New-York tribune., 1907-12-28
CHINA DEEPLY STIRRED
4 GROWING 4GIT4TION.
Imperial Efort to Conciliate People
-Japans altitude.

Peking. Dec. 27.-The Empress Dowager has
given verbal orders to the Interior Department
and to the, police to suppress all public meet
ings in Peking. and there is reason to believe
that this order will be extended TO the prov
inces
The popular agitation along the lines Of
rights recovery is growing in phenomenal
manner. The question of provincial against
federal sovereignty enters largely into the mat
ter. Women's societies, schools for boys and
for girls, the family newspapers and the political
press all taking part in the agitation, and
for a month the government here has been re-
ceiving kilograms in increasing numbers eX-
pressing the strong desire of the senders that
the rights which have been aienated from them
by foreigners be restored to the Chinese.
The movement has reached such magnitude
that the government is thoroughly alarmed. and
it is to-day striving to fill conciliatory position
between the revolutionary agitators and those
who consider themselves to be aggrieved. The
people of Che Kiang province have sent dele
gates here to protect their interests These
delegates the Foreign Board has taken into its
confidence. II has opened its archives to them
and asked them to make a careful examination
OF the position of the Chinese government with
regard TO Great Britain and then to recommend
a solution OF the difficulty. The reception ac-
corded these civilian delegates by the govern
ment and the admission of representatives of
provincial councils into State affairs at Peking
is without precedent. and is believed to consti-
tute what be called the thin edge of the
wedge which is to give constitutional rights. It
shows also the Importance of the agitation
which has been going on in Che Kiang province
and undoubtedly is the cause of the recent edct
by the throne.
The agitation embraces the question of the
patrol of the West River by Great Britain in
effort to put an end to the piracy there, and
leading Englishmen here apprehend that the
present popular hostility will result in an In
quiry into British trade. The government ia
relying the support of Great Britain, whose
insstence China's maintenance of her orig
inal position has produced an apparent solidar-
ity among the Chinese ministers. The pressure
of the British government is strengthening the
position OF Yuan Sh kai. whose security and
influence in Pekins regarded by foreigners
as essential to the safety and progress Of China
II is said here that the foreign agitation re-
garding the attitude adopted by Japan in Man
churia and the warning of Russia concerning the
annulment of the telegraph convention have led
the British Foreign Office to take action, and II
is understood that this has been in the form of
representations TO the Toxic government France
has consented to the revision of the Tonquin
Convention regarding land telegraphs. but she
has postponed discussion with China of the cable
controversy, she desires to secure facilities
for the extension Of the submarine line TO Nladi-
vostok China It Is said here considers The at
ttude taken by Japan based on impossible
claims. and Japan. it is averred is taking ad-
vantage of China's complications with Great
Britain in order TO postpone negotiations regard
ing Manchura. She has delayed drafting the
new postal convention, which promised for
November.
Travellers arriving here complain of what they
call organized incivility and. in some cases even
the brutal conduct Of the Japanese trainmen and
guards the Manchurian Railway