The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-08-18
POLITICS TN CHINA
There Is Much Corruption Among
High Officials
Scandals That Approach Very Close to the
Doors of the Imperial Palace
Once Obtained Through
Bribery.


cite any comment among those who
are familiar with the workings of that
| bureaucratic system. so perfect IN
theory, so lamentably deficient in
| practice. 1t is generally believed by
foreigners, however, that the emperor
and the highest officials, like the vice
roy, Ii Hung Chang, are not to be in
! Guided among the class OF corrupt
| sfiiceholders; but q recent incident
| serves to show that the young emperor
has not escaped this deilement that
! taints all parts of the Chinese public
| service This incident, says q Shang-
/ hal letter in the New York Tribune, IS
| the appointment of a new taotai OF
| Shanghai For months there have
been rumors of a change in this i'm
| portant official place, but no one knew
! exactly the facts. Recently the Pc
| king Gazette came out with the notice
| that January II last ''Lu Peh-Yang Is
| appointed taotai of the Soo-Sung Tai
| circuit" It may be necessary to state
that though this gazette appeared a
few days ago, it really represented the
| official acts of the emperor and the
| heads of the different boards for Jan
| ua-y IL. There are no reporters in
China eager to send out appointments
by telegraph the day they are made.
Three or four months is the usual time
consumed in getting any official action
before the public il the pages Of the
| court organ.
The circuit mentioned includes
nh h-- of
large foreign settlement and the great
increase OF foreign trade, has become a
very important place. Usually such an
Office is filed from a number of minor
officials who are designated as Eek
pectant taotais.'' Those who know
the pull" of each candidate can de-
terInine pretty accurately who viii be
the lucky one to win a coveted Office.
But in this case all the calculations Of
experts were upset by the naming of a
man who was not only not included
among the expectant officials, but who
was unknown to any Inandarins. The
Gazette throws no light on the secret
of this outsiders appointment, but
diplomatic gossip declares that he Sc
cured the place by bribing one OF the
emperor's favorite eunuchs.
One may imagine the rage of the old
Viceroy Liu, of Marking, in whose
province Shanghai is located, when he
heard that the man he had recommend
ed had been turned down" to make
way for the protege of palace eunuch.
But Liu is diplomat to his finger tips.
He received the new taOtai with great
ceremony, and suggested IN his court
lest way that the post was one which
required great experience, because of
the necessity of constant association
with foreigners. The proper thing for
the new official to have done was to re-
ply that he was sensible of this, and,
therefore, relied on the viceroy TO aid
him, and also to suggest an expert
enced deputy. Instead of this polite
reply, the new taotai answered that he
was aware of the difficulties, but he
fancied he could meet and overcome
them without asking anyone's aid. The
old viceroy would have enjoyed order
ing the upstart to receive hundred
blows of the bamboo, but he dared
make no manifestation of anger.
Some light on the corrupt purchase
of official posts is shown by case in
the same issue Of the Picking Gazette,
which records the appointment of the
Shanghai taotai. 1t records the inves-
LEGATION by an imperial censor Of the
charge of securing the place OF literary
special examiner by a metropolitan
official Cautiously enough he adopted
precisely the same method as that OF
the taotai-that is. he bribed a palace
eunuch. The latter agreed to use his
influence as well as that of several of
his companions, but he stipulated that
notes must be given for certain amounts
TO each, and that these notes must be
cashed at a certain bookstore when the
applicant received his commission.
Ting-Wei-Chih, the man who yearned
to be examiner, had his ambition only
partly gratifed. as he secured only a
small examinership at Shensi, instead
Of the important post at Szechuen,
which he applied for. So he refused to
paw the palace eunuchs. When they
came with their notes TO the book
store they were CURLY told by the pro-
pTStpf t1dI AAAS hdN ASAb lic liAOAtNs
and that he had said he did not pro-
pose to be blsclS1nailed. This made tho
eunuchs furious. and they raised such
commotion that the police were
called The bookseller, fearing public
ity, shut up his shop and tried 20 bury
himself until the storm should blow
over, but censor who witnessed the
affair began an investigation that re-
suited in many damaging facts. Then
he called upon the throne 70 appoint a
commission of inquiry.
Three high officials were selected,
and the result of their work shows the
peculiar methods by which the ear Of
great personageS Is reached. Ting, il
was shown. lusted after the post Of
special examiner Of Szechuen during
the examinations held in honor of the
empress dowager's sixtieth birthday.
he saw two friends, who recommended
him TO the bookseller. The latter
agreed to move the machinery. He
knew a schoOlmaSter. whose friend was
n tailor, and this tailor was on terms
Of intimacy with q barber IN the palace,
and the barber knew = eunUch whose
duties were 70 examine the emperor's
food before It was taken from the
kitchen to the imperial table. The
eunuch was reached by this circuitous
chain Of people, but he failed to accom-
plish what ne promised Instead Of
getting the examinership a Szechoen,
---h;.b :c ono - -ra -77.S- 7---a tive -