June 3, 1901:]
APPROACHING RETURN OF THE COURT.
(Daily Press, 28th May.)
If we can believe the reports of the past
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two days with regard to the Imperial Court, the situation which has endured for so long seems at last to be coming to an end. Many months ago we were told that it was quite impossible for the Court to remain at Hsianfu and that that the famine in Sheusi must infallibly drive the Imperial family and retinue either to Peking or else into Szechuen. But the predictions have been falsified. It is true that from native sources we have learnt that the Imperial table has been reduced to ten dishes in place of the usual hundred; but still the Empress Dowager managed to hold out, though reported to be very "moros". The unfortunate Emperor, of course, had no voice in the matter. Now, however, our Shanghai correspondent speaks of the first certain indication of the Court's return to Peking given in the order to the China Merchants' team Navigation Com- pany to forward the tribute rice to Tientsin for transmission to the capital. This order, if issued with the consent of whoever guides the Imperial mind now, cannot be taken otherwise than as a proof that a speedy return of the Emperor to l'eking is contemplated. The proposal attributed to WANG WEN-SHAO, that His Majesty s ould return by way of Nanking and Shanghai is certainly original, not to say revolutionary, and it can hardly been wondered that the irascible Empress Dowager should be moved to fury by it. The chief point, however, is that the Emperor shall get to Peking with the least possible delay and end an intolerable situation by the only guarantee which can be given of a new era for China. The reactionaries who formerly ruled the Court, through the Empress Dowager, are now scattered far. The Russian consular advices reported by Count VON WALDERSEE to his Government make the situation of
the two most prominent survivors far less formidable than has been imagined. General
TUNG FURSIANG's forces in Kansu are stated to be but few, and Le is closely watched, by Imperial troops apparently. Prince TUAN, instead of being at the head of a considerable body of troops, is said to have only ten followers with him in Mongolia. It is to be hoped that these advices are correct. The presence of an ariny of men attached to either of these formerly powerful officials in Kansu or Mongolia would be a very grave element in the situation. If they are merely powerless fugitives, the outlook after the Emperor's return to Peking is far brighter. friendless outlaws they can be disregarded As entirely, and the old and corrupt clique, which misgoverned China for years and brought her to the greatest depth of de- gradation she has ever known, has no longer a rallying-point.
That was a very handsome report of the O'Gorman's on the S.V.C., says the writer of "Topics for the Times" in the Shanghai Mercury, and I believe for once thoroughly deserved. The Corps is probably more efficient to-day than ever it was. But it still has its little weaknesses. Only a fraction of the men can hit a hay-stack, and we have for years had to play second (or third) fiddle to Hongkong and Singapore. Some of the police can shoot, and the new Captain Superintendent is not the worst amongst them. But with the precision of the present weapons a hundred at 200, 500, and 600 ought not to ba uncommon. probably would not be if better sights" were and supplied to the rifles. I hear that those at pre- sont in use are almost as good as those of the Snidor of thirty years ago?
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CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
JAPAN, RUSSIA. AND THE TELEGRAPH.
(Daily Press, 29th May.) The critical position of affairs with regard take stock of her telegraphic communications to Corea, it is reported, is leading Japan to with the outside world. Her only direct cable with Europe is by way of Gutzlaff, and this cable is in the hands of the Great Northern Telegraph Company. The great Northern is, however, to all intents a Rus-ian Company, being dominated by that Power; and as the present position of affairs, especially with regard to Corea, is not of the most friendly nature, Japan, as is her right, is desirous of acquiring that line--a request naturally objected to by Russia. Russia has, in fact, been using that line so long in her own interests that she has come to regard it as her own private property, and, there is little doubt, has been placing obstructions in the way of her neighbour. It is said that the real object of her threat to reinforce her fleet in Eastern waters is not unconnected with this question of the cable; and as usual she has succeeded in persuading her humble vassal France to open the way for her. The question of Post Offices in Turkey is one that has come opportunely for the purpose. If the presence of these Post Offices be half as great a nuisance in Turkey as in China, we confess that our sympathies are altogether on the side of the Porte; and we certainly would regard it as far more consonant with the interests of civilisation that the abnormal state of affairs should be find then France threatening to force the superseded as soon as possible. When we Dardanelles in the interests of this relic of barbarism, we fear we must go beyond the look to some deeper inspiring cause. mere question of a post-office or two, and It is by no means the first time that France has acted the cat's paw for her big neighbour, and perhaps the true reason is the desire to give her friend the opportunity of withdraw ing his fleet from the closed waters of the Black Sea. At all events the coincidence of the artificial troubles at Constantinople (now apparently at an end) with the remarkable, and we are justified with our aggressive aims of Russia in Corea is experience of the methods of both nations either would like to confess openly. in attributing it to deeper motives than
MANCHURIA.
(Daily Press, 1st June.) discoursing on the mineral wealth of Recently L'Echo de Chine has been
attention to the known extent of the gold Manchuria, and has taken occasion to call fields in that country. Russia for the last three years has been diligently exploring the mineral products of the region; and one of the clauses which she put into the in- tended convention with China contained the stipulation that Russia alone was to have the right of acquiring mining rights in that extensive province. indifference and vacillation of one British Paralysed by the Government after another, for the moment the British capitalist looks with suspicion on everything in China, and the state of uncertainty bas recently been so aggravated that already there is found a difficutly in carrying through those undertakings already negotiated. Under these circumstances it is not to be wondered at that the wealth of Manchuria, as far as the British capitalist is letter. If, however, the British capitalists concerned, has up to this remained a sealed have been careless, or overcautious, the Russian has been in the field and has
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acquired a very practical knowledge of the land. It has long been known that the Tumen River, draining the northern frontier of Corea, contains in its sands a good deal of gold, and in a small way the bay of Peter the Great have been worked; gold deposits in the islands in the adjoining but as the Russian Government has always been jealous of any regular private as- sociation being formed for the working of the precious metals, but little has as yet appeared on the surface. Sufficient is, however, known to indicate that the great mountain chain, which from Possiet Bay forms the division between Corea and Manchuria, and which stretches into the old Liao-si, con- tains abundant supplies of gold. The rocks of which the range is composed are mainly Archean in structure, and from their debris have come the numerous gold deposits of northern Corea, which even with the barbarous style of working adopted by the Coreans result annually into a large quantity of gold being imported from these districts into China and Japan. These gold-bearing rocks extend westerly along the Great Wall at least as far as the longitude of Peking, and in all the valleys descending from the Mongolian plateau are found gold-bearing deposits, which have long been clandestinely worked by the inhabitants of the border- lands. The jealousy of the Manchurian Government at Peking working on the super- stitions of the people has been successful throughout the whole of the Empire in suppressing all mining undustry, so that China from being a country has under the misgovernment of mineral exporting
her supplies of the metals, precious and her presenc rulers become dependent for otherwise, on foreign imports. Such was not always the case, and along this very extensive tract of country there are many localities with remains of very extensive mining operations, which seem to have been vigourously conducted even as late as the times of the later MINGS. Even more effective
than the direct action of the Government in forbidding the working of the mines on any practical scale has been its indirect action in setting up a huge bureaucracy whose private peculations are far more effective in tion, which after all is a thing that repressing industry than the legal prohibi- in China can at all times be surmounted by a little judicious palmistry. Mining on any productive scale, however, requires the expenditure of capital in plant and perma nent works, and these afford too tempting a bait to the official bureaucracy to be since neglected. The central government which,
at least the Manchu occupation,
unwilling to interfere with the internal provincial satraps, is both unable and never has affected any control over its
administration, and leaves all details of finance and administration to the official on coupled with the rule that no official can the spot; while the system of short tenure, hold office in his own country, compels each occupant to make as much out of it as possible during his term of occupancy. cal mining scheme occupies more time than Unfortunately the development of a practi- the tenure of office of the individual in office. He sees capital being daily expended under his cyes; but from all this he derives no benefit, while he has to meet the at all
times heavy engagements under which he was appointed. To a man under these circumstance the thought that to his successor, not himself, will come the profit is tantalising in the extreme; and this alone, make him au enemy. Now there is no were there no other cause, would ruffice to doubt that for this mineral wealth_lying next to her own territory Russia in her
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