Provisions of this sort would naturally carry no weight
with generals of the type of Chang Hsun, of whom it is said that
until recent years he possessed only the most elementary
education; but it is a dismal thing to have to record that the
Conservative Party in China should have adopted a platform of
brute force in the year of grace, 1917.
MANDATE DISSOLVING PARLIAMENT
In the 6th month of last year I promulgated a Mandate stating that
in order to make a Constitution it was imperative that Parliament
should be convened. The Republic was inaugurated five years ago
and yet there was no Constitution, which should be the fundamental
law of a nation, therefore it was ordered that Parliament be re-
convened to make the Constitution, etc., at once.
Therefore the main object for the re-convocation of Parliament was
to make a formal constitution for the country. Recently a petition
was received from Meng En-yuen, Tu-chun of Kirin, and others, to
the effect that "in the articles passed by the Constitution
Conference there were several points as follows: 'when the House
of Representatives passes a vote of want of confidence against the
Cabinet Ministers, the President may dismiss the Cabinet
Ministers, or dissolve the said House, but the dissolution of the
House shall have the approval of the Senate.' Again, 'When the
President dismisses his Prime Minister, it is unnecessary for him
to secure the counter-signature of the Cabinet Ministers.
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