LIFE IN CHINA

Hokitika Guardian, 26 September 1929, Page 3

LIFE IN CHINA

MACHURIAN SITUATION. While not being in a position to shed much light on the Manchurian trouble, Rev. T. V. Gilfillan, formerly in charge, of ,the Coromandel Anglican Heme Mission district, and now of Peking,, was able in an interview at Auckland to give some indication of the chaotic conditions that tend to retard the progress of China. Rev. Gilfillan lias spent nine years in the Hast, and is attached to the Chunjgte School, which is connected with the Church of England in China. He served as chaplin to the Newk Zealand troops during the latter part of the war. '‘in Peking life is very comfortable and happy,” said Rev. Gilfillan, ‘‘and the Manchurian trouble has not affected us. Wo had a period of 18 months without fighting. Throughout China the railways are running fairly normally, and some of the lines which have been idle for two years have now fxeellent services.- The last trouble in Peking occurred when Cluing Tsolin evacuated the district and the Nationalist party assumed control. On that occasion Chang Tso-lin confiscated, imost of the . rolling stock of the. Peking railways and it has only been sent hack gradually. “DOWN WITH COMMUNISM.” “Bolshevism at the moment is very much in disfavour, and one of the persistent cries of the masses is: ‘Down with Communism.’ Of course to a certain extent one secs a reflection of the Bolshevik influences ampngst practically every section of tin' community that has been touched by recent events. The trouble is largely among the younger, generation that is gaining knowledge of Western ideals, but it has spread somewhat to the middle-aged also.” Mr Gilfillan explained that the ravages of China’s numerous armies were retarding the country’s advancement. The Chinese armies were run- as the private affairs of chief commanders, who were appointed by someone or other. The strength of any party still depended on a combination of these military dignitaries, who were always liable to be reshuffled. The growth of banditry was largely ■ due to armies consisting largely of rabble suffering reverses and being put out of business. The soldiers then took to the hills and became bandits unless a condition of their surrender was that they should foe inlcorporated in the ranks of the victors. “It is really pathetic,” added Mr Gilfillan. “If China was decently run, it would.be a- wonderful country. All commercial enterprises would be absolute gold mines if only the country had a stable Government. Discussing the Manchurian situation, Rev Gilfillan said that the Chinese had a Certain number of reasonably well-equipped troopsi to- oppose the Russians, hut just what proportion of them was an effective fighting, force be could not say. The position, so far as lie was able to judge, was that the bulk of the organisation of the army was going to be left to Chang Hseuh-liang, son of Chang Tso din, because the Central Government was, he imagined, going to be unable to transfer troops to Manchuria so long as Feng Yu-hsiang was in China.

The latter was a noisy type of intlividna.l, who was supposed to bo receivi n,g backing front the Russians, and 18 months ago linked up with the -Nationalists. Feng was supposed to be leaving China, but when Mr Cllfillnn left he was still standing by. The opinion of Mr Gilfillan is that so long as he is around the Nationalists of , Central China would not dare to send a large body of troops to Manchuria. “ARISTOCRACY OF LEARNING.” “The Chinese are very keen on acquiring a knowledge of English, ' beoauso it is largely the doorway to positions,” added Mr Gilfillan,. in referring to the constitution of the Chungte School, where he teaches English, history and Christianity. The curriculum of the institution, he said, covered from the tiiird year of a boy’s school life u,p to University entrance. The pupils entered the school at the age of about ten years, and completed their courses by the time they were twenty or twenty-two. The reason for the length of the studies was that the standard set in Western subjects was very similar to that of the matriculation examination in New Zealand, and, added to that, was the incubus of the Chinese language. A boy leaving the school, for instance, would probably know about 9000 Chinese characters. The students were drawn from the coolie classes as well as from the ranks of rich business people and high officials, and in school they all seemed to belong to the antistocracy of learning, and meet on an equal footing. Owing to the National Government’s dictum that schools should be registered, the institution was now managed by a hoard of governors largely composed of Chinese, and the headship waq held by a Chinese priest, who graduated from Cambridge University.*