File No. 893.00/2641
There is also enclosed a newspaper account of the conflict between the
republican and military parties.4 The main points in the situation as it stands at the
present time are as follows:
The revolutionary Tuchuns (military governors) are gaining confidence
through a more complete organization of their party and on account of
the inaction of the President. The seat of their counsels is in
Tientsin; the leaders of the military party, of the Chin Pu Tang, of the
pro-Japanese party, as well as Liang Shih-yi and his followers, are at
present congregated there. They are trying to form a provisional
government. As far as personnel is concerned they could probably form a
stronger government than any other combination.
The present plan of the militarists is directed toward the object of
isolating and strangling Peking. They are in control of the railways
leading here. They are preventing the shipment of foodstuffs. They are
planning to send troops to be stationed at Fengtai, outside of
Peking.
Meanwhile the President and what remains of the constitutional Government
are paralyzed, through the lack of military and financial support. As
the declaration of the President shows, he has taken a conciliatory and
pacific attitude, being firm only when it came to resisting illegal
measures. He has relied largely upon the advice of General Wang
Shih-chen, Chief of Staff, who is a quiet, just-minded and highly
respected man. The President has at no time used tactical advantages
through which he might have overthrown the Tuchuns and confounded their
counsels. He has quietly relied on the justice [Page 52] of his cause but has not been supported by an
organized group of men. The Government itself is thoroughly
disorganized; the Ministries are in charge of inferior officials; there
are only two substantive Ministers left, the Minister for Foreign
Affairs and the Minister of the Navy.
Should the militarists be successful in entirely overthrowing the
President and his Government, no permanent solution will be afforded.
The southern provinces are all opposed to the militarist action and
would probably create a separate republic. Even in the north the action
of this party would offend the senses of the people and would have the
support only of the men actively engaged therein. No permanent
government can therefore be expected of the reactionary policy
represented by the militarist organization. As they are, however, the
only existing powerful organization in China, they have to be reckoned
with in any settlement to be made.
[Inclosure]
declaration by the president of his policy
[From the Peking Gazette of June 1,
1917]
President Li Yuan-hung has made his attitude clear in regard to the
present situation in a long telegram, which he sent to the provinces
last night. He reviews the past events and repudiates one by one the
accusation brought against him and Parliament and then takes the
Tuchuns soundly to task. Attention is called particularly to the
closing part of the telegram, in which the President announces what
he would do if the Tuchuns should insist on provoking hostilities.
The following is a full translation of the said telegram:
Extra urgent. To the Vice President, Tuchuns, Governors, Inspector
General Chang Hsun, Inspector General Lu Yung-ting, etc., etc., and
all newspaper offices. Recently baseless rumors have been diligently
spread and unscrupulous people have tried to fan up ill feelings. It
is a great surprise to me that high provincial officials could have
been misled by such rumors into taking arbitrary steps without
considering the correctness or otherwise of the same. Provincial
authorities are trustees of the Central Government, with which they
are closely and vitally connected for the defence of the country and
the protection of the homesteads. There is no reason why they should
not plainly give their views if they have any doubts to clear. Yet
they have sought to further swell the wave and stir up the already
troubled seas by joining in the same cry. Can anyone imagine what
the dangerous consequences will be?
Against my wishes I have been thrown into the troublous times at an
old age. The reason why I did not refuse to accept the great
responsibilities that were thrust on my shoulders was because that
after the great disturbances the people were looking for a new lease
of life, that the military men were all my bosom friends and that
the Premier was my colleague in tribulations. In view of such
intimate relationships how could it be possible for there to be any
partitions between us? During the last year I have been humbling
myself to listen to the advice of others. Even when difference of
opinion arose between my office and the Kuo Wu Yuan regarding
administrative questions I have never refused to stoop down and
accept others’ views in order to bring about harmony. I used to say
that the straightforwardness of Chih-chuan (Tuan Chi-jui) should
prove an excellent counterpart for my sincere appreciation.
Upon the diplomatic rupture suddenly taking place political Crises
have followed one another. Cabinet Ministers broke up from inside
while Parliament pressed from without. The cries for the
reorganization of the Cabinet increased in volume but according to
my own conscience it should not have been so. On the other hand I
vainly looked for methods to maintain the situation or settle the
dispute. My fear was that if the tension be allowed to last too long
the difficulty would increase in intensity. The arbitrary behaviour
of one person finally caused cries to arise from every quarter. If
the steps were retraced at a critical [Page 53] point, confidence and prestige would have been
damaged, while if I had departed from the regular track discipline
and order would have been cast to the winds. No matter in which
direction I should turn I was bound to place Chih-chuan in a
difficult position, which would be contrary to my intention of love
and sympathy for the ex-Premier. I believed therefore that it would
be preferable to remove him temporarily from office in order to
enable him to retain and increase his prestige. Since his merits
would then remain in the memory of the people it would not be long
before we would hear his golden advice once more. Furthermore, it
was my duty to see that the old vacated their office and was
succeeded by new. It would be better for me to bear the
responsibility of slightly offending my friend as it would not be
difficult to amend in the future. It is my view that in truthfulness
and sincerity your affection for Chih-chuan does not come up to that
of mine.
As to the question of counter-signature by Cabinet Ministers, it was
merely following precedents. And since Parliament had already lodged
an interpellation, the reply of the Cabinet should be waited for. As
it was a point of law a solution could certainly be arrived at. It
is unfair therefore to insist that it is a violation of law. Again,
the dismissal of the Premier vacated also the post of the Minister
of War. And since all eyes are turned to the capital, where peace
and order must be maintained, it was necessary to have a person, who
possessed high prestige and commanded real respect, to act as the
head of the troops and to pacify the minds of the people. The
establishment of the Office of Precautionary Measures was an
emergency step. It would be promptly abolished as soon as the
Cabinet could be organised. What suspicion could there be between
the Central Government and the provinces so that it has necessitated
the latter to send troops to watch the former at a distance? There
is really no need for argument in this connection.
Ever since the reassembly of Parliament numerous political banners
have been set up. Little has been achieved but a good deal of
quarrel has taken place. Recently on account of the excessive
restrictions for the making of the Constitution, certain persons
have endeavoured to pass measures by utilizing special
opportunities. People became exceedingly indignant and considered
Parliament to be the source of trouble. The Tuchuns, being unwilling
to allow laws to be made for prejudiced purpose, asked to have the
same amended. The far sighted views of the veteran statesmen agreed
perfectly with that of mine. How could I have differed with you
since I was directed by my patriotism? My view was that there were
still a good many wise persons in Parliament, and as the discussion
of the Constitution was still proceeding, there was hope of
attaining our view if we simply endeavoured to exchange views. So
long as we could compel the members to reconsider their views even
at the eleventh hour there was no need to rob their cow because it
treaded a field. It was for this reason that I shelved the petition
(of the Tuchuns). I made this clear personally to Tuchuns. Tsao Kun
and Meng En-yuan. Yet I am insistently accused for partiality to the
M.P.s and slighting the provincial officials. When law is tied down
how could the administration proceed? Can you imagine that I am so
stupid as this?
Rumors whispered at roadsides even go farther than this. They allege
that it was my intention to inflict punishment on those who
disobeyed my words and to dismiss half of the provincial
authorities. In relationship with you I am officially a public
servant but privately a member of the same family with you. I am not
only bound to you by the duties of the State but also by the tie of
brotherhood. What was harmful to you must be harmful to me and what
was beneficial to you must also be beneficial to me. In addition to
this it must be remembered that you came from a far distance to give
me advice. Your words might have been too hot but they were sincere
and patriotic. At this time of world war I must rely on you like the
Great Wall. How then could I have entertained the idea of cutting
you off like severing my limbs for no reasons whatsoever, and on
whom should I rely if this were done? You say the mandate was given
to the Bureau for publication: then it will not be difficult to
ascertain the truth by looking up the registry. If you say the
mandate was kept at my office, pray how came it to be known to
people outside? The saying is that rumors stop at the door of the
wise. I am surprised to know that such high and responsible persons
like the Tuchuns could have been misled by a few unscrupulous
people.
Dangers lurk in every corner as the diplomatic question is not yet
decided. Wide stretches of land lie scorched like a desert between
the Huai River and the Yangtse. Famine sufferers are to be seen
everywhere while robbers in hiding [Page 54] still lurk here and there. These facts alone
are sufficient to tell us what the situation is before us. The
reason why the State employs officials is for the benefit of the
people. It is impossible for us to do too much even if we worked to
our very best ability and perfect harmony. How are we to explain
ourselves if we indulge in selfish war against all sense of order
and discipline? How can we depend on our military force as support
and use baseless rumors as war cry? The members of Parliament are
accused of being desirous of dividing the country into federal
states, yet you are literally occupying each a province for the
purpose of defying the Government. You accuse the cabinet of
violating law, yet, with the assistance of a military force, you
endeavour to disobey the orders of the Government. The only goal
such acts can lead to is partition of the country like the five Chi
and making the country a protectorate like Korea. In which case both
restoration of the monarchy and the establishment of the Republic
will be an idle dream. You may not care for the black records that
will be written against you in history but you ought certainly to
realize your own fate. The uprising at Kiangsi and Nanking were for
the purpose of uniting China. The revolution started in Yunnan was
for the protection of the Republic.
Now if your declaration for independence is to uphold the
constitution then I must remind you that the said law is yet in the
stage of the second reading. If your declaration is against the
Chief Executive then you must confess that I have committed no acts
of treason.
If on the other hand the declaration of war by the several commanders
of troops has been made for the reason that a single person has been
removed from office, then the war is without a just cause and the
honour of the person who has vacated office will surely be
blackened. It is not only a crime against the public but also
returning good with evil. What is there in it that you are so
willing to harm yourselves as well as others? Is it possible to
believe that you are so unwise?
I am an old man. Like the bean stalk under the leaf I have always
been watching for any possibility of not seeing and understanding
aright. Yea, I walk day and night as if treading on thin ice. I
welcome all for giving me advice and even admonition. If it will
benefit the country I am ready to apologize.
But if it be your aim to shake the foundations of the country and
provoke internal war, I declare that I am not afraid to die for the
country. I have passed through the fire of trial and have exhausted
my strength and energy from the beginning to the end for the
Republic. I have nothing to be ashamed of. I will under no
circumstance watch my country sink into perdition, still less to
subject myself to become a slave to another race.
Of such acts I wash my hands in front of all the elders of the
country. These are sincere words from my true heart and will be
carried out into deeds.
