back to 1900 Juncture
Scientific Equipment
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
binoculars, 6x30, with leather case | 2 | £3 | 75 sp |
camera, 4x7 field type | 6 | £8 | 96 sp |
camera, film magazine type | 3 | £5 5s | 132 sp |
camera, Kodak (not developed in China) | 2 | £11 | 300 sp |
compass, pocket | --- | 15s | £18 sp |
dissecting kit | 2 | £5 | 122 sp |
doctor's bag & supplies | 10 | £3 | 250 sp |
dressing kit | 2 | £8 | 144 sp |
field laboratory apparatus set, chemical | 15 | £5 | 138 sp |
field laboratory apparatus set, electical | 8 | £6 | 153 sp |
hunting kit | 2 | £3 | 48 sp |
laudanum, 4 oz. bottle | 0.3 | 2s | 1 sp |
magnifying glass | n/a | 12s | 15 sp |
medical kit, colonial | 10 | £4 | 108 sp |
navigation instrument set | 8 | £12 | 297 sp |
portable microscope set | 10 | £45 | 1092 sp |
surveying instrument set | 20 | £25 | 624 sp |
telegraph instrument set | 1 | £1 | 25 sp |
telescope or spy glass, hand-held, 'draw' type, 20x | 1 | £1 | 25 sp |
telescope, tripod mounted, 50x | 35 | £20 | 528 sp |
tourist's companion (thermometer, altimeter/barometer, compass, etc.) | 6 | £8 | 204 sp |
wire, insulated, 1 mile spool | 100 | £1 | 264 sp |
Reference Materials
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
Bowditch's Practical Navigator and Almanac | 5 | £1 | 5 sp |
Conklin's Handy Manual of Useful Information and Atlas | 3 | 3s | 5 sp |
Edison's Encyclopedia of General Information | 3 | 2s | 6 sp |
Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 volumes | 165 | £30 | 438 sp |
The Millwright's Companion and Handy-book | 1 | 8s | 12 sp |
Rand McNally & Co's New Pictorial Atlas of the Earth | 2 | £1 | 26 sp |
Robb's Medical Companion and Household Physician | 3 | £2 | 51 sp |
Rose and Carless Manual of Surgery | 2 | £1 | 26 sp |
Savill's System of Clinical Medicine | 3 | £1 | 27 sp |
Tools
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
axe, felling | 3 | 2s | 4 sp |
forge, portable | 500 | £6 | 720 sp |
hatchet | 2 | 6p | 3 sp |
knife, two-bladed jack | n/a | 1s | 1 sp |
knife, camp or hunting | n/a | 4s | 4 sp |
lockpick set | n/a | 18s | 24 sp |
machete and sheath | 2 | 8d | 3 sp |
photographic lab, portable | 30 | £7 | 204 sp |
pick, mattock, or shovel | 5 | 2s | 8 sp |
saw, buck with 30" blade | 3.5 | 2s | 6 sp |
sledgehammer or maul | 16 | 5s | 60 sp |
steam engine and boiler, 4 HP | 1,000 | £28 | 1,560 sp |
steam engine and boiler, 10 HP | 1,850 | £48 | 3,000 sp |
tools, carpenter's | 30 | £4 | 132 sp |
tools, instrument maker's | 10 | £7 | 180 sp |
tools, metalworker's | 60 | £6 | 216 sp |
trap, bear | 3 | 1s | 4 sp |
trap, small animal | 1 | 6d | 1 sp |
Travelling Gear
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
ammunition chest for 250 rds. of rifle/shotgun ammo | 5 | £1 | 12 sp |
ammunition, 12 ga. buckshot, black powder, 500 rds. | 65 | £1 12s | 120 sp |
ammunition, 12 ga. buckshot, smokeless, 500 rds. | 65 | £2 8s | 135 sp |
ammunition, pistol, 100 rds. (non-trivial calibers) | 3 | 6s | 7 sp |
ammunition, rifle, 100 rds. (not powerful calibers) | 5 | 8s | 18 sp |
ammunition, rifle, 100 rds. (military calibers) | 9 | 16s | 30 sp |
backpack | 1.5 | 2s | 1 sp |
bag, carpet | 3 | 2s | 6 sp |
ball, rugby | 0.84 | 8s | 6 sp |
belt with holster and ammo pouch | 2 | £1 9s | 24 sp |
belt or bandoleer for cartridges | 2 | 5s | 4 sp |
billy, lead-filled leather sap | 0.5 | 6s | 3 sp |
billy, extra-heavy and long "Paralyzer" sap | 1 | 8s | 9 sp |
blanket | 4 | 8d | 4 sp |
brass knuckles, finest grade | 0.5 | 6s | 3 sp |
canteen, 1 quart filled | 2.5 | 3s | 2 sp |
camp stove, portable, coal oil | 2 | 10s | 14 sp |
camping cooking and eating outfit (mess) | 80 | £5 | 216 sp |
cartridge bag, 75 rds., over-shoulder type | 2 | £1 | 12 sp |
cigars, 100 good Havana | 4 | £3 | 84 sp |
cigarettes, 100 William Morris | 0.25 | 4s 3p | 5 sp |
clothing, foul weather | 3 | £1 to £5 | 10 sp to 60 sp |
clothing, rough-living | 3 | £1 to £3 | 10 sp to 60 sp |
clothing, cotton duck hunting pants and coat, finest grade | 3 | £2 | 24 sp to 36 sp |
cot, folding | 15 | 6s | 24 sp |
cricket set (2 bats, 2 balls, pads, stumps, net, rules, etc.) | 25 | £3 | 100 sp |
flask, liquor, half pint | 1 | 10s | 12 sp |
food, canned, one day | 4 | 8d | 5 sp |
food, one day (western) | 3 | 6d or more | 2 sp or more |
food, meat (soup meat) | 1 | 2d to 1s or more | 0.2 sp to 1 sp or more |
food, rice in bags | 50 | 3d or more | 1 sp or more |
fishing tackle (western) | 1 | 12s | 27 sp |
golf set (9 clubs, bag, balls, etc.) | 30 | £4 | 132 sp |
Gramophone or similar | 3 | £5 | 123 sp |
hammock | 2 | 4s | 2 sp |
lamp, miner's safety | 0.3 | 8d | 2 sp |
lantern, carbide | 1 | 1s | 3 sp |
lantern, storm or railway conductor's | 2 | 5s | 8 sp |
lantern, dark or policeman's | 2 | 5s | 8 sp |
lawn tennis set (4 rackets, 6 balls, net, rules, etc.) | 15 | £3 | 90 sp |
lighter, oil-filled, contains 50 primers to light the oil | n/a | 1s | 2 sp |
liquor, 12 bottles of port | 70 | £1 14s | 62 sp |
liquor, 12 bottles of whiskey | 70 | £4 4s | 125 sp |
liquor, 12 bottles of brandy | 70 | £5 10s | 156 sp |
liquor, 12 bottles of gin | 70 | £4 10s | 132 sp |
liquor, 12 bottles of rice wine | 70 | £2 | 24 sp |
liquor, 12 bottles of rum | 70 | £4 | 120 sp |
padlock, bronze railway, with 2 keys | 1.5 | 3s | 6 sp |
root beer, 12 bottles | 70 | 12s | 96 sp |
rope, 100 feet of 3/8" manila | 5 | 2s | 1 sp |
scabbard for rifle or shotgun | 6 | 5s | 3 sp |
sight, tang-mounted vernier style for rifles | n/a | 15s | 24 sp |
sight, Duplex telescopic for rifles | n/a | £3 10s | 120 sp |
soap, bar | 0.45 | 3d | 0.1 sp |
spectacles, steel framed, prescription lenses | --- | £1 5s | 36 sp |
stool, folding camp | 4 | 3s | 1 sp |
sunglasses | --- | £2s | 2 sp |
tarp, 10 x 10 feet, 10 oz. canvas | 12 | 10d | 0.5 sp |
tent, miners' (7' across, one pole) | 20 | 15s | 9 sp |
tent, two-man (two shelter halves) | 12 | £3 | 36 sp |
tent, wall, ten man (14' x 16') | 76 | £4 5s | 53 sp |
tent, wedge or 'A', two-man | 30 | £1 10s | 18 sp |
tripod (for survey instruments, cameras, etc.) | 12 | 10s | 26 sp |
trunk, steamer | 6 | 8s | 16 sp |
watch, pocket | n/a | £2 to £10 | 50 sp to 250 sp |
watch, schoolboy's | n/a | 15s | 18 sp |
watch, stop | n/a | £3 | 75 sp |
Fuel
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
coal | 2,000 | 1s 6d | 2 sp |
petroleum or gasoline, 88 octane | 2,000 | £3 | 2,400 sp |
liquid fuels | 2,000 | £6 | 2,400 sp |
wood or peat | n/a | free | free |
carbide | 1 | 5d | 1 sp |
Explosives
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
black powder, barrel | 6 | 10s | 6 sp |
dynamite, case of 48 sticks | 24 | £2 10s | 120 sp |
nitroglycerin, case of 20 bottles | 5 | £1 | 30 sp |
Land Transport
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
wagon, light, farm or delivery (2 ton capacity) | 1,000 | £10 | 120 sp |
wagon, freight, conestoga, or cape | 3,200 | £50 | 720 sp |
howdah | 250 | £10 | 120 sp |
bicycle, safety | 26 | £5 | 150 sp |
bicycle, penny-farthing | 40 | £10 | 290 sp |
horse saddle, military, wallets and tack | 26 | £1 to £15 | 24 sp to 360 sp |
horse saddle, hunting with tack | 13 | £1 to £10 | 24 sp to 180 sp |
horse saddle, western, stock or cowboy with tack | 12 | £2 to £8 | 24 sp to 200 sp |
panniers, two of 100# capacity | 10 | £3 | 36 sp |
2-6-0 tank locomotive, about as small as std. gauge gets | 20,000 | £800 | 33,600 sp |
"40 Ton" Shay two-truck geared locomotive | 60,000 | £1,200 | 86,400 sp |
railway car, private | 40,000 | £800 | 72,000 sp |
Water Transport
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
boat, folding canvas (the Acme, 12' long) | 35 | £7 | 180 sp |
longboat - good sailing, 32' long, 7' wide, 10 oars, capacity 25 men and 3 tons | 2,000 | £50 | 600 sp |
launch - shallow waters, 28' long, 7' wide, capacity 30 men and 4 tons | 2,500 | £50 | 600 sp |
cutter - 18' long, 5' wide, 4 oars, capacity 8 men and 0.25 ton | 250 | £10 | 120 sp |
whaleboat or pinnace - 26'-28' long, 6'-8' wide, 6 oars, capacity about 0.5-1 ton | 500-1,000 | £30 | 360 sp |
dingy - 10' long, 3' wide, 2 oars, 3 people, capacity about 400# | 120 | £5 | 60 sp |
boat, rowing | ? | £3 | 36 sp |
small river junk - 25' long, 8' wide, 1 mast, capacity about 4 tons | 3,000 | n/a | 400 sp |
medium junk - 70' long, 15' wide, 2 masts, capacity about 12 tons | 10,000 | n/a | 1,000 sp |
steam launch - 24' long, 8' beam, capacity 4 tons or 30 men | 5,000 | £50 | 1,200 sp |
steamer, river or canal, small | ? | £100 | 2,400 sp |
Miscellaneous
Item |
Weight, lbs. |
Cost, England |
Cost, China |
small bare room, in Chinese city per month | n/a | -- | 2 sp |
plain gold ring, 18 karat, 5 pwt. | --- | 1 gn. | 12 sp |
plain silver ring, 18 karat, 5 pwt. | --- | 1 gn. | 12 sp |
gold ring with diamond | --- | 1 gn. | 20 sp |
gold ring with ruby | --- | 1 gn. | 20 sp |
harmonica, Hohner | --- | 3 s | 3 sp |
violin with case, good quality | 10 | 1 gn. | 40 sp |
zither with case, good quality | 12 | 2 gn. | 63 sp |
boy, 14 years old, in China | n/a | -- | 16 sp |
boy, 11 years old, in China | n/a | -- | 4 sp |
woman, in China | n/a | -- | 45 sp |
Bulk freight costs to China from England estimated at 2 shillings per pound. "sp" refers to various silver coinage -- taels, trade pesos, etc., all worth about $0.50 or $0.60 US in period.
Some of the sources: Sears, Roebuck Catalog for 1897; Bannerman Catalogue of Military Goods, 1927; Harrod's Stores Price List, May 1895; Great Western Gun Works Catalogue, 1897 and the Space: 1889 rules.
Comments (0)
You don't have permission to comment on this page.