Evening Star Newspaper, August 16, 1929, Page 4

GLIMPSING THE FAR EAST BY GIDEON A. LYON, Member of American Journclists' Party Touring Orlent as Guest of Carnegie Endowment jor Inlernational Peace. SHANGHATI, China, July 11, 1929. ‘Before coming south from Peiping, we were told that at Shanghai would be found a most complex condition of sen- timent and that in all likelihood we would be assailed by a conflict of opin-~ jon and advice and propagandsa calcu- lated to disturb the mental equilibrium. That forecast was accurate. From the very hour of our landing, as it were, until this moment of writing, the forces of contention have been playing around as, until it will be a marvel if we get out of China with any capacity for Judgment remaining. I have already in a previous letter mentioned the question of extraterri- toriality—which, by the way, the press over here and numerous individuals are coming to abbreviate into “‘extrality”— and I had in mind to cite at some length from two addresses that reached our ears on the same day, diametrically opposite in sentiment and statement. Coples of those addresses have been given to each member of our delega- tion. One was that delivered by Wang Hsiao-lai, chairman of the Chinése Ratepayers’ Association of the Interna- tional Settlement and the French Con-: cession of Shanghai, at the tiffin ten- plaintiff may die before the court moves. S “Squeeze” System Survives. 1t is always to be borne in mind that China today is suffering ‘rom the sur- vival of the “squeeze” system which plagued it for many centuries, the sys- tem whereby officials of the im government took “theirs” out of the pc?le in the form of irregular taxes and imposts and levies and assess- ments, for which the imperial authority at Peking cared nothing so long as it got what it expected in the form of Tevenues. The usual concept of honesty in gov- ernment seems to be difficult for the Chinese of today to adopt. True, he has gone a long way forward on. the path of public righteousness, but there is still much ground to be gained be- fore it can be said that the average Chinese official regards public office as a public trust and public revenues as the funds of all the people to the last penny. One hears on all sides of certain spe- cifically named high officlals of this present government and its immediate predecessors who have “salted away” a Four lads anxious to greet the American journalists in_Shanghai. dered to us on Tuesday. The other was that delivered by H. C. Arnhold, chair- man of the Municipal Council of Shanghal, at the dinner given in our honor by the council that same eve- ning. Nothing Gained in Either. But upon reading these two addresses since the’ coples were received, I have come to the conclusion that nothing particular is to be gained by citing them at any length. For they come to a square issue of facts, and it is en- tirely too warm in Shanghai at present to try to sift out the truth from these disputes. But we are, nevertheless, amused at the tenor of some of the press com- ments upon our visit and some of the advice given to us by the local press on the subject of our gullibility. Let me quote from an article printed on the first page of this morning’s China Press, which, doubtiess with perfect sincerity, seeks thus to guide us in our judg- ment: “The main business of our esteemed friends is to penetrate the shams and unmask the seemingly noble counte- nance of things. The gentlemen are regaled by leading Chinese and by lead- ing foreigners, and sentiments of good will are running high. At such a mo- ment it would do well to show the skeleton around in the festivities in order to put a mental break (!) upon any headlong and impulsive decisions that may be in the visioning. Receive everything, but conclude nothing now! * '+ '« “Representatives in the past have come and gone and truth has been twisted. Barefaced lying seems to have been rampant in the journalistic world as far as China is concerned. Arch-propagandists in the name of pa- triotism and altruism seemed to have had an even break with the forces of truth and justice. * * * Interviews and convivialities should serve not for the formation of impressions but merely as an introduction into the case and the wisest course for international re- lationship. We would exhort our hon- ored visitors to hold the detached view in which the Chinese and foreigners’ best interests become finally identical.” Admonition Is Amusing. 'This treatise on the first principles of newspaper practice and ethics may some day find its way into a text took on Jjournalism. To the members of our delegation, all of whom have served for more than 25 years and some for nearly 50 years in the work of getting at the truth, this solemn admonition is at first annoying, then amusing. But behind it is the spirit that prevails in this area of controversy. It is to be noted that the true outlines of the “skeleton” to which reference is passingly made do not appear. Yet it is a case of dollars to doughnuts that the writer of these kindly hints for the prevention of youthful indiscretions of premature Judgment is himself a propagandist for a cause. It would have been much more interesting if he had proclaimed his own faith. All persifiage aside, there are at work here elements making for trouble, and vet when we get the leading protagon- ists of the two sides off by themselves, out of the ‘conviviality” of formal meetings and feasts, they acknowledge that there Is justice to a great degree in the other side’s position. Of course, 1t 13 always necesscry to remember that, after all, this j< Cuaina. The foreign powers have established certain areas of the local community as immune to Chinese law and have set.up & system of juricature within those areas that supplants that law. Within those areas, covered by that very broad word extra- territoriality, nationals of the foreign powers have recourse to the laws of their own countries, administered by & special court. Many Chinese in Foreign Areas. Now it is a significant fact that a great many Chinese live and do busi- ness within the foreign settlements and concessions. Thus they secure the pro- tection of the laws of these foreign powers. Individually, I doubt if any material percentage of these Chinese would wish to have extraterritoriality abolished. Indeed, I have been told by some of them that such abolition would be ruinous to them, for the moment they got out of the area of foreign- power protection they would be subject to the inequities of the Chinese courts, which are seemingly without any honor in the eyes of these native Chinese. Those who reside in the foreign set- tlement and the concessions are just as fully subject to Chinese taxation as those living within the Chinese jurisdic- tion, but they have a chance to get their taxes adjusted to a closer approx- imation to equity through the consular court than they can hope to_ secure through the native courts. On this matter of the native courts, I heard an enlightening story yesterday from an American, who has himself no com- plaint to make on the score of personal grievance or injury. He said that a cli- ent of his, a Chinese business man, had been compelled, during the past few years, to sue in the Chinese courts for the recovery of money due in claims. In every instance he gained a judg- ment, after long delays, but to this date has never-been able to collect from his debtors on those judgments. The rea- son is that after judgment is given the Chinese court may be “influenced” to delay execution. TFor one feason and another the judge postpones until, in some instances, years elapse, and the —Photo by G. A. L. certain number of millions. In each case the number of the millions is given quite exactly, and in some cases the manner in which those “savings” from salaries have been invested is stated. It is a striking fact that these specified investments are all of a foreign charac- ter. In other words, if these tales be true, the Chinese who have been thrifty have been likewise shrewd enough to put their money where it has the pro- tection of governments stronger than their own. Tales May Be Untrue. Now, all these tales may be untrue, the basest of libels and slanders, but Perhaps the Chinese philosophy is to let sleeping dogs lle, lest they bark and bite, and also that it is not worth- while to argue about & matter of ethics. The press in China, though not quite so free just at present as it has been for & long time past, naively hints at this condition of affairs. Whenever & news- paper is denied the mails, the favorite form of “execution,” or an individual journalist is doomed to deportation, as one has just lately been, the offense is not a reference to the fiscal shortcom- ings of the administrative officials, but to the chances of this government to survive. If all these things be true—if the courts of China are as corrupt or as inefficlent or as greedy as the tales about them indicate; if the administra- tive officers are as thrifty as their rep- utations disclose; if the taxes levied are as strange and surprising as one that was suddenly imposed here in Shanghai yesterday without notice—if all these things be true, it is not to be won- dered at that the advocates of extra- territoriality are determined to fight to the last ditch for this measure of pro- tection. They are called “dle-hards,” these last-ditch defenders. They have been through some trying experiences, but in the main—in fact, it would seem that uniformly—they have prospered. There is great wealth here, among the Chinese, the foreigners of alien national registration and the foreigners of Chi- nese citizenship. - Millions upon millions are at stake in this matter of extras territoriality. Mortal Blow Might Fall It is not a violent hypothesis that it “extrality” were surrendered by the powers and the settlements and con- cessions ylelded, Shanghal would suffer a mortal blow, even as Tientsin is now in the agonies of commercial demise be- cause of the silting up of its harbor in consequence of the neglect of the Chi- nese authorities to keep the channel open. I have heard it sald that if these present securities and safeguards were withdrawn Shanghal would be bank- rupt in five years. ‘These observations, it is due to my- self to state, are not in any manner or degree the result of a “holiday frame of mind,” or “cordial receptions from hos- pitable hosts,” or “conviviality.” They are the result of talks with all classes of men, here and in the north—business men, Americans, Englishmen and Chi- nese, The prevalent feeling is that the demand for the abolition of extraterri- toriality is a campaign cry of the Kuo- mintang and that the leaders are keep- ing it up for the sake of “face pigeon,” not expecting success—indeed, not want- ing success. Something of this sort has been heard of in American politics in the past. . Acquitted of Murder Charges CANYON, Tex, August ‘16 (#).—A jury last night scquitted Mrs. Levi P. Stallworth of & murder charge in con- nection with the fatal shooting of Mrs. Grace Morrison, in Amarillo, May 13. 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