His policy was shown
to be not only psychologically accurate, but masterly in a
political sense. The greatest ally of honesty in China has always
been time, the inherent decency of the race finally discrediting
scoundrelism in every period of Chinese history.
The year 1914 dawned with so many obstacles removed that Yuan
Shih-kai became more and more peremptory in his methods. In
February the young Empress Lun Yi, widow of the Emperor Kwang Hsu,
who two years previously in her character of guardian of the boy-
Emperor Hsuan Tung, had been cajoled into sanctioning the
Abdication Edicts, unexpectedly expired, her death creating
profound emotion because it snapped the last link with the past.
Yuan Shih-kai's position was considerably strengthened by this
auspicious event which secretly greatly delighted him; and by his
order for three days the defunct Empress lay in State in the Grand
Hall of the Winter Palace and received the obeisance of countless
multitudes who appeared strangely moved by this hitherto unknown
procedure. There was now only a nine-year old boy between the
Dictator and his highest ambitions. Two final problems still
remained to be dealt with: to give a legal form to a purely
autocratic rule, and to find money to govern the country. The
second matter was vastly more important than the first to a man
who did not hesitate to base his whole polity on the teachings of
Machiavelli, legality being looked upon as only so much political
window-dressing to placate foreign opinion and prevent
intervention, whilst without money even the semblance of the
rights of eminent domain could not be preserved.
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