July 5, 1909.]
integrity of China, she shares with Great Britain the distinction of being the first to give the pledge.
THE SITUATION IN CHINA.
11
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
permit affairs to take their course, convinced that the Government of the late DOWAGER REGENT could be for but a little time; and that under her successor the business of the nation would compel improvement.
and these it is.who are prepared to go any lengths rather than see the introduction of reforms which would do away with the abuses on which they have been battening.
The most glaring of these abuses, though by no means the only one, is the growth of the system of Likin, whose operations now extend from one extremity to the other of the Empire. Of its evils in connection with the railways we have but the other day spoken, but the evil does not end here: it pene- trates the whole body politic. Not only does it strangle the entire trade of the Empire, but it is iustrumental in saddling the country with an army of uncontrolled tax collectors who are numbered in each province by many thousands, and who make every petty mercantile transaction, no matter how small, the occasion of levying a tax, Even worse than the tax itself in sapping the roots of prosperity is the method of its collection. There is no tariff, but each man collects according to his own discretion, the ouly check being the ability of the payer to meet his demands. Such a system dies hard from its very nature, yet we wonder how it is that the Government does not at once put it down, and smile at the apparently inno cent manner in which the Government, put to its wits' ends, tries to make it a subject of bargaining in its turn with the foreign Powers. As a fact, the Government, had it all the will, is no more able to abolish the system, which lives on in open defiance of all law and order, imperial or provincial, than it can succeed in abolishing by edict the allied vice of opium smoking. In both cases there are too many vested interests concerned in keeping up the old abuses, to reader the rooting of them out a task within the powers of the present administration. We have every respect for the present REGENT, PRINCE CHUN; but the task that he has essayed needs the strength of will and the power of a HERCULES to accomplish successfully, and it is no fault of his that
There is little doubt that the new Regency (Daily Press, June 29th.)
is really desirous of introducing reforms, On May 3rd we remarked: "However it and that the REGENT is quite alive to the is going to be brought about, signs are not fact that of all others currency reform is the wanting China is ripening for a revolution, most pressing; there is also equally little the greatest that has as yet happened in doubt that he has found powerful opposition any Asiatic country." We are not addicted to all his schemes of amendment in the to making statements without foundation, reactionary party. Under the régime of the nor without a knowledge of current inter- late EMPRESS DOWAGER, T'SE HI, these abuses national politics. Nevertheless our redoubt had reached a height hitherto unknown even able contemporary, the Japan Mail, has in China, and a group of corrupt states- been essaying from his feeble armoury meu had congregated round the Throne. As to shiver a lance with us. This is what our China found that, do what she could, she contemporary conceives he sees in our could not get rid of what seemed to remarks:- This we interpret a.s an the reactionaries about the Palace the analysis that the Manchu element will incubus of Foreign intercourse, so like eventually revolt against the introduction wise she found that the expenses of the of constitutional Government." Now we Court were growing out of all measure- may point out that our article did not from Foreign countries sent their legations to beginning to end make a single mention of Peking, and, whether Peking liked it or not, the Manchu element; what we stated it had to follow the fashion and cend its distinctly was "As usually happens representatives abroad. The result of the before revolutions come to a head, the main war with Japan indicated that the entire trouble in China is financia!"; and apropos military system of China was wrong from the of this we mentioned that the financial beginning to the end, and that a complete reforms urged by the new Regency were change was necessary. But all these things meeting with the stronges opposition from cost money, and there was no constitutional the still powerful reactionary party, who system by which revenue could be raised. were quite prepared on the first symptom The old system of requisitions was found of a real intention to put these reforming impractical; provincial taxation was in ag views into practice to take overt action. chaotic a state as that to the Court, and It is a vulgar error, proceeding from an the only device that could be thought of altogether erroneous view of the present was to levy vails on all aspirants of office, relations of Manchus and Chinese, that there who were subsequently set free on the is any distinct pro-Manchu "Party in provinces without check of any sort. The China, or anything that can be interpreted result was somewhat similar to the abuses as implying a difference of nationality. which in the long run brought about the The Manchus have long ceased to have a fall of the Roman Empire. Privately the country outside China: at the time of the the DowAGER T'SE HI was extravagant and conquest the entire Manchu nation was avaricious, and the creatures of her Court, practically transferred to Chinese soil, and taking example from their mistress, took the Russians in taking possession of the advantage of these irregular levies to enrich
nature has not endued him with a sufficient land of Eastern Manchuria found it unin-themselves. The evil example spread to amount of either to carry the campaigu to a habited except for a few hunters and fisher the provinces, and each provincial capital successful issue. Politicians of the milk-and- men. In the Eighteen Provinces the became a duplicate of Peking. Such water school were but the other day glorying Manchu settlements, at first intended as WAS the Augean stable that the new over what they called "the bloodless Revolu garrisons to overawe a subject population, Regency found called upon to cleanse. tion in Turkey." Nature does not proceed have in the course of less than three Everyone of the Imperial Boards was
in this manner when revolution has centuries entirely lost. the practice of affected, and practically the
REGENT become necessary, and no revolution arms, and the Manchu element has sunk found himself, when he spoke of reform, worthy the name has been carried out down to be a mere caste amongst the popula. completely isolated. Here was no distinc with rose water. China offers no exception tion of the Empire, and is penetrated by tion between Menchu and Chinese; all alike to the rule; nor is the coming re- the same lines of thought as the remainder were currupt, and all were directly interested volution one of Manchu and Chinese; it is of the population amongst which it moves.
in the continuance of the old abuses. It is one of the entire nation. Come it will, Under the feeble successors of K'ANGHI, true there has been growing up in China whether it be led by the wise councils of a the Chinese were astute enough to gradually amongst the younger statesmen a class of strong Government, or whether, like the obtain possession of the military forces of men who recognised the necessity of reform Taiping Rebellion, it springs from the the Empire; and at the present moment and who have been lending valuable assist-sufferings of an outraged nation; in neither all the physical force of the State is in their ance; amongst the older statesmen, too, are a
case will it be bloodless, but in the latter it hands. They, as well as the Manchus them-few, amongst when the VICEROY of the will entail the slaughter of an entire gener- selves, are perfectly well aware of the fact, LIANG HU takes a prominent place, who, ation, and the devastation of an empire." and tolerate the régime, much as the peoples honest themselves, have preferred to lead a of Europe do the Royal caste-not as life of comparative poverty to enriching baving any intrinsic power as a caste, but themselves at the expense of their country i that on the whole their independence of but such men are comparatively rare, and private ambitions and vulgar prejudices find themselves sadly hampered in turn rendered them more grateful to the peoples by those with whom they are compelled to at large than if they had been raised from associate. The majority find it easier to the ranks. The Chinese as a nation are follow in the crowd. A few there are who
in fact well disposed towards the régime, being well assured that they have the real power in their own hands; and are unwilling to risk the chance of losing the substance in vain struggles after an ideal. For a like reason they have shown little or no disposi- tion to interfere in the succession, conceiving that whoever followed, they could make their influence felt more strongly by coin- cidence than by assisting in any movement to place an unknown pret-uder on the Throne. It was thus that the entire Empire, though loyal to the late EMPEROR, preferred to
take a more active part, and whose influ- ence is exerted in checking all reform; some probably from honest motives, believ ing that what has existed for so many centuries cannot be wrong, but others from the sordid motive that reform implies the contraction of their illicit gains, and is a thing to be opposed at all points. It is unfortunately at the moment the case that it is this latter class, the reactionaries, who fear the loss of their private gains through the new proposals of an amended system of imperial finance, who are most in evidence;
|
SHIPPING "RINGS.”
11
(Daily Press, June 30th.) The Reports of the Royal Commission on Shipping "Rings" (a lengthy summary of which appeared in our Monday's issue) are naturally of considerable interest to the mercantile communities in the Far East. This Commission was appointed nearly two years ago to inquire into the operations of the Shipping "Rings or Conferences generally, more especially into the system of deferred rebates, and to report whether such operations had caused or were likely to cause injury to British or Colonial trade, and, if so, what remedial action, if any, should be taken by legislation or otherwise. The result of these labours is two elaborate Reports-Majority and Minority Reports. which do little more than give to the worlda