The Debate Between Old and New:A Study on the Restriction of Jiuda Refined Salt Company from Setting up Stores in the Early Republic of China
With the rise of the Republic of China,the improvement of salt quality was put on the agenda,and the modern signifi-cance of technological refined salt companies emerged.Tianjin Jiuda Refined Salt Company,as the first and largest refined salt company in modern China,has developed rapidly with the benefits of refined salt since its establishment.In the process of devel-opment,disputes and boycotts frequently arose,and the case of restricting the establishment of Jiuda Refined Salt Company in Nanjing in the early years of the Republic of China was a representative of its conflict.The case,ostensibly a dispute over setting up shop in Nanjing,was in essence a clash between old and new salt merchants competing for sales markets and reflected the complex relationship between Westernization and nationalism in modern China.