on
238
one
at his home, and imagine his anxiety concerning his womenfolk with these hordes of black guard soldiers about.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS &
[September 3rd, 1921.
YANGTSZE.
ON THE
177
EXPERIENCES OF A CHINA MERCHANTS STEAMER.
Much capital is made by the present | FIRING ON SHIPS can only
Canton Government of the prohibition of public gambling. All honour to them for taking the step! But they appear to have short memories. Gambling in Can- ton was suppressed in the first instance by Cheung Ming-k'i, the last of the Vice- roys under the Manchus, in the spring of 1911, some six months before the Revolution, and it is during the exist- ence of the Republic that it has been again permitted and carried to such an extreme degree. The great boast about the tremendous task recently accomplish- ed would inspire more confidence were it tempered by acknowledgement of the whole history."
Lucky is he if the operations of war do not mean more than the passage of Where the troops through his home. actual conflict arises, the countryside is in a bad case. Apart from the danger to all from the attempts at musketry of the soldiers, there are very real risks of revengeful pillage, murder, rape and arson by an outmanoeuvred force, and the same from the vanguard of the advancing victors. In this un- happy Province one District city of small size was set fire to. and over two
f6
}}
hundred houses destroyed: the pitiable description given to the writer of those whose homes they had been was horrid in its brevity; "Nowhere to dwell, no- thing to eat, nothing to put on." An- other large market town, 100 miles away from there, was almost levelled to the ground by the conflagration started by the retiring troops in the hope of an occasion for loot. in yet another place, impressed and all the boats were not allowed to move. A boatman's hat fell in the stream and floated off. They began to row after it and were at once fired on by the patrol on guard. A young mother in the boat was shot in the shoulder, and it was nearly a fort- night before they were allowed to move to seek treatment for an appallingly dirty compound fracture. These are suf- ficient instances to show a terrible side of the effect on the poorer people of the change to the greatly belauded "Re- publican "'institution.
If these fightings were carried on by foreign foes trying to subjugate the country, or by patriotic forces trying to repel an invader they would be tragic enough: but what can be said about them when they are inflicted by Chinese on their own people? It is a puzzle to know who, beyond a very few individual officials, is really the gainer, Losers are easy enough to find.
Low and high, military and civilian, man and woman, have all bewailed to the writer their keen regret that ever the Manchu regime was done away with. They say "There was injustice then, but
"C
""
« The it is far far worse
Or now. old officials were at least in awe of their superiors and had to make some show of
law." Or administering the
again, Now-a-days an official knows he will not remain in any place above a few months at most, so why should he bother to rule well?" An educated young Chinese said, “From my native village many young men have gone abroad to study, and have come back with high ideals of treating people fairly. Several have become officials and served justly, and without squeezing, for a term of office. But never one who gets a second office can keep his hands clean. He has experienced the unpalatable truth that in our Republic an honest official once out of his post is absolutely without means of livelihood."
These are the testimonies not of globe- of well-disposed trotters, nor even foreigners, nor of pro-Manchu people, but the bitter experience of those who love their own country and see the real state of affairs.
It would be foolish as well as unfair to say that no benefits have come since 1911. A change has been made, for ex- ample, in the necesssary procedure for the transfer of family lands, which now are controlled by the womenfolk as well male as the men, whereas formerly a member of the clan who would some time alone. inherit could dispose of them This is a slight check on the extravagance of young gamblers.
in
the
neck.
He
Patung to land
Firing on ships on the Yangtsze is described in recent Shanghai papers as a daily occurrence. Capt. Alfred F. Cooke, of the China Merchants steamer Kiangking was recently badly wounded had stopped at when passengers from soldiers fired
both banks It of the river. was impossible for
to
steamer Captain Cooke
get the
While she under way quickly again. was being fired on two Chinese passen- gers were killed and several wounded, as
200
There is nothing to be gained by those who point back, sighing, to old days, and think, "How much better we should have been if something different had been we have noted before. The number of done."
The pathos of the present posi-wounded has now correctly been learned tion of the bulk of the people must be to be at least 10. After getting under realized and remedied. Whether the way, the steamer riddled with bullets, Empire or the Republic is the better is Capt. Cooke found it necessary to do beside the mark, for the Empire, and the steering himself, although wounded,
as his pilots had sought cover. especially the Manchu Empire, has gone
ricades were made of everything avail- for ever, as far as Kwangtung is con- cerned.
able, including mail bags and baggage.
A procedure for the local election of District Magistrates has lately been adopted, and though it is somewhat farcical, it must be regarded as another stage in the devolution of power from the few to the many; but this type of novelty will not save the country.
Bar-
On this eventful trip down river, Capt. Cooke states that he passed from 200 to 300 junks full of soliders coming down river (as is thought likely) to loot Patung and Ichang. Patung is evacuat- ed now and the soldiers are taking every available way
The to get down river. most probable explanation of their rea- The Cantonese are not likely to improve son for firing on the str. Kiangking is their internal conditions unless and until that the troops hoped to capture and loot they make a great change in certain the ship and make use of her to carry fundamental
One, the pre- themselves and belongings to safer posterous military power must be reduced place below. As a matter of fact, Capt. to a proper size, a proper appreciation Cooke had refused to carry troops for of its function and its shortcomings, and the military authorities when pressed to a proper system of discipline. Another, do So at Chungking, without must authority from the French consul the universal conception of "face" be remodelled to bear some relationship to honour. Another, every man, woman and child must learn that he is not isolated as a unit, but part of a com-
matters.
munity, and that his well-being depends intimately upon that of the whole struc- ture.
A well-known Cantonese authority on education not long ago made a statement publicly which may well be quoted in conclusion of these articles. It was to this effect.
Our country is amost defunct, and we must revive it.
All this
"We cannot hope to revive it by mere book lore, even by widespread study of the wisest and noblest books. will be unsuccessful unless at the root is a change of individual character from wrong to right: a rebirth of the heart of us all as individual citizens. This is a radical proposition, but even were to face death for this attitude, I could To get bad men made hold no other. good. and selfish men made unselfish is the only programme that can remedy our
case.
""
It is perhaps superfluons to add that he pointed to Jesus Christ as the only hope whereby this programme can be accomplished.
The ex-Super Tuchun of the Central Yangtsze is said to have left $16 000.000 of provincial funds unaccounted for. He is stated to have acknowledged to his successor that he owed Hupeh money but not such a large sum as was alleged. What he owed, he said, would ba
some
a
THE "ALICE DOLLAR'S'
ADVENTURE.
direct
With these junk loads of soldiers on the river in such numbers, it is increas- ingly difficult for large steamers to pass by them without placing them in great! danger.
The junks are heavily loaded. On a recent trip of the str. Alice Dollar, 50 of them were caught in the backwash, upset, and sunk. As a result the follow- ing trip of the Robert Dollar, 11. was delayed. A thousand soldiers formed a line on the south bank of the river at A Chunking to prevent her departure. platoon of soldiers was sent aboard the ship to announce the intention of the of holding the military authorities steamer as security for the losses of junks caused by the Alice Dollar. Capt. G. Crum, commanding the vessel, ordered them ashore and they went.
Conferences of military and civil authorities were then held and it was decided that the steamer might proceed on her way pending further investiga- tion. Her captain was, however, advised to remain over a day to allow time for
the countermanding of orders given to
He troops below to attack the steamer. thereupon waited the day and proceeded down river in safety.
The Alice Dollar is now carrying a guard of 18 men from the U.S.S. Elcano besides three machine-guns and three-inch gun.
one
CHINESE KILLED ON INDO-CHINA
STEAMER.
Changwo,
was
The Indo-China steamer to
flying a very large red ensign, heavily fired on below Singti from the north bank of the Yangtsze, last week. A Chinese was killed and some Chinese were wounded, while the hull was pierced. but no The Stantan was also fired on, damage was done.
repaid. He had telegraphed Peking promising to make good his accounts with Hupeh. Meanwhile General Wu Pei-fu is in need of three millions to embark on the military operations he has planned in the province, and is trying to squeeze this out of the native banking and commercial organisations.
No comments yet.
Private notes are available after approval.