Arizona republican., 1906-09-17

oudugnal, Aug. 4.-(COrreS SDondence of the Associated Press "A compe-
 tent authority on the far east declares that the Chinese have made more progress during the last five wears
 than any other nation on earth, not excepting Japan He admits that China has not made such advance in
 iron and coal production as has the United States, but he contends that China has made a wider and more pro- found change in her whole attitude to-
 ward western civilization than has any other nation
 The latest proof that China's face is set toward progress is found in the i'm perial decree issued last Sunday prom ising a change of laws. While this
 decree does not promise a constitution.
 as careless readers have inferred. nevertheless it points in that direction.
 A more vital indication of progress
 Is found in the recent imperial decree
 making some mastery of western learn
 ing condition of future employment
 m the government service. This de-
 cree does not affect existing office
 holders. and does not apply to candi-
 dates for office who have already com
 pleted the prescribed course of Con-
 fucian learning and have received the
 first and second degrees. But the sig
 nificance of the decree is found in the
 fact that it prescribes the identical
 condition for future candidates for
 office, which the young emperor pre-
 scribed eight years ago and which led
 to the boxer uprising. It is significant
 that the dowager empress. who then
 retired the young emperor for his radi-
 calism, now issues in his name the
 identical decree which produced the revolution.
 A still more striking sign than this paper decree is found in the fact that
 Yuan Shin Hai, the leading vieerov of
 the empire. has already established more than five thousand primary and secondary schools in the ChiIi province in order to prepare the young people of his province for the new government courses. He is attempting to introduce western learning and indeed the Eng fish language into these schools as rap idly as possible. This creates a strong demand for American teachers. but the pay is too low to justify young. people coming from the United States to ac- cept these minor positions. In lieu of American and English teachers, the Japanese are being employed to teach western learning, and in some cases the English language The ''pIdgiD" 1 English, which Is taught by some of the 1 Chinese scholars would indeed be ! laughable were it not for the fact that i the introduction of the English lan- guage may possibly become general l and If so may carry with zt the intro ! duction of western civilization. As AL eXander's adoption of the Greek Ian | guage enabled that conquered nation i to transform the civilization of western | Asia; as the adoption of Roman law and fha latin Ia men carried with it Latin Christianity | throughout Europe, so the prevalence | of English speech in China, during the | next few years, will carry with it west | ern sciences and western civilization.
 An indication pointing to the grow | ing Influence of Japan in China is | found the fact that eleven thousand Chinese students are now in Tokio ! to secure from the government | institutions and private schools the western learning. The Young Mems | Christian association in Shanghai has seen the significance of this movement and has sent two American and three | or four young Chinese Christians to | Iokio to keep in touch with this group of Chinese students. As some Chinese students are returning from and going to TOkiO each month, at least fifteen thousand young Chinamen will pursue their studies in the Japanese capitol in lSOo- AS these young men will furnish the future Yuan Shi Kais. Chang Chin lungs and Wu Ting Fangs of China one can readily see the influence which the Japanese will acquire in the Chi lese empire. At least two or three thousand of these young men would have studied in the United States had 1t not been for our harsh enforcement of the exclusion law. It now looks as if Japan will become the schoolmaster 1f the orient, as Germany has been the 'ehoolmaster of Europe and America But the United States may lead the race after it is out of school.
 Another sign of the times is the in- crease of the postoffices and the null 1p1cation of newspapers, especially along the eastern side of the empire The postoffices have increased from about one hundred four years ago to some eighteen hundred today The number is still pitifully small. but the ate of increase is a just cause of sur prise and a striking indication of pro sress. In Tientsin four years ago. hree newspapers were published. To- lay twenty-three newspapers are pub ished in that northern port. It is at east significant that the only news paper on earth published by a woman md for women is now published in 2eExin
 The Manchu court has always been opposed to bound feet and compara- lively few women who gain access to he court have submitted to this early orture. A few months ago however, In imperial decree was issued exhort- ng parents not to bind the feet of their daughters. On the dowager empress'