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Show 4 NORTH CHINA MISSION of the future government, whether monarchical or republican was to be decided by the representatives of the people themselves, meeting in a general convention. This concession by the Court was one of the first results of the negotiations of the peace commissioners. 7. The Abdication of the Manchu Court.-During January the truce was extended and the peace negotiations continued, altho marked by many misunderstandings and little progress. The chief point at issue was the scheme for the organization of the national convention. After long and fruitless negotiations, the northern military leaders, weary of the hopeless fratricidal strife, exchanged the sword for the pen and united in a demand for the complete abdication of the court. This demand, signed by forty-six generals and commanders, reached Peking on January 27th. and had an immediate effect. After this there was no real doubt as to the outcome, altho the formal edict of abdication did not appear until February 12th. The Provisional Government in Nanking was accepted as the de facto government and on February 15th. Yuan Shih Kai was elected provisional President for the entire nation, Dr. Sun retiring with rare gracious-ness and self-sacrifice. Thus in four brief months was enacted the most amazing political drama of the ages. This hoary empire of China, in its youth co-eval with F.gypt and Babylonia, projecting itself into modern history as it were by the sheer momentum of long existence, stagnant and changeless under the incubus of precedent and custom, with a government in form the most absolute of oriental despotisms, - this China, the oldest, most populous and most conservative empire of earth transforming itself into are-public in four brief months- surely this is a movement to which history offers no parallel ! But the drama was not closed with the election of the Provisional President. During the later period of the negotiations between north and south a strong movement was made by many southern representatives to secure the removal of the capital from Peking to Nanking. This agitation disturbed the military forces of the North. And as the temporary truce was followed by what seemed to be permanent peace, talk of disbanding certain divisions of the army became current. This further un- |
