DR. MORRISON, OP CHINA

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 11, 28 January 1918, Page 6

DR. MORRISON, OP CHINA

FAMOUS JOURNALIST IN WELLINGTON THE WAR AND AFTER IN CHINA Dr. George Morrison, political adviser to tho .president of China, arrived in Wellington yesterday, and will bo in the city for several days. He is on a holiday trip—the first after l score of years of hard work, and has come to New Zealand, ho says, to breathe mountain air, and sail on tho lakes, and so on. In the course of a short talk about China, Dr. Morrison was asked about the prospects of trading with that country. He said that the field had not been touched by New Zealand. Wo did not even have a man there seeing what could be done. And. China was the most heavily populated country in the world. She did not wow wool, and imported moat. China and the War. As to China's parti in the war, ho said that China declared war on Germany last year, and he thought she would assist tho Allies in any way she could. She had great numbers of men, of course, but tlio difficulty w : as tonnage. There were 75,000 Chinese behind the firing line to-day, and China most assuredly contemplated the sending of troops into the firing line. Only matters of finance and transport are to be overcome, and he saw no reason why they should not. Then, he says, it would be possible to put 800,000 fighters in the iield. These are men able to bear arms, and trained to do so. He admits that they are not, in the nature of things warlike to-day, a highly-trained force, but they have aeroplanes, and are adepts at trench work, sapping, and all the heavier duties of war. The polish of European trnining would make, most efficient soldiers of them. Tho Chinese papers themselves have for a long timo been urging tho dispatch of troops to assist British operations in Mesopotamia, as that area is more easily accessible, hut whether troops will be sent to Mesopotamia or to France or to somo other front depends on circumstances. The army in China has not vet reached a- very high position, largely becauso, though there is a central army, tho fighting men ore controlled by the several provinces. Speaking of the internal Government, of China, Dr. Morrison has said: —"The great revolution took place in China on October 10, 1911. That was when tho movement- -began which resulted in the ovorthrow of the Imperial dynasty. There was a secondary revolution, which was brought about by an attempt on the part of the man who had become President of China to make himself Emperor. I think he was largely misled into this action by a party who wore in favour of the restoration of tho monarchy, and who deceived him as tf> the real condition of affairs in tho country. Since then, with the exception of ono small movement, rather theatrical, by which the young Em peror, who had been deposed, was restored to the throne, there has been no further movement that could be called a revolution. That one lasted for twelve days only. There is difficulty in reconciling the interests of the Northern Chinese with the interests of those in tho south, who arc led mainly by the Cantonese. But there is no dissension between them as to tho republic. The dispute between all the sections of the people would be as to the form which the parliamentary government under the republic should take. I would say that lit? serious man now contemplates the possibility of the restoration of the monarchy. The country seems well adapted for parliamentary government. The people have in all times been accustomed to rule over a largo section of t'heir affairs by guilds or councils. They are fond of discussion. They are very fond of settlement by compromise and by arbitration. Even in the present'conflict, between the Southern party and the fVorthern party, it was seriously proposed to invite the President of the United States to arbitrate. The country is prosperous. The forces of progress are much greater than tho forces of reaction. Nothing now can prevent tho progress of the country, and if tho internal disputes about parliamentary government were to be settled, the progress would be astonishing." China's Future. Dr.. Morrison sees a great future before the Empire of his adoption. Speaking generally, tho Chinese mind moves slowly to its goal, unimpelled as it is, in contradistinction to the Japanese, by any special necessity. Still the doctor points out that the advance has been comparatively swift, and that to-day in Shanghai there are some 4000 motor-cars in use. China has made big inroads on German influence in the East. Germans have been dismissed from the Government service without exception, whether their positions were high or not. And the people were behind the Government in this regard, China realising that _by the declaration of war she had raised her status among the nations. The revenue collected la'st year and available for the payment of Chinese obligations amounted to more than £10,000,000. Tlie Custom-'' revenue lias been the largest on record, both in actual collection and because of the greatly enhanced value of silver. At the present moment China has to meet obligations entered into when the dollar was worth less than 25., and she can pay them with a dollar at its present price of more than 3s. Thus China is now in a very favourable financial position, and as she has obtained from the Powers a postponement of the payment of the Boxer indemnity for a period of five years, and there is now being arranged an increase in the Customs duties to effective 5 per cent., China is in a better financial position than she has been for the past 20 years. All payments due to Germany have been either cancelled in the case of the war indemnity or suspended until after the war in the case of industrial loans. Until China severed lier diplomatic relations witli Germany on March 14, 1917, she was paying to Germany £6000 a' day. "The' longer I liave stayed there the more convinced I have become of the infinite possibilities of that country. There must be a great future before China. Its resources are amazing," said the doctor, as he concluded. "In one province alone there is sufficient coal, equal to tho best Pennsylvania product, to supply the needs of the world for 2000 years. China has iron deposits as good as anv to be found in any part of the world, No Chinese ever questions the word of an Englishman. You can travel the lengths and breadth of the country, and if it is known that you are an Englishman you will be treated with honour. 'Hie one wish of those in power in China is to develop trade relations between _ the British Empir» and China, especially now that China has come into the war." The Mayor of Wellington (Mr. J. P. Luke) is extending a public welcome to Dr. Morrison at 11 o'clock this morning, and will be pleased if members of the public will attend.