News of the Week
IT is certain now that the Government will not be diverted from their policy of self-restraint in China. They are quite right, of course, to draw a clear distinction between schemes of war and the obvious and elementary duty of protecting British nationals. The movements of ships and men are intended entirely for the latter purpose and do not carry the interpretation placed upon.them by some excitable newspapers. Naturally, the Cabinet has been much perturbed by what has been happening in China and, above all, by the refusal of the Kuomintang so far to consider the sincere and generous proposals made to it. The Cabinet has met several times during the .past week. The main danger is that self-defence might' be transformed by some incident, not of our own seeking, into a conflict with Cantonese troops. It is extremely difficult to keep on the right side of the line when the distinctions drawn are necessarily delicate and the actions of the Nationalists are incalculable.
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