May 13.
Two articles have appeared in our columns this week on the decline from its high estate of the famous Model Province of Shansi, which cannot but attract attention. The evidence of the two exit ies, one a correspondent very well known to us, the other Dr, Wampler of Pinlingchow, is quite above suspicion. Both are agreed that Governor Yen Hsi-shan himself is in all probability partly ignorant of wha': is going on; but as to the general degeneration throughout the province there can be no two opinions. Dr. Wampler thinks that Governor Yen has been caught in the toils of his own military machine, Haunted by the dread of invasion he has increased his army from some 20,000 as it was a year ago to at least 100,000: Dr. Wampler's estimate is a good deal higher. Well, with the growth of Marshal' Feng Vu-hsiang's power westwards, Governor Yen might not unjustly fear the possibility of being caught in the enmity between him and Marshal Chang Tso-lin: furthermore Shansi actually was invaded by the Kuominchun from Honan last December and very nearly suffered defeat. So that Governor Yen's new militarism cannot fairly be estimated without reference to his neighbours' doings. But the results for his province are the same. The whole of this year's taxes were demanded in March when, just after New Year, ready money is scareest, 80 that far to borrow at high inter richer citizens were mulcted in super-taxes and "voluntary" conbutions, and it is most probable that there will be a call for next year's taxes before the end of this year. Roads have gone to pieces, even those which the American' Red Cross built with famine labour at a cost of about $1,000,000 in 1921 and presented to the province on the sole condition of their being kept in good repair. Education, in! which Shansi once led China, with more pupils at school proportion ately to her population than any other province, has been hopelessly starved. And whereas a few years sign Gov ernor Yen told the late Sir John Jordan that a third of his revenue went in keeping out opium-smugglers, opium and morphia pills are now cheap and easily to be obtained everywhere.
The whole story affords & good example of the dangers of "one man rule" which are so common in all Asiatic history. The Old Testament, which, regarded only from the historical and sociological point of view, remains lone of the best commentaries on oriental nature in existence, teems with examples of the king who does well for a certain length of time and whose "heart is turned away" in pursuit of this' or that disastrous policy: land always at the end of a reign there is the same state of uncertainty as to what policy the next will pursue. In China the evils of one-man rule ave parti cularly prominent, and to no [small extent are found in foreign institutions, thus illustrating how unconsciously the tendent cies of any country gradually infect even the stranger. It is often contended that republicanism is perfectly suitable to China because she is essentially democratic; and so in a sense she is. The ultimate power of ithe people is gigantic, exercising' itself in many ways which the outsider cannot follow, though he can see the results clearly, But it is an inverted form of democracy. In the West a politician frames a programme, presents it to the electors and is chosen or rejected by them laceording to whether they like lor dislike his views. In China, [the politician first imposes him~ self and is only hurled out when the people finally decide that he is intolerable, in which respect it is amazing what they will endure. Governor Yen Hsi-shan came to the front in Shansi directly after the overthrow of the Manchus and we are far from suggesting that the people h to throw him out. But the point ix that there has never been any check upon him and long before there was any breath of criticism against him, it was always a matter of grave speculation who would replace him. in Manchuria, where Marshal Chang, Tso-lin's able administration is widely admitted, his: heavy military expenditure has latterly caused great discontent and the revolt of Kuo Sung-ling lust December undoubtedly went much deeper than apparent. The chief missi fas to the future of Marshal Sun Chuan-fang's schemes for a Greater Shanghai is that they} depend now and must for some ars to come on the permanence of his position and policy alone. And it is notorious that the stability of China's internal loans depends entirely on the trusteeship of the Inspector-General of Customs.
These considerations give additional seriousness to what our Shansi correspondent says about the growing insubordination among the students of the province. These youths, it is to] be observed, are not or should not be exposed to the same disturbing influences as treaty-port students. They are remote from the coast and since childhood they have had before their eyes practical example of good government which surely ought! to have stirred them to emulation, Yet they appear as mutiny ous and self-willed as any, worse indeed than students of the treaty ports, who have recently shown a praiseworthy sobriety} and zest for their studies. In Shansi for several months past ther have been conducting violent anti-Christian propaganda and they have driven out the principals of two of the most portant schools in Taiyuanfu—Chinese, not foreigners; while: we hear that "teachers in the various schools dare not give their pupils stiff examinations or hold them to any sort of rigid ard." One principal was actually chased out because he look over the examination papers in advance. There is no more seri-lous feature in China to-day than this temper among the students. We do not say it is universal, far from it. We have no doubt that the majority of students are
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.