The man with the pruning knife, or the man who says he has a pruning knife, is beginning to cause dismay among those officials who draw pay and know they perform no more arduous duty than that involved in taking their money and spending it. It is now given out that large percentage of the lower officials are to be dismissed. It is rather a pity that the Government does not see its way clear to relieve the pay roll of the burden of forty per cent, and introduce measures calculated to make the remainder do the whole of the work involved in the administration. Perhaps the country would be better off if fifty per cent. were sent about their business, They could be spared.
The present closure of the ropean markets to China en-sent opportunity to tive service of China are available for the work, and if the President wishes to make the Chinese cap; able of controlling their own country the first thing he should do is to see to it that competent men are found for the necessary posts and not unnecessary posts for incompetent men.
An Examination on Modern Lines, It is satisfactory to note that one examination is to take place in the spring—an examination of foreign graduates. About 360 are to be examined by four examiners, two of whom will be Dr. Will-oughly, who has taken the place of Dr. Goodnow here, and Mr. 0. O. Wu, the son Dr. Wu Ting-fang. If the papers for this examination are of the type which are employed to test the capacity of entrants to foreign civil services, the occasion may well be seized upon as the
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.