Los Angeles herald., 1907-06-02

@HE greatest world movement of
the present period is the awak-
Il ened activity = intellectual and
material-of the vast Chinese Empire.
tremendous but incalculable force has lain
dormant forages, whilst the nations treated
It as negligible quantity and overlooked
its latent possibilities. What may be the ex-
tent of this arousal we can no more than
conjecture, but that 1t will affect the en-
fire world more or less and the United
States In great degree Is almost beyond
question. Once reform in China receives
the genuine approval and support Of the
government as a similar movement did In
Japan. the former country may be ex-
pected TO make as rapid progress along
the path of Western civilization as has
+he latter. We must not forget that the
Chinese long since attained high planes
of thought and living, that they have
made valuable contributions to science,
the arts and philosophy, and that their
history is not one of stagnatfon but OF
considerable progress within restricted
sphere. The new movement does not In
yolye nor necessarily create new energy,
but turns an existent force into new d.
rections and removes the old-time ham,
peripg brake of conservatism. As ma
tion the Chinese will doubtless exhibit
the wonderful adaptibility and resourceful-
ness which characterize them as individu-
ais. We may expect the country to as
simulate unaccustomed ideas and to adopt
strange practices with the same readi-
ness that transforms the Chinaman--
abroad when opportunity is open and de-
sire exlsts-into a representative citizen
of the country of his adoption and makes
him master, with surprising rapidity, of
almost any trade that he takes up.
Until recent years the so-called reform
movement" represented nothing more
than the desire of a very few enlight-
ened Chinamen-who had the advantage
of foreign travel or education-for prog
ress. Now 1t is distinctly national move
ment, altogether too strong to be stayed
by imperial opposition. A large proper
tion OF the official class are It's active
supporters, and the ranks of the REFORM
ers are constantly swelled by the return
to their native land of Cinnamon VINO
have been introduced to modern civlllza-
tion in the schools and colleges of Eu-
rope, America and Japan. The number OF
these students at the present time ex-
ceeds 10000, and 1t increases year by
year. The government is lending Its
countenance- and with doubt
full waverlng 1t is true-to the movement
The progressive forces already 80 far
overweight the reactionary that the ulti-
mate result Is no longer in doubt, ana
sufficient has been accomplished to afford
an ample promise Of the future. 1t Will
be well for China If the conservatives re-
main for sometime to come strong enough
to exert restraining force against the
impetuosity of the progressives. The
chief danger at present is that the proc
ess of evolution will outrun the power OF
assimilation. To make drastic changes In
social and political systems before the
masses are In any condition to appreciate
or understand them cannot fall to be
harmful Material improvement and the
education Of the people according to
Western methods are the purposes on
which the reformers should concentrate
their efforts. And in these directions there
has been marked advance in the past
eew years.
Following the lead of Chang Chih-tung