Untitled

30 CHINA MISSION YKAR BOOK.The most striking thing about the decree was theingenuity shown in devising complications in the methodof selection of members and in avoiding the admissionof representative elements. Under the terms of thedecree all Princes of the Blood over thirty years of ageare to be members of the Council ten members are to;be selected from amongst the other Princes by the GrandCouncil ;the Comptroller of the Household is to make.selections number not stated from amongst theconnexions of the Imperial Household of the fourth rankand under, who are to ballot for five of their number;the Board of Rites is to make a selection from amongstofficials of the fourth rank and under, and these are toelect one hundred of their number, a certain number ofthe gentry having property to the value of Tls. 100,000are to be nominated by the Board of the Interior, andthey are to select ten of their number and the Provin;cial Councils are to nominate a tenth of their members,from whom the Legislative Council will itself co-opt onetenth,thereby completing the Council whose functions;have in no way been defined. On the 22nd of July waspublished an Imperial Decree declaring the Throne sdecision to establish Provincial Assemblies, and fromthat decision dates much of the domestic politicalactivity of China, for, with the exception of municipalcouncils formed in some of the larger cities after themodel of Yuan s Self-Government Society in Tientsin,the Provincial Assemblies were the first bodies of anything like a popular character to take part in theGovernment of the country. Three points aie empha"sized To have : proper supervision (of the Assemblies),to avoid contentious subjects, and to prevent the electionof any person who has bad ideas." In spite of thesecautels, which those who know anything of China willfully understand, the Provincial Assemblies did goodwork when they met.At this time Chang Chih-tung and Yuan Shih-k aihad been working in perfect harmony, the most notable