El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-06-01

sembIe in Picking on October 3.
little more than four years ago the
Son of Heaven. through the empress
doWager, promised the Chinese people
a constitution, although there was no
demand for such a great reform. Com
/ m1ssfOnerS were sent abroad to study
| forms of government in various for
| e1gn nations Then provincial assem-
| bHes were called into being They met
! last year in all but one Of the Chinese
| provinces. And now the first national
assembly in the history of China is TO
| meet Its &c members have been called
| by the prince regent from among all
classes of the Chinese people. They
Will write constitution which shall fix
| great concrete reforms into the Chinese
| system October 3, 1910 will be the natal
day Of the great new China
The history of civilization testifies
Ihat great reforms are not accomplished
, except as the result of great sacrifices.
generally sacrifices of blood. The dis
qu1eting reports of impending anti
foreign and anti-dynastic outbreaks in
| CHINA must not be interpreted to mean
mat China Is reverting to barbarism. or
even that the Chinese are refusing TO
adopt western civilization. Such troubles
nave accompanied constitution reform
even In western lands
Reform History Interesting.
Inc history of reform in China Is OF
peculiar interest in the light of the
present agitation and of China's in
creasing Importance as factor in
world politics The immense SUI
periority of the Chinese over
all of the neighbOring people of Asia.
the success of Chinese imperial ex-
pansion and the hugeness of Chinese
territory, contributed to the formulation
OF well defined Chinese idea that the
n
the ruler of the universe and that all
other nations were subject to him and
al other rulers bound to acknowledge
MS oVerlordship. For a long time the
Chlnese government paid little atten-
tlon to the European merchants who
dealt with the people of Canton For
three centuries the white man was "a |
oaroarlan and the ministers of the Oc- |
cldental nations were tribute bearers" J
Improvement Dates From War
The real beginning of reform in China |
reform" meaning the introduction of 4
western civilization and the adaptation /
or modern progress to Chinese needs, /
oates from the celebrated Opium war
me spread of the opium smoking habit
created alarm in the Chinese govern !
ment and 1t was resolved to put a stop
10 the practice The Importation of
opium was forbidden
Most of the opium came from India /
and the traffic was very profitable to
the highly civilized and most estim-
aDIe British gentlemen who controlled I
IT. Whereupon Christian England went /
10 war TO force upon heather China con-
of a damning and degrading
haDlt which the heather Chinese wished
to abolish. The result was not only the
continuation of the opium trade but the
cession of the island of HOngkong TO
the British and the opening of several
treaty ports IN China. Then came the
long series of disastrous quarrels with
european nations which resulted in Civ
ing all of the principal powers except
me United States foOthold in Chinese
territory.
LII Hung Chang, n Leader
But still the Chinese believed in their
own superiority and still they were mn
Wiling TO admit that the white man
was superior in anything but brute {
-orce Finally the time came when
ne chinese statesmen realized that they .
must compete with the other nations in | !
10th war and industry :
Under the leadership of the great Ii $
lung Chang. China began to build its :
'wn railways and did construct a nod '
m navy Japan at that time was G
Justly engaged in projecting its adap- S
Guoh CT western manners of govern c
nent and industry, and the Chinese be- c
leved that they were making progress 9
s rapidly as the Japenese Then came q
ne war between China and Japan in a
mich the Chinese were ingloriously de-
Gated and in which the Chinese navy
Tas completely DESTROYED. +.
Definite Program Adopted. D
results OF that war proved to a few a
lear headed and progressive Chinese Q
n1nkers that the possession Of a mod e
IN navy and the existence on paper of a
modern army would not make I'D for D
lie fact that China's internal affairs r
ere being conducted on an ancient r
IAN which made the success of q mod o
IN military army absolutely impos- b
ble They saw that Japan had adopted
estern forms and western methods of
oVernment before attempting to wage b.
ar or do business after the Occidental b.
-shlon They organized a definite and / II
nbltlous progressive movement in
Emperor Gave Support il
This new reform party became very J h;
'werful and soon had the support of t
e emperor. Reform edicts began TO u,
'ur forth from the Forbidden CITY at III
rate unprecedented in history. II was re
terly impossible, of course, for the in
preaching and radical reforms pro-
ulgated from Picking to be placed in la
feet Immediately. As a matter of fact. er
INA was not ready to be revolution 70
ed from the throne overnight b,
The powerful conservative forces De
yoke TO the danger of the situation. WI
d under the leadership of the en- tn
ess dowager, in 1898, overthrow the
form party, banished the reformers. es