314
CAN CHINA PRESERVE
NEUTRALITY?
(Daily Press, 16th May.) First France, now China. If Russia cared so little for the prestige of her ally as to continue to compromise her in the eyes of the Powers, long after being asked to go away, what consideration can RozHDESTVENSKY be expected to show to China, whose neutrality has all along contemptuously been set at naught? There is no indication of a determination to make the dash for Vladivostock, for which the Russian admiral has been bowing to premature applause; and if this dawdling about tails, as we hope it may fail, to induce any change in the Japanese tactics, it means that China will be the next neutral power to have its honesty impugned. Some Chinese harbour will be the next calling place for the Baltic Armada; and China will in all probability find herself once more playing the rôle of international shuttlecock to which she is unhappily accustomed. Just as France was not ready to enforce her neutrality in Indo-China, assuming she wished to do so, so it would be ridiculous to suppose that China could make any demonstration against the Russians that would not make them laugh. Unless, perhaps, the Chinese Government had the Yet wit to mobilise a fleet of fishing boats. both England and America have solemnly warned China against the permission of any breaches of neutrality. We could not have expected, when writing of the impotence of international law some mouths ago, that so aptly illustrative & situation could arise to demonstrate the eternal indispensability of force majeure. The Cantonese Viceroy's pathetic appeals for more battle ships could not be granted. He was advised to have men about him "well up in diplomacy," and to do the best he could, a characteristic sample of Chinese policy. If he had got all he asked for, it would have been a naval flea-bite to ROZHDESTVENSKY'S Armada; and if he has the most cunning diplomats hre in China, he will not easily persuade RozHDESTVENSKY to leave safe auchorage at, say, Hainan, once he selects a suitable haven. Having got well out of one serious scrape, the Dogger Bank affair, ROZHDESTVENSKY seems to be hardened to wrongdoing; or to have gained the idea that he is now a law unto bimself. The mischief of it is that the mun is right, so long as he commands this huge flotilla of destructive engines, and keeps out of the way of any flotilla of equal or nearly equal It is about time now that the strength. enthusiastic folk who saw great glory in his leisurely picnic trip from Madagascar, to take back some of their flatteries. At first, it might be strategy to attempt to entice ToGo away from his base; but now that the Japanese patience is as patent as that of a cat at a mouse-hole, and hope in that direction must be abandoned, his dillydallying is very unstrategic, and begins to look uncommonly like what the schools call "fuak." For while Togo can afford to wait, ROZHDESTVENKY cannot. An Armada on a long cruise is something like a dose of SEIDLITz: the longer you let it fizz, the less effective it becomes. So far,
the Baltic Fleet has been all fizz, in
on
the
British
more
senses than one. As to China's neutrality, about which Russia has been one of the loudest-voiced, most vehement complain- ants, who is going to enforce it? Was all that activity
China Station a coucomitant of our warning to China? Are we going to help China to do right, as well as tell her to ? There are many who think our manifest duty lies somewhere in such a direction; and wel
[May 20, 1905.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
could well do for China what etiquette for- is suffering from--a sore mouth! Such bade us
to do for France. Individual | is the report that was electrically_flashed to least; CHANG CHIH-TUNG Chinese may be confidently counted upon to | Peking, at more than emulate the individual French respectfully informing his August Mistress So that for nearly a year he had been afflicted colonists who hungered after roubles. far as sentiment goes, China inclines neither with an ulcerated mouth, which, we take it, to Russia nor Japan. They are for her the is a tragical way of saying His Excellency "Where devil and the deep sen; and her choice will has got "smoker's tongue." The medical men We always be dictated by the consideration have a paraphrase which ruos: whether Scylla or Charybdis happens to be there's smoke, there's ulceration."
have reminded readers of the premonitory the lesser evil. But when ROZHDESTVENSKY
or to Hainan on
some Chinese symptoms which enabled us to anticipate the Chinese physicians' apparently clever diagnosis; but it would be unfair to ignore the Japanese physicians who have been called into consultation. These gentlemen pretend to be more enlightened therapeu tically than their Chinese brethren; but in view of the illustrious patient's over-heated- ness and his mental strain, we are reluctant to abandon the former explanation for theirs, which is that CHANG CHIH-TUNG'S
moves
harbour further north, China will not have a HOBSON's choice. The Russians even who, in response to French official entreaties, acted up to the letter but not to the spirit of their obligations, will not stand on There is the ceremony with the Chinese. possibility that the Japanese will "split the difference," and go as far as Hainan to give battle, in case ROZHDESTVENSKY goes there; but it would be unfair of neutrals to ask so much. Who, then, will chevy the tres- passers away from that Chinese island, when, as has several times been anticipated, they turn up there?
from
CHANG CHIH-TUNG.
(Daily Press 17th May.) We thought and said at the time that His Excellency CHANG CHIH-TUNG, in his lengthy criticism of the currency reform proposals of Professor JENKS, was making a big mistake. How big, we did not then realise. It appears that the terrible mental strain involved has re-acted on the great Chinese Statesman's health. There were, of course, evidences in CHANG's Memorial of mental trouble, a circumstance which will not astonish those who remember their efforts to grasp all the arguments for and against bi-metalism during the agitation of a dozen years ago. To a Chinaman, even so cocksure and self-confident as CHANG CHIH-TUNG was, the very elementary pro- posals of the American currency expert must have been puzzling in the extreme. When referring to His Excellency's protesting Memorial, we quoted passages to show that he was, in fact, very much at
in his laborious attack
upon the sen
Professor JENKS. His propositions of Chinese physicians' recent pronouncement on the state of His Excellency's health seems to confirm our a posteriori diagnosis. declare that he is suffering They
au over-heated system caused Poor as is our by hard mental work." general opinion of the native medicine men, We cannot but marvel
at the epitomic character of their phraseology. Not only was there evidence of exhaustive mental work; but in his vehement denunciations of the foreign soheme of financial reform, we were also able to perceive that the veteran VICEROY had allowed himself to become " overheated." Naturally, the EMPRESS- DowAGER is much concerned as to the bealth of this man after her own heart, and has given orders for telegraphic enquiries to be made,advising him at the same time that as he is one of her most valued officials, it is his duty to seek the very best medical advice obtainable, and to keep her posted as to results. Perhaps we may be accused of bad taste at this stage for referring, without carefully punctuated expressions of deep the physical affiction of sympathy, to even such an erring fellow mortal as His Excellency CHANG CHIH-TUNG. It is to be hoped that no such charge will be laid at our door; otherwise, we should be under the disagreeable necessity of announcing to an naxious world that he, who "mouthed of the suggestion to deep-voiced hatred establish a fixed standard of currency,
decayed teeth are in a bad state." The only satisfaction to be got out of the prosaic Japanese theory is the discovery that perhaps there is more connection between Chinese bad teeth and Chinese had states- manship than has been suspected. Evidently the distinguished patient has more faith in the Japanese doctors than we have (for this occasion only), for he informs HER MAJESTY that while under the care of a Japanese physician he has "felt better to the extent of seven-tenths." The "Native Notes"
from which we obtain our data add :-
P
if he
"One thing, however, seems certain; if affairs of State keep him so greatly occupied has had a good, long sleep his pains cease, while as to lessen his sleeping hours these pains He will. become sharp and excruciating. however, respectfully bear in mind her Mjesty's solicitude about his health and use his best efforts to take care of himself so that he may return to good health as soon as possible."
As a guarantee of our good faith in cordially hoping that the concluding possi bility may be indeed realized, may we beg of him to be sure and take a good, loug sleep, the longer the better?. These vexed are really very questions of reform unhealthy. He would be well-advised to leave them to stronger men.
CHINESE PENAL CODE.
(Daily Press, 18th May.) Something like a coincidence has occurred in connection with the recent Imperial Decree amending the Chinese penal code. This Decree, issued in April, translate by the N.C. Daily News, and republished by us towards the end of the same month ordered the abolition of torture and of the particular punishment called Vingchih. The EMPRESS DOWAGEB
a
11
decreed that criminals who by ancient custom would have been thousand outs liable to the death of a should henceforth be summarily decapit ated. To the extent that the Decree was a step towards the reduction of physical suffering, it had to be recognised as "humane" enactment; but the general tone of it, as well as the word “summary in connection with such an irrevocable act as that of lopping off human heads, made us query the word "humane;" and caused us to regard as infinitesimal the amount of genuine humanity contained in the motives that anteceded the Decree. the dark na to the EMPRess-Dowager's reasons for granting the change, which she did not initiate, and which she is in al likelihood incapable of initiating. Very 110 particular reason, possibly she had motive, or sentiment at all when she put her sign manual to the new law. She was advised to do it, and having no particular enemies in custody at the time, has let it
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