Business men boast of their skill and cunning But in philosophy they are like little children. Bragging to each other of successful depredations They neglect to consider the ultimate fate of the body. What should they know of the Master of Dark Truth Who saw the wide world in a jade cup, By illumined conception got clear of heaven and earth: On the chariot of Mutation entered the Gate of Immutability? I wish I could hope that some respect for "the Master of Dark Truth" would enter into the hearts of our apostles of Western culture. But as that is out of the question, it is necessary to seek other ways of solving the Far Eastern question. FOOTNOTES: [Footnote 31: _The Truth about China and Japan_, Allen & Unwin, 1921, p. 14. On the other hand Sih-Gung Cheng (_Modern China_, p. 13) says that it "killed twenty million people," which is the more usual estimate, cf. _China of the Chinese_ by E.T.C. Werner, p. 24. The extent to which the population was diminished is not accurately known, but I have no doubt that 20 millions is nearer the truth than 150 millions.] [Footnote 32: In January 1922, he came to Peking to establish a more subservient Government, the dismissal of which has been ordered by Wu-Pei-Fu. A clash is imminent. See Appendix.] [Footnote 33: The blame for this is put upon Sun Yat Sen, who is said to have made an alliance with Chang-tso-lin. The best element in the Canton Government was said to be represented by Sun's colleague General Cheng Chiung Ming, who is now reported to have been dismissed (_The Times_, April 24, 1922). These statements are apparently unfounded. See Appendix.] [Footnote 34: The soya bean is rapidly becoming an important product, especially in Manchuria.] [Footnote 35: There are, however, no accurate statistics as to the birth-rate or the death-rate in China, and some writers question whether the birth-rate is really very large. From a privately printed pamphlet by my friend Mr. V.K. Ting, I learn that Dr. Lennox, of the Peking Union Medical College, from a careful study of 4,000 families, found that the average number of children (dead and living) per family was 2.1, while the infant mortality was 184.1. Other investigations are quoted to show that the birth-rate near Peking is between 30 and 50. In the absence of statistics, generalizations about the population question in China must be received with extreme caution.] [Footnote 36: I repeat what everybody, Chinese or foreign, told me. Mr. Bland, _per contra_, describes Chang-tso-lin as a polished Confucian. Contrast p. 104 of his _China, Japan and Korea_ with pp. 143, 146 of Coleman's _The Far East Unveiled_, which gives the view of everybody except Mr. Bland. Lord Northcliffe had an interview with Chang-tso-lin reported in _The Times_ recently, but he was, of course, unable to estimate Chang-tso-lin's claims to literary culture.] [Footnote 37: Printed in _China in 1918_, published by the _Peking Leader_.]