At the end of 1917, six years after the overthrow of the Ch’ing dynasty, there were signs that Washington was finally about to put some financial muscle behind its strategy in Asia. Lansing proposed that $50 million would be provided for military reconstruction and the development of the Southern railway network. A further $100 million would help to stabilize the Chinese currency. The funds were be raised by an international bankers’ consortium with Wall Street taking the lead.46 Wilson approved the scheme and the War Department was keen on the idea of moving an army of 100,000 Chinese
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