清代中叶开始就不时有人提出恢复古代的“乡官”制度,将国家职官体系延伸到县以下的基层社会,对其实施更为有效的控制。然而,“乡官”筹议始终停留在朝野话题的层面上,而未得到实施。时至晚清,随着西方地方自治思潮的传入,一部分知识分子开始主张将西式地方自治与传统的“乡官”制度嫁接起来,改善基层治理。 From the very beginning of the middle of the Qing Dynasty, people from time to time proposed to restore the ancient system of “township officials” and extend the system of state officials to grass-roots units under the county to exercise more effective control over them. However, “township officials ” planning has always remained at the level of the ruling and opposition topics, but not implemented. From late Qing Dynasty to the late Qing Dynasty, with the introduction of the trend of western local autonomy, some intellectuals began to advocate the grafting of Western-style local autonomy and the traditional system of “township officials” to improve grassroots governance.