- 
 
GIFT OF 
 
IAN ' 
 
 THE RECOGNITION 
 
 OF 
 
 THE CHINESE REPUBLIC 
 
 ADDRESS OF 
 MAJOR LOUIS LIVINGSTON SEAMAN, M.D., A.B., LLB., F.R.G.S. 
 
 President of the China Society of America, Author of 
 " The Triumph of Japan," " Social Waste of a Great City," 
 "From Tokio through Manchuria with the Japanese," 
 " The Triumph of Scientific Medicine in Peace and War 
 in Foreign Lands," etc., etc. 
 
 DELIVERED AT 
 
 THE CONFERENCE ON RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 
 IN CHINA 
 
 HELD AT CLARK UNIVERSITY, WORCESTER 
 NOVEMBER ?Mi ? 191?; 
 
 NEW YORK, 1912 
 
THE RECOGNITION 
 
 OF 
 
 THE CHINESE REPUBLIC 
 
 ADDRESS OF 
 MAJOR LOUIS LIVINGSTON SEAMAN, M.D., A.B., LLB., F.R.G.S. 
 
 President of the China Society of America, Author of 
 " The Triumph of Japan," " Social Waste of a Great City," 
 " From Tokio through Manchuria with the Japanese," 
 " The Triumph of Scientific Medicine in Peace and War 
 in Foreign Lands," etc., etc. 
 
 DELIVERED AT 
 
 THE CONFERENCE ON RECENT DEVELOPMENTS 
 IN CHINA 
 
 HELD AT CLARK UNIVERSITY, WORCESTER 
 NOVEMBER 13th, 1912 
 
 NEW YORK, 1912 
 
THE RECOGNITION OF THE CHINESE REPUBLIC. 
 
 The problem of the Orient is the problem of the Twentieth 
 Century, and to-day, China is its key. The most eventful year 
 of modern times in the life of the Chinese people has just passed 
 into history. They have escaped from the despotism of a cor- 
 rupt monarchy to the freedom of a Republic. The problems 
 which now confront them are the recognition of their govern- 
 ment as a Republic by foreign nations, and the adjustment of 
 their finances. Unless these are arranged to the satisfaction of 
 a powerful syndicate of bankers, backed by the diplomats of 
 their various countries, it has been intimated that the partition- 
 ing of the country may be apprehended as a probable eventuality. 
 
 It might have been hoped that the carnival of territorial 
 lust, which for centuries caused untold bloodshed the world 
 over, had culminated in the partitioning of Africa the last 
 of the continents to be parceled off by the world's looters, who 
 in the division of the spoils, followed, as the robber barons of 
 feudal times, 
 
 "The good old rule, the simple plan, 
 That they should take who have the power, 
 And they should keep who can/* 
 
 But look at China to-day that grand old country, with its 
 great wall which for over twenty centuries protected it from 
 the hordes of Tartars and Mongols on the North, while its 
 Thibetan ranges on the West, and impenetrable forests on the 
 South, permitted it to live in peace and tranquility thousands 
 of years, with no fear of molestation by "foreign devils," from 
 land or sea. And in this time the beautiful but fallacious 
 philosophy of Confucius, which taught the rule of moral suasion 
 rather than that by might, grew until its essence was expressed 
 in the proverb, "Better have no child than one who is a soldier" 
 - this, too, in a land where it is considered a disgrace to die 
 childless. 
 
 And what was the natural result : A condition of insecurity, 
 of defencelessness, of inability to enforce that first law of nature 
 self-protection followed, which, when realized by the Occi- 
 dental nations, resulted in their seizing great sections of her 
 domains upon trivial excuses, and wringing most valuable con- 
 cessions from her rulers. 
 
As a direct result of this spoliation, the worm at last 
 turned, and the Boxer uprising of 1900 followed, having for its 
 declared purpose the forcible expulsion of all foreigners from 
 the country, and the recovery by China of her despoiled pos- 
 sessions. I say, without fear of contradiction by those who 
 are familiar with that issue (and I was there), that that up- 
 rising was one of the most splendid exhibitions of patriotism 
 witnessed in modern times. The methods pursued by the Chinese, 
 due to the ignorance of their misguided leaders, and the horrors 
 that followed, have afforded the theme for many a tragic tale 
 and numberless explanatory theories. But the plain fact cannot 
 be gainsaid, nor too strongly emphasized, that the essential mo- 
 tive of that propaganda was the freeing of the land from the 
 hated foreigners, who, in current phrase, had "robbed the people 
 of their country." 
 
 It was then, that in reprisal and revenge, the so-called civ- 
 ilized world turned against them. The eight allied armies of 
 the "great powers" marched to their capital, slaughtered their 
 people, raped their women, looted their temples, their treasure 
 and their habitations, committed brutalities that would have made 
 Nero envious, and created a sentiment in China which fairly 
 crucified Christianity, and which should redound to the shame 
 and humiliation of the Christian nations whose forces partici- 
 pated in the outrages; but which, instead, secured monstrous 
 indemnities and subjected China to the most humiliating terms 
 of peace that were ever inflicted upon a nation, and that have 
 kept her poverty-stricken ever since. America, however, has 
 reason for pride in that she waived claims to over half the in- 
 demnity, whilst her great statesman, John Hay, succeeded tem- 
 porarily in preserving the integrity of the country by his splendid 
 policy of the "open door." 
 
 Never shall I forget that winter at Ching Wan Tao, fol- 
 lowing the war, where detachments of the allied army were 
 gathered awaiting the fate of China. They reminded me of a 
 pack of hungry wolves around the carcass of a deaV* animal 
 each fearing to set his fangs in the carcass, lest while so engaged 
 his neighbor might do the same with him. And so during the 
 long negotiations that finally led to the declaration of peace, the 
 situation continued. 
 
 Four years later I again visited that scene, and there, in 
 smaller numbers, were found the troops of many of the nations 
 still waiting, ready to seize the first opportunity to partition the 
 country and to secure their share of the spoil. But more press- 
 ing engagements were then imminent, involving the attention of 
 some of the powers. The Russo-Japanese struggle was on, and 
 
 257205 
 
China was given a temporary respite. From that time until the 
 outbreak of the revolution which led to the establishment of the 
 Republic, China paid the indemnity claims with such regularity 
 that no opportunity was found for interference. 
 
 For more than three-quarters of a century, beginning with 
 the unrighteous Opium War of England, down to the equally 
 unrighteous Boxer War of 1900, and even later, China has 
 been subected to a series of squeezes and despoilment of her ter- 
 ritory to an extent unequalled in history. The iniquitous in- 
 demnities wrung from her as the result of the Boxer campaign 
 would have been reversed, and the countries now receiving them 
 would be paying for the outrages committed, had right, instead 
 of might, prevailed. The powerful governments and financial 
 institutions doing business in the Orient have become obsessed 
 with the idea that it is legitimate business to "squeeze" the coun- 
 try, regardless of right or justice, and in the present instance they 
 are continuing that policy. The Six-Power group of bankers, 
 backed by the diplomacy of the countries they represent, before 
 advocating the joint recognition of the Republic, demand first, 
 an excessive rate of interest for money advanced, and second, 
 terms, as to its distribution and expenditure, so humiliating that 
 no proud nation could grant them without loss of self-respect. 
 If these conditions are not complied with, the hidden threat is 
 intimated that the intervention of foreign powers and dismem- 
 berment of the country may ensue. 
 
 The effect upon China of the spoliation of her territory 
 and finances created among the leading minds of her people an 
 appreciation of her weakness, and of the necessity for the adop- 
 tion of Occidental methods for self-protection. They saw the 
 absolute imbecility of continuing the policy of the Manchu 
 Dynasty, and the necessity for a change of government. The 
 efforts of her scholars and statesmen were for a long time foiled 
 by the opposition of the Empress Dowager, who never hesi- 
 tated to decapitate those who presented too radical programmes 
 for reform. But despite all opposition, the new spirit grew 
 and spread all over the country, propagated by Dr. Sun Yat Sen 
 and other reformers, until the revolution followed, and the Re- 
 public became a reality. 
 
 The Chinese Republic deserves formal recognition because 
 of the character of the revolution which made it possible. It 
 obtained the maximum of liberty with the minimum of blood- 
 shed. It was an evolution rather than a revolution, the most 
 potent factors of which were those of peace, and not of war. 
 They were the results of trade with foreign nations, the impor- 
 tation of modern inventions, railroads, telegraphs, newspapers; 
 
the work of Christian missionaries, schools and colleges estab- 
 lished by them; but, most of all, the influence of Chinese stu- 
 dents who had been educated in foreign universities, and who 
 carried back to their native land the high ideals of Occidental 
 government. In comparison with the epoch-making wars for 
 freedom in Occidental lands the French Revolution, England's 
 fight for Magna Charta, or our own great seven years' struggle 
 for Independence the Chinese Revolution was almost bloodless. 
 It is stated that the total mortality of the war which secured 
 the emancipation of 400,000,000 of people, was less than the 
 number lost in the battle of the Wilderness, or in single conflicts 
 in the war now raging in the Balkans. 
 
 The moderation shown by the successful leaders to their 
 late rulers was another striking characteristic. Instead of the 
 guillotine or exile, they were retired with liberal pensions, and 
 allowed to retain their empty titles. The leaders enjoined upon 
 their followers the protection of life and property, both commer- 
 cial and missionary, and these orders were strictly obeyed. 
 
 A people who carried to a successful termination such a 
 revolution, deserve the respect and recognition of the world. 
 There are many qualities inherent in the Chinese nature which 
 entitle the present government to immediate recognition. The 
 enemies of China to-day forget the traditions of the race that 
 China was old when Chaldea and Babylon were young, that she 
 saw the rise and fall of Grecian and Roman civilization, and 
 that she has maintained the integrity of her government and 
 territory ever since; that her scholars discovered the compass 
 and invented the intellectual game of chess, when our ancestors 
 in Europe were groveling in the darkness of mediaevalism ; that 
 she produced her own science, literature, art, philosophy and 
 religion, whose founder, Confucius, five hundred years before the 
 birth of Christ, expounded the doctrine of Christianity in the 
 saying : "Do not do unto others what you would not have others 
 do unto you." They forget that for nearly a thousand years 
 China has been nearer a democracy in many features of its gov- 
 ernment than any other government then in existence. The 
 fundamental unit of democracy, the foundation upon which our 
 own government rests, is embodied in the principle of the New 
 England town meeting. All authorities on democracy, De 
 Tocqueville, Bryce and the Compte de Paris, agree in this. 
 
 In China, local government is, in practically all its features, 
 and for centuries has been, controlled by local authorities. The 
 officials of the central government never interfere with the local 
 administration, except for the collection of revenues allocated 
 to Imperial requirements. It is the opinion of many authorities 
 
that the government of China has given more happiness and 
 more individual liberty to a greater mass of humanity than any 
 other government in the world. 
 
 The Chinese have never sought territorial aggrandizement, 
 but have loved the paths of peace where the law of moral suasion, 
 and not of might, ruled. They possess qualities of industry, 
 economy, temperance and tranquility, unsurpassed by any nation 
 on earth. With these qualities they are in the great race of 
 the survival of the fittest to stay. They are to be feared by 
 foreign nations more for their virtues than for their vices ; and 
 in their present struggle for the maintenance of liberty, they 
 deserve our earnest sympathy and assistance in the solution of 
 problems, seemingly so different, but inherently so similar to 
 our own. 
 
 The noble qualities of the race are illustrated in the leaders 
 of the present movement. President Yuan Shih Kai is a mas- 
 terful statesman who inspires confidence in all who know him. 
 Few other men in history have had such kaleidoscopic changes 
 of fortune, and few men have met them with greater courage 
 or possessed the transcendent abilities that lift one so high 
 above the common level. The resignation of the provisional 
 presidency of the Republic by Dr. Sun Yat Sen was "an act 
 worthy of the finest traditions of patriotism in any land." The 
 National Assembly in accepting it, said: "His act has afforded 
 the world an example of purity of purpose and self-sacrifice 
 unparalleled in history." 
 
 The Republic is an established institution of over a year's 
 standing. An able statesman has been duly elected as President 
 and the other machinery of its government is in operation. It 
 has undertaken to observe all treaties, and to discharge all the 
 international obligations of its predecessor. No one will deny 
 that there are serious military, financial and political problems 
 still to be solved, but they are matters of purely domestic con- 
 cern. They do not alter the fact, which is involved in recogni- 
 tion by other nations, that China has changed her form of gov- 
 ernment, and that her representative and duly accredited agent 
 before the world is no longer an Emperor, but a President. In 
 the analagous case of the recognition of Brazil in 1890, Senator 
 Turpie said: "The success of a revolutionary movement is in 
 itself a statement to the world that a majority of a nation has 
 chosen a change of government; following the existence of the 
 revolutionary government, and under its authority, will come 
 the question of the constitution, laws, statutes and ordinances of 
 the new government, but these questions are wholly internal 
 ones." 
 
Many authorities on international law support the legal status 
 of the present government. Hall says : "So long as a person 
 or a body of persons are indisputably in possession of the re- 
 quired power, foreign states treat with them as the organ of 
 the state; but so soon as they cease to be the actual organ, 
 foreign states cease dealing with them; and it is usual, if the 
 change is unquestionably final, to open relations with their suc- 
 cessors, independently of whether it has been effected constitu- 
 tionally." Wheaton defines a de facto government as "One 
 which is really in possession of the powers of sovereignty, 
 although the possession may be wrongful or precarious." Philli- 
 more states, "that the recognition of a new government should 
 be preceded by "an absolute bona fide possession of independence 
 as a separate kingdom, not the enjoyment of perfect and undis- 
 turbed internal tranquility (a test too severe for many of the 
 oldest kingdoms), but there should be the existence of a gov- 
 ernment acknowledged by the people over whom it is set, and 
 ready to acknowledge and competent to discharge international 
 obligations." The present conditions in China satisfy these 
 definitions of a de facto government. 
 
 But the Republic of China is not only the de facto gov- 
 ernment, it is also the de jure government. As stated by Dr. 
 Chao-Chu Wu, son of ex-Minister Wu Ting Fang, "the Manchu 
 rulers were not illegally driven from the throne, but they abdi- 
 cated of themselves, and with their last act legalized the Re- 
 public. The abdication edict transfers the sovereignty, hitherto 
 vested in the Emperor alone, to the people; it legalizes the Re- 
 public, and, what is more to the purpose, it constitutes a recogni- 
 tion of the new government by the sovereign power." Hall 
 says : "Recognition by a parent state, by implying an aban- 
 donment of all pretentions over the insurgent community, is 
 more conclusive evidence of independence than recognition by 
 a third power, and it ' removes all doubt from the minds of 
 other governments as to the propriety of recognition by them- 
 selves." When the fallen government of China has itself rec- 
 ognized the new government, what reason is there for other 
 governments to delay? 
 
 For the reasons enumerated the status of the present gov- 
 ernment of China, the virtues of the Chinese race, the char- 
 acter of the Revolution in which these virtues have found their 
 expression in bringing about the change of government, for all 
 these reasons, the Republic of China is deserving of immediate 
 recognition by the nations of the world. But there are special 
 reasons why recognition should be accorded by our government 
 first of all. * 
 
8 
 
 Special obligations are laid upon us of the United States 
 by our position in the eyes of the world as the most powerful 
 Republic in existence, and one of the oldest. The President of 
 the United States is rightly regarded as "the champion and 
 exponent of that form of government consecrated by the blood 
 of our Revolutionary fathers." Our own Republican principles 
 justify China in looking to us for sympathy and support in this 
 hour of crisis and of need. 
 
 Such an expectation is warranted by our dealings with other 
 nations. Numerous precedents might be cited to show that it 
 has always been the policy of the United States Government 
 to recognize the existence of a government which was capable 
 of maintaining itself. Our relations with France illustrate this. 
 On November 7, 1792, in reply to a letter from Gouverneur 
 Morris, then American Minister to Paris, describing the bloody 
 revolution which had just been effected in that capital, Thomas 
 Jefferson, Secretary of State, wrote as follows : "It accords 
 with our principles to acknowledge any government to be right- 
 ful which is formed by the will of the nation substantially de- 
 clared." Later he added : "We surely cannot deny to any 
 nation that right whereon our own government is founded 
 that everyone may govern itself according to whatever form it 
 pleases, and change these forms at its own will ; and that it 
 may transact its business with foreign nations through whatever 
 organ it thinks proper, whether king, convention, assembly, com- 
 mittee, president, or anything else it may choose. The will of 
 the nation is the only thing essential to be regarded." The estab- 
 lishment of the Second Republic occurred on the 24th of Feb- 
 ruary, 1848, and less than a week after our Minister to France, 
 Mr. Rush, presented the formal congratulations of our gov- 
 ernment. Mr. Buchanan, in transmitting to Mr. Rush a letter 
 of credence to the French Republic, said : "In its intercourse 
 with foreign nations, the Government of the United States has, 
 from its origin, always recognized the de facto governments. 
 We recognize the right of all nations to create and reform their 
 political institutions according to their own will and pleasure. 
 We do not go behind the existing government to involve our- 
 selves in the question of its legitimacy. It is sufficient for us 
 to know that a government exists capable of maintaining itself; 
 and then its recognition on our part inevitably follows." Even 
 as late as September 8, 1900, Mr. Hill, acting Secretary of State, 
 sent to Mr. Hart, U. S. Minister at Bogota, the following in- 
 structions: "The policy of the United States, announced and 
 practiced upon occasion for more than a century, has been and 
 is to refrain from acting upon conflicting claims to the de 
 
jure control of the executive power of a foreign state; but to 
 base the recognition of a foreign government solely upon its 
 de facto ability to hold the reins of adminstrative power." In 
 withholding recognition from the Republic of China, the present 
 administration is departing from the policy of the great found- 
 ers of our nation. 
 
 There are questions in expediency and advantage as well 
 as of principle in this matter of recognition. We may well con- 
 sider what some of these results would be. First, China would 
 be encouraged and strengthened in her efforts for reform and 
 education. Evidences of the educational awakening are coming 
 from every part of the land. The Canton Christian college may 
 be taken as typical. The number of students in that institution 
 has increased from 256 to 418 in one term, and the Chinese 
 residents there have recently given over $80,000 (equivalent to 
 many times that in purchasing power here) for new buildings 
 and equipment of the college. The new Commissioner of Edu- 
 cation in Kwang-Tung Province has secured the appropriation 
 of $100,000 gold for the education abroad of the students of the 
 province. 
 
 A second result of recognition would be the stimulation of 
 trade between China and the nations of the West. When the 
 international relations of China are restored to normal condi- 
 tion, trade, which has already regained most of the ground lost 
 during the disturbances, will assuredly rapidly increase. By 
 recognizing the Republic the powers will, without distinction, 
 confer a boon on the business communities of their respective 
 nations. Missionaries and other representatives of Western na- 
 tions in China, also, would be benefited by the recognition of 
 the Republic. Though the Revolution has been guarded from 
 assuming any anti-foreign or anti-missionary character, until 
 perfect order is established there must be risk for foreigners 
 traveling in the interior. Dr. Wu states : "It is within the 
 power of the foreign countries to reinforce the hand of the gov- 
 ernment, to extend to it moral support, and give it added prestige 
 to hasten the complete restoration of order, and to insure the 
 safety of their citizens and subjects throughout the vast Re- 
 public." 
 
 The greatest advantage to be gained by the speedy recogni- 
 tion by all nations would be the prevention of intervention on 
 the part of some which are only waiting an opportunity to appro- 
 priate Chinese territory, just as they did with the continent of 
 Africa some thirty years ago. The partitioning of China would 
 be a crime even greater than the partitioning of Poland, and 
 one fraught with far more serious consequences to the human 
 race as a whole. 
 
10 
 
 The Chinese Revolution was not a coup d'etat, without like- 
 lihood of permanence; the old monarchy is hopelessly dead. 
 The Revolution was complete, and peace reigns throughout the 
 land. The new government is without opposition. It is con- 
 fronted with many difficulties, but they do not spring from the 
 attachment of people to the departed monarchy. As stated by 
 Dr. Morrison in the London Times, when referring to the danger 
 of China's splitting up, "Where is the line of cleavage? Both 
 parties in China are equally Republican. Those who allege that 
 President Yuan is assuming a dictatorship are ignoring the 
 facts of his career." And to the critics who charge that the 
 President's Council is composed of hostile factions, whose quar- 
 rels threaten the continuance of the Republic, he says: "Noth- 
 ing could be more misleading. These parties differ in their 
 programmes as political parties do in all countries, but all are 
 equally Republican." To those who think it is a reproach and 
 a danger that the new men active in the government are inex- 
 perienced, he replies, that the difference can be shown by com- 
 paring them with the "corrupt princes and degraded eunuchs 
 who were in power under the Manchu dynasty." 
 
 Given recognition by foreign governments, freedom from 
 overt acts of predatory powers, and the right to increase her own 
 customs, now limited to five per cent. a right wrung from her 
 by foreigners to secure their unholy indemnities China will pay 
 all her obligations, no matter how unrighteous. The ruling char- 
 acteristic of the Chinaman is honesty. He never repudiates his 
 financial obligations. 
 
 I hold in my hand a Chinese bank note for a thousand cash 
 issued by the great Ming Emperor Hung Wo, in the year 1367. 
 It is the most ancient piece of financial paper in existence, except- 
 ing some duplicates, one of which I presented to the British 
 Museum several years ago. It is three hundred years older than 
 a somewhat similar looking note for which the British Museum 
 paid Pope Hennessy 500 pounds, and which, until this was dis- 
 covered, was supposed to be the oldest in the world. The low r er 
 panel contains the following, as translated by Professor H. B. 
 Morse, Commissioner of Customs and Inspectorate General of 
 Customs of China: "The Imperial Board of Revenue, having 
 memorialized the Throne, has received the Imperial sanction for 
 the issue of Government notes of the Ming Empire, to circulate 
 on the same footing as standard cash. To counterfeit is death. 
 The informant will receive 250 taels of silver, and in addition, 
 the entire property of the criminal. Signed, Hung Wu." A 
 seal in vermillion bears in character the legend : "Seal for cir- 
 culating Government Notes." It is shown as an authentic proof 
 
11 
 
 of the antiquity of the Chinaman's knowledge of matters finan- 
 cial, at a time when the ancestors of the six powers syndicate 
 were groping in the darkness of feudalism matters in which 
 the Chinaman has always borne the unique distinction of being 
 the soul of honor. 
 
 The integrity of the Chinese as a people is proverbial. Their 
 former despotic government, despite its innate corruption, never 
 failed to observe its financial obligations to its former creditors, 
 however unjustly incurred. The government of the Republic 
 has solemnly undertaken to faithfully execute all the obligations 
 to the foreign powers, under existing treaties, notwithstanding 
 the onerous burden entailed upon the people, and which, con- 
 sidering their enforced origin, might with some reason have 
 justified repudiation. Apart from the credit for past perform- 
 ances, faithfully observed, and the normal revenues from trade, 
 commerce and the usual taxes, the natural resources of the land 
 are incalculable. Of their development, a beginning, by mod- 
 ern methods, has only yet been made; but where it has been, 
 every encouragement exists for extensive exploitation to the 
 great advantage of the people, as well as of capital involved in 
 such industrial enterprises. The extension of railways also 
 affords scope for large investments, which are attracting attention 
 in all quarters, to provide means of internal commerce, now car- 
 ried on by most primitive methods. These and other con- 
 siderations justify recourse to the bankers of the world for assist- 
 ance on equitable conditions toward their development. 
 
 With such a reputation for honor, and such tempting oppor- 
 tunities for the successful employment of capital in her domain, 
 why should China be forced to accept humiliating and ignomin- 
 ious terms to obtain credit terms never before demanded of any 
 other nation? Consider Japan that other great star of the 
 Orient whose natural resources are incomparably less than those 
 of China. When her very existence as a nation was at stake 
 in a war with one of the most powerful countries of Europe, it 
 was my privilege as well as pleasure to appear with Count 
 Kaneko before a syndicate of bankers who were considering the 
 advisability and risk of underwriting her loan and to urge its 
 acceptance. I had seen the Japanese army in action and believed 
 in its final triumph, and that her people would ultimately pay 
 her obligations. But were any such monstrous conditions de- 
 manded from her by the underwriters as are now sought by 
 the Six-Tuple Syndicate in dealing with China? On the con- 
 trary, Japan secured the money necessary to carry on her cam- 
 paign on easy terms, although her success in the titanic struggle 
 in which she was then engaged was, at that time, by no means 
 a certainty. 
 
12 
 
 In the case of China, peace reigns, and yet, before the great 
 financiers consent to the issuance of a loan, it is asserted that 
 they demand the right of a close supervision of its expenditure, 
 that it be ear-marked for purposes acceptable to them, that it 
 shall not be available for military or naval defense, so essential 
 for the future protection of the country; that no other loans or 
 obligations shall be made by China without the consent of the 
 syndicate, and that certain revenues be allotted for its security. 
 These terms the statesmen of China refused and they have had 
 the temerity to negotiate an independent loan for $50,000,000 
 in opposition to the will of the Six-Power syndicate. 
 
 On the question of China's finances, the London Times said, 
 after the floating of the first instalment of the $50,000,000 loan, 
 which was half of the sum, that it "rejoices that the British people 
 have manifested a different spirit from that of their government." 
 It condemns the government for backing up the monopoly ; it 
 declares that the Six-Power group had "sought to set up a 
 monopoly in China under the aegis of international diplomacy." 
 It also declares that the liabilities of the country to June next, 
 including indemnity arrears, will amount to 10,000,000 sterling 
 and that "much is dependent upon the generosity of the foreign 
 governments and the banking interests." 
 
 According to Dr. Morrison, the political adviser of the 
 Chinese Government, China has entered upon a new era of pros- 
 perity, and by the skill and judgment of her financiers has shaken 
 herself free from international complications. The London Morn- 
 ing Post (Conservative) remarks gloomily: "The prospectus 
 of the new Chinese loan has been duly issued. * * The 
 
 British Government has been roundly accused of lending itself 
 to a plot for placing China at the mercy of a syndicate of greedy 
 financiers, and for establishing a degrading system of foreign 
 control over her internal affairs. The breaking off of the nego- 
 tiations between the Chinese Government and the Six-Power 
 banking group, and the conclusion of the loan agreement with 
 the London financiers have been hailed as a destruction of the 
 selfish monopoly which was strangling the freedom of the young 
 Republic." The London Daily News continues, "It is a battle 
 of giants, for behind the Six Powers there is a greedy banking 
 monopoly which has hitherto been unchallenged, and behind this 
 monopoly there is a complicated network of international in- 
 trigue, partly German, partly American, partly Russian, and part- 
 ly Japanese," and I think we may add, largely English. 
 
 On October 30th, 1912, one of the interested powers, Russia, 
 proposed that a joint and pre-emptory demand be made upon 
 China for the immediate payment of arrears in the Boxer in- 
 
13 
 
 demnity, the sum amounting to $50,000,000. It was privately in- 
 timated, and not officially denied, that this movement, made on 
 October 30, was intended as an emphatic rebuke to the Chinese 
 for their temerity in contracting loans with independent bank- 
 ers ; disregarding the warning of the powers, and their rejection 
 of the proposed loan by the Six-Power syndicate. It is stated 
 on high authority that the powers of Europe look favorably upon 
 this proposal. In taking the initiative in the movement to com- 
 pel China to accept the proposal of the Six-Power syndicate, and 
 the refusal on China's part to accept the terms, Russia, as stated 
 in reports received on November 7th, has been led to negotiate 
 with one of China's provinces, Mongolia, a treaty, signed on 
 November 3rd, by which she agrees to aid Mongolia to maintain 
 the automonous government which she has established, and to 
 support her right to maintain a national army, and to exclude 
 both the presence of Chinese troops and the colonization of her 
 territory by the Chinese. 
 
 In this act Russia is following the lead of her ally, Great 
 Britain, who not long ago proclaimed what amounts to a pro- 
 tectorate over the territory of Thibet, just as, on a recent occasion, 
 Great Britain joined Russia in their monstrous and disgraceful 
 treatment of Persia. It is the consummation of the policy of 
 "squeeze" that has been carried on ever since China opened her 
 doors, at the mouth of the cannon, to the crime of the century, 
 the opium trade of England, and later, to so-called modern 
 civilization. 
 
 Thus it seems that the vivisection of the sick man of the 
 Far East may proceed merrily, without consideration for the in- 
 terests or sentiments of the patient under the scalpel. This 
 at the moment seems to be the lamentable result of the action 
 of the Six-Power syndicate. It seems apparent that the famous 
 combination has signally failed in its financial policy, despite 
 governmental assistance, and that nothing has been gained by 
 the delay in the recognition of the Republic. But what has been 
 lost? 
 
 By formally recognizing the new government as soon as it 
 had demonstrated its right to such recognition, America would 
 have followed the splendid traditions of our forebears, who enun- 
 ciated and practiced the laws of justice and liberty which made 
 our country great, and from whose teachings we have departed 
 too far. We would have had the proud distinction of being the 
 first to welcome the Republic in its hour of trial. We would have 
 secured the eternal friendship and respect of a nation, which, no 
 matter what adversity it may yet have to face, is destined to 
 be one of the greatest and grandest on earth. We would have 
 
14 
 
 immeasurably increased our prestige in the Orient, and possibly, 
 by proclaiming the policy of "hands off" and the "open door" in 
 China, averted the tragedy that now seems almost inevitable. 
 
 Is there anyone present who believes that if John Hay had 
 been in the Department of State during the past year, the Re- 
 public of China would not have been recognized long ago? Had 
 his policy been followed directly after the abdication of the 
 Manchu Dynasty, China, in the opinion of well-informed author- 
 ities, would have escaped many of the dangers now menacing 
 her. Time was, in the history of American diplomacy, when our 
 Executive acted upon the recognition of downtrodden nations 
 which had emancipated themselves from tyranny and established 
 Republican forms of government, without consultation or dic- 
 tation from Lombard or Wall Street. The majority of our peo- 
 ple are, and from the first have been, in sincere sympathy with 
 China in her struggle for liberty. Is their will to be carried out 
 or is liberty, and opportunity, to be throttled and made subservient 
 to a group of capitalists who seek to monopolize the privilige of 
 dictatorship ? 
 
 "Ill fares the land, to hastening ills a prey, 
 Where wealth accumulates, and men decay." 
 
 The following "Open Letter" to the President of the United 
 States was sent by the President of the China Societv on Septem- 
 ber 21st, 1912: 
 
 247 Fifth Avenue, New York. 
 
 HON. WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT, 
 
 President, White House, 
 
 Washington, D. C. 
 
 DEAR MR. PRESIDENT: The China Society of America, im- 
 patient at your protracted delay in formally recognizing the Re- 
 public of China, a delay that not only prevents the prosperity 
 and development of the country, but that menaces its very life 
 by threatening the maintenance of the integrity of its territory, 
 now appeals to you again to promptly grant the recognition to 
 the Republic which its people have so honorably won. 
 
 Our correspondence on this subject, extending over a period 
 of six months, has proved most unsatisfactory. Replies from the 
 Secretary of State have been evasive, procrastinating and decep- 
 tive. Only after repeated appeal was any word received from 
 
15 
 
 him other than the stereotyped assurance that the subject was 
 receiving his "careful consideration" and "unremitting attention" 
 until his letter of June 17th, which states: "It is the disposition 
 of the Executive to accord recognition at the earliest opportunity 
 afforded under the established usages of International Law." 
 This, as you well know, is true only as it applies to foreign 
 nations, and not to us, as every tradition in American history 
 proves. 
 
 May I venture to ask why there is occasion for further delay, 
 and also whether "the established usages of International Law" 
 referred to by the Secretary of State, were followed in the case 
 of the recognition of the Republics of Brazil, of Portugal, of 
 Panama, or of any of the fourteen Central and South American 
 Republics in the majority of which actual hostilities were being 
 conducted when our Executive accorded them recognition ? Does 
 an almost bloodless revolution, from despotism to democracy, 
 rather than a protracted and bloodly war, as in the case of the 
 American and French Revolution, diminish the right of a people 
 to recognition ? Does it not rather give added assurances of their 
 strength and fitness to be governed by their newly chosen form 
 of government, and their willingness to abide by its decress ? 
 
 Is the time-honored policy of our country, as defined by Bur- 
 lingame and Hay, to be ignored ? Your own public utterances in 
 China, when you assured her people that the policy of the "Open 
 Door," as defined by John Hay, would be continued by you, now 
 warrant the expectation that we would be the first to welcome 
 her to the sisterhood of Republics. 
 
 The opportunity of cementing the friendship of the third of 
 the human race should not be lightly neglected. I believe that 
 no act of your administration would be more in accord with the 
 sentiment of our people or increase American interests and pres- 
 tige in the Orient than the prompt recognition by you of the Re- 
 public of China. 
 
 Nearly a year has elapsed since the people of that land as- 
 sumed the duties and responsibilities of self-government. During 
 this time, by a process of evolution rather than revolution, the 
 equal of which is not recorded in history, they have emerged 
 from a state of absolute despotism to one of democracy. They 
 have established an effective government which has been recog- 
 nized by the Representatives in Pekin of all nations having official 
 and business relations with China with but one exception. The 
 Government of China is pledged to carry on the obligations of 
 its predecessor in all treaty engagements with foreign powers, 
 and it is, in effect, the only recognized authority in the country. 
 In their struggle for emancipation from a tyranny that had few 
 
16 
 
 if any counterparts in the modern world, the people of China are 
 entitled to the sympathy and support of the friends of liberty 
 the world over. In establishing a Republican form of Govern- 
 ment, largely based upon our own system, they have an especial 
 claim on the sympathy of the American people. I do not hesi- 
 tate to offer the opinion that such sympathy is general among our 
 people. The withholding of formal recognition by our Govern- 
 ment is felt to be a serious hardship to the Chinese, and tends to 
 increase their difficulties in overcoming such adverse factors as 
 exist in the situation. 
 
 Now that an American has successfully placed a Fifty Mil- 
 lion Dollar loan, in defiance of the powerful six-power syndicate, 
 it is clearly demonstrated that banking interests of all characters 
 are sufficiently satisfied as to the permanency and stability of the 
 Republic of China. It is true that the syndicate referred to is 
 backed by the diplomacy of various countries, but that adds to 
 rather than lessens the feeling that the syndicate loan is to be 
 used by these countries for their own purposes and not for the 
 best interest of the new Republic. If banking interests, notori- 
 ously the most careful and timorous of all, are willing to con- 
 cede the stability of that Government, why should this Republic 
 hesitate to grant recognition? Months ago Congress passed a 
 joint resolution, without a single dissenting voice in either Senate 
 or House, urgently recommending the immediate recognition of 
 the Republic. If it is not granted, the friends of China must 
 appeal to public opinion to see why "the established usages of 
 International Law," which were sufficiently elastic to allow of 
 the recognition of Panama, now prevent the recognition of the 
 only established government of a peace-loving people, whose 
 numbers include nearly one-third of the inhabitants of the earth. 
 In the name of Peace, of which you are such a notable advocate, 
 why withhold longer from this peace-loving people the recogni- 
 tion they have so honorably won ? 
 
 Respectfully submitting these suggestions for your careful 
 consideration, I have the honor to remain 
 
 Your obedient servant, 
 
 Louis LIVINGTON SEAMAN, 
 President of the China Society of America. 
 
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