Oct, 2.
THE prospective ending of the diplomatic deadlock reported today by our Peking correspondent will be received with general relief. The disappearance of the famous Thirteen Demands, which] is clearly implied in the impending exchange of letters, even if! other hopes are not realized, i in itself a gain. Furthermor although our correspondent doe: not definitely say that thie is so, it is to be presumed that the! Diplomatic Body's letter will be! signed by all the Washington Conference Powers, an evidence of solidarity in what is purely national question, which is as satisfactory as correct. Our correspondent tells us that this result is generally attributed to. Mr. Oudendijk. The Dutch. Minister is a man of wide diplomatic experience and personal charm and the detached position which he can take towards events that happened while he was out of China would add to the weight which he al ways carries with the Chinese.
We assume that with the exchange of these letters the boycott will officially be "called off."
pronouncement from Peking to this effect would be expected in any case and would be no more than a proper return for the very conciliatory tone taken by the Powers. The extent to which an order of this kind from Peking is obeyed in the provinces will be the measure of the success of the coming Tariff Conference. It would be hypocrisy to pretend that the questions which are going to be discussed at that conference are taken up because China has shown herself any more fit for treaty revision that she was in conference meets because a certain unruly section of her people have made a quite unjust it lo clamour, have flooded the: world with mendacious propaganda and have got the support of certain foreigners into whose motives it is best not to inquire too closely. We are in no way unsympathetic with the newly-born national aims of China, But it cannot be too strongly insisted that the enjoyment of rights implies the acceptance of responsibilities. First and most obvious of these is to insist*on the restoration of trade throughout the country and the elimination of the warfare conducted by Moscow in south China against the country which has ever proved herself a good friend of China.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.