The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1920-05-17
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Picking Militarists Fear
Assassination, Is
Claim


| Marshal Tuan Chi-jui, whom ] in
terviewed at his house in Picking
March 6, is the veteran militaris
whose influence holds together ant
indirectly dominates the officials
military governors of the northern
provinces and others Of the AMT
club who are the effective force il
the corrupt Peking government thai
is selling .piecemeal to Japan thu
birthright of China.
Tuan is generally credited with
being honest. He lacks the tradi.
tional keenness and ability of lead.
ers Of his nation. He is a brave
soldier, he overthrow the farcical
restoration of the Manchu dynasty in
1915, and that is the secret, partly
of his strong influence.
But chiefly old Tuan is the "un-
crowned. king" because the younger
militarists are all his pupils. At one
time or another they have all been
under his tutelage and patronage.
Loyalty to him holds men like Lit
tie Hsu" and Chang Tso-ling togeth-
er, althoug they fear and distrust
each other.
Tuan in way yields an influence
as baneful in China as that Of old
Marshal Yamagata, head Of the FL
der Statesmen, in Japan. Any one
who dismisses Tuan from his reck-
oning of the forces which control at
Picking will 60 wrong in his conclu-
sions, though Tuan is inactive, and
old and growing feeble, and though
personally he commands no army.
Tuan makes no secret of his con-
viction that China has most to gain
by cooperation with the Japanese.
The fact is that his own success has
been built upon their support. His
pupils and followers have been able
to maintain themselves only because
Japanese secret loans have enabled
them to keep going and support their
useless armies. =
So Tuan urges direct negotiations
with Japan for the restoration of
Shantung" He advises the cabinet
to use the armies for ruthless sup
preston of the student movement
and the boycott. To me he defended
the military pact, which gives the
Japanese a dangerous foothold of
influence in the Chinese army and
navy, as being in fact greatly ad-
vantageous to China.
General Hsu Shu-chang, Little
Hsu," arranged the interview for me,
after an interview with him. Little"
Hsu' is Tuan's favorite, and the
patronage of the veteran has made
him head of the Northwest Frontier
Defense bureau and through that po-
sition practically dictator in Mongo-
liza, with the help of the Japanese.
went from the bureaus office in a
princes palace to the marshal's home
in the eastern part of the Tartar CT
ty, the Manchu portion of Peking
With me went a young man from
Hsu's office as interpreter, for the
old marshal speaks almost no Eng
lish.
Tuan's home is an unsightly two
story brick house of foreign style
and furnishings, but enclosed within
a high wall after the Chinese style.
soldier guard at the gate assured
imself that we were all right, and
on the way to the front entrance we
passed six other sentries. Two 9TH
ers received us at the door and an !
orderly informed the marshal of our
arrival.
All of the Picking militarists are
closely guarded, and when they drive
the wide streets of Picking |
in motor cars they go at breakneck
speed, with soldier guards riding on
the running boards. They live in
the fear of assassination, in mortal
terror lest the student. movement |
should suddenly flame into a de-
structive rage.
Marshal Tuan entered his drawing
room alone and greeted us cordially.
He wore civilian clothes; his long
dark-colored and very plain quilted
and fur-lined coat entirely enveloped
him. His appearance was that of
a Chinese of Strengthened circum-
stances and contrasted astonishingly
with photographs of him in his gor-
geous marshal's uniform.
Also l found the veteran soldier
fuller of face but feebler in looks
than the younger and thinner and
more fit man shown by the photo
graphs ! had seen. His thin gray
struggled down over the
corners of his mouth. He has a
trick of closing his left eye and
up the left side of his
mouth in comical wry face when a
question is asked that is hard to
answer. l understand that he is
sixty years of age, but he looks old
or, or at least older than soldier
should look at that age.
Tuan, some say, will make himself
premier again. He has had three
brief terms as premier under the
bogus republic. Others say the only
I'm bition Tuan has is to be president.