Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-10-01
NEW DEAL FOR CHINESE
DECREE ISSUED DECLARING A
CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY.

OCSASAS6 AAsS &IO O0SAA<1ASA4sN -
CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY.
Special Cablesram to The Star.
PEKING. October 1.-The dowager en-
press has issued decree declaring the gov
eminent OF China to be a constitutional
monarchy.
empress dowager is Intimately known by
reputation only, the announcement is ac-
cepted with a marked reservation.
AS matter Of fact. the imperial power In
China Is largely autocratic and Is mani
tested by the Issuance of DEGREES, edicts and
rescripts to memorials. which. unless of a
secret nature or important to any extent,
are published daily in the Picking Gazette.
The autocracy Is hedged about by a multi
plicity Of safeguards In the form of ad-
visory bodies, the chief of which Is the
grand council. consisting Of five members.
Whenever a member Of the grand council
disagrees with the empress dowager he be-
comes a mark for disfavor. Consequently
this grand council safeguard Is IN a meas
ure a misnomer.
Next to the grand council In practical
Importance Is the recently formed govern
ment council. Cheng WI Ch'u, which
includes all the members Of the grand sec
retaries. but this latter Organization, once
the highest in the empire, Is now Of more
honorif1c than of actual importance The
two councils possess no executive powers,
but as their members are drawn from
among the heads of the chief departments
of state they form a cabinet which should
be. but really is not. IN touch. through one
or another of its members. with all
branches Of the administration.
The administration Is carried out by ten
boards-foreign affairs, commerce, civil Of
flee. revenue. ceremonies. war. punish
ments, communications. interior and educa-
ton.
The present emperor and nominal ruler OF
China was born Tsai-tien. but took the
title Of Kuang-hsu when he assembled the
throne. For while the empress dowager,
his maternal aunt, let the emperor run
things to suit himself. but as he soon dis
played a slight but unmistakable tendency
toward reform she decided to dictate poll
cies and manage affairs herself.
Impending a Long Time.
Executive and political reform in China
and the establishment of representative
government has been directly impending
ever since the report Of a special commits
sion of the empire was made public last
fall following the commissioners investiga-
lions Of governments throughout the world.
The report, signed by nine-tenths of the
commission. recommended to the throne
system of constitutional government similar
in many respects to that now operative In
Japan. Following this her imperial majesty
Tze-Hs issued an official edict which.
though giving no definite time for a change
In governmental form. said that the time
had come for changes in her realm.
The edict, the text Of which reached the
State Department in Washington in October
last. concluded as follows:
Let all the Tartar generals and viceroys
and governors OF the provinces instruct the
literary classes and the common people to
arouse themselves to earnest effort in be-
half Of education. in the hope that every
one may come to understand the real mean
fp0 NJ rfOffQua and c0mnrohend those
principles by which the nation Is to be
united for the promotion Of civilization: that
private interests are not to be pursued to
the injury of the public welfare: that petty
jealousies must not be allowed to defeat
national politics. and that respect for au-
thority Is the preventative Of peace.
"Thus we may hope that the people win
accumulate the stores Of wisdom needed for
the establishment Of a constitutional form
OF government"
Vision Of q New China.
In other words the government edict
institutions were to be established as soon
as the people were ready to adjust them
selves to such conditions.
Thus was the visi6n Of a new China made
tangible. though any changes. statesmen
said. in SO conservative a government will
necessarily be slow.
The commission that investigated other
governments with view Of adopting such
features were adaptable to China in
cluded some of the most eminent men in the
empire. They recommended, among other
things that each Of the eighteen provinces
shall have a constitution Of it's own. provid-
ing for an elective parliament which will
have power to select provincial executive,
this officer, however, to be subordinate to a
governor nominated by the throne.
Each province, II was suggested. should
send delegate to q central executive body
in Picking.
Throughout the present year the wave of
political reform has Increased. Viceroy
Yuan-Chih-Kai in September sent an i'm
portant memorial to the throne, in which he
from Pekins. dated February ~ them an.
nounced that the viceroy's plans for pro-
vincial reforms had been adopted by the fol-
lowing departments: Foreign, domestic,
civil appointments, finance, war. punish
ments, education, agriculture, public works,
COMMERCE and ports and communities tiana