everything they may contrive as from the 13th June, 1917, is that it
will be bereft of all legality and simply mark a fresh interregnum.
Furthermore, it is important to note that the situation is brought back
by the Mandate of the 13th June to where it was on the 6th June, 1916,
with the death of Yuan Shih-kai, and that a period of civil commotion
seems inevitable.

MEMORANDUM

To the President: Our previous memorandum to Your Excellency must
have received your attention. We now beg further to inform you that
the rebels are now practically in an embarrassing predicament on
account of internal differences, the warning of the friendly Powers,
and the protest of the South-western provinces. Their position is
becoming daily more and more untenable. If Your Excellency strongly
holds out for another ten days or so, their movement will collapse.

Some one, however, has the impudence to suggest that with the entry
of Chang Hsun's troops into the Capital, and delay in the settlement
of the question will mean woe and disaster. But to us, there need be
no such fear. As the troops in the Capital have no mind to oppose
the rebels, Tsao Kun and his troops alone will be adequate for their
purposes in the Capital. But now the rebel troops have been halting
in the neighbourhood of the Capital for the last ten days. This
shows that they dare not open hostilities against the Government,
which step will certainly bring about foreign intervention and incur
the strong opposition of the South-western provinces. Having refused
to participate in the rebellion at the invitation of Ni Shih-chung
and Chang Tso-lin, Chang Hsun will certainly not do what Tsao Kun
has not dared to do. But the rebels have secret agents in the
Capital to circulate rumours to frighten the public and we hope that
the President will remain calm and unperturbed, lest it will give an
opportunity for the rebel agents to practise their evil tricks.

Respecting Parliament, its re-assembly was one of the two most
important conditions by means of which the political differences
between the North and the South last year were healed. The
dissolution of Parliament would mean the violation of the terms of
settlement entered into between the North and the South last year
and an open challenge to the South. Would the South remain silent
respecting this outrage