The long and notable Imperial Decrees that we published yesterday arn an dress as for their alrendy The main object of Government proclamations, apart from an inevitable sonoronsnees of phrasing, is to convey the meaning as clearly and as uomistakeably as possible. Imperial Edicts in Obine, however, seem to axek the other extreme, Minute grame of meaning are scattered in a waste of words, or to express it better, the Edicte are so long drawo-out that the meaning, through ttenastion, becomes almost uodisonver. able, The web of words with which the august author of the Edicts clathen hin thonghta is not without ite own, even in translation, but politics literary grace counts for much lees than concisenens and intelligibility. To turn from this line of thought the soggention arises that in this country the fierce white light that beats apon a throne" is non-existent. Upon' the majestic Dragon Throne follo no exterior light; the searchlight of political and facial epecalation never pierces the veil which hange be tween the sacrosanct abiding place of China's Roler and the world without. And, reverting to the original theme, may this not be an explanation in part of the half-mystical method of address employed? The echo of what the world without la saying falls faintly open the ears of the Oriental Rulers, who endure -|the fearful intellectual solitude that is the lot of monarchs acclaimed by their sobjects as semi-divine, Bat the wonarch's voice must be heard in the and a. thas it if that, hen the is heard, it is only an Tadleinct beet voice of Emperor, Empress or Regent
what has long since been given express sion to by others, less illustrious, bat more enlightened,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.