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Explained, by Mark Twain

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Title: The Treaty With China, its Provisions Explained
New York Tribune, Tuesday, August 28, 1868

Author: Mark Twain

Release Date: July 4, 2010 [EBook #33077]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

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Produced by John Greenman, Martin Zehr, and David Widger

THE TREATY WITH CHINA

ITS PROVISIONS EXPLAINED

New York Tribune, Tuesday, August 28, 1868

Every one has read the treaty which has just been concluded between
the United States and China. Everyone has read it, but in it there are
expressions which not every one understands. There are clauses which
seem vague, other clauses which seem almost unnecessary, and still
others which bear the flavor of "surplusage," to speak in legal
phrase. The most careful reading of the document will leave these
impressions--that is, unless one comprehends the past and present
condition of foreign intercourse with China--in which case it will be
seen at once that there is no word in the treaty without a meaning,
and no clause in it but was dictated by a present need or a wise policy
looking to the future. It will interest many of your readers to know why
this, that, and the other provision was incorporated in the treaty;
it will interest others to know in what manner and to what extent the
treaty will affect our existing relations with China. Apart from its
grave importance, the subject is really as entertaining as any I know
of and--asking pardon for the presumption--I desire to write a
few paragraphs upon it. We made a treaty with China in 1858; Mr.
Burlingame's new treaty is an addition to that one, and an amplification
of its powers. The first article of this new treaty reads as follows:

ARTICLE I. His Majesty, the Emperor of China, being of the
opinion that in making concessions to the citizens or
subjects of foreign Powers of the privilege of residing on
certain tracts of land, or resorting to certain waters of
that Empire for the purposes of trade, he has by no means
relinquished his right of