A Dismal Spectacle with Hopeful Outlook: The Questions of Surtax and Loans London, Mar. 20%
A dismal spectacle of the state of China is given by the Peking correspondent of "The Times," who states that the country is more disorganized than ever and incapable of standing alone.
The correspondent declares that if relief is to come in time, a small committee of experts should be appointed immediately to collect and sift the evidence for the Washington International Commission, which will investigate the surtax.
"The Times," in a_ leading article, endorses this view and declares that, otherwise, the Commission would be overwhelmed by a deluge of figures and complicated issues, taking years to deal with effectively. On the other hand, the journal refuses to regard the situation as desperate. It says that the character and immemorial history of the Chinese guarantee that sooner or later the country will emerge from its troubles.
At present, the paper declares, China needs all the support of her friends. As a whole, the debt of China is smal] as compared with the resources and size of her population. It would be a profitable business for her foreign creditors to set her on her legs again, provided she has the moral and physical force to establish an effective Government.—Reuter.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.