Popular Dissatisfaction with Nanking: Prospects of Stronger Administration: Progress Actually Made Mr. T. V. Soong, Minister of Finance, hus given the following interview to the Kuo Min News Agency:
"There is noticeable among many circles a growing sense of disap-ointment over the inuetivity of the Government since the completion of the Northern Expedition. So much thas to be done to set things right, and on the fade of it so much could: easily be accomplished, that it seems, ¢riminal to miss what is generally conceded to be the best opportunity. China has had for the last 30 years to put her house in ordos.
Nevertheless if we could detach ourselves from the immediate pres-cent and take a bird's eye view of the situation, the feeling of despondency, arising' through seroot expecta tions still wivealized, need not neeossarily prevail. There is no ques tion but that the country has made vast strides towneds unity and order uring the Inst two years; the mere fact that people ave expecting more from this Government is in itself an indication of progress. The pres loll may only mean the short} spell of quiescence when internal readjustments are made before the next period of activity in the now and more difficult direction of reconstruction.
Jand without interference from any "I-am particularly hopeful," Mr. Soong said, "of the results of this Commission ecause it will enable the Central Government to supervise the reform of provincial and] local finances. Take the ease of multifarious taxation, There is a tendeitey for the public to saddle the Ministry of Finance with all the hundreds of vexatious taxes existing in the country, when as 2 matter" of fact all the taxes collected by the Ministry could be counted on the fingers, namely, the Customs (which include Parcel Post and Customs Surtaxes), salt, wine and tobacco, petroleum and stamps, and those taxes duly effectively in the three provinees above-mentioned.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.