Changing China

Our interest in China was first aroused by a letter from an old school-fellow, Arthur Polhill, who, with heroic self-denial, has spent the best part of his life in China as a missionary. Subsequently I joined the China Emergency Committee, who in 1907 invited us to go out to the Shanghai Centenary Conference. That visit led naturally to a tour in China, Korea, and Japan. When we returned we found that great interest was being felt at the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge in the movement in the Far East; a Committee was formed to study the whole question, which accepted provisionally the idea of encouraging the foundation of a Western University. Before finally accepting the idea it was felt that some one ought to go to the mission centres of China and find out the opinions of the missionaries working on the field, and at the same time sound the Chinese Government and see whether it would be favourable to the scheme. As a result of these deliberations, the Committee asked us in 1909 to go out again, this time on behalf of the United Universities Scheme. On our return it was suggested that if we put our report into the form of a book it might possibly excite interest in the whole question, especially in the University scheme. We were deeply impressed with two great facts--the greatness of the need of Western education from a Christian standpoint and the vital importance of immediate action.

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Not only did we seek information from English and American but also from French and Italian missions as occasion offered. We tested and compared this information by the information we got from that most enlightened and able body of men who form the consular body in China. We are especially grateful to Sir John Jordan, by whose great diplomatic skill both the position of England and the goodwill of the Chinese are maintained.

It would be impossible even to record the names of all with whom we conversed, but our thanks are especially due to the following friends, not only for their generous hospitality, but also for the patient and kind way in which they instructed us in the many difficult aspects of the Chinese problem:--

Sir John and Lady Jordan, British Legation, Peking. H.E. the late Chang-Chih-Tung. H.E. the late Prince Ito. H.E. Tong-Shao-Yi. H.E. Tuan-Fang. H.E. Liang-Ten-Sen. Sir Robert Hart. Sir Walter and Lady Hillier. Sir Robert and Lady Breedon. Dr. Aspland of Peking. Dr. and Mrs. Avison of Seoul. Dr. and Mrs. Baird of Pyeng-Yang. Bishop and Mrs. Bashford of Peking. Mr. Blair of Pyeng-Yang. M. et Mme. Boissonnas, French Legation, Peking. Mr. Bondfield of Shanghai. Miss Bonnell of Shanghai. Mr. and Mrs. Bonsey of Hankow. Dr. and Mrs. Booth of Hankow. Miss Brierley of Wuchang. Bishop Cassels of West China. Mr. U. K. Cheng of Nanking. Dr. and Mrs. Christie of Mukden. Mr. Chun Bing-Hun of Shanghai. Mr. and Mrs. Clarke of Newchwang. Dr. Cochrane of Peking. Consul-General and Mrs. Cockburn, late of Seoul. Miss Corbett of Peking. Mr. Deans of Ichang. Mr. and Mrs. Deeming of Han-Yang. Dr. Du Bose of Soochow. Mr. Ede of Shanghai. Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Foster of Wuchang. Consul-General and Mrs. Fraser of Hankow. Mr. and Mrs. Gage of Changsha. Dr. and Mrs. Gibb of Peking. Dr. and Mrs. Gillieson of Hankow. Dr. Glenton of Wuchang. Bishop and Mrs. Graves of Jessfield, Shanghai. Dr. and {v} Mrs. Hawks Pott of Jessfield, Shanghai. Consul and Mrs. Hewlett of Changsha. Mr. Hollander of Hankow. Mr. and Mrs. Hoste of the C.I.M. Dr. Huntley of Han-Yang. Mr. and Mrs. Jackson of Wuchang. Monseigneur Jarlin, Pe-T'ang, Peking. Dr. Griffith John of Hankow. Miss Joynt of Hangchow. The late Miss Keane of Shanghai. Dr. and Mrs. Keller of Changsha. Consul and Mrs. King of Nanking. Dr. and Mrs. Lavington Hart of Tientsin. Mr. M. T. Liang of Mukden. Mr. and Mrs. Littell of Hankow. Dr. and Mrs. Lowry of Peking. Mr. and Mrs. MacIntosh of Tientsin. Dr. and Mrs. Macklin of Nanking. Dr. Macleod of Shanghai. Dr. and Mrs. Main of Hangchow. Consul-General and Miss Mansfield, late of Canton. Dr. Martin of Peking. Mr. and Mrs. Meigs of Nanking. Miss Miner of Peking. Archdeacon and Mrs. Moule of Ningpo. Mr. Mun-Yew-Chung of Shanghai. Dr. and Mrs. Murray of Peking. Mr. Norris of Peking. Mr. Oberg of Shanghai. Miss Phelps of Hankow. Mr. Arthur Polhill of the C.I.M. Miss Porter of Peking. Bishop Price of Fukien. Deaconess Ransome of Peking. M. et Mme. Ratard, French Consulate, Shanghai. Mr. Ready of Changsha. Dr. and Mrs. Gilbert Reid of Shanghai. Dr. Timothy Richard of Shanghai. Mr. and Mrs. Ricketts of Shan-hai-kwan. Mr. and Mrs. Ridgley of Wuchang. Bishop and Mrs. Roots of Hankow. Dr. and Mrs. Ross of Mukden. Miss Russell of Peking. Bishop Scott of North China. Mrs. Scranton of Seoul. Mr. and Mrs. Sedgwick of Tientsin. Mr. Shen-Tun-Lo of Shanghai. Mr. and Mrs. Sherman of Hankow. Mr. and Mrs. Smalley of Shanghai. Mr. and Mrs. Sparham of Hankow. Mr. Sprent of Newchwang. Mr. Squire of Ichang. Mr and Mrs. Stockman of Ichang. Mr. and Mrs. Symons of Shanghai. Taotai J. C. Tong of Shanghai. Taotai S. T. Tsêng of Nanking. Mr. James Tsong of Wuchang. Mr. and Mrs. Turley of Mukden. Bishop Turner of Korea. Mr. and Mrs. Upward of Hankow. Dean and Mrs. Walker of Shanghai. Miss Wambold of Seoul. Consul-General Sir Pelham and Miss Warren of Shanghai. Mr. Warren of Changsha. Mr. Watson of Mukden. Dr. and Mrs. Weir of Chemulpo. Dr. and Mrs. Wells of Pyeng-Yang. Consul and Mrs. Willis of Mukden. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson of Changsha. Mr. Yih-Ming-Tsah of Shanghai. Père Recteur of Ziccawei, Shanghai, and many others.