000 至40,000 兩，萬曆八年（1580）達到52,729.5兩。17 世紀以後，官方所報數字逐漸下降，甚至僅6,000 至10,000 兩。按照規定，總收入的三分之二上繳，明朝後期大約上繳6,000 至23,000 兩之間。崇禎年間（1628-1644），遊客雖已下滑，但為應付軍費，仍須上繳20,000 兩。至於留在山東省內的三分之一，其用途包括：補貼藩王、官員的俸祿，與救災、修廟、修城、修泰山的山道，及雇用差役、支應科舉考試費用等方面。自明末崇禎年間起，進香人數因華北寇亂及清初戰火連連而大減，但香稅上繳金額卻增至30,000 兩；康熙中期，上繳數額降至21,205 兩。雍正十三年（1735）廢除香稅上繳前夕，總收入才10,000 兩上下。就總收入而言，清朝無法與明代相比，至於地方存留款，則主要用於科舉考試。

Mont Tai is an important religious shrine of North China with an endless stream of pilgrims. Hundreds of thousands pilgrims visit every year. The number of visitors can even reach eight hundred thousand; hence, plenty of donations are offered. Around the year of 1467, officials in Tai'an started to audit the donations to the temple. Afterwards, officials turned this money into local government revenue; an entrance fee was even collected for entering the mountain later on. In order to collect the entrance fee, audit the records, and manage this revenue properly, officials organized a provisional committee every four months. The officials-in-charge and the district officials were from outside of Tai'an state, and they were responsible for supervising the tasks listed above. Furthermore, in order to count and audit the donations offered to the temple, at the end of April and September every year, the official-in-charge with newly appointed officials would enter the temple for an itemized list of silver, copper coins and all kinds of treasures. Such a systematized scheme was rare in the history of the Ming Dynasty, or even throughout the entire Chinese history. Pilgrim tax in Mont Tai was a notable example of the nationalization of individual donations as well as the centralization of regional tax. Its regulations and policies were more comprehensive, and its revenue was also the highest in value. Starting from 1548, the entrance fee was ordered to be given to the central government. The amount collected differed every year; it was around 20,000 to 40,000 silver tael during the 16th century. In the year of 1580, it reached 52,729.5 tael. The amount reported by the officials started to decline gradually to as low as 6,000 to 10,000 tael from the 17th century. According to their rules, two thirds of the total revenue needed to be relinquished, and approximately 23,000 to 60,000 teal were delivered during the late Ming Dynasty. Though the visitor numbers had declined during Emperor Chongzhen's era (1628-1644), 20,000 tael was still ordered to be turned in for military expenditures. One third of the total revenue left in Shandong was used for multiple purposes, including subsidies for seigniors, wages for government officials, workers compensation, and hosting the imperial examination. It was also utilized for disaster relief and the maintenance of temples, walls, the Mont Tai trail, etc. Since the Chongzhen era, along with the warfare during the early Qing Dynasty, pilgrim numbers had already declined dramatically due to the North China bandit incursions. Additionally, because of the rules set by the central government, which required up to 30,000 teal. In the mid-Emperor Kangxi era, the collected amount decreased to 21,205 teal. During the Emperor Yongzheng era, the collected amount again dropped to 6,000 teal, while the entrance fee stayed unchanged. In terms of total revenue, the Qing dynasty collected much less than the Ming dynasty. In 1735, right before the abolishment of the system, the total revenue was around 10,000 teal, while the amount left for local government was used to sponsor the imperial examination as its main purpose.