"‘Thirty-fifth year, or 1909—Election of provincial assemblymen; election to constitutional commission; local self-government bureaus established; census; provincial budgets; determination of functions of Peking officials; issuing of school books. "‘Thirty-sixth year, or 1910—Provincial assemblies opened; local self-government established; census reports; tax rate fixed; organization of provincial officials; courts of law at provincial capitals and treaty ports; publishing criminal code; extension of schools; preparation for organization of sub-prefecture; department and district police. "‘Thirty-seventh year, or 1911—Local self-government continued; public account; imperial budget; rules on imperial taxation; rules governing appointments and salaries of civil officials; extension of schools; codes of municipal and commercial laws and civil and criminal procedure drawn up. "‘Thirty-eighth year, or 1912—Completion of general arrangement of urban self-government; census reports; publication of taxation laws of empire; perfection of arrangements for provincial and lesser courts; extension of schools. "‘Thirty-ninth year, or 1913—Police registration; imperial trial budget of variable expenses; Supreme Court; courts of law in prefectures, sub-prefectures, departments and districts; criminal code promulgated; urban self-government established; rules for rural self-government; rules for urban police. "‘Fortieth year, or 1914—Imperial trial budget of fixed expenses; publication of system of national accounts; rural self-government established; rules for lower courts. "‘Forty-first year, or 1915—Imperial household expenses fixed; organization of the Banners’ controller’s office; public accounting enforced; lower courts established; municipal and commercial laws and civil and criminal procedure rules established; police system complete. "‘Forty-second year, or 1910—Promulgation of full constitution and the laws of the imperial clan; parliamentary rules and rules for parliamentary elections; budget for consideration of parliament; reorganized official system; appointment of a premier.’ "The document concludes with these words: {97} "'In the forty-third year of Kwang Hsu, or 1917, China will be, by following this plan, a parliamentary country like Japan or Russia.'" _China's Constitution (New York Tribune, October 19, 1908)._ Prince Ito, the veteran statesman of Japan, regards the constitutional experiment in China with more anxiety than hopefulness. Speaking on the subject in August, 1909, he expressed doubt of its success, and thought failure would imperil peace in the Far East. His reasoning in brief was this: