ployed definite means. The first step was to secure a base, from which to radiate their forces of influence. After this, the railroad was usually employed to extend from the base to the interior, thus dominating the economic life of the sphere. To finance the railway, mining, and other forms of economic exploitation, a foreign bank was usually established. Thus came into existence what was commonly called the policy of conquest by railroad and bank. And in order to avoid international conflicts, the powers made agreements among themselves that they would respect each other's spheres of influence.

Having seen the general characteristics of the period, let us now return to the point where we left off at the last period, that is, the Chino-Japanese War. As we have seen, this war imposed on China an indemnity of 230,000,000 taels to be paid in seven years with interest or in three years without interest. In order to save interest, the Chinese Government strove to pay off the indemnity in three years. To this end, foreign loans were contracted, and here we first witnessed international rivalry or struggle. France and Russia obtained in 1895 the concession of the first loan of 400,000,000 francs.1 This excited the jealousy of Great Britain, who feared that the success of the Franco-Russian diplomacy would upset the balance of power and hurt British prestige. So the subsequent loans were obtained by Great Britain in partnership with Germany? IGANS

As we recall, the retrocession of Liaotung was due to the tripartite intervention on the part of Russia, Germany and France. These three Powers did not engineer their intervention merely for the sake of China, but rather to charge the account of service to the Empire. On June 20, 1895, by two separate conventions, France obtained a delimitation of the boundaries between Tonkin and China, much in favor of France, including the alienation of a part of Kiang Hung, for

which China was later penalized by Great Britain by the agreement of February 4, 1887, according to which China lost her sovereign rights over some frontier lands bordering on Burma. France also secured the opening to trade of Lungchow, Mengtze, Ho-Keou," and Szemao, special mining privileges in Yunnan, Kwangsi, and Kwangtung, and the right of extension of the Annam railway into China.

Russia was not slow in exacting her share of reward. By the Convention of September 8, 1896," she secured the right to extend the Trans-Siberian Railway through Northern Manchuria to Vladivostok, thereby obviating the longer and more expensive route of running along the Amur and Ussuri rivers, earmarked Kiaochou and Port Arthur as the naval bases of Russia, and obtained the mining privileges in Heilungkiang, Kirin, and along the Long White Mountain Ranges.

Germany was the third of the tripartite Powers that composed the Liaotung intervention of 1895. She waited for her chance of obtaining her reward. When, in November, 1897, two of her Catholic priests were murdered in Kiachwang, Shantung, she immediately seized Kiaochow Bay and demanded its lease besides redress for the murder. As a consequence of this high-handed action, the Kiaochow lease convention was signed on March 6, 1898.10 Under Section 1 Kiaochau was leased to Germany for ninety-nine years (Art. 2). The jurisdiction over the leased territory was to be exercised by Germany (Art. 3). A neutral zone of fifty kilometers was provided, in which Germany was to have the right of free passage of her army, and China was to abstain from taking any measures without the previous consent of the German Government. Under Section 2 Germany obtained the concessions of two railways in Shangtung, one to run from Kiaochau to Chinan and the Shantung frontier, the other from Kiaochau to I-Chou, and thence past

Laiwuhsien to Chinan. Under Section 3 she secured the first option in any undertaking in which foreign assistance was needed.10

This was the first wanton assault on the sovereignty : and integrity of China. By the doctrine and operation of the balance of power, the other European states immediately followed suit. Russia seized Port Arthur and Talienwan in December, 1897, and later demanded the lease thereof. Consequently the agreement was signed on on March 27, 1898.11 Port Arthur and Talienwan were leased to Russia (Art. 1) for a term of twenty-five years, with the privilege of the renewal (Art. 3). The jurisdiction of the leased territory for the term of the lease, was to be exercised by Russia (Art. 4). A neutral territory north of the leasehold was to be provided, in which the Chinese Government was still to retain its jurisdiction, but was not to send any troops except with the consent of Russia (Art. 5). Port Arthur was to be a closed port (Art. 6), which only Chinese and Russian vessels were allowed to use, but Talienwan, with the exception of a part reserved like Port Arthur, was to be an open port (Art. 6). The right of extension from a point in the Trans-Siberian Railway in Northern Manchuria to a point in Liaotung Peninsula was granted on the same principle as that applied in the grant of the Trans-Siberian Railway through Northern Manchuria in 1896. Subsequently, on May 7, 1898, an additional agreement between China and Russia was signed respecting the boundaries of Port Arthur and Talienwan 12 and defining the Russian rights in the neutral zone.

Following upon the heels of Russia came France. She demanded the lease of Kwangchouwan, the right to build a railway from Tonkin to Yunnan, and a representative of the French nationality for the head of the Chinese Post Office staff. By an exchange of notes of April 9/10, 1898,13 all these concessions were granted. In the draft convention for the lease of Kwangchouwan of

1898,14 the lease was arranged for ninety-nine years (Art. 1); the French administration of the leased territory was conceded (Art. 3); the right of fortification and garrison by France (Art. 4) and the concession of a railroad from Kwangchouwan to Leichou or to a point in the neighborhood thereof (Art. 7) were also granted.

Compelled by the driving force of the balance of power, Great Britain could not stand idle. To compensate for the damages incurred by the gains of the other Powers, Great Britain likewise stretched out her hands and snatched concessions and leases necessary for selfdefense and for the preservation of the balance of power. On February 4, 1897, by the agreement modifying the Convention of 1894 relative to the boundaries between Burma and China, in order "to waive its objections to the alienation by China, by the Convention with France of the 20th of June, 1895, of territory forming a portion of Kiang Hung, in derogation of the provisions of the Convention between Great Britain and China of the 1st March, 1894," 15 Great Britain secured a re-delimitation of the boundaries between Burma and China, much to the favor of Great Britain, and also obtained a concession for the connection of the Yunnan and Burmese Railway.16 By the Convention of June 9, 1898, the territory of Hong Kong was extended to include Deep Bay and Mirs Bay and the lease of the extension was for ninety-nine years. Finally, by the Convention of July 1, 1898,18 Great Britain obtained the lease of Weihaiwei, "for so long a period as Port Arthur shall remain in the occupation of Russia." 19 "The territory leased shall comprise the Island of Liu Kung, and all the islands in the Bay of Weihaiwei, and a belt of land ten English miles wide along the entire coast line of the Bay of Weihaiwei. Within the above-mentioned territory leased Great Britain shall have the sole jurisdiction." 20

On February 13, 1898, Great Britain further

obtained the declaration that the Inspector-general of the Maritime Customs should be a British subject while British trade predominates.21

Following the example of the other great Powers of Europe, Italy, in February, 1899, also attempted to lease a naval base in China. She demanded the Sanmen Bay in Chekiang. But she came too late. The control of the Peking Court had already changed hands from the feeble Emperor Kwang Hsu, to the master mind, the Empress Dowager, Tse Hsi. The latter ordered the Yangtze viceroys on the seacoast to make preparations to resist with force. In face of this determined resistance, Italy withdrew her demands.

In addition to leases and concessions, the Powers put in the prior claims on their various spheres of influence. by means of the declaration of non-alienation. On their face these declarations were nothing more than mere utterances from a territorial sovereign that these various spheres of influence would not be ceded in any form to any power; but in reality, and in spirit, the Powers understood them to mean that, by receiving these pledges of non-alienation, they had a prior claim to their respective spheres of influence. Accordingly, France obtained the declaration of non-alienation of the Island of Hainan on March 15, 1897.22 Later, on April 10, 1898, she secured the declaration of non-alienation of the territory bordering on Tonkin.23 Likewise, on February 11, 1898, Great Britain procured the declaration of nonalienation of the Yangtze Valley.24 On April 26, 1898, Japan received a declaration concerning the non-alienation of Fukien.25 By an exchange of notes annexed to the Treaty of May 25, 1915, respecting the Province of Shantung, Japan also secured the pledge from China that "within the Province of Shantung or along its coasts no territory or island shall be leased or ceded to any foreign power under any pretext." 26 By the Presidential Mandate of May 13, 1915, and in response to the