During the past few years, some 200 stone inscriptions have been copied by the Chinese historian Lin Renchuan ,.,tt {::.. II\ in different places in South Fukien. In 1987, in the course of a study of the history of land reclamation, I had the occasion to roam through the mountains and coastal plains of South Fukien with Professor Lin, and read his collection. Most of the texts have never been published in any form. A f~w, usually by famous authors such as, for instance, Ts'ai Hsiang~ J._ , have already been included in one or more of the few Fukienese collections of ancient stone and bronze...

Presents new insights into recent changes in China's legal framework in areas crucial to the modernisation process. Topics include law reform to accommodate foreign interests and convert China to a market economy, the judicial system and its treatment of human rights issues, the introduction of non-tariff barriers for foreign companies, and the current privatisation process.