Directory_and_Chronicle_1880 — Page 284

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CHINA.

REIGNING SOVEREIGN AND FAMILY.

Kuang Su, Emperor of China, is the son of Price Cun, the s venth son of the Emperor Ta Kuang; hence he is cousin to the late Emperor Tung Chi, who died without issue on the 12th day of January, 1875, from small-pox.

The proclama ion announcing the accession of the present sovereign was as follows: Whereas His Majesty the Emperor has ascended upon the Dragon to be a guest on high, without offspring b rn to his inheritance, no course has been open but that of causing Tsai-Tien, son of the Prince of Ch'un, to become adopted as the son of the Emperor Wêng Tsung Hie: (Hi n Fung) and to en:er upon the inheritance of the great dynastic line as Emperor by succession. Therefore, let Tsai-Ti n, son of Yib Huan, the Prince of Ch'u, become adopted as the son of the Emp ror Wên Tsung Hien, and enter upon the inheritance of the great dynastic line as Emperor by succes sion." The present sovereign is the ninth Emperor of China of the Tartar dynasty of Ta-tsing, (Sublime Purity) which suce eded the native dynasty of Ming in the year 1644. There exists no law of hereditary succession to the throne, but it is left to each sovereign to appoint his successor from among the members of his family. The late Empror, dying suddenly, in the vig teenth year of his age, did not designate a successor, and it was in consequence of a palace intrigue, directed by the Empress Dowager, widow of the Emperor Hien Fung, predecessor of Tung Chi, in concert with Prince Cu, that the infant son of the latter was declared Emperor and another long Regency, prolonging the rule of the two Empresses Dowager, inaugurated,

GOVERNMENT AND REVENUE,

The fundamental laws of the empire are laid down in the Ta-tsing Hue:-tien, or Collected Regulatious of the Great Pure Dynasty, which prescribe the government of the State as based upon the governmen of the family. The Emperor is spiritual as well as temporal sovereign, and, as high priest of the empire, can alone, with his immediate representatives and ministers, perform the great religious cere- monies. No ecclesiastical hi rarchy is maintained at the public expense, nor any priesthood attached to the Confucian or Sta e religion.

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The administration of the empire is under the supreme direction of the Interior Council Chamber, comprising four members, two of Tartar and two of Chinese origin, besides two assistant from the Han lin, or Great College, who have to see that nothing is done contrary to the civil and religious laws of the empire, contained in the Ta-tsing Huei-tien, and in the sacred books of Confucius. These members are denominated Ta Hsio-sz, or Ministers of State. Under their ord rs are the Li Pu or six beards of government, each of which is presided over by a Tartar and a Chinese. They are:-(1) The board of civil appointment, which takes cognisance of the conduct and administration of all civil officers; (2) The board of revenues, regulating all financial affairs; (3) The board of rit s and ceremonies, which enforces tue laws and cus oms to be observed by the people; (4) The military board, superintending the administration of the army; (5) The board of public works; and (6) The high tribunal of criminal jurisdiction To these must be added the Tsung-li Yamên, or board of foreign affairs. Inde endent of the Government and theoretically above the central administration, is the Tu-cha Yuan, or board of public censors. It consists of from 40 to 50 members, under two presidents, the one Tartar and the other of Chinese birth. By the ancient custom of the empire, all the members of this board are privileged to present any remonstrance to the sovereign. O..e censor must be present at the meetings of each of the six government boards.

The estimates of the public revenue of C ina vary greatly, and, while they are stated by some to exceed 100 millions sterling, are held by others not to come up to half that amount. Official returns of the Chinese Government, published in 1844, stated the annual revenue at that time at Tl-. 191,803,139, or £63,934,713. Accord ing to the memorials from officials published in the Peking Gazette, it would appear that there are almost constant deficits, which the governors and high officers of pro-

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