Keview publishes in the July number several letters received by him from General Gordon. They are prefaced by a short introduction in which it is explained that the intimacy between the Editor and the General was commenced by the former sending Gordon written by a Ohinese of the old. school, a copy of his work—apparently the it would be approved by a Hanlin. History of China. In the first letter, There is a long letter from Port Louis the General expresses a wish that on the opium question. General-Gordon the British Government would endea-says he had never said anything-on: it your to give more attention to China further than that the Chinese' Govern-as our natural ally in the East, a wish ment will not have the drug, whether it that has, in the opinion of many, been is good or bad for the. people, and that too- fully fulfilled since on the "part of it was not fair to force anything on the English Government as their policy your neighbour, and therefore the opium has been without effect on Peking. trade is morally wrong, a3 it would be In August of the same year, 1881, if it-was a trade in He believed General Gordon refers to a memorandum. that if. the Chinese: Government had of 52 articles which he gave to H.E. the power they would stop the trade Li Hung-chang. This is not the memo-at once. "If so, why a pres random which was afterwards published sure like this on the Chinese whom we by us, but another, of which he says he need as a friend, and with whom this warposely kept no copy. It was written, says as a Chinaman to Chinamen, importation is and ever will be the sole pot about which we could be at vari-"for my object has been always to put ance, I know this is the point with Li myself into the skin of those I may be Hung-chang." Later on he says that he with, and I like those people as much, does not think the Chinese would stop well, nearly as much, as I like my the importation altogether; all the: country." "There are a lot of people in asked was. an increased duty—which China," he goes on, "who would' egg on the Hongkong convention gave them, revolts of A. or B. All this is wrong.
General Gordon's objection to the opium China must fora da se. I painted this trade was purely political. He acknow-picture to the Chinese of 1,900. "Who ledges that: the so called opium wars are those people hanging about with jin-were not about opium—opium was rickshas?" "'The sons of the Euro) merely a cheval de bataille, they were merchants." " What are those ruins "The Hongs of the European merchants, eae the introduction of foreigners. fe would make up the loss to India etc., ete." This picture painted for the Chinese of less than twelve years hence, from the stoppage of the opium trade by cutting down the pay ofall ofers in is to be the result of the Chinese having India to Colonial allowances. " Do not," taken General Gordon's advice in the he says, " give them Indian allowances, memorandum—to do away with middle-and you will cover nearly the loss, and men, and to have government aid and why should officers in India have more encouragement to create houses or firms than officers in Hongkong?" To this in London, and to make their own cotton letter there is a characteristic note—goods. It shows how little General Gor-"I think the, site of Eden is Seychelles, lon understood the Chinese Government when he considered it within the bounds where is the tree of Life and of Kuowof possibility that it would aid its General Gordon thought that if people in any object either patriotic or China went to war with France she commercial. But it is possible that would work so as to embroil us with General Gordon's advice in the matter ly speaking, China going to' war. with the latter power, and that, human-of Chinese making their own cotton ods may have had something to must entail our following suit, io with producing that monopoly This, in his words, would be a look-of cotton manufacturing here with out for civilisation, for the Chinese are which HE. Li Hung-chang seeks to naturally so bumptious that any success stop the introduction by foreigners of would make them more so, Before that a new industry which would greatly time there were rumours here and benefit. many classes of his country-in Tientsin of intrigues against the men. It would be curious if General. present dynasty, and General Gordon Gordon's advice on this point were blames those who were supposed really the means of postponing one of the objects he had in view, when to be ging on Li against Baking. Such a change of Emperors as was then he thought he had put himself inside supposed to be aimed at would, he a Chinese skin, General Gordon fur-considered; be very undesirable, but he ther said he was opposed to railways thought the fall of the present dynasty in China—' which have ruined Egypt inevitable. In this, as in other politi-by adding to the financial difficulties," cal and commercial forecasts, General but strongly urged the advantages of Gordon was mistaken, as far as we canals and telegraphs. He says in this can judge from the present condition of letter of 1881 that he had written to affairs. There is no doubt that the Li Hung-chang to protest against the Manchu dynasty is stronger now than railway from chang to Peking along the Grand Canal, "fu making it they it has been for nearly a century; from the improved means of communication would enter into no end of expenses, the which telegraphs and steamers give it coin would leave the country and they and from the increased control over the would not understand it, and would -be fleeced by the financial cormorants.of Great Britain. They can understand provinces which it has quietly assumed.
of much has been done in improve the military skill of its officers, but it is canals. Let them repair the Grand Canal." This certainly might have been long. to be that that will come: before in the meantime the troops are
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.