[Footnote: As there is a good deal of misunderstanding on the
subject of the Manchus an explanatory note is useful.

The Manchu people, who belong to the Mongol or Turanian Group,
number at the maximum five million souls. Their distribution at
the time of the revolution of 1911 was roughly as follows: In and
around Peking say two millions, in posts through China say one-
half million,--or possibly three-quarters of a million; in
Manchuria Proper--the home of the race--say two or two and a half
millions. The fighting force was composed in this fashion: When
Peking fell into their hands in 1644 as a result of a stratagem
combined with dissensions among the Chinese themselves, the entire
armed strength was re-organized in Eight Banners or Army Corps,
each corps being composed of three racial divisions, (1) pure
Manchus, (2) Mongols who had assisted in the conquest and (3)
Nothern Chinese who had gone over to the conquerors. These Eight
Banners, each commanded by an "iron-capped" Prince, represented
the authority of the Throne and had their headquarters in Peking
with small garrisons throughout the provinces at various strategic
centres. These garrisons had entirely ceased to have any value
before the 18th Century had closed and were therefore pure
ceremonial and symbolic, all the fighting being done by special
Chinese corps which were raised as neccessity arose.]

The history of the Nineteenth Century is thus logically enough the
history of successive collapses. Not only did overseas foreigners
openly thunder at the gateways of the empire and force an ingress,
but native rebellions were constant and common. Leaving minor
disturbances out of account, there were during this period two
huge Mahommedan rebellions, besides the cataclysmic Taiping rising