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and thus the power of language--one of the greatest factors in nationality-is in the direction of centralisation.
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With the knowledge of the state of the country which the Chinese Officials neces- sarily possess, it is not surprising that they should hesitate to introduce any new system such as that of representative institutions, which might interfere with the existing state of affairs and diminish the centralising influences upon which they rely and which have stood them in such good stead in the past. It is considered by them, that the only form in which it would be possible to introduce representation would in the first instance be by the establishment of Provin- cial Councils--Parliaments as we shoud call them to advise the Viceroys of the different provinces; and they are unnaturally apprehensive that this might give more power, than they at present possess, to the Provincial Officials, and thus end in a disruption of the Empire. The question with Chinese of the old school thus assumes something of the aspect that Home Rule does with us. In this they may be, and probably are, mistaken-but it is easy to understand how this idea comes to be held by them. They have been able hitherto to rely upon the centralising influences which exist, and consider it better to continue to do so than to make experiments in new methods, the bearing of which is, at least so far as they are able to understand it, doubtful. Representative institutions juliciously granted while the Imperial authority was still safeguarded might be the means uot of diminishing but of increasing the latter. On the other hand there might be a danger that the power derived from consulting the voice of the people might be made use of to give preponderating influence to certain provinces and so be a source not of strength but of weakness to the existing government.
as
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
| claim to supernatural attributes.
If we had confined our comments to A mere laulation of Mr. MURRAY STEWART'S eloquence-this, by the way, is not, as he would say, said "with tongue in cheek" the speech was an eloquent one-we should still have remained open to the accusation of seeming to set our opinion of what is eloquent over the opinions of every man who can in any sense be regarded as an authority oratory. Surely this 18 obvious, The only way in which we could. apparently, have kept safe, would have been to iguore, as all our contempcraries did, the speech altogether. It seemed to us. however, a subject of immediate public interest.
CHINA ASSOCIATION, HONGKONG. (2)
(Daily Press, 10th January.) In dealing with his speech and some of the points made therein by the CHAIRMAN of the local branch of the China Association, we maintained a strictly academic tone, and explicitly pointed out that we were confining ourselves to the speaker's own method, the analogistic method, which we also remarked, is a popular but unsafe method. Analogies, far inore than figures, may be advanced to prove anything. It was because matters affecting China are so often, in default of the full information denied to be majority, treated in that (to us) inadequate way, that we ventured to point out the weakness of such a position. Unfortunatly, and the misunderstanding has caused us pain, Mr. MURRAY STEWART has taken an inexplicably personal view of the comments, and has, by writing the letter published in yesterday's issue, made it desirable that we should go further into certain matters than we, on this occasion, had thought it necessary to do. We are accused of seeming to set our opinions above those of every man who can in any sense be regarded as an authority on China". We plead guilty to that seeuring. It is impossible in the nature of things to offer any opinion or criticism whatever (which we suppose a newspaper is expected to do sometimes) without seeming to assume supreme authority pro tem. A moment's reflection will satisfy any mind of this.
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mere story BECWI to assume
The novelist who writes in the third person omnipresence and omniscience; but it would be absurdly unreasonable tax, him with a wildly egofistic personal
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(January 12, 1907. ^
others. It can scarcely be a coincidence that the British Government, which some- times has an authority or two among its servants, should have maintained masterly inactivity in this particular which accords with our opinion and is contrary to that of Mr. MURRAY STEWART. We propose, as it is so timely, and bears on r. MURRAY STEWART'S coinments regarding China's financial credit, to discuss to-morrow Mr. GFORGE JAMIESON's reasons for holding the opinion which the Daily Press holds. In the meantime, we would earnestly express the hope that we may throughout be absolved from the charges advanced by Mr. MURRAY STEWART, that we
"scoff" or
gib anything or anybody. A sense of humour, a steadier recognition of the great variety of legitimate weapons of debate, and determination to remember that, as we have 80 often reminded our readers, there is always more than one side to a question, other than our own,-these things should protect us from any more such distressing misapprehensions.
"
CHINA ASSOCIATION, HONGKONG. (3)
(Daily Press, 11th January.)
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Now we pass by a natural and shout step to the one point which Mr. MURRAY STEWART in his letter treats with the seriousness it really demands, as between his and our view of the Customs Edict. He claims that his views are simply the views of the representative men of the British Mercantile Community in Hongkong, Shanghai, and throughout the length and breadth of China". We prefer to speak of į them as his views, but to avoid possible! charges of perversion, we may point out that he describes them as the views of the Association as an Association. We will allow our readers to remember for them. Mr. GEORGE JAMIESON, C.M ., introduceN selves that any Association, even a news- the article briefly referred to yesterday with paper, is built up of units, and they will (au interesting review iu brief of the methods
the of Chinese finance, aud easily pursue the implication. But now to come to this somewhat sweeping claim of Chinese imperial revenue. of Mr. MURRAY STEWART'S. Again pre-largely what they were nearly three hundred mising that any assumption of supreme years ago, and are, we suppose, fairly well authority on the part of the Daily Press is known to our readers. We pointed out two not deliberate choice but an academic days ago, and Mr. GEORGE JAMIESON makes necessity, we must remind the CHAIRMAN the saide remark in the Financial Review of the local branch of the Association that of Revieres, that China is not a Kingdom, it is a risky thing indeed to claim that all but an agglomeration of Kingdoms, and authorities are with him. There are in these are "all potentially wealthy in the things Chinese so many authorities and of productivity of the soil, and with a 80 many sort s. The true authority is made, population of twenty to forty millions not born, but there are authorities who seem each". When the Imperial Government to think otherwise. The origiuml and con- needs or desires more mouey, it applies to sistent view of that Customs Edict taken by these kingdoms", which always, after this journal was not the gift of some special the usual protests, manage satisfy authority; it was empiric, based on some Peking's demands.
Viceroys or experience and some, as we very naturally Governors have various ways of raising this claim, commonsense.
revenue; no two seem to work alike; adopt Mr. MURRAY STEWART'S system the ouly restriction imposed by the central of argument, and his implied definition Government is that such taxes are not to be of one bind of authority as men who levied as might cause riots or insurrectious. have had firsthand dealings with Chinese Mr. GEORGE JAMIESON, by giving facts and Officials", we suppose that Mr. GEORGE figures of what has been done in the past, JAMIESON, C.M.G., may be accepted as com- ing somewhere in such a category. Acting Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of China and Japan, and a Consul General in China for many years. The fortuitous arrival by last mail of the Financial Review of Reviews for December enables us to quote him as taking the same view as the Daily Press did. We attach no undue importance to the fact; the support of even such an authority does not prove us right; hut we mention it as a concession to Mr. MURRAY STEWART's argumentative preferences. Mr. GEORGE JAMIESON SAу3, in an article which we hope, after we have had time to digest it, to discuss with our readers, that tears
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by referring to present known conditions, shows that the yoke of taxation is even yet a long way off being too heavy for these practically self-governing p:ovinces, and in fact, as he says,
bon lholders may be absolutely at ease as to the sufficiency of their security This brings us, and him too, to the arguments of Mr. MURRAY STEWART, Chairman of the Hongkong Branch of the China Association, which arguments, as we have submitted, are not endorsed by all competent observers, nor even by all the members of the Chin Association. Latterly the China Association, as some conceive, has been approaching the Home Government as one asking more than have been entertained in some quarters | he expects recive, emphasising its that the new CONTROLLERS GENERAL OF demands by a little exaggeration. Our first 011 Mr. MURRAY STEWART'S CUSTOMS, appointed by the edict referred to, comments way attempt to divert the Customs revenue | speech were directed to the suggestion that from its purpose. I think these fears quite ¦ this polity, in view of the objects and aims groundless,
Whatever their interference of the Association, and particularly of the may be, it will not amount to that". He desiderata mentioned in the speech itself, is then gives his reasons, which we may leave not the best policy to pursue. We feared over for the present. We suppose Mr. for it the fat of the shepherd who cried MURRAY STEWART will admit, cren while
wolf" uace two often. Such fear may have been uncalled for, but in any case it was the sole mainspring and motive of our comments—a quite excusable motive, as
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contemplating his united body of authorities, that here is a conspicuouis alientes from his gallant army. We submit that there are
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