Oct, 5, the extremely interesting letter that we published two days ago, Mr. Ku Hun, many issues that it is impossible to discuss them all in a single article. But as the greater includes the less, we mity confine attention to. the question of principle raised by the Cantonese railway delegation, in which our correspondent taxed us with misunderstanding the real issue. That principle, he wrote, is whether the reform of Chin shall be decided and carried out an monopolized by a few persons. tholi it be carried out by and with all and free consent of the whole pation, In other words, the real irene of the question now in dixpate is whether the Government in Chinn now shall be an cligsrcby or a Constitationsl Government in the trae sense of the word, which means Government with the fall and free consent of the whole nation,"
Later in the letter Mr. Ku Hung-ming advised "ull foreigners who ish for the success of a peaceful and true reform in China" to " pat their money on the right horse," Now as regards the question of principle we venture to think that Mr. Ku Hung-ming has but expressed in different words what hus been said many times in these columns. Comparatively speaking, the railway policy is immaterial, The test care, from whichever standpoint of purtisunship it regarded, is whether the Govern. ment or the provinces is to. prevail, As for putting money on the right horse," this is the old complaint that foreigners insist, to their own detriment, on bolstering up the Manchu power rather than on national development. Even Gordon, it may be remarked, laid himself open to thut condemnation, What, then, it is important to see is whether there may not yet be reasons, as good as those' which Gordon probably had, for supporting the central authority in its present course. Theoretically, no doubt, the world sides with Mr. Ku Hung-ming. Yet his contentions do not escape the charge of being largely visionary, In particular, his reference to "the full and free consent of the whole nation" would seem to assume altogether too much. Even if we may put the total number of Chinese who thoroughly understand the meaning riginal from
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.