CHINA'S CIVIL WAR.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 219, 15 September 1924, Page 8

CHINA'S CIVIL WAR.

CAUSES OF THE CONFLICT. MILITARY JEALOUSIES. MULTIPLICITY OF PROVINCES. Anything may happen in China, which w one of the enigmas of the world. So vast her territory, so immense her popu- : lation, that the inhabitants of one part j may seldom have much knowledge of what is. happening in another. Children of the Orient located in New Zealand, therefore, may well be pardoned if they profess to have only a hazy idea of what is now reported to be occurring in the provinces of Chekiang and Kiangsu, on the shores of the China sea. They assume —and, probably, rightly so—that the customary game of "catch as catch can" is in progress between two military generals, who conceive that the psychological moment has arrived for a coup de main. China is a great commonwealth, with a multiplicity of provinces, or states, each of which exercises sovereign rights of it own. There also are political parties—the National Party, the Country or Progressive Party, the Labour or Industrial Party—all with unspellable and unpronounceable names, but vigorous enough in their operations. There is also the Military Party, which, although by no means the stronger, nevertheless exercises a dominating influence in national affairs, and, generally, is the disturbing factor in the internal affairs of the young republic. And there-is no pact! When Generals Fall Out. The Chinese as a nation are peaceloving and abiding. But when governors and generals fall out ! That, it is assumed, is what has happened in the C'hekiang-Kiangsu squabble. According to cabled information, it began about the ownership of an arsenal outside Shanghai, and the TVusung forts, further along the coast. That is quite probable. Military jealousies are a fearful thing, and 'bloodshed is antici- ' pated before the military governors and their fire-eating commanders-in* chief—who seem also to have a personal feud—effect a settlement of their differences, and so determine for the time being who is to be "top dog." The exact military strength of the two provinces is not known locally, but : as the inhabitants total something like ' 50,000,000 in each case, it is assumed that both are equipped with a fairly effective fighting machine, and of about even strength. General Wu-Pei-Fu, said to be backing Kiangsu, is in charge '. of the military at Peking, and General ' Chang Tso-lin, who favours the claims , of Chekiang, is military governor of Mukden. They are leaders of separate parties, always in opposition. There seems nothing left but to fight it out. ] Danger to Shanghai. ' , The danger to Shanghai, the great | trading port on the East China Sea, to ■ which both Chekiang and Kiangsu contribute a huge trade in silks and other ' commodities, is that it lies at the ' mercy of both the squabbling provinces • —as in tlie pincers of a nut-cracker, ' liable to be smashed in the preseure from both sides. The adjoining port of Wusung is in a similar predicament. But the fact that British, American, ' and Japanese warships have landed ' troops at Shanghai is a clear indication that the outside Powers do not intend to leave the commercial centre of the itast, with its immense cosmopolitan popula- ! tion, at the mercy of faction fighters. They may have to interfere in the : trouble, though it is hardly likely they would do more than protect the European population. Any further interfer- ' ence, most likely, would lead to greater ' turmoil, for the Chinese, quarrel as they may among themselves, have a rooted objection to foreign intervention in any ; shape or form, and are quick to make common cause against an outside enemy. ! This is only natural—the British have a Bimilar habit. There is no hope of ' ■any intervention from the Peking Govern- ; ment. It would be useless for it to try. ; It never yet has, been able to control thoz. provinces which are able to support a military governor and a standing ! army, or even the appointments of mili- ' tary governors, which seemingly are ! demand, and are held practically at the point of the bayonet, by the man with the biggest military force ! to back him up. It is these military rivals who are the disturbing factors in ■ China to-day. Her people want peace, ' desire to live in harmony among them- ; selves and with their neighbours, to pro- ' gress, and to show the world that the republic is worth while.