The setting of the scene for the Tariff Conference at
Peking could hardly be worse, as the civil war has flared up' again and reached a more acute phase. The confusion is so great that it is almost impossible to disentangle coherent facts. It is plain, however, that the war between Chekiang and Kiangsu threatens to become general. General Wu Pei-fu, who has emerged from his retirement, is the centre of many rumours. The Peking correspondent of the Times says that the intentions of Feng, the Christian General, are still quite uncertain, but the official expecta- tion is that he will remain inactive. There is no doubt, the correspondent adds, that the most far reaching developments are possible, but until the Hupeh and Honan provinces and General Feng declare themselves nothing is certain. General Chang's retirement from the Yatigtse, though it has damaged his prestige, makes him all the- more formidable in the North, and it is just possible therefore that he may be able to prevent tile conflict from spreading in that direction. Reuter's correspondent Says that Wu Pei-fu has definitely declared himsell against Peking and against Chang.
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