Evening star., 1926-02-06

though generals animated with MN
from Chekiang and Shantung have
fought against Chang's forces and
forced them to retreat to Manchuria.
WI is expected to strike not later
than the Springtilne. and perhaps
earlier.
fore we can set our house in order.
OF course. many of the military men
will object to any change because they
have established Il business interest in
their merCenaries, but enough OF them
are genuinely patriotic at heart not TO
impede the development Of d national
army if their opponents will also agree
to subordinate themselves to the civil
authority. The lesser men will be
forced by circumstances TO forego
their exceptional advantages.
Consolidate or Kill War Lords
The organization of a national army
subordinate to a ministry of war re-
qureS a thorough and scientific re-
modelling of the army and a scheme
for the disarmament of troops which
shall make it impossible for the sur
conditions to become bandits. 1t re-
quires a plan for colonization in the
northwest and in Mongolia so that the
surplus male populations of Chihli and
Shantung, for instance, shall not be
forced TO the hills. y well organized
legal government can work out and
enforce such Il plan if the military
men are subordinated to the civil gov
ernment. If this is not done we can
go on waiting for the military men to
kill each other off, which is also hap
pening.
In our conversation Tong indicated
little hopefulneSS of the unitCation of
China and the creation of a national
army through mutual loyal self-sacri-
flee of the war lords, but anticipated a
testing out of the policy of reciprocal
determination. beginning. he evidently
hoped. with the elimination of Chang
Tso-iin.
Return of WI Pei-fu.
Wa Peifu was credited in Shanghai
with having combined behind him
the 1angtse provinces, with hav-
ing won the allegiance of two of
fenSs armies. which supported him
tWm before his overthrow through
Feng's desertion. and with having col.
lected a small army of 10000 of his
own.
1t was predicted by Tong Shao-yi
thdt Nu would soon appear publicly at
LoyanS, his home city, and announce
his return as a candidate for popular
favor as leader. political and mill
tary- 1t was predicted that Wu's new
force and Feng'S would combine
against Chang, though personally WI
was not expected ever to forgive
Feng's desertion or the personal in
suit of the gift of a bottle Of water.
alleged to have been sent by Feng to
the hard-drinking WI. Others had
predicted that WI and Chang would
combine to eliminate Feng and then
fight out the question of sole su-
premacy between themselves. But
events have sustained Tong Shao-yi
a IS a prophet in general and almost in
detail.
characteristics of War Lords.
Chang-Tso-lin. eXbandit, the Man
churian war lord, with headquarters
at Mukden, was credited at Peking
before the fighting began with having
the largest, best disciplined army,
and with enjoying the active effec-
tive support of Japan. He is said
to be the best administrator among
the war lords, maintaining discipline
and good order in the area Of China
under his control. He was for a time
so exhausted by fighting to crush re-
belliOn in his own army that Japan
was pictured as temporarily dubious
whether to continue to use him or to
cast him aside as a broken tool. His
torture and slaughter of the defeated
kuo reveal him as excessively cruel a
VIolator of all the ancient traditions
OF Chinese warfare. His acts in the
70 hi
courage. Notwithstanding his weak
ening and loss of prestige he shows
no inclination to surrender to anybody
and will doubtless fight, as long as
he is able, to hold his Manchuria
against all comers.
Feng Yu-hsiang, the so-called Chris
tian general, was credited with having
the army next in size and discipline
to that of Chang. He has a large
percentage of young men under him,
and they are a constantly drilling,
psalm-singing aggregation. Their en-,
emies assert that the Chinese words
that they use in singing the gospel
hymns are often as un-Christian as
it is possible to conceive, but this may
be campaign SANDER.
Very few of those with whom talk
ed at Peking or anywhere else in China
spoke approvingly of F'eng personally.
lie was denounced as a treaChero,4S s
hypocrite. But General Secretary
Clinton of the Y. NJ. G.. A., whom
L met on a steamer in Asian wa
ters, eulogized him as sincere in
his Christianity and in his loyalty
to China. Secretary Clinton had close
association witt Feng and knew him
well. But feng will have great diff
fculty in overcoming the unfavorable
public opinion concerning him, both
Chinese and foreign, which his deser-
ton of WI has brought upon him.
Dlstrust Of his sincerity and loyalty
VIII be the clog to his advancement
TO supreme power, corresponding to
the obstacle in Changs case of the
prejudice against him on the part of
the pure Chinese, who wish no more
rule from Manchuria. Moreover, the
new China, if finally unified, will toler-
ate as ruler neither a puppet of Rus
sia like Feng nor puppet of Japan,
as Chang is believed to be.
WI and the Water Wagon.
Wu-Peifu was at one time in
supreme control. Overthrown by
Chang Tso-lin, through the treachery
of Feng Yu-hsiang, he fed for his life,
and escaped with difficulty. He main
tanned himself in defeat in high public
opinion in China by refraining from
taking refuge in any foreign conces-
sion. He found his refuge in the up
per reaches of the Yangtse River. A
gunboat or two constituted the nu-
cleus of his new army and navy.
He has now, it is said, through untir-
ing energy and diplomacy and extor-
ton by threats filled his war chest and
combined and organized the Yangtse
provinces in his support and is again a
formidable and threatening figure to
Chang. who defeated him, and to Feng,
who betrayed him. WI is credited with
being of higher intellectual caliber
than the other war lords. He is q