Chinese Agricultural Extension and Uneven Economic Growth, 1903-1937: A Case Study of Shandong Province Thesis Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Master of Arts in the Graduate School of The Ohio State University By Spencer Dean Stewart Graduate Program in East Asian Studies The Ohio State University 2015 Thesis Committee: Karen M. Mancl, Advisor Philip C. Brown Christopher A. Reed Copyright by Spencer Dean Stewart 2015 Abstract In 1929, the Nationalist Party (Guomindang 國民黨) passed a set of regulations to establish a modern agricultural extension system in China. During this time, agricultural extension was viewed as a means to achieve national regeneration amid economic, political, and social uncertainty. The objectives of this thesis are to explore the historical development and economic impact of systematic agricultural extension in Republican China (1912-1949). State-run agricultural experiment stations and schools, first established in the late Qing (1644-1911), laid a foundation for institutional agricultural extension services during the Republican era. The establishment of a centralized system of extension in 1929 represents continuity in state-led development and diffusion of agricultural innovations from imperial China. Taking the Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences (SAAS) as a case study, this thesis argues that institutionalized agricultural research and extension during the Republican era laid a foundation for the People’s Republic of China (1949-present). Agricultural research and educational institutions established in Shandong in the late Qing and Republican eras made possible the rapid expansion of institutions such as SAAS after 1949. Agricultural research and extension efforts during the Republican era led to economic growth that was geographically uneven. The diffusion and cultivation of improved cotton varieties in Shandong through the extension system illustrates that ii extension efforts were largely focused on regions and counties within close geographic proximity to extension centers. Cultivation of improved varieties was concentrated around adjacent counties to the extension centers, leading to economic growth that was spatially uneven. iii Acknowledgements I would first like to acknowledge my advisor, Karen M. Mancl, and my committee members, Philip C. Brown and Christopher A. Reed. They each provided vital feedback on this thesis, and have guided me throughout my two years at The Ohio State University. I gratefully acknowledge Linda M. Lobao for feedback on early drafts of Chapters One and Four. Her courses on innovation diffusion and rural poverty were especially instrumental in shaping this research. This study would have been impossible without the help of faculty at the National Library of China, the National Agricultural Library of China, and the Shandong Provincial Library in locating important sources. In particular, Yao Yuzhi at the National Agricultural Library of China was helpful and patient in finding and photocopying countless documents. Additionally, Chen Yunqian of Nanjing University was kind enough to provide me with access to the digital databases at the Nanjing University Library, for which I am grateful. I also want to thank my host at the Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wang Yanqin, for welcoming me to the academy and showing me around. I am also grateful for the funding I received to pursue this degree. These included a Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship (2013-2014), an International Graduate Research Associateship through OSU’s Ohio Agricultural Research and iv Development Center (OARDC, 2014-2015), and a graduate research appointment through OSU’s Office of International Affairs (OIA, Summer 2015). Finally, I must acknowledge the love and support I have received from my family. Special thanks to Teresa for her patience and humor, and to Dean, whose timely arrival has been a source of inspiration and motivation to complete this thesis. v Vita 2013…………………………………...…B.A. Asian Studies, Brigham Young University 2013-2014………………………………………FLAS Fellow, The Ohio State University 2014-2015……………………...International Graduate Research Associateship Program, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, The Ohio State University 2014-2015…………………………………………………...Graduate Research Assistant, Assessing Student Preparation for Global Success at OSU February 2015…….……………..…… Third Place Award for Presentation in Humanities Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum Fields of Study Major Field: East Asian Studies vi Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ......................................................................................................................... iv Vita.................................................................................................................................................. vi Table of Contents ........................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ................................................................................................................................ viii List of Figures ................................................................................................................................. ix Introduction ...................................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Agricultural Extension: Definition and Literature Review .................................................... 4 1.2 Historiography of the Republican Era Economy ................................................................. 13 1.3 Overview, Methods, and Sources ........................................................................................ 18 Agricultural Extension in Republican China ................................................................................. 21 2.1 Encouraging Agriculture in Late-Imperial China ................................................................ 23 2.2 Institutionalizing Agricultural Extension, 1900-1937 ......................................................... 28 2.3 Weaknesses of Agricultural Extension in Republican China .............................................. 36 2.4 Summary .............................................................................................................................. 42 Agricultural Experimentation and Extension in Shandong, 1903-2013 ........................................ 43 3.1 Provincial Agricultural Experiment Stations, 1903-1937 .................................................... 45 3.2 Experimentation in Wartime Shandong, 1937-1949 ............................................................ 52 3.3 Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, 1946-2013 .................................................. 56 3.4 Summary .............................................................................................................................. 66 Cotton, Extension, and Uneven Economic Growth ....................................................................... 67 4.1 Sources and Methods ........................................................................................................... 69 4.2 Historical Overview of Cotton Cultivation in China ........................................................... 75 4.3 Diffusion of U.S. Cotton Varieties in Shandong ................................................................. 87 4.4 Cotton Extension and Spatial Inequality .............................................................................. 95 3.5 Summary .............................................................................................................................. 97 Conclusions .................................................................................................................................... 99 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................ 105 vii List of Tables Table 4.1 CCMA and NARB Series Coverage and Estimated Annual Output in Shandong ........ 71 Table 4.2 Annual Yields of Foreign and Native Cotton Varieties in Shandong ............................ 86 Table 4.3 Output of U.S. Varieties of Cotton in Adjacent and Near-Adjacent Counties .............. 94 Table 4.4 Average Expenses and Income for Crops in Qidong, 1928-1932 .................................. 97 viii List of Figures Figure 2.1 Republican Era Agricultural Extension System ........................................................... 32 Figure 3.1 Linqing Cotton Experiment Station .............................................................................. 49 Figure 3.2 Shandong Regional Capital Markets in Republican China .......................................... 52 Figure 3.3 Japan’s North China Agricultural Experiment Station Configuration Map ................. 54 Figure 4.1 Generalized Soil Map of Shandong .............................................................................. 81 Figure 4.2 Average Yield of U.S. Varieties in Shandong by County ............................................ 89 Figure 4.3 Average Yield of U.S. Varieties in Shandong by County (% of total output) .............. 90 ix Chapter 1 Introduction There is no short cut to national regeneration.