China's Hatred

Of Japan

"Manchukuo" is an Offence

DR. Tuan Mao Lan, Consul-General for China, was the guest of honour and speaker at the September meeting of the Pacific Islands Society. Mr.

Alfred E. Stephen, the president, when welcoming Dr. Tuan, said he was a doc tor of philosophy of the Nan Tai Univer sity, at Tientsen, and he had held vari ous important diplomatic offices before coming to Australia.

Dr. Tuan described Chinese political and national evolution, the struggle between ancient Chinese traditions of human philosophy and the assimilation of modern world conditions, and how the teachings of Confucius, Mencius, Taoism and of Buddha had in turn cultivated a restrained philosophical outlook on life and thought which made it difficult for the mass of Chinese people to adopt modern world customs.

The fall of the corrupt Manchu Dyn asty, and the revolution of 30 years ago, he said, established a new era, when the Chinese instituted a republican system of government. This awakening of China, and the adoption of many institutions of

democratic government, seemed to alarm the Japanese, who embarked on various subtle methods of peaceful penetration in order to disrupt China’s rapid progress.

They encouraged vices, and the disor ganisation of Chinese national works by bribery, etc.

Manchuria was set up by the Japan ese military missions as a separate king dom, with a puppet Emperor, Pu Yi, and a Government which was subject to the will of Japan. The name “Manchukuo” (which was assigned to Manchuria by Japan) means “the Kingdom of Man churia” and it is very offensive to Chin ese nationalists.

Japanese military aggression and ruth lessness, he said, have done more to unite the Chinese nation, in seven years, than centuries of peaceful conditions would possibly have done.

The sufferings of the Chinese people have not broken their morale; and they recognise better the importance of their Allies in this world conflict. Large Chin ese colonies exist in the Philippines, Malaya, and Dutch East Indies; and Japanese domination in the Pacific is opposed vigorously by the Chinese Nationalists.

Melanesian Mission Headquarters in Sydney report “all well” with their Islands’ missionaries.

News is to hand of the death, some time ago, of Mr. A. H. Nicholls, formerly Chief of Customs in the New Hebrides.

Mr. Nicholls had been in the service of the New Hebrides Condominium for 12 years. He had previously resided in New Caledonia, where he had been connected with mining activities since his early manhood. His father was one of the early mining pioneers of New Caledonia.

Major E. G. A. Lett, of the East Sur rey Regiment, and a son of Mr. Lewis Lett, of Port Moresby, Papua, was re ported “missing” in Libya, and is now officially reported to be a prisoner of war in Italy. He was attached to an Indian Division, and he and his Indians saw a great deal of fighting in Abyssinia and Libya, and were several times men tioned in despatches.