e only question was whether
the change would be accomplished by way of evolution--gradual, orderly,
and conservative--or by revolution, or a series of revolutions,
probably violent and sanguinary, and perhaps disastrous to the dynasty
and the country. The events of the last few months have supplied the
answer--at any rate, to a certain extent. A successful revolution has
taken place, in which, it is true, many thousands have been killed, but
which on the whole has not been attended by the slaughter and carnage
that might have been anticipated considering the vastness of the
country and the enormous interests involved. Actual warfare gave way to
negotiations conducted in a spirit of moderation and of give-and-take
on the part of all concerned. The Manchu dynasty has collapsed, though
the "Emperor" still remains as a quasi-sacred, priestly personage, and
the princes have been pensioned off. The Great Republic of China has
come into being, albeit it is in large measure inchoate and, as it
were, on trial. China has long been the land of rebellions and risings,
and it is hardly to be expected that the novel republican form of
government, however well constructed, intentioned, or conducted, will
escape altogether from internal attacks. And nearly everything has yet
to be done in organization.

General surprise has been expressed at the comparative ease and speed
with which the revolutionary movement has attained success in driving
the Manchus from power and in founding a republican _regime_. The
factor which chiefly contributed to this success was undoubtedly the
weakness of the Manchu dynasty and of the Imperial Clan, who, hated by
the Chinese and without sufficient resources of their own, were utterly
unable to offer any real resistance to the rebellious provinces of the
south, the loyalty of their troops being uncertain, and any spirit or
gift of leadership among themselves having disappeared with the passing
of the great Tzu Hsi in 1908. But it is a mistake to imagine that the
idea of a republican form of government in place of the centuries-old,
autocratic, semi-divine monarchy, was something that had never been
mooted before and was entirely unknown to the Chinese. To the great
majority, no doubt, it was, if known at all, something strange and
hardly intelligible, as it still is. But in the south, especially on
and near the coast, it has been familiar for some time; among the
possibilities of the future it was not unkno