The writer arrived in Loyang on October 25, while the gossip was at its height. It was at once apparent that all of Wu Pei-fu's officers and advisers were convinced that Feng Yii-hsiang wanted to be stationed at Peking for political reasons of his own. It was equally apparent that Wu Pei-fu had no desire to see him removed and hoped that he could be persuaded to stay. The following day a telegram came from Feng Yit-hsiang which confirmed in everyone's mind the belief that he was eager to leave. It was to all intents an announcement of his resignation as Tuchun. He said that he was too il to carry on in his office and that he wanted to go to Shanghai so that he could go to a hospital and be properly treated. Of course it was wel] known that the commander of the 11th Division is-an exceptionally robust man, of magnificent physique, and that he was enjoying perfect health. His telegram could only mean that he wanted to leave honan or that he thought Wu wanted him to leave, Wu Pei-fu hastened to reply in the friendliest possible terms ex-borting General General Feng to remain at das post. As for his illness, Generat Wu suggested that if he needed a rest and medical attention he could procure both in Kaifengfu. His presence was need-there, Wu Pei-fu wrote, even if he were unable to direct affairs actively.
Before this telegram reached Kaifeng fu General Feng's two brigade commanders and his chief secretary set out for Loyang, arriving there late Friday afternoon. They said they had come to explain matters d to reach an understanding with Wu Pei-fu. As soon as they commenced talking it was apparent that they had come to plead for {Feng Yit-hsiang's retention in ofice. When it is remembered that 'm Loyang it was believed that {Feng was anxious to go and only {seeking an excuse to get out of Honan, it will be understood that the attitude of the delegates came as a surprise and that the leaders m Loyang began to think that Fong was behaving rather childishly. The delegates were assured that Loyang sincerely desired Feng's retention in Kaifeng, but they went on talking and finally Wu Pei-fu said in his abrupt and somewhat tactless way: "If_ he wants to stay, let him stay; if he wants to go let him go." Needless to say the delegates at once misinterpreted this very direct statement of the Loyang attitude and Ww's mors tactful advisers and officers had to take the delegates apart and explain for some hours that Wu had not meant to say that ko was indifferent to what became fof Feng, but #hat he really wanted Feng to stay in Honan if Feng were willing to stay but would not coax him if he were anxious to go. The following morning the delegates left, still under the impression unfortunately that Wu Pei-fu was not enthusiastic about Feng Yi-hsiang remaining in Katieng.
FENG UNSWERVINGLY LOYAL, Nevertheless the return of the delegates to Kaifeng with their report of their conversations is said to have eased the situation immensely, General Feng presumably understands Wu Pei-fu and his manner of speech much better than his subordinates do and was reassured. This was the situation when the writer left Honan and his impression that personal relations between Feng and Wu would remain cordial was confirmed by a fellow traveller, a military councillor in the Tuchun's yamen, who had left Feng that morning and was intimately familiar with his attitude towards Wu, Pei-fu.
According to this councillor, who had had intimate relations with Feng for more than 20 years, Feng had said that Wu Pei-fu. had helped him tremendously in his military career and that he would take his orders and remain loyal to him "to the last ditch." He had remarked somewhat theatrically that if Wu told him to jump into the Yellow River he would jump in, confident that Wu had some good reason for issuing such an order. He said that among modern Chinese military officers Wu Pei-fu was a Chu-Ko Liang, while his only ambition was to be as loyal and as efficient a_soldier as Chao Yun or Huang Chung. This councillor, while thoroughly loyal to Feng Wu Vu-hsiang, said that Wu Pei-fu was a national figure while Feng would always be a local figure under' Wu's guidance. He felt assured that the atmosphere in Honan had been cleared and that with Feng convinced that he would enjoy Wu's continued support in Kaifeng all minor questions of friction between subordinates and of the awkward overlapping of the military funetions of the two camps could be easily settled.
Anyone returning to Peking with all these facts in mind was bound to have received something of a shock when the news of the mandate removing Feng from the Honan Tuchunship came to him. There has not been much opportunity to investigate the reason for this development, but in all quarters the impression is that the same Tsao Jui clique which is busy trying to break up the cabinet has "been the force behind all this conspiracy to make trouble between Wu and Feng and this same force, probably working through Tsao Kun, inspired the mandate. Tsao Jui and com-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.