Oct.
A feeling which prevails in certain well-informed circles of the community is that China has spent much money which she could ill afford on the employment of experts. This sentiment has been aroused by the publica. tion. of summaries of two report: within the last few days by the Kemmerer Commission, and the disappointment attendant upon them that they contained nothing new. Naturally nobody would expect a commission of even the very greatest financiers in the world to evolve a panacea for China's financial ills, and Chinese politicians hoped for a short cut to prosperity in the exchequer department—th optimism must have vanished long since. Wha could be anticipated minds brought to bea subjects in hand was that a few comprehensive new ideas would have been forthcoming, and.i in the absence of these that the disappointment lies. Tt is not sugsrested for a moment that the work of the Commission has been valueless: rather its value ies in this, that the reports referred to emphasize the point that China has been exceptionally well served by the foreigners she has employed, that not only has their work been of inestimable value to the country. in the past but is likely to be so for along time to come, Further: more these public servants have not been content with the routine performance of their duty, but have devoted much and well-directed thought to the improvement of China's services.
This latter point is borne out in striking manner by the very recommendations of the Kemmerer Commission. Take, for instance, the introduction of gold units for the payment of Customs duties which is now in force. A proposal to this effect was made by Sir Robert Hart almost thirty years ago, but the officials of the day were not prepared to accept it notwithstanding the great weight of authority carried by the Inspec-for-General's views. That it is now in force is a tribute to his foresight. Emphasis is laid in the Commission's report on the necessity of - consolidating us toxas at present administered by separate departments, among these being the Rolled Tobacco Tax, the Stamp Tax, Taxes on Wine and Tobacco, Stamp Tax and Special Consumption Tax, as well as the taxes on matches and Portland cement which the Commission has suggested should be introduced. This matter of consolidation has been for long a pre-ocetipation of the Customs officials who recognize that their service is admirably organized to deal with such duties as those on tobacco, wine and the other commodities suggested, and it is believed that representations to this end have been made in the past to the Government. Naturally the Customs were not concerned with any exist duties which are levied.
As in the case of Sir Robert Hart's proposal, their representations were not adopted. Theo it is important to note from the experience of the Customs that such matters as the Stamp Tax do not lend themselves particularly well to consolidation under the same administration as that dealing with duties on commodities pure and simple, and it may be hoped that such a view expressed by men with 'a wide experience in the country will have due consideration.
When it comes to the vexed question of the control over the revenue of the country, the Commission certainly off sound advice in its budget plan in insisting that the present weakness in organization should be eliminated and that the Ministry of Finance should be placed in a distinctly authorita~ tive position when it comes to spending. Reformers in China have long recognized this evil, and a satisfactory part of th Commission's work is that it has drawa up a system of laws which if carried out to its full extent should have the desired effect. Like others who have studied conditions in Chini bers of the Commi not but be impressed with the other evils at large—nepotism, likin, tax farming and so forth—but how to consign them to the limbo of the past is quite another matter. It is impossible to see any sweeping reduction in the number of officials, for instance, so long as present conditions continue, Education has advanzed far beyond the expansion of industry. Whereas in a European country men from schools and. universities find employment in the clerical work which 1 necessary adjunct to industry, such opportunities in China ure exceedingly limited. A striking example of this is the fact that in services such as the Customs and the Salt for every score of vacancies there are about a thousand applicants. Nor is this because of any marked preference for government employ, but the stark fact that there is none other available for so many of these people. Such conditions must inevitably hamper the progress of reforms suggested by the Kemmerer ornmission, and it is difficult to see what recommendations could have been made to overcome them.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.