February 19, 1906.]
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT.
China.
even the Dreadnought has to be exceeded. I first presentation, as too crude even for The South Carolina and her sister battleship are projected to have displacements of twenty thousand tons and twelve 12 in. guns, instead of the 16,000 and eight respectively first projected. Japan also, it is rumoured, is not over-impressed by her own achievements with lesser craft, and is | thinking of a nineteen thousand ton battle- ship with four 12 in, and twelve 10 in. guns, and a speed of nineteen knots, with two monster cruisers in addition. This, however, is only a rumour, and, if they have to wait until Japan herself can build them, need not seriously be considered. The same remark applies to the ambitious pro- gramme of the Russian navy, for different
reasons,
RUSSIA AND CHINA.
(Daily Press, 14th February.) Russia has astrange fascination for China, The reason can only partially be accounted for by the actual physical conditions. We sometimes see the same amongst human
beings, as where the other day a young widow found that her pretended lover bad all along been engaged in a swindle, and prosecuted him in the Police Court, yet could not refrain from giving him a kiss in bis cell, because, as she said, she pitied him. SO BILL SYKES' bull terrier stuck to his unaniable master through thick and thin, notwithstanding his brutal treatment: yet even BILL.'s dog thought it high time to sever the connection when he found his master preparing a rope to drown him, in order to save his own neck. Russia is at the present moment trying to lay a very similar trap for China: she had been baulked in the game the first time she tried it OB, but none the less, nothing concerned for her previous disappointment, she is getting ready a like
rope;
and Chisa, more amenable than the dog, listens to the blandishments of the tempter as if she had not just escaped by the very skin of her teeth with her life. Russia is, of course, mistress of ce:tain blandishments which China cannot End
in her heart to refuse; and which are parti oularly alluring to the minds of her states- men, The remembrance of a little sum of
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this would suggest some common origin. Doubtless to a considerable degree they Notoriously bankrupt in Europe, where partook of the nature of a ballon d'essai, repudiation is openly talked of, Russia has but from whom? Apparently, as no attempt yet, what would with any other nation be was made by Japan to act on th
them, they called merely effrontery, the grace to were not due to her instigation ; but they are present schemes for railway building in now revived, and this time apparently in districts whose population hardly exceeds a Russia's interest-and this lends a cer- single inhabitant to the square mile. Her tain support to the suggestion that they present railways, even counting in those in really proceeded from the Russian Legn- Europe, do not cover working expenses, yet tion. Such a course is not unknown in she presents to China, not usually considered Russian diplomacy; and this it is that deficient in business acumen, schemes for gives them a certain extraneous support. making on joint account main lines through Momentarily, at all events, the reactionary Mongolia. She asks modestly to be placed party has been lately much in evidence in in Manchuria on a footing equal to that of China, and this may throw some light on Japan, yet immediately after suggests - as one of the points proposed referred to her interpretation of this that railways shall above. In this Russia is stated to be put only be built in Helungkiang by the "joint"|ting forward a claim that in case foreign enterprise of Russia and China, joint, of advisers are to be engaged in the administra course, in the sense that all the money is to tion of the government of the Halungkiang be obtained at the sole risk of China, Russia those officers are to be Russian. Looked enjoying in reversion the right to invade in at by itself such a demand would bear its the future by means of these lines the entire own refulation: if there were one place northern froutier of the Empire. One more than another where a wise govern- would have supposed that Russia's previous ment would refuse to erect a foreign use of her railway made through China's ill-administration, it would be on the frontier placed complaisance would have taught of the nation to which those foreign her a lesson of caution. She is else administrators belonged. As we said iu where sacrificing her own interests to her the commencement, there were, however, patriotic effort to keep China for the Chinese, cert in very strong sympathies between notwithstanding that she has full guarantees, China aud Russia, the reasou of which emphasised by many years' experience in the was not very evident at the first glance. north, that no interference with her follest It is, however, from day to day more evident rights of sovereignty will be permitted or
that not the least objection on the part attempted, yet she opens negotiations in of the reactionary party at the moment in Manchuria and Mongolia for making railways the ascendant, is a fear that any control by at her own expense for Russia's benefit, and the more enlightened of the foreign gover over which from the very beginning she ments of such important undertakings as will have not the remotest power of control. railways would ressitate financial control, The inconsistency is instructive, and there and this is, of courter thirf all others is a lesson to be learnt from it, which we to the Young Chinese partythe galling. are apt to pass over as uufmportant. We To be permitted to treat the revenues of the my perhaps gather some judication of the State as their own private property is the reason from one of the proposals published beet auchor of the bureaucracy of China, as proceeding from Russia.
It is, of course, true that none of these
propositions are in any degree authentic. For certain reasons of their own, when similar negotiations were going on with Japan for the recent treaty, the Native Press formulated a number of points said to have been under consideration. Commenting on these at the time, we stated that while there
it is likewise of that of Russia. It is not oing too far to suggest that there is here some common ground of sympathy, and that Young China would not so much object to band over China tied and bound, provided only that in their own person the good old customs of the past were preserved. Russia they feel by a common instinct would not be unkind en
a hundred thousand rupees per annum paid was no reason to believe in their authenti- trol, and eiga to inflict Financial Con-
over as a quietus under very similar circum- stances is enough to appeal to the heart of the least acquisitive of China's remaining statesmen: but this does not account for all. There is no doubt a sympathetic feeling be- tween the two countries, even beyond the immediate personal profit to be made, and Chinese, quite out of the reach of any pos sible temptation, will readily affirm that they feel more at home in negotiating a maiter of dip'ona y or business with a Russian than they would with, for instance, an American or an Englishman. No other country would dare to make the barefaced
city, there was yet enough in them to advise caution on the part of our Government. Now it is curious to observe that the announcements of the present nego tiations with Russia bear a similar stamp: and the natural conclusion is that both pro- ceeded from some common source. Equally with the Japanese the Peking negotiators
succeeded
in preserving, strict secrecy over the points actually being negotiated. The result was that when the treaty was finally arranged it was found that none of the points enlarged on by the Native Press had really been considered. The treaty
8
Mahe iniquity of Audit: so reason the unquestionable logic, if China be bound to go under, by all means let it be to Russia, who, however she may oppress the country, will at least keep her iconoclastic hands off our private pecula- tions. At all events, with such a key we can unravel many riddles, which to untrained Westerners seem impossible of solution.
THE PROTRACTED AWAKENING
OF CHINA.
(Daily Press, 15th February.) The STATIST of Jan. 13th states that the
proposals to. another which there is very carefully avoided all points as to special Chinese Government is negotiating Ag
good reason to believe bave been not only treatment, and only those questions of proposed, but have been actually discussed business which naturally grew out of the between the present Russian Minister at Treaty of Portsmouth, such as the position Peking and the Chinese Foreign Office. It with regard to Ching of the lease and other is true that M. POKOTILOFF was recently rights passed on by Russia to Japan, were manager of the Russo-Chinese Bank, and discussed. Generally, the whole of Man- as such well acquainted with the many cburia was to be thrown open to trade; devious channels through which outflowed but this, it was generally known, was due the funds engaged in many secret negotia. as much to the party momentarily in power tions : and that the knowledge thus acquired at Peking asto external influences. Whence, must stand him iu good stead in overcoming then, came these very circumstantial reports any residuary scruples; and yet withal, instinct of mental propinquity between the two, such proposals as there is every rea- son to believe have actually passed, would have been bundled out of court on their
were it not for a certain indefinable
given by the Native Press? They had a tinge such as did not seemingly proceed altogether from a Chinese invention: it is curious to observe that mutatis mutandis there is a family likeness with those now put forward through the same agency, and
group of British and German banks large loan for the construction of railways. This is very interesting indeed, and we are prepared to accept it also as a very signi ficant fact," but not with quite the same signification attached by our well-informed financial contemporary. It is quite certain that China will not obtain this foreign capital from the banks without making ample concessions in the way of security, such as the Cantonese people have just been fighting the VICEROY for, and more. Apparently the Statist has not had its attention drawn to the object lesson in Kwangtung which would have e
Anabled it to avoid the confusion incidental to adherene to the threadbare and now misleading
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