Peking to Lhasa : vol.1 / Page 352 (Color Image)

0352	Peking to Lhasa : vol.1

268 PEKING TO LHASA

with a will and mind of his own. So far he has

never had a fair chance, as when in power only a

limited part of the Province acknowledged his rule ;

but if he succeeds in reasserting himself, as seems

at present possible, I hope he will be given the

chance of proving that he is an efficient ruler, and

capable of re-establishing order in this distracted

Province.

Szechwan is so broken up by the number of

contending factions that a return for it to a state

of peace and prosperity seems at the moment

remote. Possibly Hsiung K'o-wu may decide to

return to political life. He appears to be the

most popular figure in the Province, is still young

(35), has a reputation for capacity and might

develop into a strong man.

To sum up, poor China, torn by contending

parties, in which everybody is fighting for his own

hand, overwhelmed by an unexampled series of

catastrophes in the shape of famines, earthquakes

and floods, has never been in such hopeless straits

before. The honest, law-abiding Chinese, as re-

presented by the bulk of its population, and also

by the merchant, longs for peace and security,

whilst the soldiers (a term at present synonymous

with brigands), whose numbers are far in excess

of all legitimate requirements, see they have the

upper hand, and make use of their power to

tyrannise over the wretched people. At the same

time the students, seeing the weakness generally

of their officials, and particularly of the foreigners

with whom they come most in contact, are daily

becoming more anti - foreign. History may be

repeated, as in the case of the Boxer Movement in

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