The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1900-07-07
CHINA.


the outcome will be. China is an un-
known quantity, and when the western
powers talked of dismembering the en-
pire they talked of what they did not
understand.
AS was pointed out in the Star some
days ago, the Chinese, when properly
led, is a good soldier. He is fearless
and deternineds it only requires some
one to arouse him in order to make him
one of the foremost fighting machines
of the world, As far as material goes,
1t is practically limitless. You might
go on killing Cinnamon, and fresh war
riors would rush into their places like
the armed men that sprang from the
dragons teeth in the Jason legend.
That the Chinese are no Ill fighters
is shown by the expedition of Admiral
Seymour. 1t is very evident that the
admiral utterly miscalculated what he
had to do. He expected to easily reach
Picking in from three to five days, and
they got to Antwig, twelve miles dis
tant, and had to fall back, and during
the whole Of their retreat they were
Rarassed by the fighting population.
That during the retreat they were
able to seize and destroy a Chinese ar
senal, is satisfactory, in that 1t cripples
the Chinese in their supplies of modern
arms; but the whole effect of the ex-
petition is disastrous upon the prestige
OF the western powers. Moreover, in
spite of kilograms to Minister WI in
Washington, announcing the safety of
the ambassadors, we absolutely know
nothing about them. We do not know
whether they have been killed, or
whether they are held as hostages, or
whether they are being shown around
the country in cages, as Sir Harry
Parkes and his colleagues were during
the last China war.
The Chinese, as a nation, will think
that they have inflicted a complete de-
feat upon the combined forces of Eu-
rope and America, and it will take
great deal of hard fighting to make
them think differently. The combined
armies that are to operate in the i'm
mediate future are to number $4,000
men. One begins to wonder what an
army of even $4,000 men will be able to
do. Gordon's advice to the Chinese, if
ever they were attacked by a foreign
foe, was to withdraw from the sea-
board entirely destroy the towns and
crops for fifty miles, and then quietly
wait developments. He considered that
no power could overcome such tacit
resistance. The question is can all the
western powers overcome it.
1t is quite possible that a force of
eighty thousand men may reach Pek-
ing Picking is vulnerable point. But
even if Picking is taken, you have by
no means taken the empire. The seat
of government can be moved. 1t is
quite fashionable to move capitals since
Aguinaldo set the example, and Steyn
and Kruger followed it.
The taking of Picking, if it is going to
be a lesson to China, will mean the
utter destruction of Picking, and the
question is whether the powers are pre-
pared to go to that length To simply
occupy Picking and then eXacuate, it,
will have no influence upon the Chinese
mind. Outside the reforming class of
Chinese, men like Leung Chi-tso, it is
almost impossible for a westerner to
realize how ignorant of outside affairs,
how superstitious and credulous the
Chinese are. Conversing with a China
man only few days ago the writer
found out that the destruction of the
summer palace, an event which hap
pened during the combined attack upon
China by Great Britain and France,
was not considered an act Of VEN
geance by the allied forces, but was be-
lieved to be a direct act from heaven,
the object of the celestial interference
being to brighten the foreign invader
away, and as a fact shortly after the
event, negotiations resulted in the allied
forces retiring. But how are you going
to teach such people a lesson, who from
their very defeat find a means of puff
fling up their own pride.
There can be no doubt that the Chi
nese question is a serious one. The only
power that can adequately cope with it
is Russia, and she would do it by
method of slow absorption, just as she
has gradually absorbed her way into
Central Asia. The great expedition of
the powers, with their $4,000 troops will
most probably lead to no result what
ever In point of fact, it is difficult to
see what result it is hoped to reach
The United States wants no territory in
China 1t only wants peace aud trade
privileges. All the other powers are so
jealous of one another that If any adj
vantage is gained by one, the rest are
ready to combine against the success
full one.
The more one considers the matter,
the more complicated and difficult does
1t become. 1t is going to be immensely
costly to every nation upon the earth.
It's results no one can foresee. The prob