Li Xingyuan 李星沅

LI Hsing-yüan 李星沅 (T. 子湘, H. 石梧), July 8, 1797–1851, May 12, official, was a native of Hsiang-yin, Hunan. In 1832 he became a chin-shih and was selected a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy. Made a compiler a year later, he was appointed to assist in several literary projects. Thereafter he served as educational commissioner of Kwangtung (1835–37), prefect of Han-chung-fu, Shensi (1838), grain intendant of Honan (1838–40), and provincial judge of Shensi (1840–41), of Szechwan (1841), and of Kiangsu (1841). Early in 1842 he was promoted to be financial commissioner of Kiangsu, where the first Anglo-Chinese war was raging. He had charge of supplying the armies of I-ching [q.v.] in their struggle against the invaders and, while the English fleet was sailing up the Yangtze River, he did his best to maintain order and quarantine the defeated soldiers. After the signing of the Treaty of Nanking (see under Ch'i-ying), he took charge of demobilization of the troops and of the reports on war expenditure. Late in 1842 he rose to the post of governor of Shensi, and in 1845 was transferred to Kiangsu. In both provinces he introduced reforms in the military and civil administration.

In 1846 Li Hsing-yüan was made governor-general of Yunnan and Kweichow to succeed Ho Ch'ang-ling [q.v.]. When he reached the province later in that year, he led the provincial troops to suppress a Muslim uprising at Mien-ning, and within two months achieved this objective. His speedy victory won for him the title of Grand Guardian of the Heir Apparent and the decoration of the peacock feather. In the middle of 1847 he became governor-general of Kiangnan and Kiangsi. At Nanking he paid special attention to the suppression of the pirates on the seacoast to insure the safety of grain transport by the sea route (see under T'ao Chu). He also made reforms in the salt administration. In 1848, owing to his strenuous relief activities in flooded northern Kiangsu, he became ill. Early in 1849 he suffered from pains in the muscles of his chest and, after repeated pleas, was granted leave to nurse his illness.

In 1850, although he had not yet recovered, Li Hsing-yüan went to Peking to mourn the death of Emperor Hsüan-tsung. In an audience with the succeeding emperor, Wên-tsung, he was given permission to return to his home to care for his aged mother. But at midnight, on December 22, 1850, he received a decree, dated seven days earlier, appointing him Imperial Commissioner to suppress the rebellion of the Taipings in Kwangsi (see under Hsiang Jung and Hung Hsiu-ch'üan). Early in 1851 he went to Liuchow to direct this campaign, but died there before he could accomplish anything. He was canonized as Wên-kung 文恭.

The wife of Li Hsing-yüan, whose maiden name was Kuo Jun-yü 郭潤玉 (T. 昭華, 笙愉, H. 壺山女士), left a collection of poems entitled 簪花閣詩鈔 Tsan-hua ko shih-ch'ao. Verses which she and her husband exchanged with each other were printed in 1837 under the title 梧笙館聯吟 Wu-shêng kuan lien-yin. Li's own works appeared after his death under the title, 李文恭公遺集 Li Wên-kung kung i-chi, 46 chüan (also known as 芋香山館集 Yü-hsiang shan-kuan chi).

Li Hsing-yüan had five sons. The eldest, Li Hang 李杭 (T. 孟龍, H. 梅生, 1821–1848), was a chin-shih of 1844 and a Hanlin compiler. He left a collection of literary works entitled Hsiao (小) yü-hsiang kuan chi, 12 chüan. The third, Li Huan 李桓 (T. 叔虎, H. 黼堂, 1827–1891), an honorary licentiate, purchased the rank of an intendant of a Circuit, and in 1855 was sent to Kiangsi to await appointment. There, at Nanchang, he lived eight years, serving first as grain intendant (1856–62) and then as financial commissioner (1862–63). In the meantime he served several times as acting provincial judge and once as acting governor (1862), and held the following concurrent posts: director of the defense of Nanchang (1855–61) and superintendent of the bureau for collecting the taxes known as likin (1856–63). These were the years of the Taiping Rebellion and he did a great deal to stabilize the provincial administration which then was constantly harassed by rebel onslaughts and by corruption among the officials. In 1863 he was ordered to direct the campaign against the Nien bandits in Shensi but, after organizing a militia with a contribution of his own amounting to 20,000 taels, he was stricken with paralysis and retired in May of that year.

It is reported that Li Huan offended Tsêng Kuo-fan [q.v.] by remaining aloof from him. Before Li left Nanchang Tsêng ordered a careful examination of his accounts in the likin office, but found no cause for impeachment. Tsêng did, however, report minor mistake that Li had made in a judiciary case for which he was lowered in rank. For this, or for other reasons, Li continued in retirement, although after a few years he recovered from his paralysis. During his retirement he edited his own and his father's works. His own collection, 寶韋齋類稿 Pao-wei chai lei-kao, printed in 1890 in 100 chüan (an 82 chüan edition appeared in 1880), consists of his memorials and other official papers, his letters, literary works, and miscellaneous notes concerning his life as an official. These notes, which bear the separate title, 甲癸夢痕記 Chia kuei mêng-hên chi, contain some honest and revealing descriptions of the life of officials in his day.

Li Huan is now remembered chiefly for having edited a massive and very valuable collection of classified biographies of famous men of the Ch‘ing period, entitled 國朝耆獻類徵 Kuo-ch'ao ch'i-hsien lei-chêng. It consists of 484 chüan of major biographies, and 204 chüan giving the lives of princes of the Imperial Clan and of Mongols. In addition there is a table-of-contents in 20 chüan, an index in 10 chüan, a list of persons who have identical names, in 1 chüan, and an introduction in 1 chüan—making a total of 720 chüan in 294 volumes. Li drew his materials from many sources—official and private biographies, epitaphs, inscriptions on tombstones, miscellaneous notes, literary collections, etc. He began the compilation in 1867 when he was in Hunan; continued to work on it during the eighteen-seventies when he resided at Hangchow; and started the printing in 1884 after he returned to Hunan and had lost his eyesight. Despite these handicaps, he made alterations and additions while the printing was going on, and finally brought the work to completion in 1890. He then added a collection of biographies of women of the Ch'ing period, entitled Kuo-ch'ao hsien-yüan (賢媛) lei-chêng, 12 chüan, printed in 1891, the year of his death.

[1/399/1a; 2/42/12b; 5/24/23b; 7/25/17b; 5/38/10a; Li Wên-kung kung hsing-shu (行述); Pao-wei chai lei-kao; Hunan t'ung-chih (1885) 36/17a; Wang Hsien-ch'ien 王先謙, 虛受堂詩集 Hsü-shou t'ang shih-chi 14/18b; Kuo Sung-tao [q.v.], Yang-chih shu-nu wên-chi, 16/19b.]

Fang Chao-ying

Li Xingyuan 李星沅 【參考資料: MQWW PoetID #3563.】 《清代人物生卒年表》定其生卒年為嘉慶2年~咸豐1年。 《清代人物生卒年表》原注：「李星沅，何栻 《悔餘庵文稿》卷六『家傳』作咸豐二年（1852）卒。」 【參考《清代人物生卒年表》#8601.】

MQWW: 李星沅

《清史稿》卷393

李星沅，字石梧，湖南湘陰人。道光十二年進士，選庶吉士，授編修。十五年，督廣東學政。粵士多健訟，檄通省籍諸生之干訟者，牒報詗治之，士風以肅。任滿，授陝西漢中知府，歷河南糧道，陝西、四川、江蘇按察使。在川、陝嚴治刀匪、嘓匪，屢擒其魁置之法。遷江西布政使，調江蘇。二十二年，擢陝西巡撫，署陝甘總督。二十五年，調江蘇巡撫。二十六年，擢雲貴總督，兼署雲南巡撫。

先是，永昌回亂，迤西道羅天池濫殺，不分良莠，眾回益擾。總督賀長齡、提督張必祿急於主撫，降者輒復叛。至是，緬寧匪首馬國海被剿亡走，潛結雲州回馬登霄、海連升等復起事，迤西大震。星沅追論肇亂之由，長齡、天池等並獲譴。二十七年，遣兵進剿，解散被脅回眾，首逆就殲，餘匪肅清。詔嘉其功，加太子太保銜，賜花翎。尋調兩江總督。

星沅未第時，客陶澍幕中，為掌章奏。又歷官江南，習於鹽、漕、河諸利弊。時度支告匱，廷臣主南漕改徵折色解部，於北省採買。星沅謂折多徵收不易，折少採買不敷。穀賤銀貴，民間展轉虧折。且州縣藉端浮勒，胥吏高下其手，防之皆難。迭疏論列，議遂寢。

淮鹽自陶澍整頓之後，歷年又多積欠。星沅疏陳引鹽壅積、課款支絀情形：「揆厥所由，官以畏難而因仍，商以畏難而取巧。成本增於雜費，行銷滯於售私。年復一年，幾同痼疾。先當以內清場私，外敵鄰私，為急則治標之計。本年回空糧私，奏請查禁。其川私、粵私、潞私、浙私，均咨行堵緝。又引船夾帶，為害最鉅，扼要搜查，於揚州仙女廟及江寧下關緝獲百餘萬斤，提省審辦。他如慎出納，提緩課，派懸引，刪繁文，配運殘引，提售新鹽，裁浮巡費，禁捏報淹銷，酌議章程八條，以圖整理。」疏入，下部議行。

舊制，總督兼管河務，自道光二十二年後停止，至是復命兼管。會兼署河督，疏請嚴禁廳員聚處清江，飭各歸工次。奏籌外海水師事宜，曰磨厲人才，曰變通營巡，曰覈實會哨，曰扼要堵緝，曰配兵足數；又請添造戰船，勸捐給獎：並允行。俄羅斯通商舊由陸路，忽有商船至上海，執約拒之。在任兩年，宣宗甚加倚任。因久病，請解職回籍，允之。

三十年，宣宗崩，赴京謁梓宮，復以母老陳請歸養。會廣西匪亂方熾，起林則徐 督師，卒於途，命星沅代為欽差大臣。是年十二月，抵廣西，駐柳州。時左右江匪氛蔓延，諸賊尤以桂平金田洪秀全為最悍。巡撫鄭祖琛、提督閔正鳳皆以貽誤黜去，周天爵、向榮繼為巡撫、提督。二人者並有重名，負意氣，議輒相左，星沅調和之，仍不協，軍事多牽掣。咸豐元年春，向榮進剿，賊由大黃江、牛排嶺竄新墟、紫荊山。星沅檄總兵秦定三、李能臣率滇、黔兵追躡，賊復竄武宣。榮、天爵各進擊，賊踞東鄉，兩軍攻之不克。星沅以事權不一，奏請特簡總統將軍督剿，詔斥其推諉。尋命大學士賽尚阿率總兵達洪阿、都統巴清德赴湖南防堵，將以代之。賽尚阿至湖南，遂授欽差大臣，赴廣西督師，命星沅回湖南治防。四月，星沅力疾赴武宣前敵督戰，至則已憊甚，數日卒於軍。遺疏言：「賊不能平，不忠；養不能終，不孝。歿後斂以常服，用彰臣咎。」文宗覽而哀之，依總督例賜卹，賜金治喪，存問其母，子二人命俟服闋引見，諡文恭。子桓，官至江西布政使。