Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-11-04

The following is an article from the pen
OF DIR. Sun Vat Sen. the famous Chinese
revolutionary, who is credited with being
at the head of tina present insurrection
IL overthrow the Manchu dynasty. and
who will probably be the first president
OF the new Chinese republic should one
be established.
The article was written by Sun Vat Sen
a few days after his memorable escape
from the Chinese legation in London,
where he had been lured by agents of
the government who planned to ship him
to Picking, where price of $4,000 had
been placed on his head.
The insurrection Sun Vat Sen described
took place in 1895. but the events that
preceded it are i'll every way typical of
the conditions that have engendered the
present struggle. and the plot of the
liberalists is identical with the intrigues
whose successful elimination has set
half China in arms and involves the lives
of millions.
The conspiracy in which I took part as
a leader at Canton, in October, 1895, was
one of n series which must ultimately
| triumph in the establishment of a con-
stitution in our empire. The whole of
the people of China, excepting the i'm
perial agents. who profit In purse and
power by the outrages they are able to
perpetrate, are with US.
Dynasty Not Government.
The good, well governed people of
America Will not fail to understand that
Cinnamon numbering many million In
their own land, and thousands in exile.
could not entertain such feelings about
their empire without good cause. The
ruling of the dynasty is not government.
All is oppression. Corruption is universal.
There are no laws as you know laws.
The governor Of each province makes his
own laws.
The will OF each officer is the law. The
people have no voice. There Is no APP
purposes by the officer or governor. no
matter how unjust. no matter how
cruelty carried out These governors UNI
versally prosecute the people, and grow
wealthy by squeezing them all into pow
erty. Taxes, as taxation is understood
by Americans, are unknown. We pay
only land tax, but the governors and
officers take money from the masses by
innumerabie systems of eXtortion.
Every time a governor, or magistrate. or
chief officer takes charge of a district.
the first thing he does is to find out who
are the rich, who are favorably disposed
toward him, and who against him. He
selects first one of those whom ne has
of those on his side to make a criminal
charge against the selected man. and
has him arrested on the charge, viii h
Is invariably a false charge. The gov
ernor enriches himself by such case. as
the only thing in the nature of a law he
knows Is that the dynasty empowers him
to take as his own as much as he likes.
usually the whole of the property OF
every man whom he arrests and Furnishes.
Only the Accusers Heard.
The arrested man has no appeal. He
has no advocates. He has no hearing.
Only his accusers are heard Then he is
barbarously tortured to confess The guilt
he knows not. The terrible injustice of
this procedure is TO be seen in that a
magistrate or chief officer never visits
that punishment upon any one who has
imperial influence. Yet any man who has
influence with the magistrate or is in any
way creature of his can arrest by his
own will any person against whom he
has q grievance choose any crime he
likes to name for the purpose, drag the
person before the magistrate, and accuse
him. and ask for him to be pun shed
Again the accused person has no appeal
no defense. He Is merely faced with the
accusation, and If he denies Ii is put
under torture for three days. If at he
end of three days the accused person re-
fuses to confess himself guilty, punish
ment is melted out to him in severity
a cording to the influence OF the accuser,
appeasing him. The punishment for every
offense CHARGED, from petty larceny up
ward. Is almost invariably behead.ng Be-
heading saves prison expense. and eff
fectually silences the accused
Arnool Por To o~l