CHINESE MARITIME CUSTOMS 551 the confidence of his Chinese overseers.5 These works share a basic assumption that Hart was largely apolitical:he served his Chinese masters by running the Customs with efficiency and providing useful advice,and periodically stepped into international disputes as a trusted honest broker.To do this,Hart remained above the fray of political struggles and the aggressive diplomacy of the day. This paper will present a different angle on Hart's career in the 186os and early 187os.Hart was a political man who leavened his principled arguments for an independent Customs service and administrative honesty with an ample concern for his own selfinterest. While the I.G.avoided taking overtly political positions,he adroitly adapted to the political circumstances and used them to his advantage. Hart aligned himself with a group of Beijing officials lead by Prince Gong (Yixin),a member of the imperial family,and the Manchu statesman Wenxiang who were the leaders of Zongli Yamen.He organized and managed the Customs Service to maximize the Yamen's authority vis-a-vis provincial officials,finance pet projects,and provide confidential advice.Their sponsorship enabled Hart to set up the Customs in a manner that gave him extraordinary and unchecked authority.He would wield this power to the very end,and this would allow for many of the administrative peculiarities of the service. Just as he smoothly adapted to the Qing political situation,Hart took advantage of unusually moderate British diplomacy in China during the 186os.Led by the first Minister to Beijing,Frederick Bruce,British diplomacy demanded from the Qing government strict adherence to the treaties and the establishment of free trade.But Bruce also supported the Qing government's efforts to suppress rebellion,and pursued policies aimed at strengthening the authority of the central government in Beijing.Hart created an organization that served the interests of British free trade policies,and which conspicuously supported authorities in Beijing-a close fit for Bruce's vision.But Hart's Customs also remained sufficiently international in its personnel and free of direct British influence to avoid becoming a target for other powers.In a semi-colonial realm in which the power of the Qing state was precariously balanced against British hegemony 6 Katherine Bruner,John K.Fairbank,Richard J.Smith,Entering China's Service: Robert Hart's Journals,1854-1863 (Cambridge MA:Council on East Asian Studies, Harvard University,1986),324-32. Mary Clabaugh Wright,21-42;Britten Dean,China and Great Britain:The Diplomacy of Commercial Relations,1860-1864 (Cambridge,Mass:East Asian Research Center,.1974),128-36.CHINESE MARITIME CUSTOMS 551 the confidence of his Chinese overseers.6 These works share a basic assumption that Hart was largely apolitical: he served his Chinese masters by running the Customs with efficiency and providing useful advice, and periodically stepped into international disputes as a trusted honest broker. To do this, Hart remained above the fray of political struggles and the aggressive diplomacy of the day. This paper will present a different angle on Hart’s career in the 1860s and early 1870s. Hart was a political man who leavened his principled arguments for an independent Customs service and administrative honesty with an ample concern for his own self interest. While the I. G. avoided taking overtly political positions, he adroitly adapted to the political circumstances and used them to his advantage. Hart aligned himself with a group of Beijing officials lead by Prince Gong (Yixin), a member of the imperial family, and the Manchu statesman Wenxiang who were the leaders of Zongli Yamen. He organized and managed the Customs Service to maximize the Yamen’s authority vis-`a-vis provincial officials, finance pet projects, and provide confidential advice. Their sponsorship enabled Hart to set up the Customs in a manner that gave him extraordinary and unchecked authority. He would wield this power to the very end, and this would allow for many of the administrative peculiarities of the service. Just as he smoothly adapted to the Qing political situation, Hart took advantage of unusually moderate British diplomacy in China during the 1860s. Led by the first Minister to Beijing, Frederick Bruce, British diplomacy demanded from the Qing government strict adherence to the treaties and the establishment of free trade. But Bruce also supported the Qing government’s efforts to suppress rebellion, and pursued policies aimed at strengthening the authority of the central government in Beijing.7 Hart created an organization that served the interests of British free trade policies, and which conspicuously supported authorities in Beijing—a close fit for Bruce’s vision. But Hart’s Customs also remained sufficiently international in its personnel and free of direct British influence to avoid becoming a target for other powers. In a semi-colonial realm in which the power of the Qing state was precariously balanced against British hegemony 6 Katherine Bruner, John K. Fairbank, Richard J. Smith, Entering China’s Service: Robert Hart’s Journals, 1854–1863 (Cambridge MA: Council on East Asian Studies, Harvard University, 1986), 324–32. 7 Mary Clabaugh Wright, 21–42; Britten Dean, China and Great Britain: The Diplomacy of Commercial Relations, 1860–1864 (Cambridge, Mass: East Asian Research Center, 1974), 128–36