Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1916-05-28

A cable dated Picking. May %. an
nounced that "a conference assembled
at Marking, con-
The Revolution sisting of one dele
Against Yuan. the ten lovaI nrov.
inces. has decided that Yuan Shi Kai
must remain president of the republic
until a properly elected parliament
chooses his successor. Shensi province
had declared its independence. and
Japanese firm had loaned China $780,
900 gold on the security of iron mines
in Human province"
China is in state of revolution
against Yuan. The revolution of 1911
was against the Manchu. and resulted
in the election of DR.. Sun Vat Sen at
Shanghai. in December. 1911, and his
Inauguration as provisional president
Of the republic at Marking, January
I. 1912.
On the back of this republic. which
was seriously handicapped because of
lack Of funds, Yuan Shi Kai. the per
turbator. appeared on the scene under
the unique title of Reconstruction Of
the republic"
Yuan. 1t seems. has been supported
Of the powers. and it was thus Yuan
became power with which to conjure
Briefly. the 'reconstructor" of the re-
public. having dallied with the Man
chu. issued pronunciamento in favor
OF the republic. and DR.. Sun Vat Sen.
provisional president of the republic.
impressed doubtless with the fact that
some foreign power had backed Yuan
with money. resigned the presidency
In favor of Yuan.
formation that DIR. Sun Vat Sen and Mr..
WI Ting-fang. the former sympathetic
Chinese minister at Washington, both
possessing the absolute confidence OF
e9eir ICON, eompatriots. received hundreds
should not surrender the republic into
the hands of Yuan Shi Kai, whom they
believed hostile to the republic and a
traitor to China
1t should be borne in mind that this
revolution was composed of philoso-
piers and students, and neither its
financial nor military necessities had
oeen prepared. 1t is beyond the scope
OF this article to follow in detail the
lawless acts Of Yuan. become the only
recognized President of the Chinese
republic. There was a breach between
the partisans of Sun and Yuan DIR. Sun
Vat Sen and others fed either to for
elgn colonies. to Shanghai or Toxic
Decapitation, it was well known, was
Yuans favorite means of disposing OF
his adversaries
From 1912 to 1915 China has been in
the throes of revolution, and Yuan was
secretly occupied in pre-
Monarchical pairing the change from
"eaction. Finally there was rev.
olution and revolt.
The China Press said: The effort to
overthrow the Republic of China and
put monarchy in it's place has failed.
Out of the mystery and obscurity that
surround Chinese politics one plain
fact has emerged. and that is that
group of politicians in Picking COM
posing the Chouanhui. which heralded
far and wide the news that China was
tired of the republic and that it had
proved a failure and that the country
was unanimously demanding a mon
archy. with Yuan Shi Kai as emperor,
was mistaken"
There was revolution in the prov
lnces. in Yunnam, where Gen. Tsai 40
declared it independent; in kweichow
kwangsi. Human. Kwantung. Never
theless Yuan continued his way and
December 10 the dispatches announced
that the stage was set by Yuan for the
change to the monarchy which had be-
come the bee in the bonnet of the am
bilious president. December IS the
native papers came out printed in red
ink to celebrate the re-establishment
Of the empire and the five-colored re.
publican flag, shortly to be remodeled,
was displayed from nearly every house
A writer in the Revue Politique ct
Parlementaire accuses certain govern
policy Of persecution of Chinese repub-
iicans in his efforts to convert the re-
public into monarchy.
The first care of Yuan and his parti-
sans was to suppress the refugees who
from Japan Singapore and Saigon
conspired by correspondence with
friends in China, against Yuan. To
this end curious convention was
passed with Yuan, dated April IS, 1915
Article Of that convention ran thus:
vigorously repress all revolutionary
propaganda against the established re-
gime in China. The principal authors
Of these acts will be expelled or pro-
ceeded against judicially"
1t resulted from that convention that
all Cinnamon residing in these colonies
were prohibited from criticising the
acts of Yuan under pain of expulsion
or Imprisonment. Singular and para
doxlcal situation. 1t recalled the dictum
OF Pascal: Truth on this side Of the
Pyrenees; error on the other side"
Whoever may be familiar with the
proceedings of Chinese justice under
the ancient regime abol-
Chinese ished by the revolution,
Y,.4:. resuscitated by the dicta-
torship, cannot doubt that
every Chinese republican residing in
concession or a foreign colony is sus-
ceptible Of being extradited-that is,
given over to an eXecutioner, who will
cause him to suffer the most horrible
tortures Before death. Every one sus-
pected of hostility toward Yuan may
be executed. Japan, it should be said
always fatty refused to sign such con-
vention and naturally because Japan
was the land in which the republican
Chinese sought refuge with confidence
In the interior of China the governors
OF provinces. mandarins who are little
sovereigns after the model of Yuan,
have re-established the ancient pun
ishment in order to terrorize the peo-
pie. Little by little all the practices
and corruptions have been resumed
and it is thus Yuan hopes to re-estab-
ltsh all those things that characterized
the rule of the Manchu.
Yuan, indeed. enjoys absolute power
D4ly