FO371-23515 — Page 260

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Ď.

new state to apply, inter alia, the principle of wang tao

(kingly way). This is the expression that panegyrists of the

modern Utopia that has been created are fondest of quoting and

since it is the standard by which the government itself asks

to be judged, it becomes necessary to study its meaning.

12. Wong tao is not a system of government. It is a state-

ment of principles compounded of selected aphorisms of the

Chinese sages,

Ideal government, it would scem, derives from

a benevolent ruler whose sole aim is the welfare of his sub-

jects; the officials are his servants who draw inspiration from

him as the fountain head; the subjects achieve happiness by

cheerful obedience, even when they do not understand the rea-

sona for their instructions, and by contented labour in their

respective callings.

13. In plain English it is a reaction from the so-called

republic which is held to be the source of China's recent

troubles and a return to the golden age of long ago when, in

defiance of historical record, the Chinese philosopher main-

taine that his country was well-governed and peaceful. stripp-

ed of idealism it is a doctrine of paternal government as

opposed to democracy. As such it is a system which most people

would admit is probably better suited to oriental nations than

any western system. It had at the time it was adopted the

added advantage that it was calculated to attract chinese who felt their allegiance to the former (anchu dynasty of China

bound them to follow their late Imperial master to the new

state.

The

This feature

14. The reality in very different from the theory.

Emperor is merely the symbol of sovereignty.

need not detain us: it is common to many monarchical systems.

But in Manchoukuo the fiction runs through the whole constitu-

tion. In theory the Prime Minister advises the imperor and take

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