Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-01-24
REAL STRENUOUS LIFE
China's Imperial Commission
Illustrating 1t.
PROGRAM FOR THEIR STAY
Some Changes in the Arrangements
Made.
MR.. WOO ON THEIR DUTIES
Especially Charged by Empress Dow
ager to Look Into the Educa-
ton of Women.
R. WOO ON THEIR DUTIES

China's imperial commissioners awoke
this morning to the real strenuous life.
They had landed in midsummer in Wash
ngton yesterday, and this morning found
it mdwinter. But they smiled blandly at
the tricks of the weather and put in the
early hours of the day in their quarters at
the Arlington Strengthening out their bag
gage and getting ready for week or more
of hard work sightseeing. This program
for the stay in Washington had been large
ly changed since their arrival. They Went
as they had expected. to pay their respects
to the President at the White House this
afternoon, and presented letter from the
empress, but they added to this a call on
Vice President Fairbanks and social call
On Mrs. Root as an acknowledgment of the
courtesy they had already received from
the Secretary of State.
One Of the changes of program will in
clude a visit to Annapolis tomorrow. They
will leave Washington on a special about
8 am. and after spending the day at the
Naval Academy they will return to Wash
ington in the evening.
One of the private entertainments that
have been arranged for them in Washington
will be dinner at ex-Secretary John w.
Fosters on Monday evening 1t will be
simply a private dinner, and there Will be
present only the heads of the Chinese mis-
sion.
The District Commissioners will meet the
members of the commission at the Cor
coran Art Gallery on Friday afternoon at s
O'Clock, and they will be shown the gallery
and given an official welcome by the mu-
nicpality.
Mr. Woo Interviewed.
Nearly all of the members of the COM
missioners' retinue speak English. many of
them huently. There are graduates of
Kwang Kien. the first secretary, was edu-
Gated in English in London. Mr.. Tsze, one
of the English secretaries, is an alumnus Of
Cornell. Mr.. Wan is a Harvard man, and
Mr.. Tong another of the English secretaries
is of Yale. In speaking of the reception
of the commissioners in this country, Mr..
Woo said to Star reporter today:
Il know that the commissioners feel
deeply the courtesies that have been ex-
tended to them ever since they landed
This is formal diplomatic expression
either. Every one has seemed anxious to
show them everything of interest, and they
have been made to fell genuinely at home,
and they appreciate 1t; they really do
OF course. the members of the have been
shown everything in the line of America s
industrial development that would interest
them on their trip across the continent. But
II is not generally realized that they are as
much interested in the social and political
problems, and the way they are being met
L
this connection Mr.. Woo said:
THE commissioners We're especially
charged by the empress dowager before
they left. to look into the education of wo-
men while they were over here Now that
may not seem to you like such a striking
command. for you are used to 1t, and take
il as a matter of course. But for China
that is really notable step. The empress
is most interested in this branch of educa-
ton. and the mere fact that she has taken
1t up speaks good deal for the interest
that is being taken In real progress We
have seen things, too" Here he laughed
like a boy.
do you know when we were at Stanford
University we were shown all through the
young ladies', the girls quarters? They
found that we were especially interested in
this sort of thing and we asked IL we
could see the way the living arrangements
We're managed. and You know they took
us all around and showed us everything.
the cooking and living arrangements and
even the young ladies' bed rooms And
everything was so neat and nicely arranged
1t just showed what It is possible to do in
that line. 1t was most interesting"
Social and Economic Conditions.
The party has been charged with the
Investigation of social and economic prob