To the Editor of the "Nonrn-Cuina Daty News:
Si—The agitation in Shanghai over the death of a common sneak {thief is altogether artificial and unconvincing.
The Chin have very scant re-aspect for the sanctity of human life as may be seen from thousands fof incidents going on all over the jeountry at this very moment.
'A Chinese police authority not Jong ago told me in response to an inquiry of ming as to what could be done to a thief discovered in my house at night: he replied it is. mo crime to shoot such a criminal, The Chinese them: frequently beat a thief to death and I have seen the body of sue! victim thrown out. The corpse i buried by the authorities and no inquirie are made and_ there not the slightest trace of an agitation:
on the contrary everybody is relieved that such a public nuisance has been put to death, Not long ago a 80 [the streets of Chapel a ries who had the temerity to fare for a few coppers.
Not a [single voice was raised at the death Jof the poor innocent coolie, 'A prominent editor of a great se newspaper was recently hauled fron: his home in Peking and shot dead within an hour, Again there was no protest and no petition Jand no agitated procession.
There is ndt a single person in Shanghai who has the remotes interest in the dead thief, How he Jame by his death I do not know, and if he had been killed by his own people not a word would have ever been heard of it: the incident would not have been worthy of [line in a Chinese newspaper, The whole agitation is antiforeign: it is worked up by paid Jagitators and Bolsheviks. There is nothing patriotic about it and the whole thing should be sternly restrained.
Public bodies who agitate are doing China a disservice and are bringing themselves into disrepute, for the whole agitation is unreal and insincere.
What is at the bottom of all this agitation! Why do not all these people come out openly and say they want a war with the foreigners and let us get on with [the job?
If this is China's idea she would Joceupy a very much more dignified Position by at once and openly declaring war on the Powers 50 that the present impossible position.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.