Wetter the negotiations between China and France result in an immediate Treaty of Peace, or some time is occupied in arranging the issues between them, or oven if the very improbable event of 4 resumption of hostilities should ensue, ize may inow estitiate the effect of the Cocarrences of the last two years on this Government and the nation, To buable us to do so we must consider what was the position of China, and the general policy of the Government since the Inst war with England and France. We must then consider the manner in which the Government of Peking conducted itself daring the trying period through. which we hope whether the Chinese Government will continue the modified obstructiveness which has guided their intercourse with foreigners in late years, before the troubles with Franco began, or adopt a now and more liberal policy with the rest of the world. And to enable as to arrive at conclusions on the Inst point which are likely to be true, we shall lave to take into account the effect which we may reasonably estimate the political and warlike perturbations of Inst year had upon the nation at large, After the Treaty of Tientsin China passed through some years of great internal disturbance. And when the Inst embers of the Taiping and Nienfei rebellions Ind been slamped out, the rebellions in Yunnan and in the north. west wore for many yeats very serious drains on the resources of the Empire. But before the Intter bad been supproased, the Peking Goverumout bad at all events connived at the introduction of many western ideas and improvements by their more enlightened Viooroys and high servants, Side by side with this the work of reconstruction was steadily if slowly pursued. Botrweon the years 1870 and 1883 some improvements had been made in what is the great fault of the Chinese system of administration, the relations between the Viceroys and the Imperial Govern. ment, The process was slow, and to the impatient minds of foreigners it appeared less than it really was, But it was a groat thing to Lave had auch an important administrative reform comurenced in a country where cient corruption fights every inch. The occurrence of the disputes with France will hasten this work, although a long time must elapse before it is completed. The introduction of steamboats and steamships of war and of tolographe have all vastly strengthened the bands of the Peking Government. Itonn now control the provincial anthorities as it never could have done before, These swift means of communication, and the introduction of a cheap unive press, have at the same time established a check, probably small one at present, on misgovernment at the Capital. If Viceroys and other high officials cannot now act as seems good in their own eyes, trusting to time and distance to conceal their misdoings, neither will the Peking Government be permitted to aot as if it bad no responsibility except to inimical caunchs and intriguers in the Palace. The Peking Government will be able to put the new powers which western improvements have placed in their bands into action, more promptly than the people fin the provinces will be able to use them. Bat the general Chinese publio everywhere is now much better acquainted with the affairs of ils own nation, and can learn more about what may be going on in other countries, than over before, The newspapers teach them, and bring them intelli gence of events in almost every quarter of the empire before these Lave become so old os to have lost much of their interest. The receipt of nows leads to discussion, and creates the desire to influence the policy of the governing powers. Pablic opinion and political parties are thereby evolved. The process has been something like this in European countries, and there Appears reason to hope that it will be the same in China, though by infinitely more gradual degrees. The occurrence of the dispute with France, while it interfered with the development of improvements in China, such as the means by which we hope the country will be opened up, did a great deal to quicken the political intelligence of the people; probably much as would have been accomplished in a quarter of a century of such progress as was going on before the Tonquin affair acco Some of that influence t, but we think sufficient will remain to exert a beneficial effect in the future. Probably the Chinese Government or those high officials who, since the ratification of the Treaty of Tientsin, have been pursuing an enlightened policy, did not foresee that the first time their country was embroiled with a foreign nation, one result would be the forma. tion of at least the nucleus of public opinion among the patient people.
All this makes it improbable that the Government will revert to their former attitude to other nations. It will not at once abandon the cautions policy of the past. No such sudden change will come over emperor, officials, and people, as we hare secon take place in Japan. Changes will be more slowly introduced. It will not be uecessary for enlightened statesmen to (bemeelves in a semi-surreptitious mauner of the inventions of foreign nations. The numbers of the adherents of the old school, which is represented by the Hanlin College, will decrease year by year. Many of the officials will not like the changes that we think are certain to come, but their interests will compel them not to carry opposition to them beyond a very moderate length.
We are not claiming too much for the average Chinese. whom we meet in trade, or who comes in' contact with those of his countrymen who have constant dealings with foreigners, when say that the war has ocousiderably sharpened his general intelligence. It has had the same effect, more or less, on the inland people, Farther, the war having been closed at a time. when a loriens has given their country an eclat of which they are perfectly aware. It has put heart into those who may have been ins clined to despair of her fortunes. The Government no doubt knows that the mauuer in which it has conducted affairs since Inst summer has won for it the respect of other nations, Ralors and people are thought better of now than they were a year go. Is it not likely that the knowledge of this will make China abandon the sullen obstructiveness. which has charac. terized her policy, even during the late years when she has advancing towards hho! it will probably have this effect, and per baps more from pressure by the nation than from officials taking th At the same time it is not to be expected that all, or even much that we desire to see introduced into China, will be brought about rapidly as in Western countries, The character of the people, their ways, and modes of thought, will prevent this, The open and secret opposition of the myriads of Chinese in all grades of life, who in the lerist likely to the Government will be much less inclined to give enr to them than it line hitherto been, The trading classes will possibly Lave more power than they have had, as the introduction of new ways of making money will attract wealthy people who will, as in other countries, connect themselves with profitable enterprises. This will tend to bring the views of the Government and the people on improvements into alison, If the influences. which we think th war has engendered among the intelli" gout Chinese got fair play, we have Tittle fear of the nation returning to its old threadbare, pretentious, policy. On the contrary we expect to see it go for. ward, as other countries Lave done when after passing though such a time as the Last two years have been to China, they have found thomeelves escaped from a great peril, and all the better for what they have endored, and for their losses. China hae seen her weakness, and her intelligent statesmen and people know what she is as a fighting Power. Her navy is as bad as it well can be, and no number of fighting ships will make her a power upon the sea until she hes trained officers and disciplined crews, And she can only get these by adopting a complete change of system. On land she can muster a large number of so-called soldiers, but nothing that ber troops have done has changed the opinion
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.