The highest positions in the state have always been open, through the medium of competitive examinations, to the humblest peasant in the empire.

It is solely a question of natural ability coupled with an intellectual training; and of the latter, it has already been shown that there is no lack at the disposal of even the poorest.

China, then, according to a high authority, has always been at the highest rung of the democratic ladder; for it was no less a person than Napoleon who said: "Reasonable democracy will never aspire to anything more than obtaining an equal power of elevation for all." In order to enforce their rights by the simplest and most bloodless means, the Chinese have steadily cultivated the art of combining together, and have thus armed themselves with an immaterial, invisible weapon which simply paralyses the aggressor, and ultimately leaves them masters of the field.

The extraordinary part of a Chinese boycott or strike is the absolute fidelity by which it is observed.

If the boatmen or chair-coolies at any place strike, they all strike; there are no blacklegs.