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Hokitika Guardian, 18 August 1930, Page 7

.t! (“Otago Daily Times.”) / v ’ .'. ’

mg Internal/disunity in China, is not by means a new development. The Peking correspondent of an American journal/-recalls that for the last 25U0 years China has endured a civil war or a rebellion of major proportions on an average of about every seventeen years.’ ;In recent year the average has bebit.niore than maintained. The revolutioifc-which overthrew the Manchu was neither bloodless "wor. effective, and for sixteen years tne jChiriede lived, as the Economist jlkits : itj ,'‘‘in'darkness and the shadow of deathi’V In 1926 it,actually seemed that (a AiCj-W, era was dawning as the Nationalists, who - undoubtedly represent the ; enlightened group in the country,j,:’ went from strength to strength. -'By October, 1928, the Chinese ■' National Government had been set ;up, and a new Constitution brought?; niito forced Tlie interest iihto 'force.) The interested Powers- hastened to accord recognition to the (government, and \ery shortly the'Foreigir Minister, Dr C. T. Wang Imd/requested their relinquishment of ■ rights. Some of the )?6\i*ers, notably Italy and Belgium*; 1 acceded to the request, but Great Britain,, the United States, France and/Japan found it impossible to do soj’uhless further guarantees of Chinese iwiity/. were forthcoming. Dr Waqg intimated that extraterri-toriality,/-would bo abolished on New Year's-. (lay, 1930, but his peremptory threat lids'not been executed.

Mr Henderson, the British Foreign Secrfeiaryy. Stated, recently' that ‘ ‘negotiations'are still in progress,”‘and remarked :sit.,,'.the , same time that a. struggle between the self-styled Northern Government and the Nationalists was imminent. The truth of the matter ik,-.of; course, that there is no guarantee; of Stability in Chinese administration,/'.and. the ; position seems to, be about ;sis.confused as at any time since Nationalists v.first, claimed to jhave ■ authority' v ■ ;The infrequent messages from Shanghai speak of the. .Cpiriniunist menace and of the dreadful 'Cbnditions existing in central China.iiit‘has been stated, though perlihps the figures are exaggerated ,that in the past;jear 5,000,000 persons, have, died and 'that 2,000;d00 more will r perish \ during ‘the ■ summer months. The; Communists are' difficult to distinguish' from -the'hordes of. bandits and" the private armies of. the various j^V.warl "lords” : who are constantly ,■ each other and the ■P" Nationalist;.. Government.' Sometlijies ~a ■ '‘war tion', side diijs forces with those of the Government ; more often he remains beyond the-’pale, at)d 'the Government charactenses him a “rebel,” a Comwhatever mother term may be deemed applicable! ' . •

The Communist armies, against the ' threat of which the leading Treaty Powers are consulting with a view to concerted naval action for the protection of their nationals at Honkow and other Yangtse ports, are spoken of as really groups of bandits, organised, armed, and financed by the Soviet agents. The tragedy of China to-day is rather appalling, but it is not . without leavening of humour—for' the observer. “If this whole ‘China, business’ was not extremely serious,” wrote Mr Robert Mackray j in January, “it might provide a good deal of entertainment, and ■ not for cynics alone.” . The paradoxical position of the diplomatic representatives of the Powers not long ago, for example, as revealed by the Daily Telegraph, gives point to Mr Maclfray’s observaions. The Legation officials remained in Peking, which city was occupied by Yen Shi-shan, the Northern pleader-in-chief, completely cut off from the Nationalist Government in Nanking to which they were accredited. But unfortunately the position is no joke for four hundred million Chinese, the majority of whim are at the mercy of bandits and soldiers.

The, gleam of hope that the advent of the Nationalists inspired remains, but the lpresent state of affairs outside the areas in. which the presence of foreigners keeps the “war lords” in check, is most melancholy. The prospect. of settled conditions is apparently still.remote, and even the most optimistic commentators find it difficult to predict any immediate change, unless it be for the worse.