Nov. 10.
Tue downfall of Chen Chiung-ming, the recapture of Swatow by the Reds and the collapse of the whole anti-Bolshevik cause in South China is indeed serious news. In the graphic letter we publish to-day from a corre pondent in Swatow, after de cribing the savagery with which the boycott has been reimposed land the actual torture inflicted on those caught working for British masters, the writer emphasized that the Chinese gen-rally are the very reverse of anti-British. The same has been said of many other places and we cordially believe it. But unfortunately the good will of the many is powerless against the violence and organization of the few. Our correspondent that no one in Swatow ever pected Chen Chiung-ming to succeed. We doubt whether anybody elsewhere had any great hope of him. More than once he has proved a broken reed, even against forces much less formidable than those the Bolsheviks have estal Canton. But at least] jhe was expected to hold Swator He has failed and the Red power is supreme throughout Kuangtung: at any moment the Bolsheviks may appear in Fukier In fact no serious attempt hi yet been made by any Chinese to cope with the Soviet's invasion of their country and the danger is indeed great that before the Chinese rouse themselves to thi menace, it will have got such a hold on the country as to be almost beyond shaking off.
A good many facts have recently come to our Knowledge of this Bolshevik invasion: and by those words we do not mean the mere corruption of Chinese students and labour leaders, which is bad enough, but the bodily presence of Russian Bolshevik soldiers and officers in China. Among the latter four names stand out: Colonel Goushin, the Bolshevik officer who was arrested in Shanghai and deported last June; General Ivanoff-Rinoff, formerly a White officer and whose son was actually killed by the Bolsheviks, but who, we are credibly informed, has none the less joined them; General Tonkikh; and General Shalavin. The men are spread between the Ist National (Chinese) Army at Kalgan and the 2nd National Army Loyang, in Honan. At the latter place also is stationed the 136th Bolshevik Regiment, known as the Troitzko Savsky. Whether the regiment is there or not, we are not certain, but at any rate a considerable number of Russian Bolshevik soldiers are there and have been seen by credible eye-witnesses with whom we have talked.
Now let us look further In_ the first place it is a fact quite beyond any controverting that Mongolia is as much a Russian province as Wales is a part. of Great Britain. All the ndiloquent talk about: hastd-the Sino-Russian li. tions to that effect, are pure moonshine. Mongolia -has been alen from China by the Soviet and there are no tw words about it. In the same way the Soviet is in process of stealing the Chinese Eastern Railway. A great fuss was made about Comrade Ivanoff's famous Order 90, which dismissed all employees lof the railway who had not" either Russian or Chin passports, but to the best of our belief it has not been rescinded. {Be that as it may, it is notorious that, since Bolshevik managé- ment of the line began a year ago, by far the greater number lof new employees engaged have been Bolsheviks, in spite of the half-and-half stipulation of the agreement with China, In other words, Moscow is stealing the (Chinese Eastern Railway as she has stolen Mongolia. In South China the position is too well understood to need elaboration. Borodin is king of Canton and the so-called Chinese Government are merely his servants, Finally call attention to the striking letter in to-day's correspondence, columns from a writer in West China describing the extent of Soviet propaganda in Szechwan, 'This writer, we may mention, is by no means our only witness on this subject. North, northwest and south Moscow has her claws dug deep into China and is digging them deeper every day. And meanwhile China' leading men can find no bettes employment than to fight each other and bring death and ruin their helpless fellow-country-
There may be some technical slips in this summary of the situation: in its main outlines we are satisfied that it is correct. We anticipate also the retort which Soviet agents will make, that we write as representatives of "capita country, e proletariat in As for Great Britain's being an enemy of China, no Chinese of"
sanity pays the faintest tention to the charge: its absurdity is exposed by the whole record of Britain's d ings with China and particular ly her forbearance in the past summer. As for enemies of the proletariat, who can be th more than the Soviet them: The state of Russia to-day, where there is no freedom of speech, press, election, industry, where millions have been slaughtered or brought to their deaths by the insane system of Bolshevism, is proof enough. If'we are twitted with being primarily concerned to counter-act Moscow's anti-British propaganda and to habilitate British accept the accusation cheerfully. There is nothing in it of which have the least cause for shame or concealment. Moscow is trying her best to ruin Great Britain and by every means in our power we will fight her.
But she is also trying to ruin China, or at least that is the inevitable outcome of her ae vities. And when we admit frankly that we write in Britain's interest, we are sure fall reasonable Chinese will be-" lieve that we write in their's. Wherever Bolshevism has gone, it has brought death, ruin and misery. That is'what it is bringing—has already brought, China: for what is the state of Kuangtung to-day? Is anyone there, except a few scoundrels, a penny the better for ti Soviet's coming? Is not. the province infinitely worse off? It is tragic that civil war should distract the country. with this terrible menace, not at its doors, but actually in its midst and we earnestly appeal to all Chinese to sink their di to the unimportant things till later. and to stand together against ithe Bolshevik who, daily, hourly land in ever widening, ramifica~ tions, eats his way into their ment living from hand to mouth! ing Mongolia back to China, all country's vitals, it permission.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.