9th Oct.
Mr. Deneratus C. Bovrcen is a person who has made China his province without, so far as we know, ever having been here, and having written so much and so frequently on the subject of China that he ought to have some acquaintance with it, he was naturally deeply interested in the visit of H.E. Li Hung-chang to England. He has sent to a contemporary some reworks on this visit, in which he shows a fine contempt for Professor Douglas's exhortation to the British public not to make too much of the distinguished visitor from China, " Those admonitions," Mr. Boulger says, " based originally on the carping criticism of one man, whose knowledge of the Chinese language has led to his being accepted as an authority on the subject, have been exposed as fallacies, not by the ctiticisms of those who held the counter view, but the quite extraordinary tact and dexterity of Li Hung-chang himself" After some profuse eulogy of the Chinese Envoy, including the quotation of General Gordon's final comment on his old companion in arms, "He is a noble fellow and worth giving one's life for," Mr. Boulger comes to the point. He says "The practical object the Chinese statesman has before him is the increase of the tariff to the same extent as has been conceded by England to Japan, and there is no doubt that his visit has materially assisted and hastened the realisation of this demand, the justice of which is really beyond dispute, As the immediate and most pressing want of China is an increased revenue, because the indemnity to Japan will deprive her of the major part of her present income from the Customs, it is evident that this is a matter that China desires to have speedily settled; and it therefore follows that the more promptly the matter is arranged the more grateful will the feelings of the Chinese statesman be to the British Government. Having obtained the increased resources which China so much needs by this concession on our part, which, in any case, cannot be put off for more than two years, the Chinese will be able to turn their serious attention to the measures necessary to provide for their national security by raising an efficient army and purchasing a fresh navy. The question has been asked, why should we surrender rights to a China which is unable to defend herself? But the sounder policy would ask, how can we withhold from China a legitimate concession that would enable her to become strong enough to maintain her independence? 'I'he turn about to be given to China's action and policy depends very much on the decision taken in this matter by the British Government, and a far-seeing policy would justify a prompt concession of Li Hung-chang's demand, coupled with the simple proposition that there shall be increased facilities for that trade. which has now become so necessary to China herself."
A less serious writer, in the Pall Mall Gazette, also discusses H.E. Li's visit, and touches on the question of the raising of the import tariff in China. Who writer presumes that before starting HE. Li told his Imperial master that he would "just see what he could do about getting those Customs duties raised—of course without offering auything to England by way of a set-off against that concession, Not having, at that time, the advantage of a personal acquaintance with Prince Bis-marek, Li had, probably, never heard of the diplomatic doctrine of do ut des, and so it does not seem to have occurred to him that if he wanted those duties raised he would have to give Lord Salisbury something in return, Anyhow, it appears that he did ask Lord Salisbury to consent to an alteration in favour of China, and that he gently grieved at the extraordinary moral obliquity of the English Premier in venturing to ask, in effect, the simple but very pertinent question, Where do
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.