依法治国是历史发展的必然──中国近代法律思想研究的若干思考

The Necessity of Historical Development to Manage State Affairs in Accordance with the Law ─ Reflections on Researches into Chinese Legal Ideas in Modern Times

依法治国，建设法治国家，是社会文明进步的重要标志，也是中国历史发展的必然方向。中国近代法律思想发展的历史线索表明这一历史时期是封建正统法律思想逐步瓦解，是由人治“逐步向法治”演变的重要历史阶段，揭示出近代中国法律思想发展的历史特点是围绕救亡图存这一历史背景所表现出来的思想变化迅速、争锋激烈以及三种进步思潮纵横交错构成主流。总结中国近代法律思想发展的历史启示，在于指出依法治国是历史发展的必然。

It is an important sign of the social civilization and progress for a country to manage state affairs in comformity with legal provisions and to build itself into the one under rule by law. And this might as well point to the inexorable orientation of China's historical development. The historical clues for evolutionary changes in Chinese legal ideas in modern times make clear that this historical period is the one during which the orthodox ideology of feudal legality witnesses its gradual disintegration, an important phase of history in a process of change from rule by men 'progressively' to rule by law.