1
hich even under the Empire was jealously fought for 606
central and provincial, and by the Governments
although the new laws of the Republic would seem to rovide for renunciation of nationality, they have hot yet been completely revised nor codified and joubts are oven exɔressed regarding their validity. The old princi phe is, therefore, still stubbornly pheld and nothing short of physical force is capable f causing it to be abandoned. This, needless to say, reduces those, who seek legitimately to exercise protection to an undesirable, if not ridiculous state of impotency. lind I not so promptly intervened, this innocent British subject would have been shot without trial on a trumped up charge, brought against him by a private enemy temporarily holding a military position. Less than 24 hours before he was released after having been imprisoned for 22 days, a long telogram urging the carrying out of the death sentence was received from an influential Chinese General fighting on
the Kwanghai front, brother of the original accuser, and it was only fear of the scandal, which would have ensued and which would have afforded the enemies of the South restcrn Government an opportunity of pointing out that they were just as"militarist:'' as Peking that induced the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to take upon themsolves the responsibility of liberating him.
it
In feimess to the Government's contention, must be acknowledged, accing that Chinese can so easily acquire protection from certain foreign Consulates and can and do make use of it so frequently for illegal purposes, that in most instances it is not without
Justification.
Even