up. There
being no traffic regulation of any kind, no right of way of any sort,
there was no idea in the mind of any one but that of his unalterable
right to go ahead. It was pandemonium in a minute, with yells and
curses, pushing and blows, men whacking one another and the beasts
indiscriminately. Over the tops of the blue-hooded carts the tall camels
raised their scornful heads, and surveyed the commotion with aloof
disdain. In all the world there is nothing so arrogant and haughty as a
camel, and they regarded from their supercilious height the petty
quarreling of man. In fifteen minutes, however, the snarl cleared itself
up, and it was the camels who first managed to slither by, after which
each vehicle unwound itself from the mess and passed on.

You know, the lobby of this hotel seems a little like that block of
traffic. There is such a heterogeneous massing of nationalities and
of people within these shabby walls--officials, soldiers,
concession-hunters, tourists, attaches, journalists, explorers. All
those camels, coolies, rickshaw-boys, and water-carriers each felt
that he had the right of way; and so all these people think that
they have the right of way in China. There must be a hundred
different opinions about China in these corridors of the hotel. I'll
see what I can discover.

III

CIVILIZATION

The longer we stay here, the more we are impressed with the fact that
in China there is no sympathy for the Allies. The atmosphere is not at
all pro-German, however. There is no special feeling for the Central
powers any more than there is for the Entente Allies. It can best be
described as neutrality, or, rather, complete indifference as to which
group wins. Coming as we have direct from France,--two years of France
in war-time,--it is very curious to find ourselves plunged into this
atmosphere of total indifference to the outcome and objects of the
war. We have gathered these impressions from many talks with the
Chinese and from a diligent perusal of Chinese papers,--papers printed
in English, but owned and edited by the Chinese, and which may
therefore be said to reflect their sentiments. Also we have talked
with many foreigners who have lived in China for a long time, who have
many Chinese friends and acquaintances, and understand the Chinese
point of view, and these also tell us that China has no sympathy with
the Allies or with any other powers.

The explanation is not hard to find. Despite wha