3rd July. Yur resignation of Admiral Long is another of these recurring episodes in Chinese contemporaneous history which inspire her well-wishers with a feeling of mingled disgust and despair of the country which can be guilty of such incredible meanness. Not for the first time has the Indder been kicked away as soon as the top was gained in fancied security, or, to adopt a metaphor more suited to the occasion, the Chinese have no sooner found themselves in smooth water than, imagining all danger to be past, they have proceeded to scuttle the vessel which has brought them within sight of port. Time after time with fortune far beyond her deserts China has enlisted in her service foreigners who have brought to bear on their Iabours an amount of zeal and loyalty only less remarkable than the thankless selfishness and black ingratitude with which they have been received. The naval and military officials, possessed of few ideas beyond a set purpose of personal aggrandisement, and for whom the "service" might "go to the devil" at once so long as their own ends were secured, could ill understand or even tolerate for long the unswerving rectitude and lofty disinterestedness of those who had obviously so much less to gain than themselves. Not that they were insensible to superior skill and knowl as long as these could be utilised without detriment to their own interests. If the foreigner could only be induced to wink at occasional breaches of discipline or derelictions of duty, if he would only consent to close his eyes altogether to a "squeeze" here and there of which a share would come to himself, he and his Chinese colleagues might live together in peace and amity for the rest of their days, But that was impracticable. The children of darkness can have no part with the children of light, and though the day might be delayed the unceasing gue-ulla warfare has invariably shown that the final conflict could not be eveutually foregone. A seething mass of envious intrigue, of unscrupulous. and systematic misrepresentation has endlessly dashed itself against a reserve, perhaps too distant, and a hauteur, sometimes unsympathetically strained, which indeed it could never hope to break, but only by sheer persistence of effort contrive to weary. Once more the Chinese have reason to congratulate themselves on the success of the old tactics. Intrigue and envy have triumphed all along the line. Admiral Long has gone, wearied out at last, and the carnival of disorder may now begin.
The circumstances which led to this untoward result present no features of novelty and need not be referred to in detail. The origin of the present Chinese naval system is well known. The necessity of superseding the extravagant and obsolete system of provincial navies was felt as far back as 1860, with the result that three years later the Sherard-Osborne flotilla had arrived in Chinese waters, only, however, to be sent back to where it had come from. Perhaps a scheme so ill-digested deserved no better fate, but the germ, at any rate, of a centralized or national navy was there, of which the fruit was to appear in after years. The Chinese navy proper may be said to have barely attained its majority, and though by no means full-grown it has shown undoubted future promise. 'I'he northern squadron, with its ironclads, armed cruisers, and gunboats was a fleet in which the Viceroy, by whose exertions and courage it was built up, might find a legitimate source of gratification and pride. It was not put on a proper footing until 1886, when the English Government by a friendly act lent Admiral Long, who at that time held the rank of post-captain and who was generally regarded as a man of exceptional abilities, with every prospect of entering upon a distinguished and brilliant career, to the Chinese Government. The fleet was at once placed under the joint command of the two admirals Long and Ting, on the understanding that the latter was to act as Admiral Long's colleague. It would have been difficult to arrange it otherwise, as Admiral Ting, on the one hand, though holding equal substantive rank, had to trust to his foreign colleague on all naval matters, of which he was profoundly ignorant, not indeed being a sailor at all; and, on the other hand, it would have been impossible for an officer of Admiral's Long's rank and position, even if his Government would have permitted it, to act as the subordinate ofa Chinaman. This principle of officers assisting a foreign power being only allowed to act for and not under native officials, was laid down as far back as 1863 in despite of all the efforts of Prince Kung, and the Chinese were perfectly well aware that an officer on active service could not be obtained on any other terms.
On such conditions Admiral Long took up his command. Under the new regime the fleet made a surprising advance in general eficiency which did not fail to attract the admiring notice of Li Hung-chang during his fortnight's cruise with the squadron in 1888. This marked improvement was due to no scamping measures. At the naval college at Tientsin, and at Weihaiwei, under the able supervision of Mr. Bourchier, the foundations were being well and truly laid. Everything in fact was succeeding to wish when the ill-concealed jealousy of the native officers at last broke out in an act of wanton and unprovoked insult during the temporary absence of Aduiral 4 To receive an insult from a semi-civilised barbarian is in itself a comparatively small matter, and had it at once been repudiated by the higher authorities might well have been overlooked. But it shortly transpired that the action of the subordinate officers was regarded with even a certain amount of sympathy in the very quarter where justice demanded that it should meet with stern measures of repression; and it was at once made clear that the event had, and was meant to have, a signification deeper than appeared on the mere surface. Tt could mean nothing less. than that Aduniral Long's position was to be considered subordinate to that of the officers who were formerly subordinate to himself. It was nothing less than a complete reversal of the conditions on which he had consented to serve. The servants were henceforth to be the masters and the Admiral was to take his orders from those to whom he had previously been accustomed to issue his own commands. No good purpose could be served by submitting for one instant to such gross indignity, and Admiral Long immediately sent in his resignation, which was accepted.
With the close of this disagreeable incident we bring our remarks to a conclusion. It is vain to attempt to forecast the future consequences. It may be argued from the strictest logical inference that under ordinary circumstances the entire fleet will shortly be seen sunk, stranded, or rendered unfit for active service. To which we reply that somehow the circumstances never are ordinary in China, Her marvellous luck shows no signs of leaving er, and her ships will be riding the main after the perpetration of blunders which would have rung the death knell of less fortunate navi It is idle to lift the voice of and point out that in future it abe
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.