This chapter focuses on the Customs Service under the Nationalists. It begins with a close analysis of Inspector General Frederick Maze, whose attitude towards the Nationalists was one of upholding their claims to be the legitimate government of all of China, but at the same time he was willing to make pragmatic deals with their opponents. It then turns to the rise of smuggling, a subject about which the Service's archives provide rich material. It details how smuggling was organized and how regional governments supported and profited from it, and evaluates the preventive activities of the Service. It also analyzes the role of the Customs Service in a series of wars and conflicts between the Nationalists and local governments as well as the Japanese.