Customary Law and the Economic Growth of China During the Ch'ing Period

In late imperial China households often cooperated with each other in economic organizations to manage assets for the purpose of earning more income or obtaining more services than if each household had acted independently. For example, households of the same lineage branch (fang) usually agreed to lease lineage land or an irrigation pond for rental income which was then used for support of elderly parents, perform ancestor worship rites, or preserve lineage assets. In communities favored by access to streams, rivers, or lakes households sometimes cooperated to build an irrigation system to supply water to their fields so as to increase yield and farm the land more intensively. In many communities some households organized crop watching associations to reduce crop theft. Quite often, community leaders arranged to lease village land and collect rent which they used to finance the village school or temple. In market towns and cities several households sometimes pooled their wealth to establish business partnerships to open a shop or launch a new business. Finally, many households already in some business often preferred to participate in an association(guild) for protecting their business interests as well as producing social services. The reason why households sometimes preferred to organize and participate in such collectivities was that the advantages to acquire more income and/or services form their resources far exceeded the costs than If each household