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rules for provincial assemblies in 12 chapters and 62 articles, which had been elaborated by the Constitutional Government Committee, and a detailed law in 7 chapters and 115 articles for the election of the members. Twenty-two provincial assemblies were established at the seats of the Viceroys and governors, one in each of the eighteen provinces; three in the Manchurian provinces; and one in the new dominion (Chinese Turkestan). The numbers of the members vary from 30 in the new dominion, Kirin and Heilungchiang assemblies, to 140 in Chibli and Chekiang, and are based, in default of a census, on the old numbers of graduates assigned to Pending each province, or on the quotas of "tribute" furnished to Peking. reorganisation and the effective removal of the differences between Chinese and Manchus, the Manchu banners of Peking and the Manchu garrisons in the provinces have a small representation: at Peking, of ten Manchus in the Chihli Assembly, and in the provinces, of from one to three Manchus per garrison. The twenty-two assemblics comprise over 1,700 members, all of whom are elected indirectly; the persons exercising the franchise elect a body of delegates, who in turn elect the members.
Elective Franchise.-The elective franchise is practically limited to males of 25 years of age and upwards possessing official rank or literary degree, or engaged in quasi-official occupations, and to owners of not less than 5,000 dollars worth of property, a substantial amount in China; and the rules make it possible to disqualify Officials in actual service and anyone who is obnoxious to the official classes. secretaries of such, soldiers serving in the army or reserves, police officers and men, clericals and students, are all deprived of the franchise, and may not offer themselves for election.
Sittings. There is a president and two vice-presidents of each assembly, and a standing committee of 20 per cent. of the members, all of whom sit permanently in and out of session for the transaction of business. The ordinary sessions occur once a year in the autumn and lasts for forty days; special sessions for extraordinary purposes are also provided for. One-half the members form a quorum and votes are decided by simple majority. The Viceroy or governor opens each session in person, and attends each sitting or sends a deputy; and he is given thorough controlling powers over the proceedings.
Business and Powers. The business of an assembly is strictly limited to the affairs of a province, but within those limits the rights of discussion are fairly wide; though the power of initiating proposals relating to the provincial budget and estimates is withheld, and it is evidently intended that most of the business shall emanate from the Viceroy or governor. Bills passed by the assembly must be approved by the Viceroy or governor. If disapproved they are referred back to the assembly for modification, and if the assembly refuse to modify, the Senate is appealed to. Sittings are public except in special cases. Fower to suspend or dissolve the assembly is reserved to the Viceroy or governor in case of necessity.
In the grand scheme of measures preparatory to the constitution of 1916-7 which was promulgated by the Empress Dowager's decree of the 27th August, 1908, the preliminary steps towards the foundation of provincial assemblies were set down for the year 1908-9, and the opening of the assemblies for 1903-10; and on the 13th October, 1909, the day before that fixed (in the rules of the 24th July, 1908) for this event the following Imperial exhortation was telegraphed to the provinces:-
Decree of the 13th October on opening of Assemblics.-Imperial decree of the 13th October, 1909, relating to the impending opening of the.provincial assemblies.
"The object of deliberative assemblies in every province, as laid down by Imperial decree, is to collect the opinions of the people. A decree was issued to this end by His late Majesty, Tê Tsung Ching (Kuang-hsi) under the instructions of Her late Majesty, the Empress Dowager, and upon our accession to the throne it became our duty to carry out the wishes of our predecessors by ordering the provincial authorities to carry out the necessary preparations within the prescribed time. Memorials have successively reached us from the various provinces that the work of preparation is now complete and that delegates have in every case been chosen The date fixed for the first meeting of these according to the regulations laid down. delegates is the 14th October, and we now deem it necessary to reiterate our instructions and remind delegates that, in strict conformity with the wishes of Her late Imperial Majesty, they should give their whole attention to the saue consideration of the welfare of their own localities. They should not allow private interests to interfere in any way with the public good; they should not follow their own impulses in violation of established custom; they should not underestimate difficulties and
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make their deliberations mere display of words; and lastly they should not exceed their powers and encroach upon established laws. Viceroys and governors should with strict impartiality select what is useful in their resolutions and have such resolutions enforced, so that between Government and governed there may be one mind and the best interests of the country may eventually be served.
"After the opening of the assemblies, the Viceroys and governors of the several provinces should pay even greater attention to the strict observance of the regulations and to the exercise of supervision and control. They should see that no resolution arrived at is ultra vires or subversive of established laws and regulations. They should exercise loyalty and patriotism in the promotion of the welfare of their country in order to conform to our aims in rectifying the grievances of the people, and at the same time to fulfil the responsibilities and duties belonging to officials and subjects. This is our earnest desire.
"It is hereby commanded that this decree be posted up in the meeting hall of every provincial assembly throughout the Empire, and strictly obeyed."
So far as our information extends the scheme of provincial government seems to have been taken in hand most thoroughly in Shantung, under the active superintendence of the governor Yuan Shu-shun (now Viceroy of Kuangtung) who is probably one of the ablest of the higher Chinese officials at the moment, and it will be most convenient for our purpose to take that province first. The information is condensed from the very full reports of Mr. B. Giles, His Majesty's acting consul at Chinan-fu.
SHANTUNG.
The
Preparatory Steps.-In contrast to most other provinces strong interest was displayed in the matter from the outset by the notables; an organising committee was formed, the first meeting of which was held on the 12th November, 1908. governor and the high provincial executive were present, with some eighty notables, special accommodation being provided for newspaper reporters, and the proceedings were opened with a formal address from the governor. The committee took measures to educate the electorate by lectures to selected persons, who were afterwards sent Offices were over the province to explain the nature of parliamentary institutions. established about the close of 1908 in each prefecture, department, and district for tabulating all the necessary information and making the preliminary arrangements for the elections; and lists of voters were drawn up with the help of the notables, a special instruction being to refuse the franchise to opium sm kers.
Electorate. Of the 100 odd electoral districts the largest number of names on the voting list was 3,760, in Huang-hsien; six districts had over 2,000 names; twenty from 1,000 to 2,000 names; and all the rest under 1,000. It is remarkable that the district which included the provincial capital. Chinan, with a population of a quarter of a-million, had only 1,700 voters, a fuet which testifies to the limited nature of the franchise. In nearly all cases the lists were almost entirely made up of men holding literary degrees, and those entitled to vote by property qualification were con- spicuously absent. Well-to-do people were averse from publicly stating that they were worth 3,000 dollars lest they should be subjected to official extortion; some looked upon the voting registers as vehicles for further taxation; others again declined to give in their names out of general distrust of officialdom; and people living at a distance would not take the trouble to go to the registration office.
The revised lists of voters of the whole province amounted to a total of 119,549, including 228 Manchu bannermen, and it may be concluded that the franchise was permitted to about 1 in every 300 of the population. The population of Shantung is roughly estimated at 38 millions.
Distribution of Seats.-The numbers of electors and of members of the Assembly for each prefecture (fu) and department (chou) of Shantung are as under :--
Chinan-fu
Tung-ch'ang-fu
Tai-an-fu Wu-ting-fu Lin-ching-chou Yeu-chou-fu
I-chou-fu
Ts'ao-chou-fu
Chi-ning-chou Teng-chou-fu
[2605 -2]
Electors.
Members.
17.309
15
9,825
3
14.401
12
7.792
7
3,589
3
5,908
5
14,557
12
7.998
7
3,958
J
13,495
11
C
*
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