THE EVOLUTION OF CHINA 437 



biological organism. The conditio sine qua non of all social 

 existence is that a society should be able to adapt itself to its 

 conditions of existence. All change in the structure and in the 

 organisation of societies is brought about solely by change in the 

 environment in which that society lives. As with species so 

 with societies ; as long as the environment remains constant, the 

 species or the society remains constant. If this environment 

 changes, the species or the society undergoes a corresponding 

 change. If the great Chinese Empire remained absolutely 

 stationary — or nearly so, for all things are relative — for three 

 thousand years or more, the reason is to be found in the con- 

 stancy of its environment. Until the middle of the nineteenth 

 century China was shut out from the rest of the civilised world. 

 With the British expedition of 1860 a change set in. This ex- 

 pedition was itself but the result of the modifications effected 

 in the political situation of the whole world by the progress of 

 the applied sciences. Faster ships and increased facilities for 

 transport had gradually brought China into touch with the 

 Western world. And, ever since the first treaty ports were 

 opened, this process of bringing China nearer to the West has 

 gone steadily forward. To-day the different Western Powers 

 are rivals in the Chinese market ; China is being " opened up " 

 by Western capitaHsts, railways are being constructed in her 

 interior, and one is projected, and will probably soon be com- 

 pleted, which is to join the capital of the Middle Empire with 

 Moscow, and via Moscow with Berlin and Paris. So profound a 

 modification of the situation of China cannot but bring equally 

 profoimd internal changes in the whole fabric of Chinese society. 

 True, the Chinese Empire is very vast, and news penetrates but 

 slowly and scantily, if at aU, into the interior ; but the move- 

 ment which has commenced cannot be checked, and must result 

 in the modification of China. Either the Chinese Empire will 

 have to adapt itself, as Japan did, to the new situation created 

 by the intervention of Europe in the affairs of the Far East ; and. 



