The Savannah morning news., 1900-07-30


suited on the working of the iron They
advised him to fix his works whore the
deposit was found, but this was against
the old mans fixed idea that the foun-
dry should he under his own eye, In The
very center of his city. SO he built It on
a swamp and had to pay more for the
foundations than for the rest of the
building, and in addition he has to bring
all the iron ore distance of fifteen miles
for smelling down the Han river. Then,
the Viceroy never gives any European
manager his confidence for sufficient
time to allow him to make a success OF
his position, and continual changes in
management do not tend to commercial
profit As IL IS with the iron works, so
It Is with che cotton mills. In the htst
wear more than $500 had TO be paid for
missing parts Of machinery, especially
brass caps and plates which had been
stolen by the employees for want OF prop
er and honest supervision. Squeezing
himself. the high official-this old gentle
man always excepted-is always afraid
that he is being squeezed" by his Euro
mean assistants, and that not on the prop
or scale A great deal of moral plaiitu-
dinizing has been, very properly eXpend-
ed on the universal Chinese principle OF
squeeze" or what the Americans often
cali doodle" That IL is bad sys-
tenn. and a demoralizing one, goes with
oua saving. but what else can the poor
(-binaman do? lie pays more for his Of
flee than he can ever get out of his Off
cial salary
The Taotai Of Shanghai pays more to
his head clerk than he receives from his
CITY and vet he is expected to give l0oooJ
taels equal 20 some f14O00, for a tenure
not exceeding three years. If a Chinese
official did not squeeze he would starVe
AS regards the vast mass of the people,
"soueeze" Is a regular and anticipated
Utmost. and the scale Is almost as we'll
known and fixed as a lawyers charges
They nav and grumble, but they consider
a. IL II be not OF an exceptional kind
a matter of course, and they talk of IT as
The rate payer in London does OF his de-
rnard note In the case of rich men
pIunging in litigation, it may be quite
-aeether matter and at Nankin | was told
of right claimant to "A large inherit
.ncc who was kept out Of 1t by
abe brides given 10 the Hamen by ms
wicked nephew, the man in posses
sion with the nine points Of law
i'm his favor. What is quite Ger
tain Is that the ordinary China
man Is not squeezed out Of the means OF
existence For his protection the trade
guilds are q powerful agency. Sometimes
they will go 10 the length OF = general
strike until some individual case OF in
Justice or oppression Is set right, and even
the Governor is too much frightened 81
riot and disturbance to brave them for
long. when he has no case worth speak
ing Of As in many more advanced coun-
tries than China, IL IS the hangers-on OF
the courts. the smalled officials aud at
PENDANTS, whom the average man fears
and suffers from most. In every Chinese
CITY there is q countless crowd OF stud
ents who have taken their degrees anG
are waiting for appointments under the
government some of which never come.
Hoping against hope for a bare living,
they attach themselves TO the nearest
Yamen and batten and breed on the ex-
tortion of palm-oil These Yamen run
ners. like the petty tchnivniks Of Russia.
are the curse of the poor when they get
hem into their net. 1t is common say
ing that It IS not the big devil that is 20
he feared-lt Is all the little devils.
whoever knew the people OF the Flow
cry Land learn anything from he barbar-
rlan. but often have the barbarians learn
90 from the people OF the Flowery Land.
This quotation from the sophist Mencius
Is ever IN the mouths of the educated
Chinese when they come into controversy
with missionary zeal. Verify. there is ono
set Of facts that they can teach us. and
that is the futlity Of tnikng about and
acting upon the government of China as
II II had any likeness TO the centralized.
and sovereign powers OF the Western
World How often Is IL assumed in pub
lie speeches. and even in diplomatic pa
pers, that the hierarchy OF Pekin can and
does impose it's will and enforce its au-
thority upon provincial governments, in
spite OF the long lesson given US by the
Viceroy Ieh between 1856 and 1850 IN whaf
would be styled in parliamentary lau-
guaRe, the warlike operations round
Canton? The reality OF sovereign power
has some simple tests, and II these be APP
piled TO the relations between the Impc-
rial ard Viceregal governments of China.
IL will be found that the whole scheme
is one vast mass OF confusion and pro-
crastination. What makes a proper I'M
derstauding Of the conditions so intense
~ important al the present time Is that
every month we ore contracting some
new obligation or sanctoninR some fresh
concession. the burden Of which viii have
to be borne in due season.