Yuan of the Chinese Government, addressed a meeting of British Members of Parliament, mostly Conservatives, it is stated, in. London on Tuesday. Mr. Sun Fo made an eloquent appeal for assistance to continue the campaign against Japan and stressed the improved fighting ability of the Chinese forces. One statement, however, needs a little examination perhaps because it was probably not meant to be understood that way although vaguely expressed. It reads as follows:
The Chinese soldier had nothing to lose but a poor, miserable life, whereas the Japanese soldier was fighting for something he could not understand. He did not want to fight but wanted te get back home as quickly as possible.
Not being able to speak with any sort of authority regarding the attitude of the Japanese soldier, but. knowing something more about the Chinese soldier, surely Mr. Sun Fo could not genuinely assess the quality of the troops desperately engaged in combatting an invader by the use of such disparaging terms. Driven out of Shanghai after a resistance which astounded the world and now proving a match for the Japanese forces in south-eastern Shantung where all available Japanese reinforcements had to be rushed up to stem the Chinese attack, it does seem an unfortunate statement for a Chinese statesman to make when he describes his country's defenders that they have nothing to lose but a "poor, miserable life" while the rest of China, judging by frequent pronouncements and general appreciation, shared by the Chinese army too, believe that they are fighting for the independent existence of their country and under General Chiang Kai-shek are sacrificing their lives for what they consider a better state of things. To accept Mr. Sun Fo's statement on its verbal value is to depreciate rather than appreciate the cause for which Mr. Sun Fo is appealing. The rights of ihe case are a matter of opinion which history will decide, but Mr. Sun Fo seems, in the neutral point of view, a poor supporter of his own cause, Undeniable Need Since the Japanese occupied large areas of this country and drove the local governments out, the need for new local administrations to carry on and prevent complete chaos has been emphasized. The examples of certain similar administrations in Belgium and parts of France during the World War have been quoted in support of the contention that these administrations are not necessarily treasonable, but may, on the contrary, be truly patriotic. To save from absolute anarchy a large portion of his Own country is an act of which no patriot, no matter how ardent, should be ashamed, while the existence of those who shortsightedly condemn such actions is to be deplored. That the elevation of those officials in the "Reformed Government" in Nanking to the highest posts should have aroused the anger of many other Chinese can, however, be understood, since the parallel between their acceptance of office and the acceptance of those officials in Belgium and France can hardly to be said to hold. The Nanking Government has taken office under the auspices of a power which declared months ago that its object was to drive out the existing Chinese government, and to set up another which will be friendly to them. Can the man in the street, therefore, be blamed if he believes that this new government is the one which the Japanese designed to replace the government which had his wholehearted support? Especially so, when members of the new government, such as Mr. Wen Tsung-yao, the President of the Judicial Yuan in Nanking, publicly denounces his predecessors as traitors.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.