(2) Article 2 provides:  “The citizens’ representatives shall be elected by separate ballot signed by the person voting.  The person who obtains the greatest number of votes cast shall be declared elected.”

The citizens’ representatives, though nominally elected by the electors, are really appointed beforehand by you acting in the capacity of Superintendent of Election.  The principle of separate signed ballot is adopted in this article with the object of preventing the voters from casting their votes otherwise than as directed, and of awakening in them a sense of responsibility for their votes....

These admirable principles having been officially laid down by Peking, it is not hard to understand that the Military and Civil Governors in the provinces, being anxious to retain their posts and conciliate the great personage who would be king, gave the problem their most earnest attention, and left no stone unturned to secure that there should be no awkward contretemps.  On the 28th September, the Peking Government, being now entirely surrendered into the hands of the plotters, thought it advisable to give the common people a direct hint of what was coming, by sending circular instructions regarding the non-observance of the Republican anniversary (10th October).  The message in question is so frankly ingenuous that it merits inclusion in this singular dossier: 

    CODE TELEGRAM DATED SEPTEMBER 26, 1915, FROM THE COUNCIL OF STATE TO
    THE MILITARY AND CIVIL GOVERNORS OF THE PROVINCES RESPECTING THE
    NON-OBSERVANCE OF THE ANNIVERSARY OF THE REPUBLIC

    To the Military and Civil Governors and the Military Commissioners
    of the Provinces and the Intendant of Shanghai:—­

    (Code Telegram)

Now that a monarchical form of government has been advocated, the National Anniversary in commemoration of the Republic should, of course, be observed with least possible display, under the pretext either of the necessity for economy owing to the impoverished condition of the people, or of the advisability of celebrating the occasion quietly so as to prevent disturbances arising in consequence of the many rumours now afloat.  In this way public peace and order may be maintained on the one hand, money and trouble saved on the other.  How to put this suggestion into practice will be left to your discretion.

    (Signed) COUNCIL OF STATE.

By October such progress had been made in Peking in the general work of organizing this coup d’etat that, as we have seen, the Senate had passed on the 6th of that month the so-called “King-making Bill.”  The very next day, so that nothing should be left in doubt, the following circular telegram was dispatched to all the provinces: