The more level-headed citizens are cognizant of the fact that both the government and the merchants have made a mistake. A consular official who is a close student of political affairs in China has expressed the same opinion to the "writer. By breaking up the unions of the Left, the government has antagonized thousands of workmen, who probably will meet in secret and plot to get, back at their enemies. On the other hand, it is as plain as the nose on one's face that the moderates now have concejfed ideas of their importance, sind it cannot be doubted that plenty will be heard from them in the future. The better plan would have been not to abolished any union but to have adopted regulations: that would have kept all of them in their places. For three months, all workmen are to be kept in their Iplaces, By government order, the unions have been forbidden to' hold meetings, nor may they be active in any manner, They have been specially enjoined not to-use persuative measures in seeking new mem-
The stores that are free to deal with their employees as they see fit in some cases have reduced wages, bhut more often they have kept down the size of their payrolls by hiring 'a smaller number of workers. On the: whole, the merchants are getting more work out of their employees, and thus they should, for the first time in ages, be able to make Aittle money, but the unhealthy condition of the paper dollar prevents this. It will be recalled that, before leaving Canton, General Wong Kee-cheung helped himself to the contents of the Central Bank, leaving. not a single copper for those who) followed him. The silver reserve thus having been entirely wiped out, the paper currency became discredit: ed, and the price of the paper dollar, dropped until it was mot worth' 50 cents in silver. Of Jate, however, there has been some im~ provement, and to-day a dollar bill can be exchanged for something like 65 or 66 cents. The victories which Li Chi-hsin's allies have attained in the East River fighting zone partly have restored confidence in the government's ability to redeem its notes.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.