China by Harry Alverson Franck — Read

Would it not seem strange if certain foreign countries owned and governed parts of New York, Washington, St. Louis, and others of our large cities? Yet that is exactly the condition in China. Not only does England own the island of Hong Kong and a portion of the neighboring mainland, but the best parts of nearly all important Chinese ports belong to Japan, Great Britain, France, Italy, and other European countries. These foreign colonies in China are called "concessions," because they were conceded by the old Chinese government, sometimes after wars between the foreign countries and China. Most of them were merely leased for a long term of years, rather than given. But they are really foreign colonies within China.

China did not want to open her doors to the West any more than Japan or Korea did. The Chinese thought all other peoples were barbarians; and they still do, to a large extent-just as we still sometimes call them heathen. So the emperors decided that it would be better if their people did not come into contact any more than necessary with the rude traders and seamen from the outside world. To begin with, therefore, the Chinese quite willingly allowed the foreigners to build up ports and cities on certain bits of Chinese territory turned over to the outsiders.