that China fulfils our fears, and becomes as
great a fighting power as military experts declare she will, even in our
generation, by virtue of her numbers alone, apart from phenomenal powers
of endurance, which as every writer on China and her people is agreed,
is excelled by no other race on earth, she would be able to dictate
terms to the West. But, again, will she? Will the people continue to
live as they are living?

I personally believe that the Chinese will not. I believe that as the
nation progresses, more in accordance with lines of progress laid down
by the West, so will her wants increase, and consequent expenses of life
become greater. The Yuen-nanese even are beginning to acknowledge that
they have no ordinary comforts. In other parts of the empire the people
are already beginning to learn what comfort, sanitation, lighting, and
general organization means--in the home, in the city, in the country, in
the nation.

And they are learning too that it all costs money, and means, perhaps, a
higher state of social life. For this they do not mind the money. They
are not going half-way--they are going to be whole-hoggers. And when in
the future, near or far, we shall find them, as is almost inevitable,
able to compete in everything with other nations, we shall find that
they have not been successful in learning the source of strength without
having absorbed also some of the weaknesses; they will not escape the
vices, even if they learn some of the virtues of the West.--E.J.D.]

CHAPTER XIX.

_Peculiar forebodings of early morning_. _A would-be speaker of
English_. _The young men of Yuen-nan and the Reform Movement_. _Teachers
of English_. _Remarks on methods adopted_. _Disregard of the customs of
centuries_. _A rushing Szech-wanese_. _Missionaries and the Educational
Movement_. _Christianity and the position of the foreigner_. _Is the
Chinese racially inferior to the European? Interesting opinion_. _Peace
of Europe and integrity of China_. _Chao-chow cook gets a bad time_.
_The author's levee. Natural "culture" of the people_. _Story of the
birth of boys_. _Notes on Hsiakwan_. _Experiences of the
non-Chinese-speaking author at the inn_. _How he got the better of an
official_. _A magnificent temple_. _Kwan-in and the priests._

This morning, from the foot of a high spur, I saw a couple of gawky
fellows shambling along in an imitation European dress, and I pricked up
my ears--it seemed as if Europeans wer