ABSTRACT
The ancient practice of government formed the material on which author contemplated and wrote and from which he sought the betterment of the people. The mandates of the emperor, instead of being issued in a commanding tone, reasoned with the people, and expected to win by reasoning rather than by exacting the people's obedience to laws; the written regulations were to be upheld because of their reasonableness rather than executed because of the fact that they were backed by governmental authority. A government of men was advocated instead of a government of law. Since the governments in the different dynasties were only chips of the old Confucian block, their weakness and strength can be easily described. The peculiar conditions under which the Manchu Dynasty was founded demand a treatment of the theoretical basis, particularly as related to the Tsing Dynasty, in addition to a general discussion applicable to all dynasties alike.
