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November 4, 1901 }
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
THE MANCHURIAN QUESTION.
with the extreme expansionists are too close to make him a safe autocratic ruler. His term of office has so far seen little enough
(Daily Press, 31st October.) done for the welding together of the colonies It is not too much to say that the main which he administers. The concentration political interest of the world is at the of the Government departments at Hanoi moment concentrated on the game being may be a step in this direction, but it is played between Russia and China in the admitted on all hands that there is a Far East. Of Russin and China it is but a grievous lack of railway intercommunica- truism to say that they are very much alike tion between the different parts of Indo- in most things-only more 80. Both are China, and the want of any deep-water vast and overgrown Empires; both are harbour is still commented on. Those who nominally autocracies of the most com- cry out most strongly against the Yunnan promising nature, and in both the nominal scheme would gladly see railway extension head is little more than a puppet. Both with the limits of Indo-China itself. ́ ́A are distinguished for general ill-faith, and wide field lies open before a Governor- disrespect for engagements; and finally, we General who prefers to turn to profit may say that both are dominated by their France's unexploited colony in South Asia provinces. But herein comes a strange con- instead of seeking ever to increase its size. trast; while in one-China-that influence North of Indo-China the newly acquired has been used to hold the Empire, in both territory of Kwanchauwan offers further cases tending to fly in pieces, together, in scope for French industry. The latest the other the tendency is being used to reports indicate considerable activity. Our produce disruption. China, as avaricious contemporary L'Avenir du Tonkin comments as the other of extending her grasp over her on the success of the efforts made to develop neighbours. has long from senile decay the place, and says that daily Kwanchauwan lost the power of holding the morsels she attracts a larger portion of the trade that would willingly clutch: and the other used to go to Pakboi, Yu-lin, and neigh-Russia--alrearly as rotten at the core as was bouring regions. · Petroleum in par- ticular,' says L'Avenir,
"tends to pass through our new French port, and opium only goes to Pakhoi in very small quan- tities, in consequence of being able to "enter Kwanchau free of duty. In the last quarter of 1900 there was a drop of 46 per cent. in opium arrivals at Pakhoi, and it can be foreseen that in a short time all the opium destined for Kwangsi and Kwangtung will pass through Kwanchau. "wan."
The Hanoi paper goes on to point out that while the port develops, the French commercial situation in all the regions washed by the waters of the Gulf of Tonkin grows stronger. The settlement at Kwan- chauwan has brought about the establish- ment of a regular fortnightly mail service between Haiphong and the new port, and the connection is coming closer and closer. If one day, as is suggested," concludes L'Avenir du Tonkin, "a railway is built running from Kwanchauwan to Kwang-
influence tung province, French
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these regions will be great; but already happy results have followed our installa- tion at Kwanchauwan." Not only France, but all other nations interested in South Chinese trade would rejoice at the exploita tion of the Southern provinces, provided that French policy is not corrupted by the land-grabbing instinct and the exclusion as far as possible of all other than French trade. France's activity will be welcomed just so far as it is marked by the comity due to other nations which has been lacking in past French administration in Indo- China. This is a fact to which at least the non-official French residents in Indo-China are fully alive. The officials, however, are either wilfully blind or abnormally dense. They have at least the spectacle of an ex- tremely valuable but practically undeveloped group of colonies to show them the folly of the past régime.
It is commonly believed, says a Vladivostock correspondent, that in the South Ussuria dis. trict wild beasts, such as tigers and panthers,
Rome after the death of SEVERUs, finds herself as entirely dominated by her Asiatic provincials as was Rome herself in the third century. There is thus an instinctive though probably quite unconscious bond drawing the two nations together. Both, more or less, find them-elves shunned by their more respectable neighbours; and so both, without any thought of keeping their mutual engagements, paraile certain myster- ious notes in the nature of accommoda. tion bills, which they are mutually desirous of foisting on the outer world as bona-fide and negotiable documents, representing real transactions. Some months ago, we found Russia drawing a huge bill of this nature against the whole of Manchuria. China, as far as she was represented by her acting manager Li, was quite ready to accept, but the other directors at the last moment find- ing that the transaction had got blown on, withheld their signatures, and the affair failed. Both were, however, too far com- mitted to drop the affair, but soine more taking form was necessary. Curiously enough this time it is China that draws on Russia. Russia had received from her correspondent abroad an sideration, so she authorises her friend to draw on her for the balance in excess, and the note apparently reads: "Twelve months after sight pay to my order, &c., for value received." There is unfortunately one ugly little flaw in this plausible transaction, and that is that the amount sought to be returned by Russia is confessedly the proceeds of the previous overdraft, and too much like the game of seesaw to be readily negotiable. In the next place the letter of authorisation is not altogether free from suspicion. Russia has indeed, and not for the first time, put too much faith in the gullibility of her European friends. The Chinese Government," it says, "must clearly understand that the occupation of Manchuria was solely for the protection of Chinese interests and rights in the East." Marquis of ANGLESEY the other day had a valet who desired to take care of the value his Lordship's jewellery to
excessive con-
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us familiar, Russia, this time we believe truthfully promises to withdraw all the Russian troops "after the restoration of the railway to China." Doubtless she will, but when does she propose to return the line. Evidently after St. Tibb's Eve; a festival, as we used to learn in our school days, neither before nor after Christmas, It is doubtless extremely attentive of Russia thus to take the world into her confidence, but duriously no one asked her, and the "conflence trick," we should have thought was rather a belated device at this stage of the proceedings. The curious thing is that Russia should take any steps to prove her uprightness. Why does she do it? As a first-class Power it is not a customary thing for her to make these uncalled for excuses. If Russin wants to grab Manchuria, surely she is big enough to do so. not desire to be the keepers of her con- science, and she surely does not think that we are at all likely to be deceived by this claptrap. It would be more dignified, as well as more straightforward, on her part to do the thing, and talk about it after- wards. Conscience, however, makes cowards of us all, and impels us to do many strange things which in our sober senses we would at once see were merely making of ourselves a laughing-stock to the world. Russia did not scuple to commit such petty thefts as to carry off fifty miles of rails, or break open a safe at Tientsin to abstract some title-deeds. Her conscience in this latter case was, it is 'true, sufficiently tender to lead her to add the crime of arson to her other pecadilloes. So it is evident that Russia has a conscience, and one troubles her very considerably at times; unfortunately it is that sort of conscience that leads the hardened criminal to commit a greater crime in order to conceal from himself the traces of his former misdeeds. This is what Russia has come to under the inanagement of that newest specimen of international honour, the Minister Count LAMSDORFF. Meanwhile Count LAMSDORFF has served us one useful turn by his policy of evasion, and prevarication. We know what Russian honour is worth; we had, it is true, suspected for a long time, but we were loth to express it in words. Now Count LAMSDORFF has himself proclaimed from the housetops that he himself reckons it value so as little as ourselves; namely, at infinitesimal that it is of no practical amount whatever. It is as well that we should have this evidence. Lord LANSDOWNE, speaking on the 29th December last of a communication LAMSDORFF, directed the British Ambassa dor to inform the chief of the Russian Foreign Office that he regretted "the publi- cation of a communication so inaccurate in detail and so misleading in its general tendency." Such remarks fall lightly in St. Petersburg. Still the Count seems to have out-Lamsdorffed himself in his last little game of confidence, and it is time for our Ministers to look things squarely in the face.
that
received from Count
On the 19th ult. at Shanghai the team which is going to represent Shanghai here during the Cricket Week played the next XVI of Shanghai. The game was an uninteresting affair, the XVI going in first and making 76 only, while the Hongkong team made 50 for 3 have all been exterminated, but a recent incident shows that such is not the case.
wickets (K. J. McEwen 20, Capt. Rose 10, The corres-
we thirty thousand sterling; some
W. H. Weippert 2, T.. Wallace 14 not out, pondent then goes on to describe how two of Russian peasants in the neighbourhood dis- believe it was a brutal English police W. J. Turnbull 1 not out). Mann and Potter lodged a large panther from a tree, thinking it
man who could not see what a very diff-each took 5 wickets against the XVI, the former to be a raccoon, and being in consequence tadly erent thing this was from a common mauled. They managed, however, to kill the
instance of theft, and had the unfortunate beast. Other residents in the district assert
man locked up, to be committed by a still that they had seen another panther during the
more brutal magistrate. Again, in past few days, while it is stated that a tiger had also been seen in the neighbourhood of Grode peculiar language with regard to the use of which Count LAMSDORFF has lately made
koyo Station.
that
for il and the latter for 29 runs, while Stanion took 4 for 21. The N.C. Daily News report says:-The batting was not by any means brilliant. It is now too late in the season for match cricket to be taken seriously, and it is hoped that our Hongkong representatives will make the most of net practice.
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