Peking, Feb. 24.
Late last night we were treated to two State papers of interest at the present time. One of these is memorial by Prince Pu Lun, once the recognized heir to the Manchu throne, new Chairman of the Tean-cheng yuan and the humble servant of Yuan Shih-kai. The Prince urges his noble master immediately to ascend the Throne, despite the modesty which fills' the "Holy Bosom." Really, the Prince can have no humour; or is it that he has too much?
But the "Person holding Power" is deaf to the argument held forth and, in a mandate promulgated 11 o'clock last night, definitely pones the question of his ascending the Throne, on the ground that the project has given rise to quarrels and that this decision had already been communicated to the Foreign Legations, immediately after the cancellation of the visit of the Special Envoy to Japan. But it is new to the Chinese public who on that occasion were officially informed only that no date had yet been fixed for the Coronation—a frigidity, by-the-by, for February 9 had been duly chosen for the celebration of the Grand Ceremony.
The present announcement, therefore, leaves us as we were. The President evidently cannot yet bring himself to the decision for which the circumstances urgently call, namely, a total renunciation of his ambition to become a monarch, until such time as the country is at peace and unanimously demands this elevation. The Mandate perhaps may be regarded as prelimin-en- ary to the more important step, for hear of proposals to Tuan Chi-jui and Feng Kuo-chang, and other Prominent men, which include can-collation of the monarchy as an inducement to them to rejoin the Government.
The President is also known to be interesting himself in the question of a more speedy convocation of Parliament, and of the immediate preparation of a Constitution. But n representative Parliament can be assembled in Peking while absolute power remains in the hands of Yuan Shih-kai, and word condemn any man to death. Devolution of power is an essential Preliminary to any rearrangement of the Central Government.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.