THE CHINESE NAVY.
THE launch, a few weeks ago, at Stettin, of the turret- ironclad ' Ting-yuen ' serves to attract attention to the steps which the Chinese Government has for some time been taking towards strengthening the naval defences of its terri- tory. The activity recently shown by the Chinese in this par- ticular direction is the more important because, in thus seeking to establish a strong and efficient marine, they are, in a greater degree than is observable in any other of their public depart- ments, imitating the condition of things prevailing in Europe. Here, at least, they are casting tradition to the winds, and emulating with fervour the example of the West. The Chinese have rarely been famed as naval heroes, the genius of the nation has never shone on the sea, and, strange as it may appear, it would task the memory of the most erudite professor of the Hanlin College to call to mind, in the long annals of the Empire, a single victory at sea which could be said, by any fair stretch of language, to be of national importance, while he would have no difficulty in discovering naval dis- asters. In this respect they have always appeared at a disadvantage, in comparison with their neighbours the Japanese, with whom the spirit of adventure has ever been stronger, and who have played in the waters of the Far East the part of sea-rovers or pirates from immemorial antiquity. This naval incapacity has always perplexed the historical student, for he has had to reconcile with it the indisputable fact that the seaboard population of China represents as excel- lent a recruiting-ground as any in the world for the main- tenance of a great navy. In numbers, in physical endurance, and even in experience of the sea, they are not to he surpassed by any other population similarly situated. From their ranks arose the one popular naval hero that China possesses, the pirate or patriot Koshinga, of the seventeenth century. With these facts in our mind, we may now take an instructive glance at the navy which China is rapidly creating, and which already contains the promise of future power.
The Chinese Navy consists in all of about seventy war- vessels, constructed partly in foreign and partly in home dock- yards, but all on the lines of European ships of similar class. A commencement was first made in the formation of this fleet twenty years ago, after the contest with the Allied Powers of England and France had clearly shown the utter inability of the old war-junk to cope with even wooden vessels. The obligations which the Chinese incurred under the treaties of Tientsin and Pekin for the repression of piracy, rendered it necessary for them to purchase gunboats suitable for action in the estuaries of the great rivers and off the coasts of the maritime provinces. These gunboats, which were generally the cast-offs of American or English dockyards, formed the nucleus of the modern Chinese Navy. Europeans and Americans were appointed to their command, and although utterly valueless in war, they were held by many to suffice for the requirements of the Chinese. During more than ten years, the Chinese themselves appeared to share the same opinion, and nothing was done to increase the efficiency of their Navy. It is possible that even now no progress would in this matter have to be recorded, but for the jealousy and apprehension raised in their breasts by the rapid development in the naval resources of Japan. The imminence of a hostile collision six years ago, in consequence of the Formosa difficulty, first roused the attention of the Pekin authorities to the condition of their Navy, and their interest has been kept alive in the same matter by the possibility of complications arising from the unsettled diplomatic questions relating to both Corea and the Loo Choo Islands. The explanation of the steps taken a few years ago to increase the number of vessels constituting the Chinese Fleet, is to be found in the feverish anxiety of the Japanese to obtain a powerful navy ; but China awoke so late to the exigencies of her situation, that appear- ances favoured the supposition that she had been hope- lessly left behind by her more agile and enterprising rival in the race for Naval superiority. After due deliberation, the Chinese, who resolved to spend only a moderate sum in the purchase of men-of-war, gave that commission which resulted in the ordering from the eminent Naval constructor Sir W. Armstrong of the gunboats known by the first twelve letters of the Greek alphabet. The Chinese were so pleased with their
new purchase, that they gave a further order for two more war- vessels of a superior class. These latter vessels are remarkable for their high rate of speed, and for the formidable character of their armament ; and they are quite capable of taking part in a regular battle, and of keeping at sea for a considerable period. The' Ting-yuen 'is a further addition to the sea-going vessels of the Chinese marine, and carries the growth of the Navy one step further. There is no doubt that it is the most formidable of them all, for whereas the ships constructed by Sir W. Armstrong are unarmoured, and depend for their safety on the small object they present as a mark, the ' Ting-yuen ' is a heavily-armoured, double-turretted cor- vette. A twin-vessel is in course of construction, and within the next few months the Chinese Navy will have been reinforced by these two formidable men-of-war. China will then possess a fleet, as we said, of about seventy vessels, of which sixteen will compare for efficiency with those of any other navy. The remainder consist of gunboats and other ships well suited for the duties of the preventive service, and useful as transports in time of war. The steamers of the North China Navigation Company, an association under the influence of Li Hung Chang, are also available for the latter purpose. Nor are the Chinese dependent alone on foreign dockyards and manufacturers. The attention they have devoted to their arsenal and shipyard at Kiangnan is beginning to repay them well, as they now possess a dock in which their men-of-war can be repaired ; and, in course of time, they will be able, by the aid of Western engineers and constructors, to build for themselves more ships from the models of those they have purchased. China is, therefore, on the road to obtain a fleet of war-vessels which will place her on more than a par with her neighbour Japan, and which will enable her to maintain her dignity in her own waters. The significance of this fact is the more striking, because China, unlike Japan, has not strained her material resources by these purchases of gunboats and ironclads. Good-sense has characterised all her trans- actions, and unlike most Eastern Governments, she seems to have really obtained the full value of her money.
But the Chinese will have to remember, when all has been admitted in favour of the admirable type of war-vessel which they have selected, that the efficiency of a navy depends quite as much on the condition and discipline of. the men, as on the capabilities of the ships. In the direction of training their sailors and of organising a corps of officers, they have still much to do, and, perhaps, everything to learn. The Pekin authorities will have to encounter in this matter many deeply-rooted prejudices, and it will require much tact and patience on their part to eradicate them. The Chinese man-of-war's man of the present may be open to ridicule, but he has the stuff in him of which good seamen are made. But the healthy influ- ences which are to assist in his elevation must come from above, and Li Hung Chang, who has taken the lead in the founding of the Chinese Navy, will have to exercise all his influence to remove incompetence and corruption from the ranks of the officers and superintendents of his Fleet. The Chinese Ambassador at Berlin dwelt on the peaceful objects of his Government ; but there is, evidently, more importance in the declaration of the part a fleet will play, in " guarantee- ing those rights to the Chinese Empire mutually recognised and accorded by the civilised States of modern times." Meantime, China is fast attaining a position which will enable her to resist the encroachments of Japan. The Loo Choo dispute is so far from being settled that diplo- macy has now given it up in despair, but the last Chinese declaration on the subject was that they " intended to main- tain their rights." In Corea, affairs are also critical, and the interference of the Japanese on the mainland is regarded as an almost intolerable impertinence. Without a Navy, China could do nothing; the activity shown in supplying the defi- ciency hardly leaves room for doubt as to the first use in which it will be employed. The Loo Choo question is one of scarcely more than fifth-rate importance, but who doubts, if France were to seize one of the Channel Isles, or Germany to make a swoop on Heligoland, that the outrage, practically unimportant as it might be in material consequences, would be productive of war ? The case of Loo Choo is almost exactly similar, and "the greatest nation of the Asiatic continent" is not likely to show less persistency in this matter than it has already in the case of Kuldja. The progress made by the Chinese in naval matters is some further evidence that this Empire, with its vast population, strange history, and enormous material re- sources, is not standing still ; and the world can hardly re- main unaffected by its development and progress.
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