The Press.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7949, 25 August 1891, Page 4

The Press.

TUE3DAY, AUGUST 25, 1891.

The trouble in China is a serious matter. There are now twenty Euro-

pean warships anchored iv Chinese waters, commissioned to demand satisfaction for the outrages which have been committed against Europeans during the last four or five months. The warships represent, it may be said, the united forces of Europe: for France, Germauy, England and Russia are all joining in the demonstration. The Emperor of China, it is stated, ie personally willing to accord the indemnity demanded, but that he believes—and he is oertaiuly not alone in the belief—that the step would cost him his throne and put an cud to his dyoasty. When the late Empress abdicated, it was generally said that all the member's of the Imperial family had been brought up to understand that themselves and the whole of the ruling caste might be swept away air any moment. Ib is nothing more indeed than was to be expected. It is the case of a race of Tartar conquerors, infinite3imally small in comparative numbers and not superior in ability to the people they have conquered, but possessed of a pluck and resolution to which the race beneath them are strangers, and governing by force of sheer cruelty. Of the three great despotisms at present known in the world, our own in India, Kussia, and the Chinese Empire, ours alone has ruled by taking every means to ascertain the wishes as well as the interests of the people we have to govern. In both the others the mere statement of a desire at variance with the act or the intention of the Government is treated as a political crime and visited accordingly. In China the punishment ia the most remorseless, and the dynasty the least secure.

The matter,however, is unfortunately far from being of merely internal interest. The riots, as we have seen, are anti-European riots. It is quite possible certainly that this is merely the mode in which the long smouldering discontent with the governing power has at length burst forth. tJntil recently the dynasty was as adverse as the people could be to the presence of foreigners on the soil of China, or indeed to the existence of any foreign relations which could by possibility be avoided. In 1885, however, a new departure was taken, and since then China may be fairly said to have entered within the circle of Western ideas. Much more recently, indeed within the present year, an important proclamation has been issued, commanding the people to treat foreigners everywhere with due civility, reminding them that so long as such foreigners choose to remain in China they are subject to her laws, and entitled to her protection. The late outbreaks are probably a practical protest against this proclamation, and the necessity which it has led to of no less than twenty warships of the four leading Powers of Europe proceeding to Tientsin to demand satisfaction proves sufficiently the seriousness of the occasion.

It is surprising, indeed, when one comes to think of it, what an enormous advance China has made within quite a short period. It is but little more than thirty years siuce the Lorcha dispute, in which England was engaged in obtaining reparation from the Chinese Government. Some of our readers perhaps may have heard the splendid declamation of Bishop WiLBEftTORCB in the House of Lords, at two o'clock in the morning, catling down the vengeance of Heaven on the authors of the war. It was an easy matter, then, to exact submission, for the weapons of the Chinese consisted ot bows and arrows, some artillery that was probably cast in the days of the Plantagenets, and even more" than an Oriental facility in lying. It was an easy matter, then, to advance into the interior, set fire to the Palace at Pekin, and extort a treaty. But the next twenty-five years made a wonderful change. France, we suppose, must be taken to have accomplished her object j in the Tonquin expedition. She has certainly obtained a cession of territory, but not until after two years' desolating warfare, and at a sacrifice of blood and treasure which cost Jules FfflßßT—probably her ablest Ministerfive years of political life, and which certainly she will not be quick to repeat. With this example before her Russia, which had stolen Euldja during the hour of China's trouble, was glad to disgorge it on a professedly amicable arrangement And now comes this present trouble. It is not England, it is not France, it is not Russia, it it not even all of them together; Germany also throws her weight into the scale in order, by an adequate display of force, to compel a proper indemnity from the Chinese authorities, and they have not done anything too much for. the occasion. It has long been foreseen by those whose duty it is to look into th'o political future, that if China once comes to uaderetand her atrength ahe may make

herself even a more formidable danger to the peace ol Europe than ever Bussia has boon thought to be. Armies, after all, ate baaed oa population, and Russia, couuting in all her oouquosta between the Caspian, and Western Thibet, doee not oount up more than a hundred millions of people, and of these about twenty millious are sparse and relatively unwarlike. China has a compact, brave, and warlike population of three hundred miliums, able, if well led, to tackle all Europe. It is true that in some important respects she has not a good military position, in the north Russia presses upon ht>r all along her boundary to the sea, and as against any Chinese fleet her new harbor at Vladivostock gives her an overwhelming advantage. It may turn out, too, if France is able to make anything of her Requisitions in the South, that she bus, at whatever cost to herself, done a great service u> Europe, for with such euemios on each flank, and with the sea commanded by her adversaries, China must needs be hampered iv any attempt at aggression. But, when ali is said, her Empire is too huge, her population too j vast, not to press by mere weight upou the Western forces. If the present revolution should lead to a reconstruction of tho Empire within more mauagcable limits, it would seem that tho European Governments might not be altogether ill-pleased. And yet what China might lose in the North and West would certainly fall to Russia, and in the South end iv France, after rectifying her position, proceeding rather west than north along the line of least resistance aud meeting u& very close to the Bay of Bengal. The case, put it any way, is serious, and the outlook most obscure.

To-day will mark au epoch ia the history of Canterbury College. As many of our readers are aware, the ceremony of conferring University degrees takes plaoe this afternoon in the College Hall, This is a function which has taken place regularly every year since the foundation of the College, and has been regarded with more or less interest by individuals in proportion as they have been more or less immediately concerned either with the College iteeif or with the higher education. But this degree day 13 not as other degree days. It is a red letter day in the history of the College. Today, for the first time, a graduate of Canterbury College will confer degrees on Canterbury College students. Mr. James Hat, who is known to many of our readers by reputation, has been chosen by the Chancellor of the University to represent him on this occasion. We must congratulate the Chancellor upon his choice of a delegate. Mr. Hat has now for some time been a member of the University Senate; his career as a student waa highly distinguished, and, since taking his degree, he has wisely endeavored to complete his education by travel in the old world, where, by seeing many men and cities of men, a man may learn what mo a and cities are worthy of praise and imitation. He can speak to the newly-made graduates out of the fulness of his local experience, en* riched by wide and intelligent observation of that deeper aud fuller life which can be felt throbbing by the dwellers at the great heart of the world, whose pulses come to us bat faintly and from faraway. And we think "the Chancellor has chosen not only wisely in this respect but kindly as well with regard to those who are to-day to don the hood and sown which is to themselves and to the world the outward visible sign of having scorned delights and lived laborious days in the pursuit of knowledge. Fop if those who are .to be admitted to-day to the higher degree ia the great family of Alma Mater Cantuarlensis were to choose for themselves, whom would they better choose than one of her own alumni, one who has lived as they have lived, who has worked as they have had to work, .whose aspirations have been their aspirations, and who has come back to spend his days amongst them ? What more sympatuetio hand could they choose to welcome them into the wide waters of unexamined life and show them the etars by whiou they must steer I But this is not all.

There is another aspect under which we may view Mr. Hay's position here today. Hia presence and the duty which he has to perform remind us that one of our earliest institutions has begun to enow aigna of being selfsupporting. We trueft before long Mr. Hat may not be the only Canterbury College student who will be appointed to do this duty. We hope to have some day "five hundred as good as he. ,. It will be long iudoed before Canterbury College can supply teachers fo* its students directly from its own ranks. That fuller, richer life of which we have epoken will always be nedessary for the true teacher, because, as Professor Husxet says, a man must know a great deal to teaoh a very little. And the stream of this life runs at present on the other side of the world. It is a far cry to London, to Oxford, to Cambridge, to Edinburgh, to Dublin. We can but hope that the best of our young men and maidens may be able to go there, and return to us, as Mr. Hay has done, to enrich the life of others who are less fortunate. And we would fain take this opportunity of drawing attention to the work which the College has done. We have not space to enumerate all of its varied successes; our readers will probably be able to inform themselves on this point by perusing an account of today's proceedings. But we would point out that of some* thing like 106 students who have taken the Honour degree in our University no less than fifty-three have come from Canterbury College alone. Forty-one of these took first-olass Honours, and here again the College claims twenty-eight out of the fortyone, and every one of these is doing good work. The rest belong, not to one College, but to two, Auckland College and Otago University. This is a result which might make Canterbury people proud of the institution. But if they are proud of it they certainly" manage to conceal their feelings most effectually. Auckland and Otago have both been the recipients of munificent gifts from publio spirited reiidents, which will immortalise the names of the givera. Sydney, Adelaide, Melbourne are rich in such private foundations, apart from publio eiriowmente. Canterbury College alone in the Southern hemisphere poMenea this unfortunate dMttaotijoi,

that in spite ofhavingijone'»7|E3J good work (and as good pU% £J that matter) as any other UttfvirMr Colloge ia the country to which B ba belongs, she has never recoived onl single Sixpence of m| own particular use at tho bahdVo! S Canterbury resident. Yet tuei-eie on« great want, which can hardly be filled except by private muiunceuott **ur« have as yet no College proper n* courts of reaidenco such as those wuioh make au Englieh College wai it should be—a home for the student* instead of a sort of shop, where the minimum of knowledge that will serve to get through an examination is q r jj_ scribbled down by indiscriminate note takers. Tho first one of tho —Auckland, Christchuroh and DntoT din—which establiahee colleges, will net only deserve bftt|» of tho country by doing this, h\xim forge rapidly ahead of the other twoja prestige and reputatiou. An 4*« would bep; moat respectfully to moud this consideration to those k our settlers who are wealthy ink patriotic. *y^?