THE JAPANESE COMMERCIAL
TREATY.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
"
[October 24, 1895
done and is almost past remedy; China's To escape further badgering, and, no doubt, sole hope of mitigating it lies in continued to be rid of further interference, the Japanese and progressive solvency. Unless her re Government have agreed to evacuate the Our Northern correspondent states that venue undergoes a steady and large im- peninsula within three months and to LI HUNG-CHANG and Mr. HIYASHI are provement, enabling her to meet the claims reduce the additional war indemnity to of interest and redemption, nothing can save Tls. 30,000,000. This is a very substantial about to negotiate the supplementary treaty her from internal interference and the steady reduction from the amount first asked, and and convention referred to in Article VI. filching of territory on the part of her China should feel grateful for the efforts of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. We do not Northern neighbour. Now China's solvency put forth on her behalf by zealous if not dis- agree with the view that these new in- is a question of trade expansion and of the interested friends. But whether the Peking struments can only deal with questions of coextension of the Imperial Maritime Cus- Government is really grateful for the in-
toms; every other phase of financial improve-tervention of the European triumvirate tariff and of fiscal detail, and will concern
ment is bound to fail from sheer inability to perhaps less certain than the ordinary the Inspector-General of Customs and his find honest men to work it. The large re- observer might think. The mandarins experts rather than the foreign trading venue from telegraphs fails to reach the have had previous experience of Russian communities. Such questions may appeal Imperial treasury; the minor receipts from liberality: they have not forgotten how, to the general reader less powerfully than shipping and railways dwindle to zero be- after having occupied Kuldja for some fore they get into the accounts of the Hu years on the plea-not a bad one, by the the more showy parts of a treaty, but none Pie. The honestly administered "Customs way-that the country was in a state of the less do they exercise a vital influence on is the one hope of Chinese finance and any anarchy, they desired to retain-it, and were. therevenue and trade of a country. But policy which will ensure its extension in with difficulty bought out.
They may quite apart from their intrinsic importance China proper-for we have too much of it possibly entertain a suspicion that Russia's we do not think they will in this case in Hongkong for our liking-will be of in- objection to Japan securing a footing on the monopolize the attention of the contracting valuable aid to the Central Government.
mainland is not so much on account of the parties. The late Earl of BEACONSFIELD on
This only tends to strengthen the Japa-welfare of China as the fear that she may a famous occasion brushed aside his criticsnese demand. No honest man need seek not be able to realise the project of which calling on him to redeem his promises by his self interest the less because.it coincides the construction of the great Trans-Siberian the remark that "a good many things with his rival's. The opening up of the Railway is one of the means to a great and had happened since then," the fact being. West River and the establishment of Cus-long sought end-the establishment of a port- that his party from an apologetic minority tom Houses at the prefectural and com- in the Pacific that will be free from ice and had become a triumphant majority. His mercial cities would alone within four years open to navigation throughout the winter, lordship's somewhat cynical mot is of
give an enormous income to Peking, Already Russia and France have begun perennial application in the sphere of though this would be a mere drop in the to reap the first fruits of their opportune practical politics and government. The
bucket to a similar policy over all the mari- intervention in the Chino-Japan settlement, Japanese may reasonably quote it in time provinces. We do not hesitate to com-
in the floating of a big loan to China formulating new demands under the Treaty mend this policy to Japanese statesmen be- wherewith. to pay the first instalment of Shimonoseki. Many things have hap
cause it also happens to be the chief of the war indemnity to Japan. What pened since Li and Iro parted, but two are desideratum of British traders and, he- Germany is ultimately to get in return specially germane to the occasion-the
cause under the most favoured nation for her good offices remains to be seen, forcible re-cession of Liaotung and the anti-
clause we should at
share the but she has obtained a concession at Tien- foreign riots and butcheries in Szechuen advantages which Japan would secure.
tsin and another at Hankow, and Ger and Fukien. No reasonable politician Great Britain has so often been the pioneer man officers are being engaged to instruct would contend that half of the fruits in this direction and has so liberally shared and reorganise the Chinese army. No doubt of victory are to be given up at the her privileges with other nations that we also there will be some contracts to be beck of the three Western Powers need show neither diffidence nor Pecksniffian picked up. It is evident that the three
quid pro quo and in
Powers are fairly content with the result of the ghastly light of recent events
their little deal, or they would not have civilized power would dream of entering
continued to exercise pressure on Japan, into reciprocal treaty obligations with
but would have left the date of the evacua China without taking more stringent mea-
tion of the Liaotung Peninsula to the two sures to secure the safety of its subjects than
Powers concerned to settle, and would not those which already obtain.
without some
no
We hold that Japan is not only in a position to demand, but is morally bound to demand a large extension of the commercial clauses of the late treaty. Other territory she cannot have; only in the direction of commercial expansion can she reasonably hope to find solace for her disappointment
in lower Manchuria. Her own attitude on the question of ex-territoriality stultifies her action in this direction with the Chinese, but in insisting on an extensive opening up of the country to foreign trade and on the adequate protection of foreigners she is now happily beyond the charge of inconsistency and will be doing unmixed good to herself, to China, and to the world at large. Among the many reagents steadily corroding the Chinese polity that of monetary indebtedness to the foreigner has been conspicuously absent. Rather by feeling than by an iutelligent perception of the danger, the Chinese have avoided the policy which has hurried on the ruin of Turkey and Egypt as autonomous states. With nations as with men,
"who goes a-borrowing, goes a-sorrowing," unless they borrow from their own subjects. After fifty years' successful resistance of the temptation, the blockheads who trifle with government in Peking have now flown straight into the openly spread net of the fowler; ignoring the lesser danger of the money market they have deliberately placed their country in the grip of the most obdurate creditor in Europe. The evil is
once
virtue in calling on other powers to show us a friendly lead now that the whirligig of time has given them the chance of initiative. In the draft Treaty of Shimonoseki Peking, Siangtan, and Wuchow, in addition to the four cities ultimately accepted, were to be opened
to
>>
trade, residence, industries, and manu- factures of Japanese subjects; and the West River, Tungting Lake, and Siang River were to be opened up in addition to the Upper Yangtsze, the Woosung, and the Soochow and Hangchow canals. Count Iro abated his claims in deference to the urgent pleadings of Li re the magnitude of the indemnity and territorial cession. The pre- sent is an admirable opportunity for reviving these claims and pushing even greater demands in the way of commercial con- cessions. If Mr. HIYASHI could also fix down in black and white the general re- sponsibility for foreign life on the provincial Chinese authorities, he would not only earn the gratitude of the foreign communities but prove himself an ultimate benefactor to the Chinese Government and people.
.
i
no
of
have bothered themselves as to the amount of the additional war indemnity. But not only have they gone into these details and bargained with Japan, but they also appear to have carried the negotiations into other directions and to have stipulated with Japan that the freedom of navigation of the Formosa Channel is to be
There assured.
course, was, of barm in seeking such an assurance from Japan, but we imagine she would have been quite willing to guarantee this, which in any case she could not have refused, if it had been sought for in friendly conference. The truth is it is difficult to resist the con- clusion that the action taken by the three Powers was dictated by a lively sense
Great Britain is out of the favours to come. little coercive circle, and it is satisfactory reflect that she has no finger in this pio, United action in China is desirable certainly, vis-à-vis the Peking Government but the Powers are most assuredly not called upon- to bolster up the Sick Man of the Far East Reuter reports another stage in the at the expense of the only progressive and negotiations for the evacuation, by the enlightened of purely Asiatic Empires. The Japanese, of the Liaotung Peninsula. The action of the three Powers has had at least three great European Powers, Russia, one effect; it has removed the scales from the France, and Germany, not content with hav-eyes of the Japanese Government, and shown ing forced Japan to retire from Manchuria, them their true friends. As for and thus snatching from her one of the chief thought or said in Peking, that is a ma fruits of victory, have since been worrying of secondary importance, for the senti her to hasten the evacuation and to reduce of gratitude has never, so far, influenced the the extra indemnity asked for from China Chinese Imperial Government in its deal as a condition of surrendering the territory. I ings with foreigners.
THE EVACUATION OF THE
LIAOTUNG PENINSULA.