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"Fierce Smugglers Caused Disturbance"
The ocean and the rivers constituted a means for the Wenzhounese to connect with the outside world. Yet they also became a contested space for smugglers and pirates to extract resources and compete with one another. Traders from the north -- either Shanghai or Ningbo -- or the south -- particularly Xiamen -- were usually at risks of being raided by the pirates from the nearby regions, especially Taizhou. Merchant boats were usually equipped with weapons or mercenaries because of the frequent raids by the pirates. Local officials and policemen were also tasked to quench fugitive on the sea; yet they sometimes opened one eye while closing the other as they had to deal with various local affairs and in practice they could only take the most efficient approaches or, to the other way around, somehow passive ways in the face of illegal trade and smuggling network.
In October 1886, several dozen smuggling boats appeared on Wenzhou’s waters. The Corps of Catching Salt Smugglers had already been made aware of their planned arrival. They lay in wait in the region close to the water, and then opened fire on the smuggling boats when they passed by. The smuggling boats were not equipped with cannons, so they sent several smugglers carrying swords to jump onto the official’s boats. The two sides fought fiercely on the ocean, with many injured in the fight. Four smugglers were caught, two officers were kidnapped, but only one smuggling boat was captured by the officers.
In October 1919, a Wenzhounese-owned Rongtai sailboat was navigating from Shanghai to Wenzhou. While the boat was near the Tongsha water, approximately 15 miles away from the mouth of the Soochow Creek (Wusong River), it was surrounded by two pirate boats. 50 to 60 pirates flooded to the sailboat, robbed all the valuables, and kidnapped two sailors for a ransom of 1,000 golds. The owner of the sailboat, a Wenzhou native Chen Hongqiang, quickly informed the Wenzhou Native-Place Association in Shanghai. The latter thus sent a telegram to the Governor of Zhejiang Province, urging him to investigate the case and take back the lost goods and personnel. The pirates, reportedly from Taizhou, had committed similar crimes around the nearby waters. They transported the looted goods to the Shitang Town, which is only 70 miles away from Wenzhou. Probably due to such "native" relationship as well as the petitioner's connection with Shanghai, the Zhejiang provincial authorities soon requested water policemen to take care of the case. Yet the consequences remained unknown as the newspapers did not provide further details.
