The Washington herald., 1921-01-10
BIG ARMY'S COST
THREE FOURTHS OF
CHINA'S REVENUE
1 ,270, 900 Soldiers Take
IS Per Cent-WiH
Disband Many.
BY G. GRANADA.

According to the latest statistics
Of the ministry of army, there were.
previous to June, 1920, 100000 SOL
diers in the whole country. the
cost of maintaining which Gas re-
ported in the vernacular press)
amounted to about rs per cent OF
the total annual revenue. This is
answersble for a large part of the
annual deficit, II not the whole of 1t.
Foreign creditors are anxious to
know whether China is solvent: they
want to control the important
sources Of China's public revenue;
but they do not seem to have laid
much emphasis on this main cause
of China's Insolvency" or what
ever term they may choose to ap-
ply to her present financial situ-
alton.
1t should be the chief concern
of the central government to put
itself on a sounder financial basis,
so as to strengthen its own credit,
and to accomplish that 1t must
cut down its unnecessary expenses,
chief among which is the cost of
maintaining the army.
The Importance of the disbanding
Of superfiuous troops more than once
has been urged. During his last
term of once Premier Chin Yung-
peng planned for disbanding 20 per
cent of the troops all over the coun-
try, but on account of strong op-
position from various sources the
result was quite meager. 1t is said
that only about 10000 soldiers were
disbanded at that time.
New Impetus Given.
Since the overthrow of the Anfu
party, however, a new impetus has
been given the movement. The
start was made in Human, where,
after the departure of the former
Tuchun, Gen. Chang Chin-Yao, 3D.
900 soldiers under his command
were disbanded. Four of the five
mixed brigades under Gen. WI
Kuang-Hsin followed suit. and the
number of disbanded men was about
80, 900. The defeat of the Ting Kuo-
Chun in Pekin was followed by dis
banding the three divisions of the
frontier defense army Except one
brigade), the Fifteenth division and
four of the five especially organized
brigades of the northwestern from
tier troops. The total number OF
soldiers disbanded since February is
1874. 900.
This is about Is per cent of the
whole standing army, and it was
done in half a year. II the govern
ment should stand firm by its policy,
1t would not be difficult to cut of
another 35 per cent in a year or
two. The total amount saved would
be more than 35 per cent of the
total annual revenue and would to
that extent wipe out the deficit and
the necessity of borrowing from
abroad for administration purposes.
The saving already accomplished in
disbanding the Is per cent of troops
is said to amount to more than 10
per cent of the total revenue.
s2,52O,O0O budget Cut.
A revelation is to be found in a
presidential mandate published in
November. 1t said that the TuChun
of Shantung, by cutting down the
military expenses of the province,
has effected a decrease in the budget
estimate for the current year OF 81
$40, 900 as compared with the esti-
mate for last year. This is worth
much consideration. If in a single
province SO DluCH can De SdNGu IL
military expenses alone, how much
waste there must have been in all
the provinces taken together! With
a total public revenue OF about
$4O0. .0Oo 900, a single province, in a
single item. has wasted more than
So, $50, 900, or Il per cent of the rev.
enue OF the whole country. Multi
ply this by fifteen or twenty times
(as we may leave out Mongolia,
Tibet, Sinkiaang and other sections
of the country, which do not have
so many troops), and we shall have
an idea of the total waste in mill
tary expenses in the provinces.
Waste in Ministry.
Then the waste in the ministry
itself and the troops directly under,
it's Control-what extravaganza it is
for a country like China to indulge
in! 1t is absurd to frustrate the
proper development of the whole
nation, to burden the 427, 900, 900 peo-
pie (aCCording to the latest census
estimates of the postoffice admins
tration) with heavy foreign debt,
just to feed and support 100000
men.
The Chinese soldiers, as they are
at present trained and employed,
are, with very few exceptions, mere
parasites who suck the lifeblood of
the nation. They can neither defend
the country against foreign inva-
sion nor maintain peace and order
in the country.
Yet for every such parasite the
country is spending from $3.50 to
5000 a year. For each division II
spends as much as is sufficient TO
run university for four or five
years, and for the troops of each
province the whole nation, on the
average, bears a financial burden
of 81 per capita. The Chinese are
said to bear the smallest burden in
taxation, but considering how the
revenue from taxation is spent, and
the amount of benefit" the people
derive therefrom, the burden is
more onerous than the heavier ones
borne by foreign people.
To relieve the people from this
oppressive load, as well as to
strengthen its own financial posi-
tion, the government must persist
in its recent efforts to disband the
soldiers and cut down military ex-
penses.