196
THE NEW TARIFF NEGOTIA- 'TIONS.
March 15, 190%.
QUEEN'S COLLEGE.
The
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
should place in the hands of its perpetra- | the integrity of the whole of China, not tors the means of repeating it more effec- excluding Manchuria, and, apart from this, tually than before. This is really the plain there is no valid reason why Russia should meaning of all these proposals for an in- claim that the northern province is to be (Daily Press, 12th March,)
crease of the burdens on foreign trade, and excepted from the general terms of peace Probably one of the most fantastic pro- everything goes to show that this is really between China and the Powers. The right positions that ever entered diplomatic head the view taken at Peking of our unexpected of Russia to maintain the security of the is that fathered by Sir JAMES MACKAY, the complaisance in this little matter. An Manchurian Railway, which China is still Mercantile Adviser sent out to China to equally important, if not more important unable to guarantee, is a separate question assist in the negotiation of the new Tariff. consideration in this last attempted swindle from the continued occupation of the whole of Manchuria. We can only regard the To many of our readers the lively descrip-
-for to use plain words it is as much a tion by the late WINGROVE COOKE of the swindle as the false pretences of the con- latest Russian move, as reported by REUTER, bluff" China. As great obstacle in the path of the then nego-fidence manis, does the new proposal as another attempt to tiations in China," the twenty-years-in-the-hold out any prospect of getting rid of the we have already stated frequently, the country-and-speak-the-language-man," will abuse against which it professes to be Manchurian question is hot one which doubtless be still familiar; but the simple directed? We have made at least three interests China and Russia nlone. minded bugbear of WINGROVE COOKE's day solemn conventions, each accompanied with United States, Japan, and Great Britain are all concerned in the future of Man- fades into absolute insignificance before the unequivocal promise that we were to his revival in the modern merchant-negotia- hear the last of lekin. Let the forty-churia, and no effort to force China into tor. There is, however, pretty clear evidence years-in-the-country:men" explain how it signing away her own and other countries' that to the same influences as brought about has happened that not one of these solemn rights can be looked on with indifference. the failures of Lord ELGIN and the rout of engagements has been kept; and also let Sir THOMAS WADE in his ill-starred efforts
them show what reason there is why this to negotiate his Convention at Chefoo, is to
new proposal should meet with greater As a fact, be attributed this interlude of our latest
success than its predecessors. negotiator. The "forty-years-in-the-country- as everyone outside officialdom-and there and-speak-the-language-man" is still ram-
are many possessed of as great knowledge pant, and the latest of his disciples is
as the paid officials on whom our would-be- this time not to be found in the ranks of negotiators profess to depend is quite dilletante diplomatists, nor in the garb of a
aware, the Central Government, so long as Special Envoy, but in the plain fustian it is carried on present lines, raunot, and dress and armed with the quarter-staff of a
dare not, intermeddle with the rights of its plain British trader. It would be an insult to the intelligence of the British, trader in provincials to levy taxes how and in what manner they select. We have always heard general to attribute to any lessons he the complaint from Peking, and this is not learnt during his long climb up the ladder denied by officialdom, but rather attempted of mercantile success the idea Sir JAMES
to be put forward as a plea for grace, that MACKAY has sprung on the English resident the Viceroys will not obey the instructions in China; and it is certainly more charitable given to them. There is a great deal of to conclude that the proposition whose truth in this, but not the whole truth, the paternity he appears to have accepted is
reason for the provincial refusal being really the production of the purlieus of the carefully concealed by these binssed apolo- Inspectorate-General in Peking, than that it is the offspring of any British school of gists. As a fact, while Péking looks care- fully to the provinces to pay the interest on financial or political training. Much as the the Imperial indebtedness, it is also equally British merchant in China has deprecated persistent in maintaining its constitutional the incidence of the lekin taxes in China, not right to all the revenue derived from foreign one has had the hardihood to aver that they trade. This is the true reason why Peking amounted to the equivalent of a tax of is so desirous of raising under any plea the fifteen per cent. Sir JAMES MACKAY could dues on foreign trade, and not any desire never, with his extremely limited knowledge to honestly meet its engagements. This is of China, have discovered this remarkable the view which Peking carefully impresses
fact for himself; and as he could have dis-
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plainly the dues from foreign trade are earmarked for their benefit, the demands of Peking will never be relaxed in con-
sequence.
This is the truth that the forty- years-man carefully shields from his mental vision; but is nevertheless the view that is most enchanting to his employers in Peking.
RUSSIA AND MANCHURIA.
(Daily Press, 14th March.)
on the provinces, and the lesson that they covered it from no outside source his pro-have learned to their cost is that, however position must have come from the only spring capable of palming off on his inno- cence such a self-evident swindle. He has in fact only proved another victim of the well-worn 'confidence" trick of which we had hoped, but how vainly, we had seen the last in China. Leaving, however, the financial aspect of the affair momentarily aside, is there any reason to explain in any less condemnatory term its political aspect? We fear we must look in the same direction
It is difficult to know what to make of for a reply. It was one of the most charac-
REUTER'S announcement that "Russia, in teristic schemes of the late LI HUNG-CHANG to make the attempt to throw the burden yielding to China, undertakes to withdraw of the recent misdeeds of China on to the from Manchuria within eighteen months, if the latter's signature is given to the pro- shoulders of the principal sufferers; and a number of his followers, really regretting posed Convention." In the first place, it is the failure of the Palace plot to get rid of, impossible to say what is meant by Russia If Russia were to yielding to China." the foreigner and iis trade at one blow,
vield to the wishes of the only real patriots have been unceasing in urging, in season and out of season, the necessity of making in China she would have to withdraw the the foreigner tax himself to pay his own Convention altogether. Cut she is evidently indemnity. Curiously enough, the simple, not prepared to do this, inasmuch as she fact does not seem to have struck diploma-' postulates that China's signature is given tists in Peking that it would be better to theto proposed Convention. In the second forego all indemnity than to pay one to be place, what is the "proposed Convention" We have had so many drafts eventually taken out of our own pockets-, referred to ? with interest meanwhile to boot. This is of this Convention that it cannot be said altogether apart from the curious fact, with certainty which is the proposed Cou- Thirdly, there is the question which on calm reflection must appear self- vention. evidently absurd to any reasoning man, that whether Russia is not bound in any case to The recent from a merely political standpoint we withdraw from Manchuria. should not only condone the crime, but Anglo-Japanese agreement aims at guarding
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are
(Daily Press, 11th March.) Educational reports and statistics
to the casual always interesting, even reader. The comparison of old Central School statistics for 1881 with those
of Queen's College for 1901 made by Dr. WRIGHT in his Annual Report on the we made in yesterday's issue) must forcibly latter establishment (extracts from which appeal to everyone. The position can be easily strengthened. If the two last items be put into sterling -a common enough practice nowadays-and assuming the value of a dollar now as half what it was in 1881, the expense of Queen's College with its daily average of 894 scholars throughout last year, works out at about three-fourths, the expense of the 386 students in daily
average attendance at the old Central
School twenty years earlier: while, on the same basis, the average expense per scholar during 1901 comes to less than one-third what it was in 1881. The difference of standard now aimed at, and in great mea
Dr.
sure attained, is also little short of astonish- g; particularly when it is pointed out that the raw material available is as crude now as ever, aud that the very greatest difficulty is experienced in retaining boys, even the song of the comparatively wealthy section of the native community, at school, as soon as they have acquired a marketable smattering of English. WRIGHT points out, among other crying educational needs, that the Native Chinese School should be restored for the boys in the Lower and Preparatory Sections; i.e., in all classes below the third. The Report of the Education Commission appointed by Sir JOHN POPE HENNESSY, and issued late in 1882, says :- To secure more time for, "and greater efficiency in, the study of
C
English in the Central School, it is essential "that great attention should be paid by the "scholars to the study of Chinese during "the earlier years of their attendance. For "this purpose there should be an Upper "and a Lower School. In the latter, Chi-
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bese should go hand in hand with English, "and about the same amount of time should be devoted to each. For passing from the Lower to the Upper School, there should be a stringent examination, and no Chinese boy should be admitted to the Upper School until he is considered by the examiners to have obtained a "competent knowledge of his own language. When this has been attained, the transla- "tion lessons in the Upper School would "prevent any neglect of Chinese which might arise when the ordinary lessons in "that language ceased to be taught.”
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