442
RUSSIA.
(Daily Press, 16th June)
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
manner was A matter
A
|
1.
(June 25, 1906.
How hollow müst
be an undertaking founded on such a basis even a Russian statesman might be expected - to comprehend; that seemingly the present administration has no conception of what- is due not only to foreign states, but to themselves, is the necessary conclusion to be deduced from the premises.
LEARNING CHINESE,
present collapse. Never has a wrong. nation like Russia, were yet understandable beaded monarch had a more favourable as a first effort to open up communications Under opportunity of recovering the good wishes | with a hitherto closed nation. In more senses than one may the action of of his subjects: never has one more existing circumstances they have not that the Russian Duma be characterised as deliberately thrown away the chance. excuse. The British treaties made with both Tibet and China exclude the entering disappointing, that is to say, contrary to brief yet dignified statement of the reasons
of Tibet into relations other than with the predictions usually made by friends which took out of the realm of politics a and foes alike. It is evidently largely the proposal for the indiscriminate pardoning England or China; and Russia is in no result of this that it has, temporarily at of crimes of very different magnitude would | position to deny the right of Chinn or Tibet least, paralysed the councile of its most have appealed to the best instincts of the to enter into any such agreement which does bitter opponents-the Bureaucracy. There Duma; intead of this the TSAR IÐ Á not contravene any ncquired right of Russia. is no doubt that in yielding to the demand studiously insulting reply, evidently intend. In the face of all this we find Russia sending for the establishment of a Constituented to goad on the members to taking some secret emissaries into Tibet. The method Assembly, the bureaucratic party were action which would afford the long sought is as peculiar as the fact itself. The Russian firmly convinced that at their first meeting means of dissolving the Chamber and Church stands in a peculiar relation with the new legislators, entirely without political remitting affairs lack to the old chaos, sent the state, political rather than religious, and experience, and carried away by the usual for answer that be would only receive the accordingly we find the Church divided into The one socialistic ideas of democracies everywhere, address through a Minister of the palace. two well marked divisions. would at once demonstrate their unfitness With more wisdom than the TSAR has charged with religious functions, from which for taking any place in the machine of displayed from beginning to end of the is selected the village cures who have government. This view was shared, but dispute, the Duma sent the sensible reply, charge of the faithful at home-the other with very different feelings, by those friends that it was only concerned with the sub- as strictly political, who are sent abroad for of Russia who really sincerely desired to stance, the
of the dissemination of Russia's peculiar views. Now it is these latter who have been selected see her emerge out of her present chaos of indifference. misrule on the one side and fanaticism in
On another point the Dama has been for the task, not of converting Tibet, but on the other. The inexorable logic of fact has stating its disagreement with the policy of the plea that the TSAR is so well affected proved the forecasts of both sides to have the Bureaucracy, nud that is the state of towards Lamaistic Buddhism that he has been equally without foundation The confusion prevailing in Russia through the sent these Christian priests to study the Duma seems at once without any waste of continual attempts at encroachment in Asia. other religion. Such a proposal bears on time or words to have set itself to the We alluded to the difficulties this policy the face of it its own refutation, but it is practical exigencies of the moment, and was causing in the way of any understand- | noteworthy that in the face of all this there voted an
address to the Crown, which ing with England. It is noteworthy of how should yet be a pretence of a desire for a whatever may be thought of its immediate great is the divergence between the Duma better understanding. appropriateness had at least the merit of and the present party in possession of the being practical. It commented on the
ear of the TSAR, that notwithstanding the general misgovernment of the Empire. in trouble already engendered by this senseless which everyone not a member of that policy, there is still a powerful body within government, and not a few actually holding the Government beat on encroachment in high positions in it, must agree, and asked Tibet, Sir EDWARD GREY lately stated in for a formal amnesty of the past. This Parliament that under existing circum- demand seems to have led to a situation stances an understanding was impossible, that plainly shows how incapable is the and reading between the lines of recent present party of the bureaucracy in power utterances of the Russian chauvinistic press, ¿ from comprehending the true position. On the only portion of that press permitted the eve even of the assembly it had by the present régime to
express its succeeded in persuading the feeble and opinions, we can easily divine the reason. irresolute T8AR to change his mind for the Primarily the reason that an understand. hundredth time and issue a reactionary ing with Russia was favourably thought nkase somewhat irrelevantly denominated a of in England was that it would put an end Fundamental Law". To this the Duma to the intrigues and intermeddlings of the seem to have given no reply, and in fact to chauvinists, who at the present profess to have iguored it altogether. How it could have the entire Russian Government at have done otherwise, having been summoned their back. The mere announcement that for the express purpose of controlling these a policy of better understanding was on the very Fundamental Laws", whose only tapis has, however, brought the chauvinist basis hitherto luas been the momentary
press to the front. Its alarms have been caprice of the TSAR, occasionally hastened excited because the British Cabinet has by the panic fears of his bureaucratic | refused to concede to Russia still further advisers, it is not easy to see. The only one of these councillors who did not seem to have lost his head was Count DE WITTE, and he wisely found it more profitable to resign than to throw in his lot with the feeble incapables who surrounded him. He, however, gave to his master one piece of sound advice, which the latter in accepting contrived to so do in the most fatuous and inexpedient manner. Recalling plainly the results that followed Louis XVI's yielding to the first demand of the States General to convert themselves into a single chamber as the Constituent Assembly, Count DE WITTE pointed out the objections to the granting of a universal amnesty, and showed that such a grant would be of necessity destructive of all government, and would lead directly to the fall of the Tearship. Although DE WITTE's action in this matter was characterised by his enemies as a direct desertion of the pria ciples he had hitherto affected as an advocate of constitutional amendment, there is no doubt of the wisdom of his advice as to the danger of au indiscriminate amnesty; but the TSAE's method of applying it was on a par with all his previous actions which have directly tended to bring about the
means of interference than she at present possesses. Amongst these are the sole right to exploit Persia, the sole right of making loans, for which of course the capital is to be borrowed in England, while all the profit commercial and political is to The ridiculousness of the go to Russia. situation does not seem to have struck these very innocent negotiators. Now of course it is exactly to render impossible such glaring inconsistencies that the English people are willing to enter inta negotiations with Russia, but as the Russian object is rather to obtain condonation for the past and the implied right to make still further demands for the future, it can hardly be said that the time for negotiation has yet arrived. The position is curiously exemplified by the wanderings of the DALAI LAMA, an event not of national importarca in itself, but like a feather all the more important as showing how the wind blows. What possible object except annoyance Bussin can have in Tibet is incomprehensible to any man of ordinary intelligence, nor is it ensy to see what profit she can make out of the DALAI Lama as an individual. The negotiations entered into with bim four years ago, though rather beneath the diguity of a
(Daily Press, 18th June.) In response to a request from the China Association, an interesting memorandum has been written by Sir Walter C. the progress which has HILLIER upon been made in the School of Practical Chinese which the Association called into being some years ago, under the auspices of the London University. It appears from his report that the opportunity which has thus been afforded for the study of the language has been availed of to a greater extent than might have been anticipated as likely; and he observes justly that the fact that a number of students have regularly attended the classes notwithstanding that they were occupied in the City during business hours speaks well for their industry. With pupils of this class it has been found possible for them to obtain in the course of twelve or fifteen monthis. a foundation upon which a solid supër- structure can be built later on, when gicater facilities are afforded for the alvanced study of Chinese in China itself. He is of opinion that when the advantages of a knowledge of Chinese as a commercial as- set become more generally known the value of the school of Chinese will be more widely appreciated and the facilities it offers will be more ex ensively made use of. WithTM respect to that advantage itself he quotes Reshaping with approval a passage from "
in which the position- of the Far East that is adopted is sound and well con- sidered, avoiding as it does the common exaggeration that a knowledge of the Chinese langunge will be sufficient to make Europeans independent of the assistance of compradores or other go-betweens; a point" which has been often urged by writers who were of considerable general authority, but who lacked practical acquaintance with the business relations