Reports have been current here for some time that a number off luential party and government, leaders propose to make Sianfu, the permanent capital' off tional Government. That belief is considerably strengthened by the report to-day that Marshal Feng Yuchsiang and General Yen Hsi-shan have been asked to draw, up plans of national defence to ba Aiscussed at the coming Disbande ment and Reorganization Conference, with the idea in mind that Sianfq, will be the capital. 1
'The removal of the capital td Shensi, however, is not expected ta take place for two or three yearty 'The authorities plan to build a Tung-Chen Railway, connection Tatung, in northern' Shansi, with Chengta, in Szechuan, passing through Sianfu. The present Lungs hai Railway line will be extended to the same city so that it will have direct railway connections with Pol Tientsin, Hankow, Lis chow, Nanking and Shanghai, There are, of course, other suse gestions beside this. Taiyuanty, Shans, and Loyang, in Honan, ar@ also considered by many to be props, er sites for the nation's capitaly Among the reasons given for the suggested removal of the capital ta Sinnfu are:
Nanking is too much exposed td attack by foreign war vessels. battleship can easily steam up the Yangtze and bombard the city. If the Powers' warships at Hsiakunn had chosen to at the time of tha Nanking Incident they could hava shelled the city and wiped it outs Then enemy forees can Inn Shanghai ud easily march on Nanking. 1
On the contrary Sianfu is far the interior and is protected by. formidable mountain passes and rivers, It is centrally located if one tnkew into consideration Mongolia, Tivet and Chinese Turkestan. This will not be the first time that Sianfuy if the plan goes through, hax bern made the capital of the country. In. the olden days, many emperors chose to rule from there. Most famous of these, perhaps, was Chine Shih-huang, who built the Great Wall, Nanking has been found to be too. close to Shanghai, and on numerous occasions people have expressed the opinion that probably more work would be accomplished if officials pent more of their time in the capital than they da at presen', When the National Government was first established here, a few of the leaders frequently visited Shanghat on important missions. But now it_ has become almost a habit for officials, no matter how unimportant, the week-end in Shanghai, tern Times earns that the coffin containing the body of the late Dr. Sun Yat-sen will brought early in Match from Peking to Nanking and will be interred before the anniversary of the death of the famous leader, March 21. Mr. Sun Fo, Minister of Raila in soon to visit Peking in connection with the removal of the body. year we beakd about the "compromising" C. C. Wu; during the first few months of this year, the weak-kneed and incompeter Muang Fu, and now we have essed part of a campaign agai CT. Wang.
For the time being at least the position of Dr, Wang is thought to be quite safe and secure; for how could the Government afford te lose him at a time when increased revenue from the new National Tari' appears so nearly in sight?
'The Chinese Foreign Minister has enough difficulties to face at home, and any further embarrass~ ment' from outside sources woukt be most unfortunate both from the standpoint of China and that of the Powers, Such embarrassment is likely to effect a complete swing in the direction of Chinese public sentiment Ly throwing it heavily in favour of a foreign minister of the type of Eugene Chen.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.