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June 17, 1899.|
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
"In fact,” continued Mr. ORMSBY, if (owing road than to use up the whole amount in to lack of funds) nothing more was done for making a short stretch of roadway that would “years, the circuit round the island would lead only to a plague cemetery. Let the "be enormously improve!. The drive for public decide what they will have instead carriages would have a good road from of this western rond. We would suggest that "Victoria via Pokfulam and Aberdeen about work on the other sections of the road might eight miles in length to Deepwater Bay proceed, and an improvement in the grad "Golf links, and on the other sidean equally ing of the Pokfulam Road, as proposed by good road from Victoria to Tytantuk, Mr. ORMSBY, might be accepted. Or pos- "the centre of probably the most beautiful sibly a new road in the New Territory might part of the colony, ten-and-a-half miles in be preferred by some of the subscribers. In length; while to the average cyclist the any case, let a meeting be promptly ar- "circuit of the whole island would be an ranged, for valuable time is being wasted, easy matter." On the other hand, the and the memorial of the Queen's Diamond money in the bank would pay, said Mr. Jubilee bids fair at the present rate of ORMSBY, for the making of about three-and-progress to be postponed to some indefinite a-lialf miles from Kennedytown towards Aberdeen, say to form a junction between the large plague cemetery and the Sandy Bag plague cemetery, which would be "scarcely the drive that ladies and children
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period.
OBSTRUCTIVE TACTICS OF THE
CHINESE GOFERNMENT,
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487
such an invitation will aggravate some of the Foreign Ministers, and that they y will re gard it as a snub. But imagines that such a trivial appolnost
appointment is of a nature to occasion the slightest trouble or inconvenience, sho will be very much mistaken.
iden is
But on the
there in concrete: it is based belief that it is humiliating to the Foreign Representatives to have to treat with one for whose misconduct in another place they had perhaps succes ed in procuring his removal. The punishment, as is usually the case in China, when inflicted on the representations of Foreign Ministers is a, practical farce, and the degraded official after a brief period of retirement, passed in the seclusion of his ancestral home, is inducted into a new and generally superior office with increased opportunities for peculation.
KANG YI, formerly Governor of Kwang- tung, and latterly famous equally för his in- competence and his virulent hostility to foreigners, has also found fresh favour in the eyes of the EMPRESS DOWAGER, or else he has become a stumbling block to that rising mandarin JUNG LU. Anyhow he has been nominated to go to Nanking to in- vestigate charges brought against the Viceroy LLU KUNYI, and it is said he will carry with him instructions to, put a curb on the demands of foreigners, and, in short,
who are ready to essay the hopeless task of be as obstructive as possible. It is clear that the EMPRESS is selecting instruments
(Daily Press, 12th June). or jaded city workers would select, bearing The invertebrate yet obstructive Govern- "in mind that it is exposed to the full glarement at Peking aprears to be growing more "of the afternoon and evening sun and difficult to deal with as time goes on, The "that it would lead nowhere, but would power of the EMPRESS suffers no diminution, "have to be retraced in returning." In but that of the officials is a constantly these circumstances what is to be done? varying quantity owing to the cuprice of The most obvious answer is, we think, that Her Majesty or the intrigues of the man- the Committee should call a meeting of the darins. At the present moment it is most subscribers and endeavour to ascertain what distinctly clear that the officials highest in is the general wish.
favour are those who are most markedly anti-foreign in their proclivities. But for Foreign Ministers it is extremely probable a wholesome fear of difficulties with the
that only the most violent reactionaries would obtain employment under the EM-sweeping back the waves of progress. PRESS and her satellites. Even the wise Meantime the Emperor KWANG SU is and egotistic woman of Peking is not dis- kept in the background, and has little posed to deliberately and openly flout the apparent chance of coming forward again Foreigu Ministers. She would like to set
to take the helm. It is rather remarkable them at defiance, and she would fain put them first by the ears in order that she might subsequently do the other thing. But this game, which has answered so well for so many years, is not so practicable now. Although the Powers are as jealous of each other as ever they have now no anxiety or doubt as to the impotence of China, and there is an unexpressed understanding among them that it would be folly to quarrel over the flabby carcase which it is no one's interest to see regularly carven. It is one thing to suip a corner out here or there for strategic or commercial proposes; it is quite another to seriously consider the formal division of this huge empire. As we have indicated, the political situation in the Far East has greatly changed, and the Chinese Government can no longer hope to play off one Treaty Power against another. While, however, the EMPRESS has to re- cognise this fact, she is aware that she can go some distance in the "pin prick" direc- tion. She has found out that in some mat-
There are, it appears, military objections to the construction of the proposed road from Kennedytown to Aberdeen, but these, we should imagine, might probably be over- coine. The want of funds, however, seems fatal. No doubt if the money were left in the bank long enough, say for ten years, the accumulated interest would cover the cost of completing the section, but that course would hardly commend itself to the general body of subscribers, who would like to see the money put to some use that would yield tungible results in the more immediate future. As to the Government completing the section from Kennedytown to Aberdeen, with the New Territory on its hands and the consequent calls upon the exchequer there are not likely to be funds available for the purpose for a very long time and much as we should like to see a road on the level carried completely round the island we are constrained to admit that there are now objects of greater' utility to which the inoney if available might be devoted. Mr. STEWART in his letter appears to place an ex- aggerated importance upon the hygienic value of this section of the road. It is probable that the well-to-do Chin- ese would take to driving, and that the road would in that way contribute to the enjoyment of large numbers, but to speak of it as affording a substitute for fresh air in
and it is surely an indication that even Peking is not entirely insensible to civilisel opinion-that the young Emperor has not long ere this been effectually put out of the way. The truth is the Empress and her advisers fear the expressions of anger that would be aroused among Western States were anything to happen to His Majesty KWANG SU. But though the dread of shocking Westen humanitarianism has so far served to preserve the EMPERORS' life, this security is growing fainter every day, and in a few months may cease to exist. The question therefore arises, how far are the foreign Powers liable for the safety of the young monarch? It would cause a painful shock all over Christon- don if the news suddenly arrived from the capital of China that the deposed EM- PEROR had been secretly made away with in one of the Palaces in the Prohibited City. Is there a Reform Party in China, or is it a name only? If there be such a party still in existence it is time they bestirred
the homes of the poor is carrying its advan-ters she can make herself unpleasant. She themselves in order to secure, if pušsiblake
tages beyond the bounds of reason. The coolie who has been hard at work all day is not likely to wander very far from his home in the evening, and the women and children certainly will not do so; if they did it would leasen imperceptibly if at all the dangers to which they are exposed from the absence of ventilation in their living and sleeping rooms. That view of the case may therefore be disregarded. The road was not originally designed as a boon to the toiling thousands of the poorer classes, but as affording oppor- tunities for recreation to the European.com- munity and to such sections of the Chinese community as have the time and means to indulge in driving or cycling. We would gladly see the Kennedytown-Aberdeen sec- tion of the road made if it were feasible, but seeing that there is but a limited amount of money available it would be better to use it to advantage upon the other sections of the
any
the Son of Heaven we may be sure that His Majesty the Emperor KWANG SU's fate would quickly be senied and his chances of returning to the throne become practically nil
can appoint obnoxious mandarins to the the restoration of KWANG SU to liberty and Tsungli Yamen; she can show favour to
to his seat on the Dragon Throne. If the officials who have been disgraced for anti-infant to succeed to the title and dignity of EMPRESS should bring forward another foreign proclivities; she can promote men who have fallen under the ban of the British Minister Plenipotentiary; and she can in- sult, humiliate, and degrade officials who have shown a tendency to promote reform or the adoption of foreign improvements in department of State. Her Majesty has, ac- cording to the Peking correspondent of our Shanghai morning contemporary, just dulged her fancy in one of these directious. LID PING-CHANG, the late Viceroy of Sze- chuen, who is pretty well known to have been the actual instigator of the recent riots in that province, has been invited by the EMPRESS DOWAGIR to visit Peking. Be cause he has been the cause of mischief and trouble to foreigners, he is to be feted at the capital. No doubt his mistress thinks that
being an increase of $9,947 on the amount The stamp revenue last month was $34,500, collected in the corresponding month last year.
The maximum temperature last month was 88.5, on the 25th, and the minimum 67.6, on the 9th, the mean for the month being 77.8. The rainfall amounted to 7.165 inches. extends to the New Territory the Opium Ord- A notification published in Saturday's Gazette inances and the regulations made thereunder. The effect of this is to give the New Territory the curse of the Opium Farm.