Thoughtful politicians have been speculating as to what Lord Salisbury really means by the words "Our policy in China is.. to maintain the Chinese Empire." Taking the words in their full meaning that is a "very large order." What a war would it be for us, if we were called upon +o face a combination of great Powers bent upon subverting and capturing the Chinese empire. Such an euterprise does not sound like Lord Salisbury. We may take it, however, that this is not his meaning. He is dealing with practical probabilities, not the things that are not in the least degree likely to be attempted.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.