Chapter Six: Phenomenal Progress in Loading and Unloading Work

Abstract

The reform of production relationships on the docks led to a transformation of the docks' appearance. Before the liberation, the docks were all owned by the imperialists, bureaucratic capitalists, and private capitalists. They dictated the docks' objectives, which were either to provide a convenient avenue for their aggression or to seize great wealth. Because they had a single-minded desire to get the greatest possible profit out of the smallest possible investment, dock and warehouse construction in this period was extremely flimsy, and the equipment very inferior. Among the docks, those representing the smallest investment were the floating docks, which made up 42 percent of the dock footage in the harbor. This kind of dock rose and fell with the tide. Not only could large boats not moor there steadily, but the gangplank bridge joining the dock to the land also rose and fell with the tide, often making a steeply inclined slope. This made it even more difficult for the workers to carry goods on and off the dock. Some fixed docks, although they outwardly appeared to be made of concrete, had frameworks that were extremely flimsy. They had limited loading weight capacities and basically could not handle large-scale mechanical equipment. There were also some wooden docks which were decrepit, rotting, soggy, corroded things. They were terribly unsafe and unsuitable for use.