Arizona republican. [volume] (Phoenix, Ariz.) 1890-1930, 1912-02-14
The Republic Of China.

The Republic of China.
II is perfectly natural that man
should look upon circumstance ma
terially affecting his own life and
fortunes as the thing about which
all other circumstances for the time
being revolves
To-day. George W. p. Hunt will
be inaugurated first governor Of tie
state of Arizona This is matter
of supreme Importance To Mr.. Hunt
and h- is not To- he blamed if n"
regards il as about the most i'm
portant happening in the entire civ
ilized world just at this time.
But ask a majority Of the people
of this state what is the most i'm
portaut event transporting just now
and they will tell you it is the al
mission of Arizona into the nnion.
Put the same question to the pe'-
pie of the country at large. and par
ticularly 10 the people in public life.
and they will reply that the matter
of transcendant importance just now
is the coming presidential election.
Ask trader about it and n will
point To- the near completion of ;he
Panama canal.
/ And So it goes. our own affairs
are the most important affairs m
the world-for home use.
/ And in consideration of these ar
fairs it is strangely true that We
lose all sense Of perspective. Com
! pared with the upheaval in China
| just now any one of the events just
lmentioned-even the Inauguration -.
/ Mr. Hunts mere bagatelle.
/ Here is an empire that has lived
for four thousand wears. perhaps, IN
empire whose early history IS
shrouded in the mists that obscure
the early life of the race. Here l. "a
DYNASTY that has been on the throne
\ for three centuries. Here is a sys-
TEN Of government. a code Of social
/ customs. that have been alive from
time immemorial: and in a single
dav. almost. they are relegated &"
the scrap heap Of forgotten things.
The revolution in china, a revolu-
ton that means a republic for ui"'
people Of that country. affects a nd
ton Of 400. 0o0. ooo people II affects
the liberty and the property of every
one Of them
This revolution * one of the most
stupendous events that has ever
transpired in the history 81 The
world Compare it with our own
revolution. The American coloniSis
were. To- all intents and purposes.
free men before the war Of l1'6-
They had liberty in fact if not IN
name They breathed the air Of an
human liberty and their children
did the same thing. Their allegianc"
to British sovereignty for hun
dred years before the war began
was mere flimsy preteXt Ana
when independence came it came
merely AS recognition Of rights
that before had been substantially
enjoyed
But the Chinese revolution is dit-
ferent That country has been ruled
bv despotism as absolute as has
ever existed in the history Of ~ |
world The life of every subject was
at the disposal of the crown. There
was. strictly speaking. no rec"gnl-
ton Of the rights Of property. Ana
all this is changed overnight
1t remains to be seen what the
Chinese will de- with their heN
found liberties The success OF sea-
Government i'm that country -
matter that will be Of the gravest
concernt to the whole world.
And there is one ching the 'h'
nese people will have to learn-"hn
II is To be hoped they viii not ha'e
to learn it by bitter experience -
the fact-they will have To learn
that despotism is just as poss'b'>
under a democracy as under mon
archy. and they will i,"ve to learn
that A democratic desp"tlsm is tn"
worst form of despotisW the VOL
knows anything about.
Rlt every friend of human h3ArtY
will wish the new rCru'h' we'll
even though he has tn" SrnVcSt Tears
as To the outcome. And II emma
succeeds it VIII mean an
impetus to the cause of free gov
arnment whose effects viii be felt a
thousand years hence
, II ANYBODY thinks President Tart Is
afraid To say what he thinks. he VIII