History for ready reference, Volume 6

by J. N. Larned

Map of Central America showing the Isthmian Canal Routes

{67}
CANAL, Interoceanic, A. D. 1900 (November).
Preliminary report of the Isthmian Canal Commission in
favor of the Nicaragua route.
The preliminary report of the Isthmian Canal Commission,
appointed under the Act of March 3, 1899, was presented to the
President on the 30th November, 1900, and communicated to
Congress at the opening of the session. The Commission
reported in favor of the Nicaragua route, essentially on the
lines laid down by the previous Nicaragua Canal Commission, as
defined above. It found that the choice of routes lies between
this and the route of the partly constructed Panama Canal, and
its discussion of the question presented the following views:
"(a) Between New York and San Francisco, the Nicaragua Canal
route would be 377 nautical miles shorter than the Panama
route. Between New Orleans and San Francisco 579 miles would
be saved, and, in general, the distances between the Atlantic
and Pacific ports of the United States are less by way of
Nicaragua. Between our east coast and Yokohama and Shanghai
the Nicaragua route is somewhat shorter, but for the trade of
our eastern ports with the west coast of South America the
Panama route is not so long as the Nicaragua.
(b) A part of the saving in distance effected by using a
Nicaragua canal instead of one at Panama would be offset by
the longer time of transit at Nicaragua. An average steamer
would require twelve hours to make the passage through the
Panama Canal, and thirty-three through one across Nicaragua.
For a 10-knot steamer this difference of twenty-one hours
would be equivalent to 210 knots difference in distance, and
for a 13-knot steamer, the difference in time of transit would
be equivalent to 273 knots.
(c) The Nicaragua route would be the more favorable one for
sailing vessels because of the uncertain winds in the bay of
Panama. It would not be impossible for sailing vessels to use
the Panama Canal, but for average voyages between the two
seaboards of the United States, a sailing vessel would require
about nine days additional time to make the passage by way of
the Panama Canal. However, neither route would be much used by
sailing vessels, because of their inability to compete with
steamers. They would certainly not be able to compete with
steamers, both using the Panama Canal.
(d) For the promotion of the domestic trade of the United
States, the Nicaragua route would possess advantages over the
Panama route, because the distance between our two seaboards
is less. For our trade with Japan, China, the Philippines, and
Australia, the advantages of the two routes are nearly equal,
the distance by way of the Nicaragua route being slightly
less. For our trade with South America the Panama route is
shorter and more direct.
(e) The industrial changes which the Nicaragua Canal would
produce in the countries through which it will pass would be
great. Nicaragua and Costa Rica comprise a region capable of
producing a large amount of tropical products for which there
is a demand in Europe and the United States. A canal across
their territory would give a great impetus to their economic
development.
"A careful examination has been made of all the rights,
privileges, and franchises held and owned by corporations,
associations, and individuals at the different canal routes.
This necessarily included a study of the treaties relating to
the establishment of an interoceanic communication made by the
Republics, whose territory is to be occupied, and by the
United States, with one another, and also with foreign
governments. The treaties heretofore made exclude all idea of
a relinquishment of sovereignty over any of the proposed
routes. In most of them the right of transit and the innocent
use of the communication, whether by railway or canal, is
granted to the other contracting party, its citizens and
subjects, to be enjoyed upon equal terms with other
governments and people; and the leading commercial nations of
the world have committed themselves to the policy of
neutrality at the different routes, and some of them have
obligated themselves to use their influence to induce other
nations to agree to the same policy. No existing treaties
between the United States and the Republics of Nicaragua and
Costa Rica, or of Colombia, give our Government the right to
excavate and operate a maritime canal through any of these
countries. The concessions granted by the different Republics
through whose territory the lines of the projected canals
extend, in terms, exclude the right of the companies holding
them to transfer them to any foreign government, and further
treaty rights must be acquired to enable the United States to
undertake the excavation of a navigable waterway between the
two oceans in a governmental capacity. The only prior
obligations to corporations, associations, or individuals in
the way of a direct agreement between the United States and
Nicaragua authorizing our Government to construct a canal
across the territory of the latter, to be under its control,
management, and ownership, have been eliminated by the
forfeiture and termination of the contracts with the Maritime
Canal Company of Nicaragua and the Interoceanic Canal Company.
In view of this declaration the Commission has not made any
effort to ascertain the cost at which the concessions of these
companies can be purchased, for if these forfeitures are final
the rights formerly granted to these companies are not in the
way of diplomatic negotiations with the Government interested
to acquire the consent and authority necessary for the
construction of a canal by this route. The situation in Costa
Rica is practically the same.
"The situation at Panama is different. The Republic of
Colombia first granted a concession to the Panama Railroad
Company, giving it exclusive privileges on the Isthmus, which
will continue according to modifications afterwards made for
ninety-nine years from August 16, 1867. A later concession to
the Panama Canal Company required it to enter into some
amicable arrangement with the railroad company under which the
former might occupy the territory along or near its line. The
canal company acquired by purchase a majority of the railroad
stock, and the necessary arrangements were made. This stock is
now under the control of the New Panama Canal Company, which
gives it a directing influence in both organizations. The
canal concession is to continue according to its latest
extension for ninety-nine years from the day on which the
canal shall be wholly or partially opened to public service,
and the date fixed for this in the contract is October 31,
1910. Should it fail and the concession be forfeited the
company will still have exclusive control of the territory
through which its line extends till 1966 under the railroad
concession. The canal company is absolutely prohibited to cede
or mortgage its rights under any consideration whatever to any
nation or foreign government under penalty of forfeiture.
{68}
The contract with the railroad company contains a like
prohibition and declares further that the pain of forfeiture
will be incurred by the mere act of attempting to cede or
transfer its privilege to a foreign government and such an act
is declared absolutely null and of no value or effect. These
concessions, if acquired by the United States, would not give
to the Government the control and ownership evidently
contemplated by the law, that is, an absolute ownership in
perpetuity. The right under the contract with the railroad
company is designated as 'the use and possession' of the
property for ninety-nine years, and it is provided that 'at
the expiration of the term of the privilege' and by the sole
fact of the expiration, the Government of Colombia shall be
substituted in all the rights of the company and shall
immediately enter into the enjoyment of the line of
communication, its fixtures, dependencies and all its
products. The right of the canal company is substantially of
the same character. … An examination of the charter rights of
the New Panama Canal Company under the general incorporation
laws of France and the special legislation in its behalf
resulted in finding an enactment, included in a law passed
June 8, 1888, requiring that all the plant necessary for the
construction of the canal shall be manufactured in France and
that the material must be of French origin. This being the
situation, it was manifest that, even if the privileges of the
companies could be purchased by and transferred to the United
States, they were encumbered with charges and conditions that
would not permit this Government to exercise all the rights of
complete ownership over a canal constructed by it at the
Panama route. A new arrangement is necessary if the United
States is to undertake such a work. The relinquishment by the
canal company, with the consent of Colombia, of the privileges
it has under existing concessions, for a consideration to be
agreed upon with the United States, would leave the way open
for treaty negotiations between the two governments to
ascertain whether Colombia will consent to the occupation of
its territory by the United States for the construction of a
canal to be under Government control, management, and
ownership, and, if so, whether they can agree upon terms
mutually satisfactory. The situation is peculiar, as there are
three parties in interest. The United States can enter into no
agreement with Colombia that does not have the approval of the
company, and the concessions do not permit the company to
transfer or attempt to transfer its rights to a foreign
government.
"The Commission has, however, attempted to ascertain the views
of the New Panama Canal Company with reference to a
disposition and transfer of its rights. Interviews were had
with its president and other officers during the visit to
Paris and on several occasions from time to time since then,
and on the 10th day of April last a formal letter was
addressed to Mr. Maurice Hutin, the president and
director-general, asking whether he was in a position to name
terms upon which the company would dispose of its property and
interests to the United States. At different times since then
the subject has been discussed by the representatives of the
company with the Commission and its committee on rights,
privileges, and franchises, but no formal reply to the letter
was received until this report was being closed. These
conferences and correspondence have resulted in no offer to
dispose of the property and privileges of the company to the
United States upon any terms, even with the consent of the
Colombian Government, nor has the company expressed any desire
or wish to enter into any negotiations with the United States
with reference to such a disposition of its property and
rights. It was proposed by President Hutin that the United
States might obtain control of the canal scheme as a majority
stockholder of a new organization to which the present company
could contribute its concession, plant, unfinished work, and
other property, at a valuation to be determined by
arbitration, and he expressed the opinion that such an
arrangement could be made without violating the concessions.
But this must include some plan for the protection of the
minority stockholders in the financial management, for they
would favor a policy that would realize liberal dividends in
proportion to the commercial value of the canal, while the
policy of this Government might be to reduce tolls and charges
to the cost of maintenance or even below it, if the interests
of the people would be thereby advanced. The plan, however,
which the company prefers is that outlined in its letter of
February 28, 1899, addressed to the President of the United
States, which has been published in Senate Document No. 188,
Fifty-Sixth Congress, first session, pages 41 and 42. This was
to reincorporate under the laws of New York or some other
State, and accord to the United States such representation in
its board of directors and such opportunity to acquire an
interest in its securities as its concessions permitted. And
an assurance was added to the effect that if the United States
should desire to perpetuate or enlarge its existing rights and
privileges acquired under the treaty of 1846, the company
would conform to such supplemental treaty as might be entered
into between the United States and Colombia. The Commission
having no other authority than to make investigations and
obtain information submits this result of its efforts to
ascertain upon what terms the rights and privileges at the
Panama route can be obtained. It is proper to add that the
examination of the title of the present company to the canal
property under the laws of France and Colombia has satisfied
this Commission that the New Panama Canal Company has the
entire control and management of the canal property. …
"The estimated cost of building the Nicaragua Canal is about
$58,000,000 more than that of completing the Panama Canal,
leaving out the cost of acquiring the latter property. This
measures the difference in the magnitude of the obstacles to
be overcome in the actual construction of the two canals, and
covers all physical considerations such as the greater or less
height of dams, the greater or less depth of cuts, the
presence or absence of natural harbors, the presence or
absence of a railroad, the exemption from or liability to
disease, and the amount of work remaining to be done. The New
Panama Canal Company has shown no disposition to sell its
property to the United States. Should that company be able and
willing to sell, there is reason to believe that the price
would not be such as would make the total cost to the United
States less than that of the Nicaragua Canal. … In view of all
the facts, and particularly in view of all the difficulties of
obtaining the necessary rights, privileges, and franchises on
the Panama route, and assuming that Nicaragua and Costa Rica
recognize the value of the canal to themselves and are
prepared to grant concessions on terms which are reasonable
and acceptable to the United States, the Commission is of the
opinion that 'the most practicable and feasible route for' an
isthmian canal to be 'under the control, management, and
ownership of the United States' is that known as the Nicaragua
route."
United States, 56th Congress,
2d Session, Senate Doc. Number 5.
{69}
CANAL, Interoceanic, A. D. 1900 (December).
The Hay-Pauncefote Treaty between the United States and
Great Britain, to facilitate the construction of the Canal,
as amended by the United States Senate.
In his annual Message to Congress, December 3, 1900, President
McKinley had the following to say on the subject of the
Interoceanic Canal: "The all important matter of an
interoceanic canal has assumed a new phase. Adhering to its
refusal to reopen the question of the forfeiture of the
contract of the Maritime Canal Company, which was terminated
for alleged non-execution in October, 1899, the Government of
Nicaragua has since supplemented that action by declaring the
so-styled Eyre-Cragin option void for non-payment of the
stipulated advance. Protests in relation to these acts have
been filed in the State Department, and are under
consideration. Deeming itself relieved from existing
engagements, the Nicaraguan Government shows a disposition to
deal freely with the canal question either in the way of
negotiations with the United States or by taking measures to
promote the waterway. Overtures for a convention to effect the
building of a canal under the auspices of the United States
are under consideration. In the mean time, the views of the
Congress upon the general subject, in the light of the report
of the Commission appointed to examine the comparative merits
of the various trans-isthmian ship canal projects, may be
awaited. I commend to the early attention of the Senate the
convention with Great Britain to facilitate the construction
of such a canal, and to remove any objection which might arise
out of the convention commonly called the Clayton-Bulwer
Treaty."
On the terms of the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty:
See, in volume 4,
NICARAGUA: A. D. 1850.
The Convention thus referred to was negotiated by the
Secretary of State of the United States. Mr. John Hay, with
the British Ambassador to the United States, Lord Pauncefote.
It was signed at Washington on the 5th of February, 1900, and
communicated by the President to the Senate on the same day.
The action of the Senate on the Convention was not taken until
after the opening of the session of Congress in December. It was
then ratified (December 20), but with three amendments which
seriously changed its character. The following is the text of
the Convention as ratified, with the Senate amendments
indicated:
"ARTICLE I.
It is agreed that the canal may be constructed under the
auspices of the Government of the United States, either
directly at its own cost, or by gift or loan of money to
individuals or corporations or through subscription to or
purchase of stock or shares, and that, subject to the
provisions of the present Convention, the said Government
shall have and enjoy all the rights incident to such
construction, as well as the exclusive right of providing for
the regulation and management of the canal.
"ARTICLE II.
The High Contracting Parties, desiring to preserve and
maintain the 'general principle' of neutralization established
in Article VIII of the Clayton-Bulwer Convention, [Added by
the Senate] which convention is hereby superseded, adopt, as
the basis of such neutralization, the following rules,
substantially as embodied in the convention between Great
Britain and certain other Powers, signed at Constantinople,
October 29, 1888, for the Free Navigation of the Suez Maritime
Canal, that is to say:
1. The canal shall be free and open, in time of war as in time
of peace, to the vessels of commerce and of war of all
nations, on terms of entire equality, so that there shall be
no discrimination against any nation or its citizens or
subjects in respect of the conditions or charges of traffic,
or otherwise.
2. The canal shall never be blockaded, nor shall any right of
war be exercised nor any act of hostility be committed within
it.
3. Vessels of war of a belligerent shall not revictual nor
take any stores in the canal except so far as may be strictly
necessary; and the transit of such vessels through the canal
shall be effected with the least possible delay, in accordance
with the regulations in force, and with only such intermission
as may result from the necessities of the service. Prizes
shall be in all respects subject to the same rules as vessels
of war of the belligerents.
4. No belligerent shall embark or disembark troops, munitions
of war or warlike materials in the canal except in case of
accidental hindrance of the transit, and in such case the
transit shall be resumed with all possible despatch.
5. The provisions of this article shall apply to waters
adjacent to the canal, within three marine miles of either
end. Vessels of war of a belligerent shall not remain in such
waters longer than twenty-four hours at any one time except in
case of distress, and in such case shall depart as soon as
possible; but a vessel of war of one belligerent shall not
depart within twenty-four hours from the departure of a vessel
of war of the other belligerent. [Added by the Senate] It is
agreed, however, that none of the immediately foregoing
conditions and stipulations in sections numbered one, two,
three, four and five of this article shall apply to measures
which the United States may find it necessary to take for
securing by its own forces the defense of the United States
and the maintenance of public order.
6. The plant, establishments, buildings, and all works
necessary to the construction, maintenance and operation of
the canal shall be deemed to be part thereof, for the purposes
of this Convention, and in time of war as in time of peace
shall enjoy complete immunity from attack or injury by
belligerents and from acts calculated to impair their
usefulness as part of the canal.
7. No fortifications shall be erected commanding the canal or
the waters adjacent. The United States, however, shall be at
liberty to maintain such military police along the canal as
may be necessary to protect it against lawlessness and
disorder.
"ARTICLE III.
The High Contracting Parties will, immediately upon the
exchange of the ratifications of this Convention, bring it to
the notice of the other Powers [and invite them to adhere to
it].
[Stricken out by the Senate.]
"ARTICLE: IV.
The present Convention shall be ratified by the President of
the United States, by and with the advice and consent of the
Senate thereof, and by Her Britannic Majesty; and the
ratifications shall be exchanged at Washington or at London
within six months from the date hereof, or earlier if
possible."
United States, 56th Congress, 1st Session,
Senate Document Number 160.
{70}
Anticipating the ratification of the above Treaty with Great
Britain, the President of the United States, in December,
1900, concluded agreements with the governments of Costa Rica
and Nicaragua, both of which were in the following terms:
"It is agreed between the two Governments that when the
President of the United States is authorized by law to acquire
control of such portion of the territory now belonging to [Costa
Rica and Nicaragua] as may be desirable and necessary on which
to construct and protect a canal of depth and capacity
sufficient for the passage of vessels of the greatest tonnage
and draft now in use from a point near San Juan del Norte, on
the Caribbean Sea, via Lake Nicaragua, to Brito, on the
Pacific Ocean, they mutually engage to enter into negotiations
with each other to settle the plan and the agreements, in detail,
found necessary to accomplish the construction and to provide
for the ownership and control of the proposed canal. As
preliminary to such future negotiations it is forthwith agreed
that the course of said canal and the terminals thereof shall
be the same that were stated in a treaty signed by the
plenipotentiaries of the United States and Great Britain on
February 5, 1900, and now pending in the Senate of the United
States for confirmation, and that the provisions of the same
shall be adhered to by the United States and [Costa Rica and
Nicaragua]." No action on these agreements was taken in the
Senate.
CANAL, Interoceanic, A. D. 1901 (March).
Rejection by the British Government of the Hay-Pauncefote
Treaty as amended by the U. S. Senate.
Early in March, soon after the adjournment of Congress, a
communication from Lord Lansdowne, the British Secretary of
State for Foreign Affairs, declining with courtesy and in
friendly terms to accept the Senate amendments to the
Hay-Pauncefote Treaty, was received by Lord Pauncefote, the
British Ambassador at Washington. The objections urged most
strongly are against those amendments which touch the
neutrality of the proposed canal and its unimpeded use in time
of war as well as in time of peace. "The first of them," said
Lord Lansdowne, "which reserves to the United States the right
of taking any measures which they may find necessary to secure by
their own forces the defence of the United States, appears to
His Majesty's government to involve a distinct departure from
the principle which has until now found acceptance with both
governments; the principle, namely, that in time of war, as
well as in time of peace, the passage of the canal is to
remain free and unimpeded, and is to be so maintained by the
power or powers responsible for its control. Were this
amendment added to the convention the United States would, it
is presumed, be within their rights, if, at any moment when it
seemed to them that their safety required it, in view of
warlike preparations not yet commenced, but contemplated or
supposed to be contemplated by another power, they resorted to
warlike acts in or near the canal—acts clearly inconsistent
with the neutral character which it has always been sought to
give it, and which would deny the free use of it to the
commerce and navies of the world. … If the new clause were to
be added, the obligation to respect the neutrality of the
canal in all circumstances would, so far as Great Britain is
concerned, remain in force; the obligation of the United
States, on the other hand, would be essentially modified. The
result would be a onesided arrangement, under which Great
Britain would be debarred from any warlike action in or around
the canal, while the United States would be liable to resort to
such action to whatever extent they might deem necessary to
secure their own safety."
To the contention that there is a specific prohibition in the
Hay-Pauncefote treaty against the erection of fortifications,
and that this would sufficiently insure the free use of the
canal, Lord Lansdowne replies that this "contention is one
which His Majesty's government are quite unable to admit." He
notes the vagueness of language in the amendment, and says:
"Even if it were more precisely worded it would be impossible
to determine what might be the effect if one clause permitting
defensive measures and another forbidding fortifications were
allowed to stand side by side in the convention. To His
Majesty's government it seems, as I have already said, that
the amendment might be construed as leaving it open to the
United States at any moment, not only if war existed, but even
if it were anticipated, to take any measures, however
stringent or far-reaching, which in their own judgment might
be represented as suitable for the purpose of protecting their
national interests. Such an enactment would strike at the very
root of that 'general principle' of neutralization upon which
the Clayton-Bulwer treaty was based, and which was reaffirmed
in the convention as drafted."
As to the third Senate amendment, which struck out the
provision inviting the adherence of other powers, Lord
Lansdowne says: "The amendment not only removes all prospect
of the wider guarantee of the neutrality of the canal, but
places this country in a position of marked disadvantage
compared with other powers which would not be subject to the
self-denying ordinance which Great Britain is desired to
accept. It would follow, were His Majesty's government to
agree to such an arrangement, that while the United States
would have a treaty right to interfere with the canal in time
of war, or apprehended war, and while other powers could with
a clear conscience disregard any of the restrictions imposed
by the convention, Great Britain alone, in spite of her
enormous possessions on the American Continent, in spite of
the extent of her Australasian colonies and her interests in
the East, would be absolutely precluded from resorting to any
such action or from taking measures to secure her interests in
and near the canal."
The British Minister closes his communication to Lord
Pauncefote as follows: "I request that your excellency will
explain to the Secretary of State the reasons, as set forth in
this dispatch, why His Majesty's government feel unable to
accept the convention in the shape presented to them by the
American Ambassador, and why they prefer, as matters stand at
present, to retain unmodified the provisions of the
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. His Majesty's government have
throughout these negotiations given evidence of their earnest
desire to meet the views of the United States.
{71}
They would on this occasion have been ready to consider in a
friendly spirit any amendments of the convention not
inconsistent with the principles accepted by both governments
which the government of the United States might have desired
to propose, and they would sincerely regret a failure to come
to an amicable understanding in regard to this important
subject."
CANAL, The Kaiser Wilhelm Ship.
See (in this volume)
GERMANY: A. D. 1895 (JUNE).
CANAL, Manchester Ship.
On the 1st of January, 1894, the ship canal from Liverpool to
Manchester, which had been ten years in course of construction
and cost £15,000,000, was formally opened, by a long
procession of steamers, which traversed it in four and a half
hours.
CANAL: The Rhine-Elbe, the Dortmund-Rhine,
and other Prussian projects.
See (in this volume)
GERMANY: A. D. 1890 (AUGUST);
and 1901 (JANUARY).
CANDIA: A. D. 1898 (September).
Fresh outbreak.
See (in this volume)
TURKEY: A. D. 1897-1899.
CANEA: Christian and Moslem conflicts at.
See (in this volume)
TURKEY: A. D. 1897 (FEBRUARY-MARCH).
CANOVAS DEL CASTILLO, Antonio:
Formation of Spanish Cabinet.
See (in this volume)
SPAIN: A. D. 1895-1896.
CANOVAS DEL CASTILLO, Antonio:
Assassination.
See (in this volume)
SPAIN: A. D. 1897 (AUGUST-OCTOBER).
CANTEEN, The Army.
See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
A. D. 1900 (MAY-NOVEMBER), THE PROHIBITION PARTY;
and 1901 (FEBRUARY).
CANTON: A. D. 1894.
The Bubonic Plague.
See (in this volume)
PLAGUE.
CANTON: A. D. 1899.
Increasing piracy in the river.
See (in this volume)
CHINA: A. D. 1899.
CAPE COLONY.
See (in this volume)
SOUTH AFRICA (CAPE COLONY).
CAPE NOME, Gold discovery at.
See (in this volume)
ALASKA: A. D. 1898-1899.
CAPE SAN JUAN, Engagement at.
See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA:
A. D. 1898 (JULY-AUGUST: PORTO RICO).
CARNEGIE, Andrew: Gifts and offers to public libraries.
See (in this volume)
LIBRARIES;
and LIBRARY, NEW YORK PUBLIC.
CARNEGIE COMPANY, Sale of the interests of the.
See (in this volume)
TRUSTS: UNITED STATES.
CAROLINE and MARIANNE ISLANDS:
Their sale by Spain to Germany.
By a treaty concluded in February, 1899, the Caroline Islands,
the Western Carolines or Pelew Islands, and the Marianne or
Ladrone Islands (excepting Guam), were sold by Spain to
Germany for 25,000,000 pesetas—the peseta being equivalent to
a fraction less than twenty cents. Spain reserved the right to
establish and maintain naval and mercantile stations in the
islands, and to retain them in case of war. Spanish trade and
privileges for the Spanish religious orders are guaranteed
against interference.
CARROLL, Henry K.:
Report on Porto Rico.
See (in this volume)
PORTO RICO: A. D. 1898-1899 (AUGUST-JULY).
CASSATION, The Court of.
The French Court of Appeals.
See (in this volume)
FRANCE: A. D. 1897-1899.
CASTILLO, Pedro Lopez de:
Letter to the soldiers of the American army.
See UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898 (AUGUST 21).
CATALOGUE, International, of Scientific Literature.
See (in this volume)
SCIENCE, RECENT: SCIENTIFIC LITERATURE.
CATALONIA: Independent aspirations in.
See (in this volume)
SPAIN: A. D. 1900 (OCTOBER-NOVEMBER).
CATASTROPHES, Natural: A. D. 1894.
Late in December, the orange groves of Florida were mostly
destroyed or seriously injured by the severest frost known in
more than half a century.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
On January 8, a severe earthquake shock was felt at Meshed,
Kelat and other Persian towns, causing over 1,100 deaths.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
In March, the Tigris overflowed its banks, causing
incalculable loss of life and property in Mesopotamia.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
A succession of earthquake shocks in March, 1896, did great
damage at Santiago, Valparaiso, and other parts of Chile.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
On May 15, a cyclone destroyed part of the town of Sherman, in
Texas, killing more than 120 persons, mostly negroes. The same
day a waterspout burst over the town of Howe in the same state,
killing 8 people.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
On May 27, a fierce cyclone swept the city of St. Louis,
Missouri, completely devastating a large part of the city, and
causing great loss of life and property.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
A destructive wave swept the Japanese coast in June.
See (in this volume)
JAPAN: A. D. 1896.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896.
On July 26, a tidal wave, 5 miles in width, inundated the
coast of Kiangsu, in China, destroying many villages and more
than 4,000 inhabitants.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1896-1897.
A severe famine prevailed in India from the spring of 1896
until the autumn of 1897.
See (in this volume)
INDIA: A. D. 1896-1897.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1897.
A severe earthquake occurred at the island of Kishm in the
Persian Gulf, in January, causing great loss of life.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1897.
In March and April of this year the floods along the
Mississippi river and its tributaries reached the highest
level ever recorded. In extent of area and loss of property
these floods were the most remarkable in the history of the
continent. The total area under water on April 10 was about
15,800 square miles, containing about 39,500 farms, whose
value was close upon $65,000,000. The loss of life was small.
Congress gave relief to the extent of $200,000, besides
appropriating $2,583,300 for the improvement of the
Mississippi.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1897.
Extensive floods occurred in Galatz, Moldavia, in June,
rendering 20,000 people homeless.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1897.
The islands of Leyte and Samar, in the Visayas group, were
swept by an immense wave caused by a cyclone, in October,
thousands of natives being killed, and much property
destroyed.
{72}
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1897.
On October 6, the Philippine Islands were swept by a typhoon,
which destroyed several towns. The loss of life was estimated
at 6,000, of whom 400 were Europeans. This was followed on
October 12 by a cyclone which destroyed several villages and
caused further loss of life.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1897.
By an eruption of the Mayon volcano in the island of Luzon,
Philippine Islands, four hundred persons were buried in the
lava, and the large town of Libog completely destroyed.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
A series of earthquake shocks in Asia Minor during the month
of January occasioned considerable loss of life and property.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
In January, Amboyna, in the Molucca Islands, was almost
destroyed by an earthquake, in which about 50 persons were
killed and 200 injured.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
On January 11, a tornado wrecked many buildings in Fort Smith,
Ark. The loss of life was reported as 50, with hundreds
injured.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
A disastrous blizzard occurred in New England, January 31 and
February 1. Fifty lives were reported as lost, and the damage
in Boston alone amounted to $2,000,000. Many vessels were
driven ashore or foundered, with further loss of life.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
Floods on the Ohio river in March and April caused much loss
of life and property. Shawneetown, Illinois on the Ohio river,
was almost entirely destroyed by the flood, more than 60 lives
being lost.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
On the night of September 10, the island of Barbados was swept
by a tornado which destroyed 10,000 houses and damaged 5,000
more. Three-fourths of the inhabitants were left homeless, and
about 100 were killed. The islands of St. Vincent and St.
Lucia also suffered great losses of life and property.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1898.
A typhoon swept the central provinces of Japan in September,
causing heavy floods, and destroying 100 lives.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899.
Severe floods on the Brazos river, in Texas, occasioned the
death of about 100 people, and property losses to the extent
of $15,000,000.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899.
A destructive tornado in Northern Missouri, in April, did much
damage in the towns of Kirksville and Newtown. Over fifty
persons were killed.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899.
An almost unprecedented failure of crops in eastern Russia
caused famine, disease and awful destruction of life.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899.
A terrific hurricane visited the West Indies August 7 and 8.
Of the several islands affected, Porto Rico suffered most,
three-fourths of the population being left homeless. The total
loss of life in the West Indies was estimated at 5,000.
See (in this volume)
PORTO RICO: A. D. 1899 (AUGUST).
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899.
About 1,500 people lost their lives in an earthquake around
Aidin, Asia Minor, September 2.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899.
The island of Ceram, in the Moluccas, was visited by an
earthquake and tidal wave, November 2. Many towns were
destroyed, and 5,000 people killed.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1899-1900.
Recurrence of famine in India.
See (in this volume)
INDIA A. D. 1899-1900.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1900.
The city of Galveston, Texas, was overwhelmed and mostly
destroyed, on the 9th of September, by an unprecedented
hurricane, which drove the waters of the Gulf upon the
low-lying town.
See (in this volume)
GALVESTON.
CATASTROPHES, Natural: 1901.
Famine in China.
See (in this volume)
CHINA: A. D. 1901 (JANUARY-FEBRUARY).
CATHOLICS, Roman:
Protest of British peers against the declaration required from
the sovereign.
See (in this volume)
ENGLAND: A. D. 1901 (FEBRUARY).
CATHOLICS, Roman:
Victory in Belgium.
See (in this volume)
BELGIUM: A. D. 1894-1895.
See, also, PAPACY.
CEBU: The American occupation of the island.
See (in this volume)
PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: A. D. 1899 (JANUARY-NOVEMBER).
CENSUS: Of the United States, A. D. 1900.
See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1900 (MAY-OCTOBER).
CENTRAL AFRICA PROTECTORATE, British.
See (in this volume)
BRITISH CENTRAL AFRICA PROTECTORATE.
CENTRAL AMERICA, A. D. 1821-1898.
Unsuccessful attempts to unite the republics.
"In 1821, after numerous revolutions, Central America
succeeded in throwing off the yoke of Spain. A Congress
assembled at Guatemala in March, 1822, and founded the
Republic of Central America, composed of Guatemala, Salvador,
Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. The new Republic had but
a short existence; after numerous civil wars the Union was
dissolved, October 26, 1838, and the five States of the
Republic became so many independent countries. Several
attempts toward a reorganization of the Constitution of the
Republic of Central America remained fruitless and had cost
the lives of certain of their authors, when, through the
influence of Dr. P. Bonilla, President of the Republic of
Honduras, a treaty was concluded between Nicaragua and
Salvador, according to which the three Republics constituted a
federation under the name of the Greater Republic of Central
America. The three Republics became States, and the
sovereignty of the federation was exercised by a Diet composed
of three members, one for each State, and which convened every
year in the capital of the Federal States.
"On the invitation of this Diet, the three States appointed a
delegation which met as a Constituent Assembly at Managua,
Nicaragua, and established a constitution, according to the
terms of which the three States took the name of the United
States of Central America, November 1, 1898. This
Constitution, grand and patriotic, which, in the minds of
those who had elaborated it, meant a complete consolidation of
the three Federal States and a speedy realization of a
reorganization of the Grand Republic of Central America,
dreamed of by Morazan, had a sad ending. The day after the
meeting of the Constituent Assembly a revolutionary movement
hostile to the new federation broke out in Salvador and gave a
new administration to this State. Its first act was to retire
from the Union, and this secession brought about the
dissolution of the United States of Central America; for,
following the example of Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua took
back their absolute sovereignty."
H. Jalhay,
quoted in Bulletin of American Republics, March, 1899.
{73}
The secession of Salvador was brought about by a revolutionary
movement, which overthrew the constitutional government of
President Gutierrez and placed General Tomas Regolado at the
head of a provisional government, which issued the following
manifesto on the 25th of November, 1898: "Considering—That the
compact of Amapala, celebrated in June, 1895, and all that
proceeds therefrom, has not obtained the legitimate sanction
of the Salvadorean people, and, moreover, has been a violation
of the political constitution of Salvador; That in the
assembled Constituent Assembly of Managua, reunited in June of
the present year, the deputies of Salvador were not directly
elected by the Salvadorean people, and for that reason had no
legal authority to concur to a constituent law that could bind
the Republic; That the union with the Republics of Honduras
and Nicaragua under the contracted terms will seriously injure
the interests of Salvador: Decrees. ART. 1. The Republic of
Salvador is not obliged by the contract of Amapala to
acknowledge any authority in the constitution of Managua of
the 27th August of the current year, and it is released from
the contract of union with the Republics of Honduras and
Nicaragua. ART. 2. The Republic of Salvador assumes in full
its self-government and independence, and will enter the union
with the sister Republics of Central America when same is
convenient to its positive interests and is the express and
free will of the Salvadorean people."
United States, 55th Congress, 3d Session,
Senate Document Number 50.
CENTRAL AMERICA, A. D. 1884-1900.
Interoceanic Canal measures of later years.
See (in this volume)
CANAL, INTEROCEANIC, with accompanying map.
CENTRAL AMERICA, Nicaragua: A. D. 1894-1895.
Insurrection in the Mosquito Indian Strip.
The Bluefields Incident.
In his Annual Message to Congress, December, 1894, President
Cleveland referred as follows to disturbances which had
occurred during the year at Bluefields, the principal town of
the Mosquito district of Nicaragua, and commonly known as "the
Bluefields Incident:" "By the treaty of 1860 between Great
Britain and Nicaragua, the former Government expressly
recognized the sovereignty of the latter over the strip, and a
limited form of self-government was guaranteed to the Mosquito
Indians, to be exercised according to their customs, for
themselves and other dwellers within its limits. The so-called
native government, which grew to be largely made up of aliens,
for many years disputed the sovereignty of Nicaragua over the
strip and claimed the right to maintain therein a practically
independent municipal government. Early in the past year
efforts of Nicaragua to maintain sovereignty over the Mosquito
territory led to serious disturbances, culminating in the
suppression of the native government and the attempted
substitution of an impracticable composite administration in
which Nicaragua and alien residents were to participate.
Failure was followed by an insurrection, which for a time
subverted Nicaraguan rule, expelling her officers and
restoring the old organization. This in turn gave place to the
existing local government established and upheld by Nicaragua.
Although the alien interests arrayed against Nicaragua in
these transactions have been largely American and the commerce
of that region for some time has been and still is chiefly
controlled by our citizens, we can not for that reason
challenge the rightful sovereignty of Nicaragua over this
important part of her domain."
United States, Message and Documents
(Abridgment, 1894-1895).
In his Message of 1895 the President summarized the later
history of the incident as follows: "In last year's message I
narrated at some length the jurisdictional questions then
freshly arisen in the Mosquito Indian Strip of Nicaragua.
Since that time, by the voluntary act of the Mosquito Nation,
the territory reserved to them has been incorporated with
Nicaragua, the Indians formally subjecting themselves to be
governed by the general laws and regulations of the Republic
instead of by their own customs and regulations, and thus
availing themselves of a privilege secured to them by the
treaty between Nicaragua and Great Britain of January 28,
1860. After this extension of uniform Nicaraguan
administration to the Mosquito Strip, the case of the British
vice-consul, Hatch, and of several of his countrymen who had
been summarily expelled from Nicaragua and treated with
considerable indignity, provoked a claim by Great Britain upon
Nicaragua for pecuniary indemnity, which, upon Nicaragua's
refusal to admit liability, was enforced by Great Britain.
While the sovereignty and jurisdiction of Nicaragua was in no
way questioned by Great Britain, the former's arbitrary
conduct in regard to British subjects furnished the ground for
this proceeding. A British naval force occupied without
resistance the Pacific seaport of Corinto, but was soon after
withdrawn upon the promise that the sum demanded would be
paid. Throughout this incident the kindly offices of the
United States were invoked and were employed in favor of as
peaceful a settlement and as much consideration and indulgence
toward Nicaragua as were consistent with the nature of the
case."
United States,
Message and Documents (Abridgment, 1895-1896).
CENTRAL AMERICA, Guatemala: A. D. 1895.
Mexican boundary dispute.
See (in this volume)
MEXICO: A. D. 1895.
CENTRAL AMERICA, Nicaragua: A. D. 1896-1898.
Revolutionary conflicts.
Vice President Baca of Nicaragua joined a revolutionary
movement which was set on foot in February, 1896, by the
Clericals, for the overthrow of President Zelaya, and was
declared Provisional President. The rebellion had much support
from exiles and friends in Honduras; but the government of
that State sustained and assisted Zelaya. The insurgents were
defeated in a number of battles, and gave up the contest in
May. During the civil war American and British marines were
landed on occasions at Corinto to protect property there. In
1897, and again in 1898, there were renewed insurrections,
quickly suppressed.
CENTRAL AMERICA, Costa Rica: A. D. 1896-1900.
Boundary dispute with Colombia settled by arbitration.
See (in this volume)
COLOMBIA: A. D. 1893-1900.
{74}
CENTRAL AMERICA, Nicaragua—Costa Rica: A. D. 1897.
A dispute between Nicaragua and Costa Rica, as to the eastern
extremity of their boundary line, was decided by General
Alexander, a referee accepted by the two republics. The
boundary had not been well defined in a treaty negotiated for
its settlement in 1858. According to the terms of the treaty,
the line was to start from the Atlantic at the mouth of the
San Juan river; but changes of current and accumulation of
river drift, etc., gave ground for dispute as to where the
river actually made its exit. President Cleveland in 1888,
acting as arbitrator at the request of the two countries,
decided that the treaty of 1858 was valid, but was not clear
as to which outlet of the delta was the boundary. Finally, in
1896, an agreement was reached for a final survey and marking
of the boundary line, and President Cleveland, on request,
appointed General Alexander as arbitrator in any case of
disagreement between the surveying commissions. The decision
gives to Nicaragua the territory upon which Greytown is
situated, and practical control of the mouth of the canal.
CENTRAL AMERICA, Guatemala: A. D. 1897-1898.
Dictatorship of President Barrios.
His assassination.
In June, 1897, President José M. Reyna Barrios, whose six
years term in the presidency would expire the next March,
fearing defeat in the approaching election, forcibly dissolved
the National Assembly and proclaimed a dictatorship. Three
months later a revolt was organized by General Prospero
Morales; but Barrios crushed it with merciless energy, and a
veritable reign of terror ensued. In February, 1898, the
career of the Dictator was cut short by an assassin, who shot
him to avenge the death of a wealthy citizen, Don Juan
Aparicio, whom Barrios had executed for expressing sympathy
with the objects of the rebellion of the previous year.
Control of the government was then taken by Dr. Cabrera, who
had been at the head of the party which supported Barrios. A
rising under Morales was again attempted, but failed. Morales,
in a dying condition at the time, was betrayed and captured.
Cabrera, with no more opposition, was elected President for
six years.
CENTRAL AMERICA, Nicaragua—Costa Rica: A. D. 1900.
Agreements with the United States respecting the control of
territory for interoceanic canal.
See (in this volume)
CANAL, INTEROCEANIC, A. D. 1900 (DECEMBER).
CENTURY, The Nineteenth:
Date of its ending.
Its character and trend.
Comparison with preceding ages.
Its failures.
See (in this volume)
NINETEENTH CENTURY.
CERVERA, Rear-Admiral,
and the Spanish Squadron at Santiago de Cuba.
See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898 (APRIL-JUNE);
and (JULY 3).
CHAFFEE, General Adna R.:
At Santiago.
See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898 (JUNE-JULY).
CHAFFEE, General Adna R.:
Commanding American forces in China.
See (in this volume)
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (JUNE-AUGUST);
(JULY); and (AUGUST).
CHAFFEE, General Adna R.:

Report of the allied movement to Peking
and the capture of the city.
See (in this volume)
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (AUGUST 4-16).
CHAKDARRA, Defense of.
See (in this volume)
INDIA: A. D. 1897-1898.
CHALDEA, New light on ancient.
See (in this volume)
ARCHÆOLOGICAL RESEARCH: BABYLONIA.
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Appointed British Secretary of State for the Colonies.
See (in this volume)
ENGLAND: A. D. 1894-1895; and 1900 (NOVEMBER-DECEMBER).
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Conference with Colonial Premiers.
See (in this volume)
ENGLAND: A. D. 1897 (JUNE-JULY).
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Controversies with the government of
the South African Republic.
See (in this volume)
SOUTH AFRICA (THE TRANSVAAL): A. D. 1896 (JANUARY-APRIL);
1896-1897 (MAY-APRIL), and after.
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Testimony before British Parliamentary Committee
on the Jameson Raid.
Remarks in Parliament on Mr. Rhodes.
See (in this volume)
SOUTH AFRICA (THE TRANSVAAL): A. D. 1897 (FEBRUARY-JULY).
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Instructions to the Governor of Jamaica.
See (in this volume)
JAMAICA: A. D. 1899.
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Reassertion of British suzerainty over
the South African Republic.
Refusal to arbitrate questions of disagreement.
See (in this volume)
SOUTH AFRICA (THE TRANSVAAL): A. D. 1897 (MAY-OCTOBER);
and 1898-1899.
CHAMBERLAIN, Joseph:
Declaration of South African policy.
See (in this volume)
SOUTH AFRICA (THE FIELD OF WAR): A. D. 1901.
CHANG CHIH-TUNG, Viceroy:
Admirable conduct during the Chinese outbreak.
See (in this volume)
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (JUNE-DECEMBER).
CHEMICAL SCIENCE, Recent advances in.
See (in this volume)
SCIENCE, RECENT: CHEMISTRY AND PHYSICS.
CHEROKEES, United States agreement with the.
See (in this volume)
INDIANS, AMERICAN: A. D. 1893-1899.
CHICAGO: A. D. 1894.
Destruction of the Columbian Exposition buildings.
By a succession of fires, January 9, February 14, most of the
buildings of the Exposition, with valuable exhibits not yet
removed, were destroyed.
CHICAGO: A. D. 1896.
Democratic National Convention.
See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1896 (JUNE-NOVEMBER).
CHICAGO: A. D. 1899.
Significance of the municipal election.
The municipal election of April 4, 1899, in Chicago, resulted
in the reelection of Mayor Carter H. Harrison, Democrat, by
149,000 votes, against 107,000 cast for Zina R. Carter,
Republican, and 46,000 for Ex-Governor Altgeld, radical
Democrat, running independently. In the opinion of a
correspondent of the "Review of Reviews," "The campaign
disclosed three interesting results—namely: (1) the growth of
independence and of attention to local issues; (2) the
dominance of the street-railroad issue; and (3) the growth of
sentiment in favor of municipal ownership. Nearly two-thirds
of all the votes cast were against the Republican candidate,
and our correspondent regards this as largely due to the
belief that he, more than any of the others, represented the
interests of the street-railroad corporations." This writer
holds that "in all probability any practical proposition for
municipal ownership and operation of the street-railroads
would to-day be approved by a popular vote in Chicago."
{75}
CHICAGO: A. D. 1900.
Opening of the Drainage Canal.
An extraordinary public work was brought into use early in the
year, by the opening of what is known as the Chicago Drainage
Canal. This was constructed for the purpose of turning the
natural flow of water in Chicago River backward, away from
Lake Michigan, its natural embouchure, into the small Des
Plaines River, which runs to the Illinois, and the Illinois to
the Mississippi,—the object being to carry the sewage of
Chicago away from the Lake, where it contaminates the water
supply of the city. Part of the city sewage was already being
sent in that direction by a pumping system which carried it
over the divide; the purpose of the canal is to take the
whole. The work was begun in September, 1892, and practically
finished, so far as concerns the canal, in little more than
seven years, at a cost of about $34,500,000. Changes in the
city sewage system, to fully utilize the object of the canal,
were still to be completed. When the full use is realized,
there is said to be provision in the canal for a maximum
discharge of 600,000 cubic feet of water per minute. Some have
anticipated that such an outflow would seriously lower the
level of the lakes; but there were no signs of that effect in
the season of 1900. Nor did it seem to appear that the sewage
then passing by river flow westward was doing harm to towns on
the Illinois and Mississippi, as they had apprehended; but the
discharge was, as yet, far short of what it is intended to be.
It is possible that ultimately the Chicago Drainage Canal may
become part of a navigable water-way from the lakes to the
Mississippi, realizing an old project of water transportation
in that direction to compete with the rails. The canal has
been constructed upon a scale to suffice for that use; but the
river-improvement called for is one of formidable cost.
About the time of the opening of the canal, the State of
Missouri, by its Attorney-General, moved in the Supreme Court
of the United States for leave to file a bill of complaint
against the State of Illinois and the Sanitary District of
Chicago, the purpose of which was to enjoin the defendants
from discharging the sewage and noxious filth of the Sanitary
District of Chicago into the Mississippi River by artificial
methods. The complaint alleged that unless the relief sought
is granted the water of the Mississippi, which is used for
drinking and other domestic purposes by many thousands of
inhabitants of the State, will be polluted, and that the
public health will be endangered. The Court granted leave to
file the bill. The defendants then interposed a demurrer,
claiming that the controversy, not being in reality between
two States, but between two cities, was one over which the
Supreme Court has no jurisdiction. On the 28th of January,
1901, the Court rendered its decision, overruling the demurrer
to its jurisdiction. The effect of the opinion is that the
Drainage Canal attorneys now must answer the complaint that
the sewage and noxious filth of the sanitary district are
contaminating the waters of the Mississippi River at St.
Louis. No evidence of the facts will be taken in court. On the
request of the parties to the suit, a commission will be
appointed to take testimony and make a report.
CHICAGO UNIVERSITY:
Dedication of the Yerkes Observatory.
See (in this volume)
YERKES OBSERVATORY.
CHICKASAWS, United States agreement with the.
See (in this volume)
INDIANS, AMERICAN: A. D. 1893-1899.
CHIH-LI, The "Boxer" outbreak in.
See (in this volume)
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (JANUARY-MARCH).
CHILE: A. D. 1894-1900.
The questions with Bolivia and Peru concerning Atacama,
Tacna and Arica.
Of the treaties which closed the war of 1879-84 between Chile,
Bolivia and Peru (see, in volume 1, CHILE: A. D. 1833-1884),
that between Chile and Bolivia contained the following curious
provision, of "indefinite truce," as it has been called:
"Until the opportunity presents itself of celebrating a
definite treaty of peace between the Republics of Chile and
Bolivia, both countries duly represented by … have agreed to
adjust a treaty of truce in accordance with the following
bases: First, the Republics of Chile and Bolivia agree to
celebrate an indefinite truce; and, in consequence, declare at
an end the state of war, which will not be renewed unless one
of the contracting parties should inform the other, with at
least a year's notification, of its intention to recommence
hostilities. In this case the notification will be made
directly, or through the diplomatic representative of a
friendly nation. Second, the Republic of Chile, while this
truce is in force, shall continue to rule, in accordance with
the political and administrative system established by Chilian
law, the territories situated between parallel 238 and the
mouth of the Loa in the Pacific, such territories having for
their eastern boundary a straight line." Under this agreement
Chile has held ever since the territory in question (which is
the province of Atacama) and has claimed that her possession
of it should be made conclusive and permanent by such a
"definite treaty" as the "treaty of truce" in 1884
contemplated. In her view it was taken in lieu of a war
indemnity. Bolivia has disputed this view, maintaining that a
permanent cession of the province, which was her only
seaboard, and without which she has no port, was not intended.
The Bolivian government has continually urged claims to the
restoration of a seaport for Bolivian trade, which Chile has
refused.
At the same time when Atacama was taken from Bolivia, the
provinces of Tacna and Arica were taken by Chile from Peru,
with a stipulation in the peace treaty of Ancon (1884) that
she should hold them for ten years, pending the payment by
Peru of a war indemnity, and that the inhabitants should then
decide by vote to which country they would belong. But, down
to the close of the year 1900, the Chilian government had not
allowed the vote to be taken.
In September, 1900, the dispute, as between Chile and Bolivia,
was brought to what seemed to be an ultimate stage by an
incisive note from the Chilian to the Bolivian government,
proposing to grant to the latter "in exchange for a final
cancelling of all claims to the littoral, three compensations,
viz.: First, to pay all obligations contracted by the Bolivian
Government with the mining enterprises at Huaichaca, Corocoro
and Oruro, and the balance of the Bolivian loan contracted in
Chile in 1867: second, an amount of money, to be fixed by
mutual agreement, for the construction of a railroad
connecting any port on the Chilian coast with the interior of
Bolivia, or else to extend the present Oruro Railway; and,
third, to grant free transit for all products and merchandise
passing into and out of Bolivia through the port referred to."
Bolivia has not seemed to be disposed to accept this proposal,
and the situation is likely to become more strained than before.
{76}
CHILI: A. D. 1896.
Presidential election.
An excited but orderly presidential election held in June,
1896, without government interference, resulted in the choice
of Senor Errazuriz, to succeed Admiral Jorge Montt, who had
been at the head of the government since the overthrow and
death of Balmaceda in 1891.
CHILI: A. D. 1898.
Settlement of boundary dispute with Argentine Republic.
See (in this volume)
ARGENTINE REPUBLIC: A. D. 1898.
CHILI: A. D. 1900.
Adoption of compulsory military service.
The "Diario Oficial" of Chile of September 5, 1900, published
a decree of the Chilian Government establishing compulsory
military service in Chile. By the decree all Chileans will be
liable to military service from their 20th to their 45th year.
Every man on completing his 20th year will be liable to be
chosen by lot to serve one year with the colors, after which,
if so chosen, he will pass into the first reserve, where he
will remain for nine years. Those not chosen by lot to serve
one year with the colors will pass directly into the first
reserve. The second reserve will consist of men of from 30 to 45
years of age. Among those who will be exempt from compulsory
military service are the members of the Government, members of
Congress, State and municipal councillors, Judges, the clergy,
including all those who wear the tonsure, or belong to any
religious order, the directors and teachers of public schools
and colleges, and the police. The last, however, will be
liable to military duty if called upon by the President.
Various civil servants and every only son, or every one of two
only sons of a family which he assists to maintain, may be
excused service under certain conditions.
CHILI: A. D. 1900.
Vote against compulsory arbitration at
Spanish-American Congress.
See (in this volume)
SPAIN: A. D. 1900 (NOVEMBER).
----------CHINA: Start--------
CHINA: A. D. 1894-1895.
The war with Japan.
The peace treaty of Shimonoseki.
Recognition of Korean independence.
Cession of part of Fêng-tien, of Formosa,
and of the Pescadores Islands to Japan.
Relinquishment of Fêng-tien by Japan.
In the original edition of this work, the causes of the war of
1894-1895 between China and Japan will be found stated in the
Supplement (volume 5, page 3736), under "COREA." In the new,
revised edition, the same appears in volume 3, under "Korea."
At the close of the year 1894 the Japanese were pressing their
campaign, with little heed to the cold of winter, for which they
seemed to be well prepared. They had won, almost with ease,
every serious engagement of the war. They had half destroyed
the Chinese navy, on the 18th of September, in a great battle
at the mouth of the Yalu River, and, on the 21st-22d of
November, they had captured Port Arthur, the strongest
fortress in China, with costly dockyards and great stores of
the munitions of war. In the first month of the new year the
successes of the Japanese were renewed. Kaiphing was taken on
the 10th; a vigorous Chinese attack was repulsed, near
Niuchuang, on the 16th; a landing of 25,000 troops on the
Shantung Peninsula was effected on the 20th, and a combined
attack by army and navy on the strong forts which protected
the important harbor of Wei-hai-wei, and the Chinese fleet
sheltered in it, was begun on the 30th of the month. The
attack was ended on the 13th of February, when the Chinese
admiral Ting-Ju-chang gave up the remnant of his fleet and
then killed himself. The Chinese general, Tai, had committed
suicide in despair on the third night of the fighting. There
was further fighting around Niuchuang and Yingkow during
February and part of March, while overtures for peace were
being made by the Chinese government. At length the famous
viceroy, Li Hung-chang, was sent to Japan with full powers to
conclude a treaty. Negotiations were interrupted at the outset
by a foul attack on the Chinese ambassador by a Japanese
ruffian, who shot and seriously wounded him in the cheek. But
the Mikado ordered an armistice, and the Treaty of Shimonoseki
was concluded and signed on the 17th of April. The essential
provisions of the treaty are as follows:
"Article I.
China recognizes definitely the full and complete independence
and autonomy of Corea, and, in consequence, the payment of
tribute and the performance of ceremonies and formalities by
Corea to China in derogation of such independence and autonomy
shall wholly cease for the future.
"Article II.
China cedes to Japan in perpetuity and full sovereignty the
following territories, together with all fortifications,
arsenals, and public property thereon:
(a.) The southern portion of the Province of Fêng-tien, within
the following boundaries—The line of demarcation begins at the
mouth of the River Yalu, and ascends that stream to the mouth
of the River An-Ping: from thence the line runs to Fêng Huang;
from thence to Haicheng; from thence to Ying Kow, forming a
line which describes the southern portion of the territory.
The places above named are included in the ceded territory.
When the line reaches the River Liao at Ying Kow it follows
the course of that stream to its mouth, where it terminates.
The mid-channel of the River Liao shall be taken as the line
of demarcation. This cession also includes all islands
appertaining or belonging to the Province of Fêng-tien
situated in the eastern portion of the Bay of Liao Tung, and
in the northern part of the Yellow Sea.
(b.) The Island of Formosa, together with all islands
appertaining or belonging to the said Island of Formosa. (
(c.) The Pescadores Group, that is to say, all islands lying
between the 119th and 120th degrees of longitude east of
Greenwich and the 23rd and 24th degrees of north latitude. …
[Image: China East Coast.]
{77}
"Article IV.
China agrees to pay to Japan as a war indemnity the sum of
200,000,000 Kuping taels. The said sum to be paid in eight
instalments. The first instalment of 50,000,000 taels to be
paid within six months, and the second instalment of
50,000,000 taels to be paid within twelve months after the
exchange of the ratifications of this Act. The remaining sum
to be paid in six equal annual instalments as follows: the
first of such equal annual instalments to be paid within two
years, the second within three years, the third within four
years, the fourth within five years, the fifth within six
years, and the sixth within seven years after the exchange of
the ratifications of this Act. Interest at the rate of 5 per
cent. per annum shall begin to run on all unpaid portions of
the said indemnity from the date the first instalment falls
due. China shall, however, have the right to pay by
anticipation at any time any or all of said instalments. In
case the whole amount of the said indemnity is paid within
three years after the exchange of the ratifications of the
present Act, all interest shall be waived, and the interest
for two years and a half, or for any less period if then
already paid, shall be included as a part of the principal
amount of the indemnity.
"Article V.
The inhabitants of the territories ceded to Japan who wish to
take up their residence outside the ceded districts shall be
at liberty to sell their real property and retire. For this
purpose a period of two years from the date of the exchange of
the ratifications of the present Act shall be granted. At the
expiration of that period those of the inhabitants who shall
not have left such territories shall, at the option of Japan,
be deemed to be Japanese subjects. Each of the two Governments
shall immediately upon the exchange of the ratifications of
the present Act, send one or more Commissioners to Formosa to
effect a final transfer of that province, and within the space
of two months after the exchange of the ratifications of this
Act such transfer shall be completed.
"Article VI.
All Treaties between Japan and China having come to an end in
consequence of war, China engages, immediately upon the
exchange of the ratifications of this Act, to appoint
Plenipotentiaries to conclude with the Japanese
Plenipotentiaries a Treaty of Commerce and Navigation, and a
Convention to regulate frontier intercourse and trade. The
Treaties, Conventions, and Regulations now subsisting between
China and European Powers shall serve as a basis for the said
Treaty and Convention between Japan and China. From the date
of the exchange of the ratifications of this Act until the
said Treaty and Convention are brought into actual operation
the Japanese Government, its officials, commerce, navigation,
frontier intercourse and trade, industries, ships and
subjects, shall in every respect be accorded by China
most-favoured-nation treatment. China makes, in addition, the
following concessions to take effect six months after the date
of the present Act:
1. The following cities, towns, and ports, in addition to
those already opened, shall be opened to the trade, residence,
industries, and manufactures of Japanese subjects under the same
conditions, and with the same privileges and facilities as
exist at the present open cities, towns, and ports of China.
(1.) Shashih, in the Province of Hupeh.
(2.) Chung King, in the Province of Szechuan.
(3.) Suchow, in the Province of Kiang Su.
(4.) Hangchow, in the Province of Chekiang.
The Japanese Government shall have the right to station
Consuls at any or all of the above-named places.
2. Steam navigation for vessels under the Japanese flag for
the conveyance of passengers and cargo shall be extended to
the following places:
(1.) On the Upper Yangtsze River,
from Ichang to Chung King.
(2.) On the Woosung River and the Canal,
from Shanghae to Suchow and Hangchow. The
Rules and Regulations which now govern the
navigation of the inland waters of China by foreign
vessels, shall, so far as applicable, be enforced
in respect of the above-named routes, until
new Rules and Regulations are conjointly agreed to.
3. Japanese subjects purchasing goods or produce in the
interior of China or transporting imported merchandize into
the interior of China, shall have the right temporarily to
rent or hire warehouses for the storage of the articles so
purchased or transported, without the payment of any taxes or
exactions whatever.
4. Japanese subjects shall be free to engage in all kinds of
manufacturing industries in all the open cities, towns, and
ports of China, and shall be at liberty to import into China
all kinds of machinery, paying only the stipulated import
duties thereon. All articles manufactured by Japanese subjects
in China, shall in respect of inland transit and internal taxes,
duties, charges, and exactions of all kinds and also in
respect of warehousing and storage facilities in the interior
of China, stand upon the same footing and enjoy the same
privileges and exemptions as merchandize imported by Japanese
subjects into China. In the event additional Rules and
Regulations are necessary in connection with these
concessions, they shall be embodied in the Treaty of Commerce
and Navigation provided for by this Article.
"Article VII.
Subject to the provisions of the next succeeding Article, the
evacuation of China by the armies of Japan, shall be
completely effected within three months after the exchange of
the ratifications of the present Act.
"Article VIII.
As a guarantee of the faithful performance of the stipulations
of this Act, China consents to the temporary occupation by the
military forces of Japan, of Wei-hai-wei, in the Province of
Shantung. Upon the payment of the first two instalments of the
war indemnity herein stipulated for and the exchange of the
ratifications of the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation, the
said place shall be evacuated by the Japanese forces, provided
the Chinese Government consents to pledge, under suitable and
sufficient arrangements, the Customs Revenue of China as
security for the payment of the principal and interest of the
remaining installments of said indemnity. In the event no such
arrangements are concluded, such evacuation shall only take place
upon the payment of the final instalment of said indemnity. It
is, however, expressly understood that no such evacuation
shall take place until after the exchange of the ratifications
of the Treaty of Commerce and Navigation.
"Article IX.
Immediately upon the exchange of the ratifications of this
Act, all prisoners of war then held shall be restored, and
China undertakes not to ill-treat or punish prisoners of war
so restored to her by Japan. China also engages to at once
release all Japanese subjects accused of being military spies
or charged with any other military offences. China further
engages not to punish in any manner, nor to allow to be
punished, those Chinese subjects who have in any manner been
compromised in their relations with the Japanese army during
the war.
"Article X.
All offensive military operations shall cease upon the
exchange of the ratifications of this Act."
{78}
When the terms of the treaty were made known, Russia, Germany
and France entered such protests against the cession of a
portion of the Fêng-tien peninsula, on the main land, and
brought such pressure to bear on Japan, that the latter was
compelled to yield, and relinquished the districts in question
by the following imperial proclamation, dated May 10, 1895:
"We recently, at the request of the Emperor of China,
appointed Plenipotentiaries for the purpose of conferring with
the Ambassadors sent by China, and of concluding with them a
Treaty of Peace between the two Empires. Since then the
Governments of the two Empires of Russia and Germany and of
the French Republic, considering that the permanent possession
of the ceded districts of the Fêng-tien Peninsula by the
Empire of Japan would be detrimental to the lasting peace of
the Orient, have united in a simultaneous recommendation to
our Government to refrain from holding those districts
permanently.
"Earnestly desirous as we always are for the maintenance of
peace, nevertheless we were forced to commence hostilities
against China for no other reason than our sincere desire to
secure for the Orient an enduring peace. The Governments of
the three Powers are, in offering their friendly
recommendation, similarly actuated by the same desire, and we,
out of our regard for peace, do not hesitate to accept their
advice. Moreover, it is not our wish to cause suffering to our
people, or to impede the progress of the national destiny by
embroiling the Empire in new complications, and thereby
imperilling the situation and retarding the restoration of
peace. "China has already shown, by the conclusion of the
Treaty of Peace, the sincerity of her repentance for her
breach of faith with us, and has made manifest to the world
our reasons and the object we had in view in waging war with
that Empire. Under these circumstances we do not consider that
the honour and dignity of the Empire will be compromised by
resorting to magnanimous measures, and by taking into
consideration the general situation of affairs. We have
therefore accepted the advice of the friendly Powers, and have
commanded our Government to reply to the Governments of the
three Powers to that effect.
"We have specially commanded our Government to negotiate with
the Chinese Government respecting all arrangements for the
return of the peninsular districts. The exchange of the
ratifications of the Treaty of Peace has now been concluded,
the friendly relations between the two Empires have been
restored, and cordial relations with all other Powers have
been strengthened. We therefore command all our subjects to
respect our will, to take into careful consideration the
general situation, to be circumspect in all things, to avoid
erroneous tendencies, and not to impair or thwart the high
aspirations of our Empire."
Great Britain, Parliamentary Publications:
Papers by Command, Japan, Number 1, 1895.
CHINA: A. D. 1894-1895 (March-July).
Cession of Kiang-Hung to France protested against by
Great Britain.
In March, 1894, the government of China entered into a treaty
with that of Great Britain, for the settlement of boundaries
of Burmah, in which it agreed to make no cession of the
district of Kiang-Hung, or any part of it, to any other Power.
Notwithstanding this agreement, the eastern part of Kiang-Hung
was ceded to France in July, 1895; for which proceeding the
British Government promptly called China to account.
CHINA: A. D. 1895.
Treaty with Russia, giving railway privileges and
other rights in Manchuria.
On the 28th of October, 1896, the "North China Daily News,"
the leading English newspaper in China, published what
purports to be, and is believed to be, the text of a secret
treaty, concluded in the previous year, between Russia and
China, under which the former is extending her Trans-Siberian
railway system through Manchuria, and is practically in
possession of that province. The preamble of the treaty
declares that the Emperor of China has specially appointed the
princes and great officers of the Crown composing the Imperial
Chinese Ministry of War to confer with the Russian Minister
concerning the connecting of the railway system of the Three
Eastern Provinces with the Trans-Siberian Railway, "with the
object of facilitating the transport of goods between the two
empires and strengthening the frontier defences and sea
coasts. And, furthermore, to agree upon certain special
privileges to be conceded by China to Russia as a response to
the loyal aid given by Russia in the retrocession of Liaotung
and its dependencies." The articles of the convention relating
to the route of the railway are as follows:
"I. Owing to the fact that the Russian Great Siberian Railway
is on the point of completion, China consents to allow Russia
to prolong her railway into Chinese territories (a) from the
Russian port of Vladivostok into the Chinese city of Hunch'un,
in the province of Kirin, from thence north-westwards to the
provincial capital of Kirin, and (b) from a railway station of
some city in Siberia to the Chinese town of Aiyun, in
Heilungchiang province, from thence southwestwards to the
provincial capital of Tsitsihar, and from thence to the town
of Petunê, in Kirin province, and from thence south-eastwards
to the provincial capital of Kirin.
"II. All railways built by Russia into the Chinese provinces
of Heilungchiang and Kirin shall be built at the sole expense
of Russia, and the regulations and building thereof shall be
solely on the Russian system, with which China has nothing to
do, and the entire control shall be in the hands of Russia for
the space of thirty years. At the end of the said period China
shall be allowed to prepare the necessary funds wherewith,
after proper estimation of the value of the said railways, she
shall redeem them, the rolling stock, machine shops, and
buildings connected therewith. But as to how China will at
that date redeem these railways shall be left for future
consideration.
"III. China is now in the possession of a railway which she
intends to extend from Shanhai-kuan into the provincial
capital of Fêngtien—namely, Mukden (Shenking), and from
Mukden to the provincial capital of Kirin. If China should
hereafter find it inconvenient to build this road, she shall
allow Russia to provide the funds to build the railway from
the city of Kirin on behalf of China, the redemption of which
road shall be permissible to China at the end of ten years.
With reference to the route to be taken by this railway,
Russia shall follow the surveys already made by China in
connection therewith, from Kirin to Mukden, Newchwang, &c.
{79}
"IV. The railway to be built by China, beginning from
Shanhaikuan, in Fêngtien, to Newchwang, to Kaiping, to
Chinchou, to Lushunk'ou (Port Arthur), and to Talienwan and
their dependencies, shall follow the Russian railway
regulations, in order to facilitate the commercial intercourse
between the respective empires."
Article V authorizes Russia to place special battalions of
horse and foot soldiers at the various important stations for
the better protection of railway property. Article VII
"permits" Russians and Chinese to exploit and open any mines
in the Amur and Kirin provinces, and in the Long White
Mountain range in the north of Korea. Article VIII "permits"
Chinese to engage Russian military officers to reform the
whole army organization of the three Eastern provinces in
accordance with the Western system. The next three Articles
are as follows:
"IX. Russia has never possessed a seaport in Asia which is
free from ice and open all the year round. If, therefore,
there should suddenly arise military operations in this
continent, it will naturally be difficult for the Russian
Eastern seas and Pacific fleets to move about freely and at
pleasure. As China is well aware of this, she is willing to
lease temporarily to Russia the port of Kiaochou (Chiaochou),
in the province of Shantung, the period of such lease being
limited to fifteen years. At the end of this period China
shall buy all the barracks, godowns, machine shops, and docks
built there by Russia (during her occupation of the said
port). But should there be no danger of military operations,
Russia shall not enter immediately into possession of the said
port or hold the important points dominating the port in order
to obviate the chance of exciting the jealousy and suspicions
of other Powers. With reference to the amount of rent and the
way it is to be paid, this shall form the subject of
consideration in a protocol at some future date.
"X. As the Liaotung ports of Lushunk'ou (Port Arthur) and
Talienwan and their dependencies are important strategical
points, it shall be incumbent upon China to properly fortify
them with all haste and to repair all their fortifications,
&c., in order to provide against future dangers. Russia shall
therefore lend all necessary assistance in helping to protect
these two ports, and shall not permit any foreign Power to
encroach upon them. China, on her part, also binds herself
never to cede them to another country; but, if in future the
exigencies of the case require it, and Russia should find
herself suddenly involved in a war, China consents to allow
Russia temporarily to concentrate her land and naval forces
within the said ports in order the better to enable Russia to
attack the enemy or to guard her own position.
"XI. If, however, there be no dangers of military operations
in which Russia is engaged, China shall have entire control
over the administration of the said ports of Lushunk'ou and
Talienwan, nor shall Russia interfere in any way therein. But
as regards the building of the railways in the three Eastern
Provinces and the exploitation and opening of the mines
therein, they shall be permitted to be proceeded with
immediately after the ratification of this convention and at
the pleasure of the people concerned therein. With reference
to the civil and military officers of Russia and Russian
merchants and traders travelling (in any part of the
territories herein mentioned), wherever they shall go, they
shall be given all the privileges of protection and facilities
within the power of the local authorities, nor shall these
officials be allowed to put obstructions in the way or delay
the journeys of the Russian officers and subjects herein
mentioned."
Henry Norman,
Russia and England
(Contemporary Review, February, 1897).
CHINA: A. D. 1895 {August).
Massacre of missionaries at Hua Sang.
In the fall of 1894 the English and American missionaries at
Ku Cheng, in the Chinese province of Fu Kien, of which Foochow
is the capital, began to be threatened by a sect or party
called the "Vegetarians" (Siah Chai), who were violently
hostile to foreigners, and said to be revolutionary in their
aims. The hostile demonstrations were repeated in the
following April, and the missionary party started upon a
retreat to Foochow, but were stopped on the way by news that
the Mandarin at Ku Cheng had pacified the Vegetarians and that
they might safely return. They did so and were apparently
secure for some months. In July they retired from the city to
a mountain sanatorium, named Hua Sang, 12 miles from Ku Cheng,
and there, on the 1st day of August, without warning, they
were surrounded by a Vegetarian band of some eighty savage
men, armed with swords and spears, who performed a rapid work
of murder, killing eleven persons, including six women and two
children, and then disappeared. "These men did not belong
either to Hua Sang or Ku Cheng, but came from some villages at
a considerable distance. … The city authorities at Ku Cheng
had no hand in the outrage. It was evidently the work of a
band of marauders, and the district magistrate seems to have
done all that could be done under the circumstances."
D. M. Berry,
The Sister Martyrs of Ku Cheng.
The British and American governments joined in sending a
consular commission to investigate the crime, and with
difficulty compelled the Chinese government to execute twenty
of the ringleaders of the attack. At Fatshan, near Canton,
there had been mob attacks on the missionary station, with
destruction of buildings, but no murders, during the same
month in which the massacre at Hua Sang occurred.
CHINA: A. D. 1896.
Tour of Li Hung-chang in Europe and America.
"Li Hung Chang, the Chinese statesman, left Shanghai with a
numerous suite, March 28, on board a French mail steamer for
Europe, to represent the Emperor of China at the coronation of
the Czar of Russia, and afterwards to visit other countries.
He declared that his object was to see Europe for himself, in
order to report to the Emperor as to feasible reforms for
China. A great reception was offered to him at Hong-kong, but
he refused to land by the advice of the European physician of
the embassy, who feared lest any member of the suite, by
catching the plague, would render the party liable to
quarantine elsewhere. Proceeding to Singapore, via Saigon, he
visited the Governor of the Straits Settlements. At Colombo he
was received on landing by a guard of honour. After the
Russian Coronation he visited Germany, Holland, Belgium and
France, and arrived in London early in August.
{80}
Wherever he went he was lionised, and he lost no opportunity
of asking questions and informing himself concerning the
manufactures and armaments of the several countries he
visited. He returned to China via New York and the Canadian
Pacific Railway, sailing from Vancouver (September 14) for
Yokohama and Tien-tsin, where he arrived October 3. Thence he
proceeded to Peking (October 20), where he was received by the
Emperor, and appointed a member of the Tsung-li-Yamen. At the
same time for presuming to enter the precincts of the ruined
Summer Palace while visiting the Empress Dowager after his
return home, his enemies took occasion of the slight trespass
to insult him, and proposed that he should be stripped of all
his titles and honours, with the exception of the earldom,
which is confirmed to the Li family for twenty-nine
generations. The case was referred to the Board of Civil
Appointments, and the Controller-General, Chang-chih-wan,
decided that 'according to precedent' the ex-Viceroy should be
cashiered, but on account of his life-long and distinguished
services to the imperial dynasty he should be recommended to
the clemency of the Throne, which took the form of a loss of
one year's salary. He took over his seals of office in the
Tsung-li-Yamen on November 1, but none of his colleagues were
present to welcome him."
Annual Register, 1896,
pages 349-50.
CHINA: A. D. 1897.
The condition of Manchuria and Mongolia.
See (in this volume)
MANCHURIA AND MONGOLIA.
CHINA: A. D. 1897.
Foreigners resident in China.
Ports open to them.
"In the 'Bulletin de la Société de Géographie Commerciale,'
Paris, Volume XIX, a report is published from which the
following extracts are taken: There are over ten thousand
Europeans and Americans resident in China. The English head
the list with 4,000; the Americans number 1,325; Germans, 882;
French, 875; Portuguese, 805; Spaniards, 461; Norwegians, 375;
Russians, 116; Italians, 108, etc. There are 669 Japanese.
Twenty-two ports are open to foreign residence, that is to
say, that Europeans are allowed to acquire conditional title
to certain lands, on which they live, govern themselves, and
have special privileges in judicial matters. The ports are
Mengtz, Lung Chow, Pakhoi, King Chow, Lappa, Canton, Kowlon,
Swatow, Amoy, Fuchau, Winchow, Ningpo, Shanghai, Chinkiang,
Wuhu, Kiukiang, Hankow, Ichang, Chungking, Chefoo, Tientsin,
and Niuchwang. It is to be noted that Peking does not appear
on this list, although the embassies and legations are
established there. The Chinese who find themselves under
foreign jurisdiction appear more than contented with the
situation, because, although taxes are high, they are fixed.
Two hundred thousand natives live in the European settlements
of Shanghai. Besides the foreign residents of China, a large
number live in ports that have been ceded to other nations.
For instance, Hongkong comprises in its civil population 4,195
Europeans and Americans. With the troops and sailors, this
number is raised to 8,545. Hongkong is the actual capital of
foreign industry in the far East. More than 3,000 vessels,
with a tonnage of nearly 4,000,000 touch there annually. The
same spirit which caused the development of Singapore,
Colombo, and Hongkong is to be found in the foreign
settlements of the open ports of China."
United States Consular Reports,
October, 1897, page 315.
CHINA: A. D. 1897 (May-June).
Cessions and concessions to England and France.
In May, the Chinese government sanctioned an extension of the
British settlement at Tien-tsin from 65 acres to about 300. In
the next month, it satisfied the complaints of Great Britain
concerning the cession of Kiang-Hung to France (see above: A.
D. 1894-1895, MARCH-JULY), by ceding to that Power the Shan
district of Kokang, about 400 square miles in extent, and
leasing to Great Britain in perpetuity a considerable tract at
the south of the Namwan River. The same treaty opened new
routes to trade across the frontier between Burmah and China,
and admitted British consuls and merchants to two new ports.
At about the same time France secured mining privileges on the
Tonquin frontier and rights for the extension of a railway
into Chinese territory.
CHINA: A. D. 1897 (November).
Germany opens the attack of European Powers on the
integrity of the Chinese Empire.
Seizure of the port of Kiao-Chau.
Concessions obtained as reparation for the murder
of German missionaries.
"Among the recent events that have attracted especial
attention to China is the lease to foreign nations of
important strategic or commercial ports on the coast of the
Empire. While the Portuguese have controlled the island of
Macao, near Canton, since 1537, and the English became owners
of the island of Hongkong, in the same vicinity, by the treaty
of 1842, no other nation had possessions on or near the coast
of China until within a comparatively recent date. One result
of the war between China and Japan was that Japan obtained the
island of Formosa, lying 90 miles off the coast of central
China. By this treaty Japan was also to have certain territory
on the peninsula of Liaotung, which commands from the north
the entrance to the Gulf of Pechili, the gateway to the
capital of China; but on the urgent protest of Russia, France,
and Germany this was abandoned, and the mainland of China up
to that time thus remained intact. On November 4, 1897,
however, the German Government seized the port of Kiao-chau,
on the northeastern coast of China, asserting as the cause of
its action the desire to obtain satisfaction for the murder of
[two] German missionaries by Chinese on November 1 of that
year. This port was held by a German war ship until the
announcement of a treaty with China by which the port of
Kiaochau and adjacent territory were leased to Germany for a
term of ninety-nine years, the German Government being given
the right to land troops, construct fortifications, and
establish a coaling and naval station, while German subjects
were to have the right to construct railways, open mines, and
transact business in the rich mineral and agricultural
province of Shantung, in which Kiaochau is located, Chinese
vessels, however, to have the same privileges in the port of
Kiaochau that the German Government might decide to give to
other nations."
United States Bureau of Statistics,
Monthly Summary of Commerce and Statistics,
March, 1899.
{81}
The terms of the German acquisition of Kiao-chau, as
officially communicated to the Reichstag by Herr von Bülow,
Foreign Secretary of the German Empire, on the 8th of
February, 1898, were as follows: "The Imperial Chinese
Government, in fulfilment of the legitimate wish of the German
Government to possess, in common with other Powers, a point in
the matters [waters?] of Eastern Asia, where German vessels
may be fitted out and repaired, where the necessary materials
can be deposited, and other arrangements made in connection
with that object, cedes to the German Government in the form
of a lease, to run, as at present fixed, for a period of
ninety-nine years, the territory situated on both sides of the
entrance to the Bay of Kiao-chau, in South Shantung, more
accurately described below, in such a manner that the German
Government will be at liberty to erect all necessary
buildings, &c., within the territory, and take all the
measures required for their defence. According to the English
chart of Kiao-chau Bay of 1863, the district leased to the
German Government consists of the following:
1. The promontory north of the entrance to the bay, bounded on
the north-east by a straight line drawn from the extreme
north-eastern point of Potato Island to the sea-coast in the
direction of Zoshan.
2. The promontory south of the entrance to the bay, bounded on
the south-west by a straight line drawn from the southernmost
point of the inlet situated to the south-west of Tschiposan,
in the direction of the Tolosan Islands (Weber chart), to the
sea-coast.
3. The Island of Tschiposan and Potato Island, as well as all
the islands lying at the entrance to the bay, inclusive of
Tolosan and Seslien. Further, the Chinese Government undertake
not to frame any Regulations within a zone of 50 kilometers
round the bay without the consent of the German Government,
and, in particular, to offer no resistance to any measures
necessary for regulating the course of the rivers. The Chinese
Government also grant to German troops the right of passage
across the zone above described. With the object of avoiding
every possibility of collision, the Chinese Government will
exercise no rights of sovereignty within the leased territory
during the period of the lease, but they cede these rights as
well as those over the entire water-surface of the Bay of
Kiao-chau to the German Government. The German Government will
erect sea-marks on the islands and shallows at the entrance to
the bay.
4. In the event of the territory leased not proving to be
adapted to the requirements of the German Government, the
Government of China will cede to Germany a more suitable
district, and will take back the Bay of Kiao-chau, paying
compensation for any improvements or constructions the Germans
may have made there.
5. A more accurate delimitation of the boundaries of the
district leased will take place in accordance with the local
conditions, and will be carried out by Commissioners from both
Governments."
The Foreign Secretary added the following particulars
respecting the area, &c., of the territory and the character
of the lease:
"The territory leased, the boundaries of which are not yet
accurately determined, will cover an area of 30 to 50 square
kilometers. Consequently, it is materially larger than the
British possession at and opposite Hong Kong. For military
reasons, the northern boundary had been pushed a little
further forward than is shown on the map presented to the
Budget Commission. The number of inhabitants is calculated at
a few thousand. As regards the size of the bay, accurate
details are as yet wanting. It runs about 20 geographical
miles into the mainland. At its narrowest point, the entrance
to the bay is about 3,000 metres broad. Two-thirds of the bay
afford harbour accommodation. The rent payable to China, the
exact amount of which has not yet been determined, is an
unimportant point, as it possesses a nominal character merely
representing the continuation in theory of the proprietorship
of China over the territory ceded. The following stipulations
have been secured respecting railway and mining
concessions:—The Chinese Government have consented to hand
over to a German-Chinese Railway Company, to be formed
hereafter, the construction of a railway from Kiao-chau, which
will run first in a northerly and then in a westerly
direction, to be subsequently connected with the projected
great railway system of China. The railway will serve the
coalfields of Weih-sien and Poshan, situated to the north of
Kiao-chau, which will be exploited by German capital. The
Chinese Government have further pledged themselves to accord
to the Railway Company to be thus formed, conditions at least
as favourable as those granted to any other European Chinese
Railway Company in China."
The Foreign Secretary concluded his speech with an exposition
of the motives which had induced the German Government to
occupy Kiao-chau in preference to other places. Its proximity
to the scene of the massacre had been the first consideration.
Secondly, it was favourably situated from a political point of
view, being removed from the French and British spheres in
Southern China and from the Russian base of operations in the
north. Lastly, the spacious, ice-free harbour, the climate,
which is probably the best to be met with in China, and the
existence of coalfields in the vicinity of the coast, offered
sufficient grounds for the choice of Kiao-chau. Herr von
Billow might have quoted in this connection a candid remark
which had been made not long before by the "Kolonial Zeitung:"
"The principal point is that the Power which possesses Kiao-chau
will control the coal supply in northern Chinese waters."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1898.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (February).
British diplomacy in China.
The tone in which foreign demands were made
on the Tsung-li Yamên.
Agreement not to alienate the Yang-tsze region.
Early in 1898 the Chinese government was in need of money for
the final payment of indemnity to Japan, and opened
negotiations with the British government for the guarantee of
a loan: Her Majesty's Ministers were quite ready to give the
needed financial aid, for a consideration, requiring, in
return, that Ta-lien-wan should be opened to trade as a treaty
port. But Russia was then scheming to secure possession of
Ta-lien-wan, and interfered with the British negotiation so
vigorously that the Chinese were frightened into breaking it
off, even after they had practically accepted the offered
loan. Not daring, however, to take from Russia the financial
guarantee which they rejected at British hands, they thought
to balance themselves between these jealous rivals by
borrowing without help from either. Both the Powers were thus
offended, England especially showing stern resentment on
account of the slight with which she had been treated. The
following report by Sir Claude MacDonald, the British Minister
at Peking, of his interviews with the Tsung-li-Yamên on the
subject, is very interesting, as showing the tone in which the
European Powers were making demands on the government of China
at that time. The despatch of Sir Claude MacDonald is dated at
Peking, February 20, 1898.
{82}
"Since the 4th of February," he wrote. "I have had four
interviews with the Yamên for the purpose of extracting some
concessions in return for the rejection of the offer of a
guaranteed loan from Great Britain after it had in principle
been accepted. At the first of these, on the 5th February, the
Yamên refused to recognize that we had any claim to
compensation, declaring that the refusal of a Russian as well
as a British guarantee left no ground for complaint. I told
them that this argument might have had some plausibility if
the two offers had been equally advantageous, or if the
Chinese Government had not committed themselves to serious
negotiations with us. The British Government had at China's
own request reluctantly agreed to do her a very exceptional
favour, and the Yamên could not suppose that we should accept
with equanimity a brusque intimation that the Chinese
Government had changed its mind.
"The Yamên abounded in protestations of their readiness at
some future date to give proofs of their gratitude to Great
Britain in the shape of encouragement to commerce, but they
insisted that the loan negotiations must first be dismissed,
and all demands for compensation in connection with them
dropped. I refused to telegraph such a suggestion to your
Lordship, and as after long debate they still refused to bind
themselves by any promises, I reminded them that at an earlier

interview they had asked me whether the action threatened by
Great Britain in the event of their accepting a Russian
guarantee would equally be taken if they borrowed from neither
Power. I could not at the time answer the question, but I
could now tell them that Her Majesty's Government had a right
to feel deeply affronted by what had occurred, and I would not
be answerable for the consequences if they declined to make to
Great Britain even such concessions as they had frequently
admitted to be in China's own interests.
"The Yamên begged me to smooth matters for them, to which I
answered that their present attitude made it impossible for me
to do so. Let them permit me to report that China was ready to
open inland navigation to steamers; to establish Treaty ports
at Nanning and Hsiang T'an; and to give reasonable security to
trade by a pledge against alienation of the Yang-tsze region
to another Power, and the rejection of our loan might be
forgiven. All these were matters within the Yamên's power.
"The Ministers did not deny the feasibility of what I had
asked (except as regarded the opening of Nanning), but
objected to these measures being tacked on to the loan, for if
that were done, Russia would at once demand
counter-concessions for the rejection of her loan, and China
would be placed in a very difficult position. On this they
laid much stress. I said I did not insist on the concessions
being formally announced as made to England in connection with
the loan, and should be prepared to move Her Majesty's
Government to treat them as steps taken spontaneously by
China, but that I absolutely refused to treat the loan account
as settled until I had some definite assurance that these
measures would be carried out within a fixed time. The Yamên
again attempted to persuade me to leave the carrying out of
the measures indicated entirely to the Chinese Government, and
it was only after the usual prolonged argument that they
consented to open internal waters to steam navigation within
four months; to let me know at an early date when they would
open a port in Hunan, and to give me a written guarantee
against the alienation of the Yang-tsze region to a foreign
Power."
After reporting conversation on other matters, the Minister
recounted his action on the subject of the Yang-tsze region,
and on that of the opening of inland waterways to steam
navigation, at an interview with the Tsung-li Yamên on the
9th. "I then produced," he said, "a draft of the note I
intended addressing to them with regard to non-alienation of
the Yang-tsze region. This was accepted with little demur,
with the insertion of the words 'now entirely in China's
possession,' which, as recording an undeniable fact, I agreed
to put in. Copies of the notes subsequently exchanged are
inclosed. I have not thought it necessary to narrate the
arguments by which I supported the demand for this pledge at
both these interviews. My chief ground was that we could not
afford to find one morning that by reason of the murder of a
foreign subject, or the refusal of some demand by a foreign
Power, some place on the Yang-tsze had been seized and was to
be retained on a ninety-nine years' lease. I then handed to
the Ministers the despatch … recording their assurance with
regard to steam navigation of inland waterways. They read it
with attention, and accepted it as satisfactory."
Of the notes thus passed between the British Minister and the
Tsung-li Yamên, that of the former, dated February 9, was as
follows: "Your Highnesses and your Excellencies have more than
once intimated to me that the Chinese Government were aware of
the great importance that has always been attached by Great
Britain to the retention in Chinese possession of the
Yang-tsze region, now entirely hers, as providing security for
the free course and development of trade. I shall be glad to
be in a position to communicate to Her Majesty's Government a
definite assurance that China will never alienate any
territory in the provinces adjoining the Yang-tsze to any
other Power, whether under lease, mortgage, or any other
designation. Such an assurance is in full harmony with the
observations made to me by your Highnesses and your
Excellencies."
On the 11th, the Yamên returned the following reply: "The
Yamên have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of the
British Minister's despatch of the 9th February, stating that
the Yamên had more than once intimated to him that the Chinese
Government were aware of the great importance that has always
been attached by Great Britain to the retention in Chinese
possession of the Yang-tsze region, now entirely hers, as
providing security for the free course and development of
trade. The British Minister would be glad to be in a position
to communicate to Her Majesty's Government a definite
assurance that China would never alienate (any territory) in
the provinces adjoining the Yang-tsze to any other Power,
whether under lease, mortgage, or any other designation.
{83}
The Yamên have to observe that the Yang-tsze region is of the
greatest importance as concerning the whole position (or
interests) of China, and it is out of the question that
territory (in it) should be mortgaged, leased, or ceded to
another Power. Since Her Britannic Majesty's Government has
expressed its interest (or anxiety), it is the duty of the
Yamên to address this note to the British Minister for
communication to his Government."
The despatch recording the Chinese concession of steam
navigation on inland waters was in the following terms: "It
was … with great pleasure that I learnt from your Highnesses
and your Excellencies at a recent interview that the Chinese
Government had determined that wherever the use of native
boats is now by Treaty permitted to foreigners, they shall
equally be permitted to employ steamers or steam-launches,
whether Chinese or foreign-owned, or their own boats, and,
further, that this arrangement would come into effect before
the end of the 4th Chinese moon. I shall have great pleasure
in communicating the Chinese Government's decision to my
Government, for it is an indication that China is prepared to
take every step open to her to increase the volume of trade,
and so add to her resources and the wealth of the people."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899, page 13-18.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (February-December).
The "Battle of Concessions," for railway building and mining.
By summer-time in 1898 the scramble among the Powers for
footholds of territory on the Chinese coast seemed to be
giving way to what Lord Salisbury described as "the battle of
concessions," for the building of railways and the opening of
mines. This newer battle gave his lordship much anxiety. On
the 13th of July he cabled to Sir Claude MacDonald: "It does
not seem that the battle of Concessions is going well for us,
and that the mass of Chinese railways, if they are ever built,
will be in foreign hands is a possibility that we must face.
One evil of this is, that no orders for materials will come to
this country. That we cannot, help. The other evil is, that by
differential rates and privileges the Managers of the railways
may strangle our trade. This we ought to be able to prevent,
by pressing that proper provisions for equal treatment be
inserted in every Concession."
The British Minister at Peking, in reply, dissented warmly
from Lord Salisbury's opinion. "The battle of Concessions is
not, in my opinion," he cabled on the 23d of July, "going
against us. … Up to the present, any concessions granted to
other nationalities are far out-balanced in financial value by
the Shansi and Honan mining and railway concession, with its
possible extensions. I have consistently informed the Chinese
government that, as to differential rates and privileges, we
want none ourselves, and cannot admit that other nationalities
have a claim to them." In due time, as will appear, Sir Claude
was able to furnish very good evidence in support of his
contention that the "battle of concessions" was not going
against Great Britain, by forwarding a list of all the
concessions granted to clamoring capitalists and promoters of
the several nationalities. Meantime, he gave close attention
to the varying fortunes of the battle.
A concession for the Peking-Hankow Railway was the one which
interested the English most. Its line would traverse the rich
and populous provinces of Chi-li, Honan, and Hoa-Pé, and be
connected by another line, for which the Russo-Chinese Bank
held concessions, with the valuable coal-mining basin of
Ping-ting. Early in August, the British found reason to
believe that the pending agreement with a Belgian syndicate
for the building of this road was one that would give control
of it to the Russo-Chinese Bank,—which meant Russian, or
Russian and French control. He promptly remonstrated to the
Yamên, and was assured that the agreement had not yet been
submitted to the throne, and would not be ratified if the
effect were such as he had described. He cabled this assurance
to Lord Salisbury on the 6th of August. On the 13th he had a
very different report to make. "I learnt on the 9th," he says,
"that the Yamên had, under the influence of Li Hung-chang,
abandoned this position [that they would not ratify the
Belgian agreement if its effect was to give control of the
Peking-Hankow line of railway to the Russo-Chinese Bank], and
intended to ratify the agreement immediately. In view of the
urgency of the matter, I addressed a note on the same day to
the Yamên, in which I asked for an interview on the 10th or
11th instant, and informed them that the Chinese text of the
Contract had reached me, warning them at the same time that if
they did not give me another interview before they ratified
the Agreement Her Majesty's Government would look upon their
action as unfriendly, and would probably insist on the same
rights being given to Great Britain in all the provinces
adjoining the Yang-tsze.
"On the evening of the 10th the Yamên answered that they would
appoint a day for an interview when they had received the
Contract, which, they said, had not yet reached Peking for
ratification. On the 11th I replied that I understood from
this communication that they undertook not to ratify until
they had seen me. To this they returned an evasive answer to
the effect that they were all engaged by ceremonies at the
Palace connected with the Emperor's birthday, which would last
some days. I should add that I had already, on the 10th, sent
them a note in which I criticized the Contract in detail,
stating finally that I should have further objections to bring
forward at my interview with them. I now hear on good
authority that the Contract was ratified yesterday, the 12th.
That the ratification has thus been rushed through is
undoubtedly due to the influence of Li Hung-chang, combined
with strong pressure on the part of the Representatives of
Russia, France, and Belgium, and if heavy payment is not
exacted from the Chinese Government for their bad faith, Li
will persuade his colleagues that it is safer to slight
England than any other Power, and any pressure which we may
want to bring to bear in other matters will be without weight.
I therefore think that Her Majesty's Government should insist
either:—
"1. On a written assurance from the Yamên that if British
Syndicates apply for any railway concessions in the Yang-tsze
provinces, they shall be given on the same terms as those
which France, under cover of the Belgian Syndicate, has
received in the Peking-Hankow Contract, and that no mining or
railway concessions will be granted in those provinces unless
they have been previously declined by British Syndicates; or
{84}
"2. On a written assurance that all railways for which British
Syndicates are now in Treaty, that is to say—
(a.) The Shan-hai-Kuan-Niuchwang line;
(b.) The line from Tien-tsin to Chinkiang (the latter, as I
understand, in conjunction with Germans and Americans);
(c.) The line from Shanghae to Nanking with its
continuations and branches;
(d.) The lines in Honan and Shansi should be granted
without any further delay on terms identical with those
contained in the Contract for the Peking-Hankow line. The
latter consist, so far as I can learn, in complete control
over the construction, choice of material, working, and
personnel of the line, together with an Imperial guarantee
for the repayment of the loan.
The second demand seems to me to be preferable on the whole;
it will be impossible to obtain either demand without bringing
great pressure to bear, and I consider that the demand should
be made not as a compensatory concession, but as a punishment
for bad faith."
On the 17th the reply of the British Foreign Office was sent
by Mr. Balfour, as follows:
"With reference to your telegram of the 13th instant, inform
Yamên that they must assent to your proposal Number 2 without
delay, omitting from it the Shankaikuan-Newchwang Railway,
which we must deal with as a separate question. You are
authorized to inform them, if you have any reason to apprehend
that they will delay compliance, that, unless they agree at
once, we shall regard their breach of faith concerning the
Peking-Hankow Railway as an act of deliberate hostility
against this country, and shall act accordingly. After
consultation with the Admiral, you may give them the number of
days or hours you think proper within which to send their
reply. The delay should not be of too long duration. It should
be noted, on face of your demand, that Chingkiang Concession
is for Americans and Germans, if they desire a share, as well
as ourselves. Also make it clear that your ultimatum has
nothing to do with the line to Newchwang."
The tone of these demands made them effectual. On the 4th of
September, Sir Claude MacDonald was able to announce to his
superiors, in London: "At an interview which I had with them
yesterday, the Yamên entered into the following
undertaking:—Within the next few days they will address a
despatch to me, apologising for their action, and consenting
to the construction of the following lines by British
Syndicates:
1. A. line from Shanghae to Nanking with a continuation viâ
Chinkiang to Sui Yang. They said, however, that the latter
route was that followed by the line from Tien-tsin to
Chinkiang, for which they said that a Preliminary Agreement
had been signed between Yung Wing and the Anglo-American
Syndicate; and the continuation in question must be dependent
on the cancellation of that Agreement.
2. A line connecting Hangchow and Soochow with Shanghae, to be
continued if required to Ningpo.
3. A line from Canton to Kowloon.
4. The Peking Syndicate to be entitled to construct a railway
to convey minerals from their mines to the Yang-tsze. The
Yamên have also agreed to send me a Confidential note
embodying a declaration that the terms accorded for the
construction of these lines will not be inferior to those
granted for the construction of any railways in China proper.
The Manchurian lines are excluded from the scope of this
Agreement. I venture to think that this is a satisfactory
settlement. I did not give them an ultimatum, confining myself
to a warning of the grave consequences which would now attend
any failure on their part to keep their word. The fact that
the fleet is concentrating is, of course, known to them."
Before receiving this announcement, Mr. Balfour had cabled, on
the 24th of August:
"Negotiations with Yamên may be facilitated if you informed
them at once that, unless the very moderate terms already
demanded are immediately complied with, we shall, in addition,
require the Concession of another line, on same conditions as
those granted in case of Peking Hankow line of railway, and
that additional demands will be preferred as the result of
further delay. If you think it would conduce to the rapid and
satisfactory termination of the negotiations, you are
authorized to make a communication to them in this sense."
Whether this suggestion was acted upon or not does not appear.
This transaction, connected with the project of a railway from
Peking to Hankow, appears to illustrate, not unfairly, on the
whole, the mode in which speculative concessions were being
wrung from the Chinese government in the busiest year of
oriental speculation, 1898. The outcome of the grand "battle"
was communicated by Sir Claude MacDonald to Lord Charles
Beresford, on the 23d of November, in a full list of the
concessions then granted to British subjects, compared with
the grants to other nationalities. "We do not seem," wrote Sir
Claude, with pardonable complacency, "to have come out second
best. … Not a single bona fide or approximately practical
scheme which has been brought to this Legation has failed to
be put through." The summarized result in railway concessions
was
9 British (2,800 miles);
3 Russian (1,530 miles);
2 German (720 miles);
3 French (420 miles);
1 Belgian (650 miles);
1 American (300 miles).
In detail, the railway and mining concessions were described
in the list as follows:
CHINA:
"Railway and other Concessions obtained by British Companies:
I. Province of Shansi.
The Peking Syndicate have acquired the 'sole right to open and
work coal and iron mines throughout the districts of Yu Hsien
and Ping Ting-chou, and the Prefectures of Lusan Fu, Tsü-chou
Fu, and Ping Yang Fu, and also petroleum, wherever found.'
Under their contract, the Syndicate have also the right to
'construct branch railways to connect with main lines or with
water navigation, to facilitate transport of Shansi coal.'
This has been interpreted officially to include the right of
connecting the mines with Siang-yang in Hupeh, the nearest
head of navigation giving access to the Yang-tsze. This means
a railway of 250 miles. As to the value of this Concession, it
is not amiss to quote the testimony of Baron von Richthofen,
the great authority on the geology of China. He says that, 'in
proportion to its area, Shansi has probably the largest and
most easily workable coalfield of any region on the globe, and
the manufacture of iron is capable of almost unlimited
extension.'
II. Province of Honan.
The Peking Syndicate have also acquired rights similar to
those obtained in Shansi in that part of Honan north of the
Yellow River.
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III. Province of Chihli.
The Hong Kong and Shanghae Bank are financing and controlling
the North China railways from Peking to Tien-tsin, and thence
to Shanhaikuan and Newchwang. The total length of these lines
is about 500 miles, of which 300 miles are completely open to
traffic.
IV. This bank has also acquired a half-interest in the
coal-mines at Nan P'iao, in the Ch'ao-yang district. According
to experts, these mines possess the best and richest coal
seams in North China, and they have the immense advantage of
being close to a line of railway and the sea.
V. Provinces of Chihli and Kiangsu.
The Tsung-li Yamên have undertaken officially that the
construction of the Tien-tsin-Chinkiang line shall be
intrusted to an Anglo-German Syndicate. The British portion of
this Syndicate is represented in China by Messrs. Jardine,
Matheson, and Co., and the Hong Kong and Shanghae Bank. This
will be a trunk line of 600 miles, passing through more
populous country than the Lu-Han Railway (the Belgian line),
with which it is certain to be able to compete successfully.
VI. Province of Kiangsu.
A British Syndicate, represented by Messrs. Jardine, Matheson,
and Co., and the Hong Kong and Shanghae Bank, has obtained the
Concession to finance and construct the Shanghae-Nanking
Railway. There is no more paying district than this for a
railway in China. The length of line will be 170 or 180 miles.
VII. Provinces of Kiangsu, Anhui, and Honan.
The same Syndicate has the right to extend the
Shanghae-Nanking Railway from P'u-k'ou, opposite Nanking, to
Hsin Yang, in Honan, a distance of 270 miles.
VIII. Provinces of Kiangsu and Chekiang.
The same Syndicate has the right to construct a line from
Soochow to Hangchow, with a possible extension to Ningpo. This
line will run through very populous districts for over 200
miles. The last three Concessions all lie within the Yang-tsze
region.
IX. Province of Chêkiang.
The Peking Syndicate have also obtained mining Concessions
similar to the Shansi and Honan in this province.
X. Province of Kwangtung.
The Jardine Syndicate has the right to construct a railway
from Kowloon to Canton. The length of line will be nearly 100
miles.
XI. Provinces of Hupei, Kiangsi, and Kwangtung.
An American Syndicate signed a preliminary Agreement for the
construction of a railway from Hankow to Canton in May last.
Negotiations are now in progress for the amalgamation of this
Concession with Number 10, Kowloon to Canton, and the working
of the whole line from Hankow to Kowloon by an Anglo-American
Company. This will be a trunk line of, approximately, 600
miles long.
XII. Provinces of Yünnan, Kweichow, and Ssuchuan.
The right to extend the Burmah system into China as far as the
Yang-tsze is admitted, and surveys are now in progress. This
involves a possible railway of 700 miles.
See Remarks on French Concessions.
CHINA:
"Concessions other than British. Russian.
The Manchurian Railway Concession dates from 1896. As is well
known, it was obtained as recompense for help given in
securing the retrocession of Liaotung. From Stretensk on the
Shilka, where it leaves the main Siberian line, this railway
will cross the Argun and Hingan Mountains, and reach Kirin viâ
Petuna. The whole length from Stretensk to Vladivostock is
estimated at 1,400 miles, of which about 1,000 will pass
through Chinese territory. The Concession is purely
strategical. The country traversed, though potentially rich,
in great part is, and will be for long, sparsely populated,
and the line cannot, in the near future at any rate, hope to
pay its working expenses.
2. The Port Arthur Agreement of March 1898 arranges for the
conclusion by Russia of a branch from the above line to Port
Arthur or Talienwan. The length of the railway will be about
400 miles. Commercially, this branch is more promising than
the first Concession.
3. The Russo-Chinese Bank has signed a contract for the
construction of a branch line from T'ai-yüan Fu to connect
with the Lu-Han trunk lines near Chêng-tung. Length,
approximately 130 miles. They have, up to date, been unable to
raise money for this line. I think it very possible that it
will eventually be built by an Anglo-Russian Syndicate. I am
trying to arrange this.
"French.—The French possess the right to construct three
lines, but beyond acquiring this right they have done nothing.
1. From Tonquin up the Red River Valley to Yünnan Fu, say 200
miles. The impression in French railway circles is that a
railway through Yünnan will not pay expenses, and if any
serious attempt is made to carry out the extension of the
Tonquin system, it will be merely as a stepping-stone to
Ssü-ch'uan. Yet again, any pretensions that a railway from
Yünnan to the Yang-tsze may have to rank as a commercial
project have been pronounced against by every traveller in
Central China.
2. Langson-Lungchow-Nanning Railway; length, about 100 miles.
(There appears to be an alternative open to the French of
going to Pésé instead of Nanning.) The right to build this
line has been conceded, but the idea is growing amongst the
French of Tonquin that, instead of diverting traffic from the
West River, a line from Langson to Lungchow and Nanning would
prove an additional feeder of the West River route.
3. From Pakhoi inland, presumably to Nanning; length, say 120
miles. The Tonquin press have pointed out that this line will
benefit English commerce more than French. It will never, in
my opinion, be built-by the French.
" German.
1. Kiao-chau-Yichow-Tsinan line; length, 420 miles. Nothing
has been done towards the construction of this line, which
does not promise commercially.
2. Tien-tsin-Chin-kiang line to be built by an Anglo-German
Company.
See Number 5 of the British Concessions.
"Belgian.
The Lu-Han or Peking-Hankow Railway. A Franco-Belgian
Syndicate have secured the Concession for this, a trunk line
of some 650 or 700 miles, passing north and south through
Chihli, Honan, and Hupeh. This railway is an old project born
of Chang-Chih-Tung's objection to building lines near the
coast, 'lest they should facilitate the access of an enemy.'
Its prospects as a commercial enterprise are not considered so
good as those of the rival Tien-tsin-Chinkiang line.
"American.
The only railway in which America is at present interested is
the trunk line projected from Hankow to Canton."
See British Concessions, Number 11.
{86}
On the 18th of December the British Minister announced to Lord
Salisbury: "An Imperial Decree, stating that no more railway
proposals will be for the present entertained by the Chinese
government, has been officially communicated to me by the
Yamên." To which the response from London was: "You should
inform the Chinese Government that Her Majesty's Government
claim, in the event of their revoking their present resolve
not to entertain any more proposals for railways, priority of
consideration by the Chinese Government of all British
applications already made." This notice was given, as
directed, and the Yamên replied to it (December 31) with some
dignity: "We have the honour to observe that the development
of railways in China is the natural right and advantage of the
Chinese Government. If, hereafter, in addition to the lines
already sanctioned, which will be proceeded with in order,
China proposes to construct other railways, she will negotiate
with the nation which she finds suitable. When the time
arrives China must use her own discretion as to her course of
action. The applications of British merchants can, of course,
be kept on record as material for negotiation at that day, but
it is not expedient to treat them as having a prior claim over
all others to a settled agreement."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899, pages 164-69, 190-92, 215-16,
327, 344-47; and Number 1, 1900, page 22.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (March).
An intelligent Chinese view of the situation of the country.
How well the situation and the dangers of their country were
understood at this period by some, at least, of the Chinese
officials, and how intelligently they considered them, may be
gathered from some passages in a memorial addressed by Viceroy
Chang Chih-tung and another high official, Sheng Hsuan-huai,
Director-General of Railways, to the Emperor, on the subject
of the construction of the Hankow-Kwangtung Railway. A
translation of the document was transmitted to London at the
end of March. The memorialists say: "The original idea was
that the construction of the Hankow-Kwangtung Southern trunk
line should be postponed for a time, but now, owing to the
exigencies of the present situation, this work must not be
delayed. The powerful foreign nations stand around watching
for their opportunity, and, making use of trivial pretexts in
the conduct of international affairs, swiftly dispatch their
war-ships from one end of the Empire to the other. It is
impossible to say when our communication by sea may be
blocked, and the establishment of internal communication by
railways has become a necessity. Kwungtung is a rich province,
and the defence of the southern territory and waterways must
not be neglected, so that the making of the Hankow-Kwangtung
line should be proceeded with at the same time as the northern
road. The original intention was to construct a road from
Kwangtung to Hupeh viâ Chiangsi, but this circuitous route is
longer than the direct route through Hunan Province, and for
many reasons it will be a source of greater prosperity and
strength to the Empire if the latter route is adopted. There
is, moreover, no doubt that the officials and merchants of the
three provinces are in favour of this scheme. The most direct
route will be to proceed viâ Ch'en-chou, Yung-chou, Feng-chou,
and Ch'ang-sha to Wuch'ang, and so to Hankow. … Now Hankow is
the central point to which all the waterways of the eighteen
provinces from north, south, east, and west converge. If
England is allowed to build the Hankow and Kwangtung road,
passing through this important point, afterwards when the
Russian line advances southward, and the English line is
continued to the north, although we shall be in possession of
the Hankow-Lü Kou-chiao line, we shall be stilled and our
profits curtailed, for, being between the other lines, we
shall not be able to defend our own. It is also greatly to be
feared that our own line would pass into either English or
Russian hands. In this case not only is our throat stopped by
the foreigners being in possession of our ports, but our vital
parts are injuriously affected. Should we wish to raise and
drill soldiers, make arms, or obtain funds for the necessities
of the Empire, it will be impossible, and China not only will
not make progress, but we fear she will barely be able to
maintain her independence.
"Your memorialists are distressed when they consider the
extreme danger of the situation, but they think that the best
method of meeting it is to proceed ourselves at once with the
construction of the Hankow-Kwangtung Railway. Should it be
made by degrees, starting from Kwangtung through Hunan to
Hankow, it will be seized forcibly before completion, and we
fear sufficient funds cannot be raised for hurrying forward
its construction. Your memorialist, Sheng, had the intention
of employing American capital for the construction of the Lü
Kou-chaio-Hankow line, but afterwards when the American,
Washburn, came to China, his conditions were found to be too
hard, and consequently negotiations were broken off. Your
servant was thus constrained to approach Belgium. By acting
thus our privileges would not be lost, nor would ill
consequences follow. But Belgium is a small country, and her
strength is inconsiderable, and often she has pointed out that
an unfinished railroad is hardly a sufficient guarantee for
the loan. Consequently she is very undecided, but we have
hopes that by the adoption of some compromise terms may be
arrived at, though the question is extremely difficult. Thus
another scheme must be adopted for raising the capital for the
southern line. There are grave objections to allowing either
England, France, or Germany to undertake the work, and your
memorialists suggest that Wu Ting-fang, the Minister at
Washington, should be communicated with. He is a Cantonese,
and will not fail to do his best to find a scheme."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899,pages 87-89.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (March-July).
Russian acquisition of Port Arthur and Talienwan.
Ineffectual British opposition.
Consequent British demand for Wei-hai Wei.
Its lease by China.
While the British Minister at Peking was securing these
assurances from the Tsung-li Yamên, concerning the
non-alienation of the Yang-tsze region and the opening of
inland waters to steam navigation, the Russian Minister was
equally busy, extorting a cession or lease of Port Arthur and
Talienwan, with privileges of railway construction through
neighboring territory which gave immense value to those
acquisitions. The probability of his success was soon known to
the British authorities, who made no serious objection to the
leasing of Talienwan, but were strongly opposed to a Russian
occupation of Port Arthur.
{87}
On the 22d of March, 1898, Lord Salisbury wrote to the British
Ambassador at St. Petersburg: "Her Majesty's Government on
their part would not regard with any dissatisfaction the lease
by Russia of an ice-free commercial harbour, connected by
rail with the trans-Siberian Railway which is now under
construction. Questions of an entirely different kind are
opened if Russia obtains control of a military port in the
neighbourhood of Peking. Port Arthur is useless for commercial
purposes, its whole importance being derived solely from its
military strength and strategic position, and its occupation
would inevitably be considered in the East as a standing
menace to Peking and the commencement of the partition of
China."
On the 28th of March he wrote again: "Port Arthur is not a
commercial harbour. It is doubtful whether it could be
converted into one. It is certain that, even if such a project
were possible, it could never be worth while for the owners or
lessees of Talienwan to embark upon it. But though not a
commercial harbour, Port Arthur supplies a naval base, limited
indeed in extent, but possessing great natural and artificial
strength. And this, taken in connection with its strategic
position, gives it an importance in the Gulf of Pechili and
therefore at Peking, upon which, in their representations to
Japan at the close of the war with China, the Russian
Government laid the greatest emphasis. It is from this last
point of view that the occupation of Port Arthur chiefly
concerns Her Majesty's Government. It is not because a
position which can easily be made a naval arsenal of great
strength has been acquired by Russia that they regret its
occupation by that Power. It is because the possession, even
if temporary, of this particular position, is likely to have
political consequences at Peking of great international
importance, and because the acquisition of a Chinese harbour
notoriously useless for commercial purposes by a foreign Power
will be universally interpreted in the Far East as indicating
that the partition of China has begun.
"As regards the second of these reasons nothing further need
be said, inasmuch as Her Majesty's Government understand from
Count Mouravieff's communication to you that this result is as
little desired by the Russian Government as it is by that of
Her Majesty. As regards the first, it may perhaps be proper to
observe that a great military Power which is coterminous for
over 4,000 miles with the land frontier of China, including
the portion lying nearest to its capital, is never likely to
be without its due share of influence on the councils of that
country. Her Majesty's Government regard it as Most
unfortunate that it has been thought necessary in addition to
obtain control of a port which, if the rest of the Gulf of
Pechili remains in hands so helpless as those of the Sovereign
Power, will command the maritime approaches to its capital,
and give to Russia the same strategic advantage by sea which
she already possesses in so ample a measure by land. Her
Majesty's Government have thought it their duty thus to put on
record their grave objections to the occupation of Port Arthur
by Russia."
Before this despatch was written, Lord Salisbury already knew
that his remonstrances had failed and that Russia was to
possess Port Arthur, and he had cabled, March 25, the
following instructions to Sir Claude MacDonald, the British
Minister to Peking: "Balance of power in Gulf of Pechili is
materially altered by surrender of Port Arthur by Yamên to
Russia. It is therefore necessary to obtain, in the manner you
think most efficacious and speedy, the refusal of Wei-hai Wei
on the departure of the Japanese. The terms should be similar
to those granted to Russia for Port Arthur. British fleet is
on its way from Hong Kong to Gulf of Pechili." The day
following, Lord Salisbury advised the British Ambassador at
Berlin by telegram: "Her Majesty's Government have demanded a
reversionary lease of Wei-hai Wei, and it is possible that the
German Government will address you with regard to our
occupying territory which forms part of the Province of
Shantung. Should this be the case, you are authorized to
explain that Wei-hai Wei is not at present, and cannot, we
believe, be made a commercial port by which access can be
obtained to any part of the province. We do not wish to
interfere with the interests of Germany in that region. The
action, in our opinion very regrettable, of Russia with
respect to Port Arthur, has compelled us to take the course we
are now pursuing."
On the 29th of March the completion of the transaction by
which China transferred Port Arthur and Talienwan to Russia
was officially announced at St. Petersburg by the following
publication in the "Official Messenger": "At Peking on the
15th (27th) March a special Agreement was signed by the
Plenipotentiaries of Russia and China, by virtue of which
Ports Arthur and Talienwan, with the corresponding territory
and waters, have been ceded to the Imperial Government for
twenty-five years—which period, by mutual agreement, may be
still further prolonged—and the construction allowed of
branches of railways in order to connect these ports with the
main Great Siberian line. This Agreement is a direct and
natural outcome of the friendly relations between great
neighbouring Empires, all of whose endeavours should be
directed towards the preservation of tranquillity along the
vast extent of their neighbouring possessions for the common
benefit of the people of both of them. The peaceful
occupation, by the diplomatic Agreement of the 15th March, of
the ports and territory of a friendly nation shows, in the
best possible way, that the Government of China truly
appreciates the meaning of the Agreement established between
us.
"Securing the inviolability of the sovereign rights of China,
and satisfying the daily requirements of Russia in her
capacity of a great and neighbouring naval Power, this
Agreement can in no way insure [injure?] the interests of any
other foreign Power; on the contrary, it gives to all nations
of the world the possibility in the near future of entering
into communication with this hitherto closed-up country on the
coast of the Yellow Sea. The opening to the commercial fleets
of all foreign nations of the port of Talienwan creates in the
Pacific Ocean a new and extended centre for the commercial and
trading undertakings of those nations, especially by means of
the Great Siberian line, henceforth to be taken into account,
and which, thanks to the friendly Treaty between Russia and
China, will unite the extreme ends of the Old World. Thus, the
Agreement signed at Peking has for Russia a deep historical
signification, and must be joyfully welcomed by all to whom
happy peace and successes, based on the mutual understandings
of nations, are dear."
{88}
On the 3d of April, Sir Claude MacDonald was able to announce
by cable to Lord Salisbury: "Yamên agreed yesterday to the
following arrangement: China will lease Wei-hai Wei to Great
Britain on the same terms as Port Arthur has been leased to
Russia, but Great Britain agrees not to take possession of the
place until it has been given up by Japan. The lease will
continue until Russia ceases to occupy Liaotung Peninsula.
Details are left for subsequent adjustment." Negotiations
relative to the terms of the lease of Wei-hai Wei were
protracted until the first of July, when the Convention
determining them was signed at Peking. Its provisions were as
follows: "The territory leased shall comprise the Island of
Liu-kung and all islands in the Bay of Wei-hai Wei, and a belt
of land 10 English miles wide along the entire coast line of the
Bay of Wei-hai Wei. Within the above-mentioned territory
leased Great Britain shall have sole jurisdiction. Great
Britain shall have, in addition, the right to erect
fortifications, station troops, or take any other measures
necessary for defensive purposes, at any points on or near the
coast of the region east of the meridian 121° 40' east of
Greenwich, and to acquire on equitable compensation with that
territory such sites as may be necessary for water supply,
communications, and hospitals. Within that zone Chinese
administration will not be interfered with, but no troops
other than Chinese or British shall be allowed therein. It is
also agreed that within the walled city of Wei-hai Wei,
Chinese officials shall continue to exercise jurisdiction
except so far as may be inconsistent with naval and military
requirements for the defence of the territory leased. It is
further agreed that Chinese vessels of war, whether neutral or
otherwise, shall retain the right to use the waters herein
leased to Great Britain. It is further understood that there
will be no expropriation or expulsion of the inhabitants of
the territory herein specified, and that if land is required
for fortifications, public officers, or any official or public
purpose, it shall be bought at a fair price."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1898, and Number 1, 1899.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (April-July).
Charges of corruption against Li Hung-chang and
the Tsung-li Yamên.
"One of the censors of highest rank memorialised the Emperor
early in April, accusing the whole Tsung-li Yamên of being in
Russian pay, and alleging that the sum of 10,000,000 taels was
paid to them. He also stated that Li Hung-chang had secured
from Russia 1,500,000 taels, and he prayed for a full inquiry
and for the decapitation of Li Hung-chang if the accusation
were proved, or if he were found guiltless, he himself should
be decapitated. Li Hung-chang was dismissed on September 6,
but afterwards in November was appointed an imperial
commissioner to report on the inundations of the Yellow River,
an unwelcome post. … A Black Flag rebellion in the southern
province of Kwang-si, in which the secret society called The
Triads was said to be concerned, was giving the Pekin
Government great anxiety in July. The rebels, numbering about
40,000, were for a time victorious and seemed determined to
overthrow the dynasty."
Annual Register, 1898, pages 333-334.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (April-August).
France in the field with demands.
New demands from Great Britain.
France had now come forward to seize a place in the attacking
line, preparatory to what seemed to be the impending partition
of China. On the 12th of April, Sir Claude MacDonald cabled to
Lord Salisbury the following despatch: "I had an interview
with the Yamên yesterday, at which they informed me that
China, had acceded to the following demands on the part of
France:
1. Kwangchow Wan [in the Lei-chau peninsula, on the southern
coast, near Tonquin] to be leased as a coaling-station to
France.
2. The right to construct a railway to Yünnan-fu from the
Tonquin frontier.
3. The promise not to alienate any territory in the three
provinces of Kwangtung, Kwangsi, and Yünnan, which border on
the French frontier.
4. The Chinese Government agree that if ever they constitute a
Postal Department independent of the maritime customs, and if
a European is to be appointed as Director thereof, France
shall have an equal right with that of other Powers to
nominate a candidate for the post of Director.
The Chinese Government are willing—
1. To lease us as much additional territory on Kowloon
promontory [opposite Hong Kong], exclusive of Kowloon city, as
is required for military and naval purposes.
2. The Yamên state that China is quite willing to allow the
extension into Yünnan of the Burmah Railway."
On the 13th, Mr. Balfour, in the absence of Lord Salisbury,
cabled from London in reply: "Inform Yamên that, although they
have not followed our advice, we are anxious to maintain, as
far as possible, integrity of China, and will, therefore, not
make new territorial demands upon them. It is, however,
absolutely necessary, if we are to pursue this policy, that
they, on their side, should first immediately conclude
negotiations—
(a) for giving us an the land required for military defences
of Hong Kong;
(b) to fulfil their promise to make Nanning a Treaty port;
(c) to give some railway concession;
(d) an agreement as to the non-alienation of Kuang'tung and
Yünnan.
In connection with condition (d), it is in the interests of
the integrity of China, and is justified by the proximity of
Yünnan to Burmah, and by our commercial preponderance in
Kuang'tung."
On the same day (13th April) the British Minister at Paris
telegraphed to the Foreign Office, London: "It is stated in
to-night's papers that, at the Cabinet Council held this
morning, M. Hanotaux was able to announce to his colleagues
that the French demands on China had been satisfactorily met.
They are stated in the semi-official 'Temps' to be:—
1. Concession of a lease of a bay on the south coast of China.
2. Concession of a railway connecting Tonquin with Yünnan-fu
by the Red River.
3. Engagement on the part of China never to alienate the
territories of the provinces contiguous to Tonquin.
4. Engagement never to cede to any other Power the Island of
Hainan.
5. Arrangement in regard to the constitution of the postal
service."
Thus, for the time being, France was satisfied, and England
would be, before she gave rest to the Tsung-li Yamên. Her
present demands, as above specified by Mr. Balfour, were
pressed without ceasing by the pertinacious Sir Claude. On the
9th of June he obtained from the Yamên a lease for the British
government of about 200 square miles of territory on the
mainland opposite its island crown colony of Hong Kong, and
surrounding the Chinese city of Kowloon, the latter, however,
to remain under Chinese jurisdiction.
{89}
The term of the lease was 90 years. With regard to the opening
of Nanning as a Treaty Port, he received an assurance from the
Yamên in August that it should be done so soon as the Kwang-si
rebellion was crushed. On the other points he had equal
success.
Great Britain. Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899, pages 12, 19, 98-99, 178.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (May).
How the murder of a missionary was made the ground of French
demands for a Railway Concession.
On the 17th of May, 1898, the British Minister at Peking
cabled to Lord Salisbury: "Murder of missionary in Kuang-si.
French demands for compensation. … The Yamên … said they were
not certain that the murdered missionary was not a Chinaman,
and that the demands made by the French for compensation
comprise a Concession for a railway to some point on the
sea-coast not specified, a chapel to be built, and a pecuniary
indemnity of 100,000 fr. to be paid. Up to the present they had
refused all these demands." Later, the following particulars
of the murder were received from the British Consul at Canton:
"The occurrence happened about a fortnight ago at
Yun-gan-chou, in the P'ing-lo Prefecture. While walking
through the streets the missionary noticed a placard directed
against the Christian religion. Having discovered the author
of the placard, the missionary, with two converts, proceeded
to his house and attempted to arrest him. Out of this a
disturbance arose in which the passers-by took part, and in
the end the missionary and the two converts lost their lives."
On the 21st of May Sir Claude MacDonald reported to Lord
Salisbury from Peking: "I am very reliably informed that the
demands made at an interview with the Yamên yesterday by M.
Pichon, the French Minister, in connection with this case
were:—
1. A Concession to construct a railway from Pakhoi to Nanning;
2. Construction of a chapel at Pakhoi;
3. A pecuniary indemnity of 100,000 fr.; and
4. The responsible officials to be punished.
In response to these demands, the Yamên suggested that the
Railway Concession should be granted in a document by itself,
apart from the granting of the other demands, and that the
chapel should be built at Yungan-chou, the scene of the
murder, instead of at Pakhoi, and the French Minister
undertook to refer these modifications to his Government for
their favourable consideration."
On the 27th, Sir Claude reported further that he had heard on
very good authority that all the French demands had been
granted, and added: "The Yamên have since denied to me that
they have committed themselves to granting them, but I have
little doubt that they have practically done so. The reason
for making the Railway Concession a separate matter is that
the Chinese are anxious to avoid establishing precedents for
compensation for attacks on missionaries taking the shape of
commercial Concessions, and they hope, rather foolishly, to do
so by nominally closing the missionary case before the other
matter is taken up. They did this in the case of the German
Agreement for the lease of Kiao-chau Bay, which begins by
declaring that the Shantung missionary case has already been
closed. The French demands are not at all excessive. I have
already expressed my belief that the proposed railway will not
injure us commercially, provided, of course, that no
differential rates are allowed, as to which I shall insist on
specific assurances from the Yamên."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899, pages 91, 146, 150.
Alluding to this incident, and to that which the German
government made its pretext for seizing Kiao Chau (see, above,
A. D. 1897-November), a German writer has remarked:
"Never before, perhaps, has so much material value been
attached to ministers of the Gospel in foreign lands, and the
manner in which, after their death, they are used to spread
civilization is somewhat foreign to our older ideas of the
functions of the bearers of spiritual blessings."
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (June-September).
Momentary influence of a reform party in the palace.
Futile attempt of the young emperor to uphold it.
The decaying state of the Empire had now become so desperately
plain, and the predatory swarm of governments and speculators
which gathered to despoil it had grown so greedy and so bold,
that a party which could see that the only hope for its
salvation must be sought in some modernizing reforms, of
education and administration, was able to win a momentary
footing of influence in the palace at Peking. Its leading
spirit appears to have been one Kang Yeu Wei, an extremely
radical reformer who came from Canton. In an article which he
wrote some months later, and which was published in the
"Contemporary Review," Kang Yeu Wei gave this account of
himself, and of the mode in which he was brought into
relations with the young Emperor:
"I was always fond of studying Western learning. After the
French took Foochow in 1885 there was evident danger of
China's end drawing nigh. Consequently, in 1889, I
memorialised about the matter in great grief. I feared
Russia's advance southward, and pointed out the secret
intentions of Japan and the latent danger in Corea. I thought
that China had come to such a pass that if she should devote
these years for the purpose of speedy reform she might become
strong, but if there was delay nothing could save her. At that
time the high Ministers of State were all Conservatives, and
would not present my memorial to the throne. After the loss of
Formosa, Wêng Tung Ho [the Emperor's tutor] was sorry that he
had listened to their advice, and was very cordial to me. Then
I exhorted him to reform, and I wrote a long memorial, signed
by 1,300 provincial graduates, to urge reform again and again,
and a Reform Club was formed in Peking, and the newspaper,
'Chinese Progress,' was started in Shanghai. At this time
(1895) Wêng Tung Ho strongly urged reform on the Emperor, but
was checked by the Empress-Dowager, and almost put aside then,
and the Reform Club was shut up. I then returned to Canton,
and founded the Ethical Society in Canton province and the
Sacred Society in Kwang-Si province. My disciples, Liang Chi
Chao and Tan Tze Tung, formed the Southern Learning Society in
Hunan province; Liu Shio started the Fookien Learning Society
in the Fukien province; Yang Tui the Szechuen Learning
Society, in the province of Szechuen; Yang Shin Sheu and Sung
Peh Luh opened the Pass Learning Society in the provinces of
Shansi and Shensi; I and my brother K'ang Kwang In, with King
Yuen Shen, opened a Chinese girls' school and formed the
Anti-foot-binding Society in Shanghai; and many newspapers
were started. Thus newspapers and new schools flourished in
all the provinces, and all the empire knew of the reform.
{90}
"When Kiaochow was taken by the Germans I went to Peking again
and sent up another memorial strongly urging reform, with the
same motive as Peter the Great, and on the same political
lines as have been adopted by the present Emperor of Japan. I
also presented my books on the history of reform in Japan and
the history of Peter the Great's reforms, and suggested that
all the coast of the empire be open to international trade.
Wêng Tung Ho approved of it, and strongly supported the
measure at Court. But the crowd of Conservatives opposed, and
he could not carry it. Then it was proposed to make an

alliance with England, as was advised in the reform paper of
Macao. The Government was undecided and feared that a great
nation like England would not be willing. But when England
asked that Port Arthur and Ta Lien Wan should be open ports I
hastened to Wêng Tung Ho and said, 'China is saved and will
not perish. You must grant the request. Since God gives us
this opportunity, it should on no account be let slip.' But
the Empress-Dowager and Li Hung Chang had made up their minds
to give them to Russia. Again, England promised to lend China
ten millions at 3 per cent. Russia was forcing China to borrow
from her at 4 per cent. The Foreign Office was in great fear
between these two great nations, and undecided. They then
discussed about borrowing from both, and finally decided not
to borrow from either. I said, 'You should decline Russia's
offer and borrow from England. Russia, though she might
threaten us, will never dare to declare war on this account.'
The Empress-Dowager favoured Russia and was afraid. In the end
they did not borrow from either.
"When Russia was seeking Port Arthur and Ta Lien Wan, I
presented two memorials that they should be refused to Russia
and both made open ports. The Emperor blamed Prince Kung and
Li Hung Chang, and asked, 'What is the use of a secret treaty
with Russia? Not only does Russia not protect us, but she
herself takes away territory from us.' Both the Prince and Li
replied: 'It is by giving Port Arthur and Ta Lien Wan to
Russia that the secret treaty is preserved.' At this the
Emperor was very angry. When the Empress-Dowager decided to
give them to Russia, and Wêng Tung Ho found that all my
prophecies came true, he strongly recommended me to the
Emperor. Kao Hsueh Tseng, the Supervising Censor, Chen Pao
Chen, the Governor of Hunan, Su Chih Ching, of the Hanlin
College, and Li Twan Fên, President of the Board of Rites,
also had recommended me from time to time. When the Emperor
asked the members of the Cabinet, Wêng-Tung Ho recommended me,
saying, 'His abilities are a hundred times superior to my
own,' and prayed the Emperor to listen to me in all matters of
reform. I also presented to the Emperor a record of England,
France, and Germany, a comparative diagram of all nations, and
the Reverend Timothy Richard's 'History of the Nineteenth
Century' and his 'Essays for the Times,' and translations of
Western books. The Emperor then understood something of the
cause of the rise and fall of nations, and made up his mind to
introduce great reforms. Desiring men to help him, he invited
me, and acted on my former suggestions."
But the situation at Peking, as Kang Yeu Wei describes it,—the
weakness of the young Emperor and the strength of the
Empress-Dowager,—made the undertaking of reform hopeless from
the beginning. The Empress-Dowager had professed to resign the
government, but, says Kang Yeu Wei, "she really still held the
reins in her hands. She read the memorials about appointments.
All the Ministers of the first and second rank were her
nominees. The Emperor had no voice. In all matters he had to
inform her first before acting. The Emperor was only an
Emperor in name.
"The Emperor was of a studious disposition. Since the loss of
Formosa he has been greatly distressed about the decline of
the Empire. After this his faithful tutor, Wêng Tung Ho, who
was a learned man, sought foreign books for study, and
presented them, with atlases, to the Emperor. These the
Emperor daily studied, discovered the cause of foreign
prosperity, discovered the reason of China's weakness and
conservatism, and made up his mind to reform. But this was not
in accordance with the view of the Empress-Dowager. At the
beginning of the war with Japan the Emperor and his Ministers
wanted war. The Empress-Dowager and Li Hung Chang wanted
peace. The Empress-Dowager was ready to give up Manchuria and
Formosa. The Emperor could not think of it for a moment
without crying with distress; he wanted to make an alliance
with England and to reform, while the Empress-Dowager was
equally bent on alliance with Russia without reform. Thus
their views diverged more and more, so that when the Emperor
wanted to reform in 1895 the Empress hated him; two of his
favourite Imperial ladies were beaten: the Vice-Presidents,
Chang Lin, Wang Ming Luan, and Tsz Tui, a brother of one of
these Imperial ladies, were driven away: and the Imperial
ladies' tutor, Wên Ting Shih, was stripped of his honours,
never to be employed any more. This was because all these
advised the Emperor to keep the power in his own hands.
"The eunuch Kow Lang Tsai memorialised the Empress-Dowager to
resign the government into the hands of the Emperor. For this
he was put to death. The Emperor himself narrowly escaped
being put aside then. … Chang Lin was a straightforward man in
whom Prince Kung put great confidence. In a memorial to the
Emperor he said: 'The relation of the Empress-Dowager to the
late Emperor Tung Chih was that of his own mother, but her
relation to you is that of the widowed concubine of a former
Emperor.' When the Empress-Dowager came to know this she was
in a great rage. Prince Kung was also in great fear. When the
Emperor issued an edict, by command of the Empress-Dowager, to
degrade Chang Lin, Prince Kung was weeping on his knees. When
asked the reason of it, the Emperor waved his hand and said,
'Don't ask him.' The Emperor and the Prince wept together, and
the Prince wept so bitterly that he had no strength to rise
up. The Emperor commanded the eunuchs to help him up and lead
him away. Wên Ting Shih begged the Emperor to exercise his
rights. The Emperor waved his hand, saying, 'Don't speak,' for
the Emperor knew long ago that when he took the reins of
government into his own hands the Empress hated him."
{91}
Nevertheless, in 1898, the well-meaning but weak young Emperor
was moved to a spasmodic assertion of his authority, in bold
strokes of reform. "Rather than lose his empire like those of
the Chin and the Ming dynasties, and become a by-word of
disgrace for all future generations, he would risk the dangers
of reform. If he succeeded, then he would get power into his
own hands and save his country. If he failed, he would greatly
open the minds of the people and prepare them for the future,
and thus, perhaps, preserve a remnant of China. At this time
the Emperor considered the chief thing was to preserve the
country from being lost to foreign nations, and looked upon
his position on the throne as of little consequence in
comparison—considering the welfare of the people as of
supreme importance, while his own person was of little
importance. He had none to consult with, but decided to risk
all danger and try."
Kang Yen Wei,
The Reform of China and the Revolution of 1898
(Contemporary Review, August, 1899).
Read with a knowledge of what came of them, the futile decrees
which the helpless young Emperor issued in June, 1898, seem
pathetic in the extreme. The following is a translation of the
first of his reform edicts, which bears the date, "Kuang Hsu,
24th year, 4th moon, 23d day," corresponding to June 11, 1898:
"For a long time past the condition of Imperial affairs has
been a subject of discussion among the officials of the
Empire, both metropolitan and provincial, with a view to bring
about changes necessary for improvement. Decrees have been
frequently issued by the Emperor, for a special system of
examinations, for doing away with the surplus soldiery, for
the alteration of the military examinations and for the
institution of colleges. In spite of the fact that these
things have so often been carefully thought out, and so many
plans have been formed, there is no general consensus of
opinion, and discussion is still rife as to which plans are
best. There are some among the older officials who affirm that
the old ways are best and need no alteration, and that the new
plans are not required. Such babblings are vain and useless.
"The Emperor puts the question before you thus: In the present
condition of Imperial affairs, with an untrained army, with
limited funds, with ignorant 'literati,' and with artisans
untaught because they have no fit teachers, is there any
difficulty in deciding, when China is compared with foreign
nations, who is the strong and who is the weak? It is easy to
distinguish between the rich and the poor. How can a man armed
with a wooden stick smite his foe encased in a coat of mail?
The Emperor sees that the affairs of the Empire are in an
unsettled condition, and that his various Decrees have availed
nothing, Diversity of opinion, each unlike another as fire
differs from water, is responsible for the spread of the
existing evil. It is the same evil as that which existed in
the Sung and Ming dynasties (circa A. D. 1000 and 1500). Our
present system is not of the slightest use. We cannot in these
modern days adhere to the ways of the five Kings(circa B. C.
2500); even they did not continue exactly after the manner of
their respective predecessors. It is like wearing thick
clothes in summer and thin ones in winter. "Now, therefore,
the Emperor orders all officials, metropolitan and provincial,
from prince down to 'literati,' to give their whole minds to a
real endeavour to improvement. With perseverance, like that of
the saints of old, do your utmost to discover which foreign
country has the best system in any branch of learning and
learn that one. Your great fault is the falseness of your
present knowledge. Make a special effort and determine to
learn the best of everything. Do not merely learn the outside
covers of the books of knowledge, and do not make a loud boast
of your own attainments. The Emperor's wish is to change what
is now useless into something useful, so that proficiency may
be attained and handed on to posterity. The Metropolitan
College will be the chief one, and must be instituted at once.
The Emperor orders the Grand Councillors to consult with the
Tsung-li Yamên on the subject, and to come to a decision as
soon as possible, and then to memorialize the Throne. Any of
the compilers and graduates of the Hanlin College, the
secretaries of the Boards, the officers of the Palace Guards,
expectant Intendants, Prefects, district Magistrates, and
subordinate officials, sons and brothers of officials, the
hereditary officials of the Eight Banners, and the sons of the
military officials of the Empire, can enter the College who wish
to do so. By this means knowledge will be handed down from one
generation to another. It will be strictly forbidden to
members of the College to be careless or dilatory in their
studies, or to introduce as students any of their friends
without regard for the latter's capabilities; for such things
would frustrate the benefit of this excellent plan of His
Imperial Majesty."
A day later he issued the following: "The Tsung-li Yamên have
reported to the Throne that in obedience to instructions they
have considered the requests contained in the memorial of the
Vice-President Jung Hui, for the appointment of special
Ministers of Commerce, and the sending of members of the
Imperial family to visit foreign nations. Commercial matters
are of the highest importance, and the suggestion is one which
deserves to be acted upon. As the result of a former
consultation of the Tsung-li Yamên on the subject, commercial
bureaus have been established at the capitals of the
provinces, and the officials of each province have ordered the
leading gentry and merchants to elect from their numbers managers
of the bureaus, who will then draw up commercial regulations.
It is to be hoped that strict conformity to these Regulations
will lead to a daily improvement in trade; and the Emperor
orders the Viceroys and Governors of the provinces to direct
the gentry and merchants to strictly obey the official
instructions, and to consult together for the most speedy and
satisfactory arrangement of commercial matters; it is to be
hoped that in this way the officials will be kept in touch
with the merchants. We must not adhere blindly to our old
customs. Let the officials of each province memorialize the
Throne, and inform the Emperor how commercial affairs are
managed in their respective provinces.
{92}
With regard to the suggestion that members of the Imperial
Family should go abroad, this is a new departure, but is quite
in accordance with modern custom. The Emperor, therefore,
orders the Court of the Imperial clan to select from the
Princes of the first three ranks any who are well versed in
modern affairs and ideas, and who are on the side of modern
improvement, and to inform the Emperor of their selection. The
selected Princes will then await the Emperor's orders with
regard to their journey."
On the 15th the following imperial mandate was published:
"Wêng T'ung-ho, Assistant Grand Secretary and President of the
Board of Revenue, has of late made many errors in the conduct
of business, and has forfeited all confidence; on several
occasions he has been impeached to the Throne. At his private
audiences of the Emperor he has replied to His Majesty's
questions with no regard for anything except his own personal
feeling and opinion, and he has made no attempt to conceal his
pleasure or displeasure either in his speech or in his
countenance. It has gradually become clear that his ambition
and rebellious feeling have led him to arrogate to himself an
attempt to dictate to the Emperor. It is impossible to permit
him to remain in the responsible position of a Grand
Councillor. In former days a strict inquiry would have been
held, and his crime punished with the utmost rigour of the
law. Taking into consideration, however, his long service as
tutor to the Emperor, His Majesty cannot bring himself to mete
out to him such a severe penalty. Let Wêng T'ung-ho vacate his
posts, and retire into private life, as a warning that he is
preserved (from a worse fate)."
In transmitting this mandate to the British Foreign Office,
Sir Claude MacDonald explained that Wêng T'ung-ho was a
"reactionary," whose "influence was invariably against
innovation and progress," but personally "prepossessing,
courteous, and scholarly—an excellent type of the Conservative
Chinese statesman." But that the dismissal of Wêng T'ung-ho
did not signify the triumph of the reform party was shown the
same day by a decree commanding special honors to the Empress
Dowager, who seemed to be losing no time in reasserting
herself. "In future," said the edict, "whenever officials
receive favours or gifts from the Empress Dowager, or receive
promotion to the highest civil or military rank or to the
Vice-Presidency of a Board, they must (after thanking the
Emperor) present themselves before the Empress Dowager and
thank her; and in similar cases all provincial
Tartar-Generals, Lieutenant-Generals, Viceroys, Governors, and
Commanders-in-chief must write their thanks to the Empress
Dowager (as well as to the Emperor)."
Other radically reforming decrees that were issued by the
Emperor during June and early in July were described by the
British Minister in a despatch dated July 9, as follows:
"To effect a change in the agricultural methods of an ancient
Eastern nation would seem a very hopeless task, but from a
Decree published on the 4th instant, it appears that a censor
has made proposals for the establishment of a school of
agriculture, on which the Tsung-Ii Yamên were asked to report.
The Decree founded on their Report states that agriculture is
the basis of the States' wealth, and that measures for its
revival are urgently needed. The provincial authorities are,
therefore, directed to examine all methods of cultivation,
whether Chinese or foreign, with a view to their adoption by
the people. … The Decree proceeds to promise rewards for
successful treatment of agricultural problems, and to direct
the translation and circulation in provincial Colleges of
foreign works on the subject.
"Two Decrees, published on the 27th June and 5th July, have
reference to reforms in the Chinese army, but they throw no
light on the nature of them, and merely refer certain
suggestions to various Departments for examination. The last
Decree I shall mention, which appeared on the 5th instant,
contains a very frank admission of the need of reforms. It
states that in foreign countries commerce and industry thrive
and progress, while in China, though there is no lack of
ability, it is fettered in the bonds of ancient custom, and
cannot free itself. As one means of assisting in its
liberation it is ordained that any persons producing 'new
books' (presumably books that show originality of thought), or
being the first to use new methods, or to produce new
instruments or appliances suitable for use, are to receive
rewards from the State in the shape either of official
employment, if they are fitted for it, or of some other
distinction. In the case of inventions a certificate will be
given, and the profits secured to the inventor for a fixed
term of years—in fact patent rights will be granted. Rewards
will also be given to those who, with their own resources,
establish colleges, open up mines, or set up arsenals for the
manufacture of rifles and cannon. In conclusion, the Tsung-li
Yamên are directed to draw up Regulations for effecting the
above objects."
The zeal of the reforming movement was kept alive and its
authors held their ground throughout the summer, and nearly to
the end of September. On the 17th of that month, Sir Claude
MacDonald wrote to Lord Salisbury: "Imperial Decrees intended
to launch China on the path of reform continue to appear,
though there are few signs of any of them taking practical
effect. The Emperor is evidently learning that it is one thing
to issue a reform Edict and another to get it obeyed. Not long
ago a Decree was issued, the object of which was to make the
Throne more accessible to the subordinate portion of the
official world. At the beginning of this month a case was
brought to His Majesty's notice, in which the Board of
Ceremonies disobeyed this Decree by refusing to transmit a
Memorial sent in by a Secretary. He was much enraged, and
forthwith cashiered the six head officials of the Board, that
is to say, the two Presidents and four Vice-Presidents.
"On the 12th instant he followed this up by a fresh Decree
dwelling on the circumstances and reiterating his previous
instructions. Memorials were to be presented as they came in,
it being of the highest importance, in the present critical
state of public affairs, that all such communications should
be examined as soon as possible. Obstruction and delay were to
be punished with the utmost rigour, and special commands were
given that the previous Edicts on reform, all of which were
enumerated, were to be hung up in a public place in each Yamên
throughout the Empire, so that no one should be ignorant of
their contents.
{93}
Not satisfied with all this, he issued, also on the 12th
instant, a long and remarkable Decree calling attention to the
advantages of Western methods, and inveighing against
degenerate officials and conservative Ministers, who not only
could not assist him in adopting their methods, but spread
reports instead calculated to disturb the minds of the people.
He wanted his subjects to know that they 'could depend on
their Prince,' and appealed to them to make China powerful by
working for reform with 'united minds.' The previous orders
were amplified, and the privilege of memorializing the Throne,
which formerly stopped at officers of a high rank, is now
extended to practically every soul in the Empire.
"Next day, the 13th September, another Decree repeated the
terms of the above in clearer detail, and laid down precisely
the procedure each class was to observe in making itself
heard. The severest penalties were threatened should there be
any interference with the free exercise of this privilege by
the high officers of Government, who were commanded to report
by telegram the steps they were taking to fulfil the Imperial
wishes. The series of Decrees above quoted are naturally
creating a great commotion in the Chinese official world, and
it will be interesting to note their effect."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899, page 179-279.
The effect was soon known. It was one which brought the
reformers to grief and their reforms to an end.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (September).
Overthrow of the Reformers.
Subjugation of the Emperor by the Empress-Dowager.
His countermanding decrees.
The Imperial reformer announced the downfall of his own
authority on the 21st of September, in the following
significant decree:
"The affairs of the nation are at present in a difficult
position, and everything awaits reform. I, the Emperor, am
working day and night with all my powers, and every day
arrange a multitude of affairs. But, despite my careful toil,
I constantly fear to be overwhelmed by the press of work. I
reverently recall that Her Majesty the Empress Dowager has on
two occasions since the reign of Tung Chih (1861) assumed the
reins of Government with great success in critical periods. In
all she did Her Majesty showed perfection. Moved by a deep
regard for the welfare of the nation, I have repeatedly
implored Her Majesty to be graciously pleased to advise me in
government, and have received her assent. This is an assurance
of prosperity to the whole nation, officials and people. Her
Majesty will commence to transact business from to-day in the
side Hall. On the 23rd September, I, the Emperor, will lead my
princes and high officials to make obeisance in the Ch'in
Chêng Hall. Let the proper officials reverently and carefully
prepare the fitting programme of the ceremony."
On the 25th he announced: "Since the 4th moon, I, the Emperor,
have been frequently ailing in health, and in spite of
long-continued treatment there is still no great improvement.
Should there be any persons, either in the capital or the
provinces, who are highly skilled in the treatment of disease,
let the officials at once recommend them to the throne and
await our orders. Should such men be in the provinces let them
be sent to the capital without the least delay."
On the 26th the unfortunate Emperor was made to send forth
another decree, countermanding the greater part of the orders
he had been giving, on the pretext that they had been
misunderstood and badly carried out. The obstructive offices
which he had abolished were restored; the permission given to
scholars and people to present memorials was withdrawn. "The
original purpose," said the decree, "was that we should see
with the eyes and hear with the ears of everybody, but the
Court has now opened wide the path of access to the throne,
and if there are useful proposals for reform made in the
statements of any of the different classes of officials they
are bound to be observed at once and set into operation. At
present, careless documents all alike in character pour in.
All are full of frivolous statements, some even touch on the
extravagant, and all are much wanting in order. Hereafter all
officers whose duty it is to speak shall say what they have to
say in fitting language. In accordance with the prescribed
rules, persons or officers who are not competent to
memorialize the throne are not permitted to submit sealed
documents. The 'Times,' official newspaper, is of no benefit
to good government and will vainly disturb men's minds: let it
be abolished at once. The Imperial colleges will be ground for
the cultivation of talent. Apart from those which are already
being gradually established in Peking and the provincial
capitals, let the local officials in all prefectures and
districts where it is proposed to establish minor colleges
consider the local conditions and the convenience of the
people. Let the temples [which were to have been turned into
colleges] in the provinces remain as before; there is no need
to make colleges of them and disturb the feelings of the
people. Over and above the matters above mentioned, there are
others which have been duly considered and put into operation,
and others which are under consideration, such as trade,
agriculture, reorganization of the army, and the development
of resources, all of which are of undoubted consequence to the
State and the people, and must imperatively be introduced
gradually. Those measures which are of no benefit to the
present system of government, and are detrimental to the
Constitution, need not be discussed. Let the six Boards and
the Tsung-li Yamên make an investigation of these matters,
consider them with special care, and submit a report to the
throne so that they may be dealt with."
The events which attended and followed these decrees were
reported by Sir Claude MacDonald on September 28, as follows:
"The Decree [of the 21st] naturally created much excitement in
Peking, and rumours of impending disaster to the most prominent
of the advocates of reform were prevalent. Subsequent
proceedings justified the alarm and assumed the character of a
coup d'etat. The same day the house of Chang Yin-huan was
surrounded by the police in search of one K'ang Yu-wei. This
K'ang Yu-wei is a Chinese scholar of high repute who was,
until lately, editor of a Chinese newspaper in Shanghae known
as 'Progress.' He was a strong advocate of reform, and was
this year recommended to the Emperor, and on his arrival in
Peking was given a position of Secretary in the Board of
Works. He is said to have acquired great influence over the
Emperor, and to have been his adviser in his recent reform
measures. K'ang Yu-wei could not be found, and it has
subsequently transpired that he has escaped and left Shanghae
on the 27th in the English mail for Hong Kong.
{94}
So keen was the hunt for him that on the 22nd all traffic was
stopped on the Tien-tsin Railway line to prevent his passage.
On the 24th instant orders were issued for the arrest of
several officials who had been in relation with him, including
Chang Yin-huan and Hsü Chih-ch'ing. The latter had recommended
K'ang to the throne, and had been recently appointed President of
the Board of Rites. Chang Yin-huan went to the Board of
Punishments and has remained a prisoner since. The precise
charge against K'ang and his friends has not transpired, but
it is supposed to be one of conspiracy against the liberty and
even the life of the Empress Dowager.
"It was reported on the 25th that Chang was to be executed the
same evening or early next morning, and I thought it advisable
to make an appeal on his behalf for at least due consideration
of any charge brought against him. The report reached me late
in the afternoon, and it was therefore necessary to take
prompt measures. It was supposed that Li Hung-chang had been
consulted by the Empress Dowager in the matter. I accordingly
addressed a letter to his Excellency pointing out the horror
with which such sudden executions were regarded by all Western
nations, and the bad effect the secret and hasty condemnation
of an official of Chang's rank, who was so well known in
Europe, would produce, and begged his Excellency to use what
influence he possessed to prevent such hurried action. I
concluded my letter by saying that I appealed to him, Li,
because he was the only Statesman now in Peking who was
conversant with European methods, and would, therefore,
thoroughly realize the disastrous impression which such a
summary execution would produce throughout the Western world.
It is well known that Li Hung-chang and Chang Yin-huan are
deadly enemies, and it was generally reported that Chang's
imprisonment was due to Li. The Grand Secretary replied saying
that he highly respected my generous and humane motives, and
he assured me that no summary action would be taken."
On the 30th Sir Claude reported: "Six of the reformers
referred to in my despatch of the 28th September were executed
on the 28th instant. They included a brother of K'ang Yu-wei,
the chief reformer, and, though subordinates, all were
graduates and men of standing. Chang Yin-huan has been
banished to Chinese Turkestan, where he is to be kept under
rigorous surveillance. No precise crime is charged against
him. The Edict announcing his punishment accuses him vaguely
of being treacherous, fickle, and a sycophant. Last night a
long Decree appeared dealing with the so-called conspiracy.
K'ang Yu-wei is declared to have taken advantage of the
Emperor's leaning towards beneficial reforms to plot a
revolution, which was to be opened by surrounding the Palace
at Wan Shoushan and seizing the Empress-Dowager and the
Emperor. The haste in executing K'ang's chief accomplices, for
it appears that the legal formalities had not been observed,
is admitted to have been caused by Memorials, whose dominant
note was fear of a revolution if punishment was delayed."
Great Britain,
Papers by Command: China,
Number 1, 1899, pages 291-294.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (October).
The Empress-Dowager.
Her past career.
Her character.
The Empress-Dowager, so called, who now recovered her
ascendancy over the weak young Emperor, which the reformers
had momentarily overcome, and who became again the real
Sovereign of the Empire, as she had been for the past thirty
years, "was never Empress, not even as imperial consort,
having been but the secondary wife of Hsien-fêng, the Emperor
who fled from his capital on the approach of the Anglo-French
forces in 1860 [see, in volume 1, CHINA: A. D. 1856-1860]. But
she took the title as the mother of that ill-starred monarch's
heir, in which capacity she was allowed to share with the
widow proper the regency during the minority of the Emperor
Tung-Chih (or Che, for there is no agreement as to the
transliteration of Chinese sounds). … The female duumvirate
was not what was intended—was in fact an unforeseen result of
the last will and testament of the Emperor Hsien-fêng, who
died at his hunting lodge at Jêho, whither he himself had been
hunted by the victorious invaders. …
"The fundamental law of the Ta-tsing dynasty is the Salic law.
No woman and no eunuch can ever reign or rule. Conforming to
the laws of his house, the Emperor in his will nominated a
Council of Regency during the minority of his infant son,
afterwards known as the Emperor Tung-Chih. The Council was
composed of two imperial princes and the Minister Sun-che. To
his two wives, the true but childless one and the secondary
one who was mother of the Prince Imperial, he bequeathed the
guardianship of the infant. The Emperor placed his real
confidence in the first, the legal wife; but he was fond of
the other, the mother of his heir. A serious dilemma thus
confronted him, which he thought to evade by placing in the
hands of the Empress a private and personal testament, giving
her absolute authority over her colleague, only to be
exercised, however, in certain emergencies. As a matter of
fact, the power was never called into exercise.
"The Empress-mother was twenty-seven years old, clever,
ambitious, and apparently fearless. … She conceived a scheme
by which the position might be reversed, and confided it to
her brother-in-law, Prince Kung. … The ambition which the
Empress-mother confided to Prince Kung was nothing less than
to suppress the Council of Regency, and set up in its place
the authority of the two Empresses. Inasmuch, however, as they
were ignorant of affairs, and women to boot, the Prince
himself was to be the real executive and de facto ruler of the
empire. Prince Kung yielded to the seduction, and thus became
accessory to the violation of the dynastic law. … The Regents
were returning from the obsequies of the deceased Emperor when
Prince Kung launched trumped-up charges against them of
neglect of certain funeral rites, had them arrested on the
road, and executed. By this summary violence the two Empresses
were securely established as Regents, with Prince Kung as
Chancellor of the empire. For a few years things went
smoothly. … The two Regents seldom met. … From the relative
position of the buildings in which they had their respective
apartments, the ladies were known as the Eastern and Western
Empresses, the former being the title commonly applied to the
one whom we have termed the true Empress. …
{95}
"The 'Eastern Empress' was full of gentleness, meditation, and
widowhood. … She was, therefore, unequally yoked with her
sterner sister, and the pair could never have really worked
together to any practical end. The eclipse of the weaker
luminary was only a question of time. … The life and death of
the young Emperor Tung-Chih, the son of Hsien-fêng and the
present Empress-regnante, seems little more than an episode in
the career of his imperial—and imperious—mother. He died
within two years of his full accession, removed by his own
mother as some would have us believe, but by quite other
agencies as others no less boldly affirm. … With the
disappearance of her son, the last plank in the legal platform
of the Empress-mother disappeared. But her appetite had grown
by what it fed upon. She had now had fourteen years' schooling
in statecraft, and she resolved that, 'per fas et nefas,'
reign who might, she would govern. … The story of her second
coup d'etat of January, 1875, has been often related,—how the
Empress so-called caused her own sister's child to be snatched
out of its warm bed on a bitter night and conveyed into the
Palace, whence he was proclaimed Emperor at daybreak. By this
stroke the Regent at once aggrandised her own family, made a
friend of a younger brother-in-law, the father of the child,
to replace the elder who had become an enemy, and, to sum up
all, secured for herself a new lease of power. For she who
could thus make an emperor could also make a regent."
The Empress-Regent of China
(Blackwood's Magazine, November 1898).
CHINA: A. D. 1898. (October-November).
Outbreaks of popular hostility to foreigners.
Guards for the Legations sent to Peking.
Chinese troops removed.
The palace revolution which overthrew the reforming party was
followed quickly by outbreaks of popular hostility to
foreigners. Two messages were cabled to Lord Salisbury from
Peking October 1st. One informed him: "A Chinese mob at a
point between Peking and the railway station yesterday
afternoon violently assaulted several foreigners who had to
pass that way from the train. Among those assaulted was Mr.
Mortimore of this Legation, and an English lady, who were
severely attacked with mud and stones; a member of the United
States' Legation had one of his ribs broken. There is a
decided spirit of disturbance among the Chinese, though the
fact that many bad characters were about yesterday in
consequence of the mid-autumn festival may go some way towards
accounting for these outrages. I have requested Admiral
Seymour by telegraph to despatch a vessel to Taku, in case a
guard should be required for the protection of this Legation,
and I am making strong representations to the Tsung-li Yamên."
In his second despatch the British Minister announced: "I do
not anticipate any danger, but a good and reassuring effect
will be produced, as after the Japanese war, by the presence
of a guard. The foreign Representatives decided this morning
to send for a small guard to protect the respective Legations.
I have asked Admiral Seymour to send me twenty-five marines
with a machine-gun. The German, Russian, Japanese, and Italian
Representatives had previously arranged for their guards."
On the 5th, Sir Claude MacDonald reported: "A meeting of
foreign Representatives yesterday decided to notify the
Chinese Government of the proposed departure from Tien-tsin
for Peking to-morrow of bodies of British, German, and Russian
marines, and to ask that all facilities, including a special
train, should be extended to them by the Chinese authorities;
the French, American, Japanese, and Italian marines to come
straight on to Peking on their arrival at Tien-tsin. The
meeting was held in consequence of the refusal of the Viceroy
of Chihli to permit any foreign soldiers to leave Tien-tsin
for Peking without special permission from the Tsung-li Yamên.
It is very likely that the Chinese Government will make a
protest similar to that of 1895, but it would be very
ill-advised at the present crisis to give way to their
protests, and it is absolutely necessary that the decision of
the foreign Representatives should be put into effect."
The Chinese government did protest, but without effect. The
legation guards were insisted upon, and, as speedily as
possible, they were provided from the war-ships of the several
powers, and quartered in Peking. Then the Chinese authorities
brought troops to the capital, and the sense of danger at the
legations grew. On the 25th of October Minister MacDonald
cabled to London: "A serious menace to the safety of Europeans
is the presence of some 10,000 soldiers, who have come from
the Province of Kansu, and are to be quartered in the hunting
park, two miles south of Peking. A party of these soldiers
made a savage assault on four Europeans (including Mr. C. W.
Campbell, of this Legation), who were last Sunday visiting the
railway line at Lukou Chiao. The foreign Ministers will meet
this morning to protest against these outrages. I shall see
the Yamên to-day, and propose to demand that the force of
soldiers shall be removed to another province, and that the
offenders shall be rigorously dealt with."
On the 29th he telegraphed again: "The Foreign Representatives
met yesterday, and drafted a note to the Yamên demanding that
the Kansu troops should be withdrawn at once. The troops in
question have not been paid for some months, and are in a
semi-mutinous state. They have declared their intention to
drive all Europeans out of the north of China, and have cut
the telegraph wires and destroyed portions of the railway line
between Lukouchiao and Pao-ting Fu. Some disturbances have
been caused by them on the railway to Tien-tsin, but the line
has not been touched, and traffic has not been interrupted. In
the city here all is quiet. The presence of these troops in
the immediate vicinity of Peking undoubtedly constitutes a
serious danger to all Europeans. The Yamên gave me a promise
that the force should be removed, but have not yet carried it
into effect."
On the 6th of November he reported that the Yamên had replied
to the note of the Diplomatic Body, acknowledging that the
troops lacked discipline and were a source of danger, and
again promising their removal, but that nothing had been done.
He added: "It was decided unanimously to address a note to the
Yamên, stating that if the troops in question were not
withdrawn by the 11th instant, our respective Governments
would adopt such measures as they considered necessary for the
protection during the winter months of foreigners in Peking and
Tien-tsin."
{96}
After several more exchanges of notes between the Diplomatic
Body and the Yamên, peremptory on one side, apologetic on the
other, the troops were removed to Chi-chow, about 80 miles
east of Peking, beginning their march November 15. A few days
previously Sir Claude MacDonald had been able to report "That
two of the ringleaders in the attack on Mr. Campbell and other
Europeans at Lu Kow-chiao [announced in despatch of October
25] were brought into Peking and flogged in Mr. Campbell's
presence at the Yamên of the Governor of the city on the 29th
October. The men were sentenced to 1,000 blows each, but Mr.
Campbell, after eighty blows had been inflicted, begged that
the flogging might cease. It turned out that two other
soldiers were struck by bullets from a small revolver, which
was used by one of the railway engineers in self-defence, and,
chiefly for this reason, I did not press for more floggings.
"I attached more importance to the punishment of the officer
in command, who, it appears, had been warned beforehand by the
railway authorities to keep his men away from the railway
bridge, but had refused to do so. I consider him the person
really responsible for what happened, and at an interview on
the 31st October I told the Yamên that I should not be
satisfied, and the incident would not be closed, until I saw
his degradation published in the official Gazette. On the 4th
November an Imperial Decree was issued ordering this officer,
a Colonel named Chu Wan-jung, to be handed over to the Board
of War for punishment. The Ministers inform me that this is
likely to mean his degradation. I have, however, again warned
their Excellencies that nothing short of this punishment will
be satisfactory to Her Majesty's Government."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899, pages 258-279, and 332.
CHINA: A. D. 1898 (December).
Reorganization of Chinese armies.
Reception by the Empress-Dowager to
the ladies of the Legations.
On the 20th of December Sir Claude MacDonald reported: "The
reorganization of the land forces in the north appears to be
occupying the serious attention of the Central Government. In
the early half of this month Edicts were issued by the Empress
Dowager approving proposals made by Jung Lu, who was appointed
Generalissimo of northern armies immediately after the K'ang
Yü-wei conspiracy. The following are the principal features of
these proposals. The armies under the command of Sung Ch'ing
and others, that is to say all the brigaded troops in North
China, are to be organized in four corps—front, rear, right,
and left—to occupy different strategical points. In addition,
Jung Lu will raise a centre corps of 10,000 men, to be
stationed presumably in or about Peking. … The importance of
bringing the other four corps into an efficient state is dwelt
upon, and the Edicts are stern in demanding the production of
sufficient funds for the purpose. The Viceroy of Chihli is
also instructed to closely scrutinize the condition of the
Peiyang drilled troops—formerly Li Hung-chang's army—and bring
them into order. They are to be under the orders of Jung Lu,
instead of the Viceroy.
"The Viceroys responsible for the Arsenals of North and Mid
China are also commanded to see to the immediate construction
of quick-firing guns and Mauser rifles and other war material,
and to the preparation of maps of the coast-line for military
purposes. Jung Lu has done nothing yet towards raising the
centre corps beyond calling in the assistance of a
German-educated officer named Yin Ch'ang, who holds a post in
the Tien-tsin Military Academy. He is reputedly able, and
probably one of the best Chinese available for the work, but I
question whether he will be given sufficient powers of
control. He is now engaged in drawing up a scheme."
Bearing the same date as the above, we find a despatch from
Sir Claude MacDonald descriptive of a reception given by the
Empress-Dowager, on the 13th, to the wives of the foreign
representatives at Peking, "to accept their congratulations on
the occasion of Her Imperial Majesty's birthday." "The
ceremony," said the British Minister, "passed off extremely
well. The Empress Dowager made a most favourable impression by
her courtesy and affability. Those who went to the Palace
under the idea that they would meet a cold and haughty person
of strong imperious manners were agreeably surprised to find
Her Imperial Majesty a kind and courteous hostess, who
displayed both the tact and softness of a womanly
disposition." "Thus ended," writes Sir Claude, in closing his
despatch, "the incident which may be considered to mark
another step in the nearer relations of China and foreign
nations."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1900, pages 12-15.
CHINA: A. D. 1898-1899.
Rioting in Shanghai consequent on
French desecration of a cemetery.
French demand for extension of settlement ground in Shanghai.
English and American protests.
The outcome.
On the 18th of July, 1898, the following was reported by the
British Consul-General at Shanghai:
"Serious rioting took place in the French Settlement on the
16th und the morning of 17th instant, in the course of which
some fifteen natives lost their lives. The disturbance was due
to an attempt of the French authorities to take possession of
certain temple land known as the Ningpo Joss-house Cemetery.
The ground is full of graves, and it is also used for
depositing coffins until a favourable opportunity presents
itself for removing them to the native districts of the
deceased. The cemetery is within the limits of the French
Settlement; originally it was far removed from the inhabited
portion of the Settlement, but by degrees new streets have
been laid out, and houses have been built, until the cemetery
is surrounded by dwellings.
"Twenty-four years ago the French Municipality attempted to
make a road through the cemetery, but such serious rioting
broke out that the French Consul thought it prudent to abandon
his claim to the ground, and gave the Ningpo Guild to
understand that they would be left in undisturbed possession.
As years have gone on, the nuisance of having a cemetery in
the midst of a crowded Settlement has made itself more and
more felt, and some months ago the French Municipal Council
decided to expropriate the owners and to pay them
compensation. The Ningpo Guild and the Chinese authorities
were duly apprised of the intention, and they were urged to
make their own arrangements for removing the coffins to some
other site.
{97}
They would not admit that the French had any right to
dispossess them, and they refused to vacate the land. The
French Consuls then gave the Chinese officials notice that the
Municipal Council would take possession on a certain day; and
as the day drew near the Taotai became very uneasy, and
appealed to the Foreign Consuls to interfere in the matter,
giving hints that serious rioting and loss of life, would
result if the French Consul persisted in his intentions.
"On the morning of the 16th, the day appointed for taking
possession of the cemetery, a detachment from the French
cruiser 'Éclaireur' and a strong body of police marched to the
cemetery, and afforded protection to the workmen who were told
off to make a breach in the cemetery wall by way of taking
possession. An angry mob watched these operations, and, as
time went on, the streets filled with crowds of men, who moved
about making hostile demonstrations, but the French showed great
self-restraint, and no serious collision took place on that
day. All night long the crowds filled the streets, and many
lamps were smashed and lamp-posts uprooted.
"Early on Sunday morning a determined attack was made by the
mob on one of the French police-stations, and when the small
body of men within saw that their lives were in danger, they
opened fire. About the same time the police and the
'Éclaireur's' men attacked bands of rioters in other quarters,
with the result that on Sunday morning, as far as can be
ascertained, fifteen men were shot dead or bayoneted, and
about forty were seriously wounded. After that the rioters
seemed to have become intimidated for a time, and the streets
were left to the police. Meanwhile many of the shops in both
Settlements were closed, and orders were sent to all Ningpo
men—and they form 50 per cent. of the population—to go out on
strike.
"Some of the principal Ningpo merchants came forward in the
afternoon, and through the good offices of a peacemaker came
to an understanding with the French Consul, under which it was
agreed that the French should postpone taking possession of the
cemetery for one month, during which time the Ningpo Guild
trust to come to some amicable arrangement. The French Consul
has given them to understand that he will not recede from his
position; the cemetery must be given up, but he is willing
that this should be done in any way that will be most pleasing
to the Ningpo residents."
On the 23d of August it was announced by telegram from
Shanghai that "the dispute arising out of the Ningpo Josshouse
is about to be settled by French withdrawing their claims to
remove the buildings in consideration for an extension of
their concession as far as Si-ca Wei, an addition of 20 square
miles." This raised protests from Great Britain and the United
States, many of whose citizens owned property within the area
thus proposed to be placed under French jurisdiction; and the
distracted Tsung-li Yamên was threatened and pulled about
between the contending parties for months. The final outcome
was an extension of the general Foreign Settlement at Shanghai
(principally British and American) and a limited extension of
that especially controlled by the French. The adjustment of
the question was not reached until near the end of 1899.
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1899. and Number 1, 1900.
CHINA: A. D. 1898-1899 (June-January).
Anti-missionary insurrection at Shun-ch'ing,
in Central Szechuan.
The following is from a communication addressed by the British
Minister to the Tsung-li Yamên, August 2, 1898:
"At Shun-ch'ing Fu the local officials, with a few of the
gentry, have for years shown themselves determinedly hostile
to foreigners, and have refused to allow houses to be let to
missionaries. British missionaries have in consequence been
forced to quarter themselves in an inn for the last six years,
but even that was apparently objected to; in 1893 there was a
riot, and in 1895 another, in which two missionaries were
treated with brutal violence. In May of this year a house was
finally rented; the District Magistrate was notified, but
neither he nor the Pao-ning Taotai issued proclamations or
gave protection, though requested by the missionaries to do
so. The Shun-ch'ing Prefect, instead of giving protection,
connived at the local opposition, and with the usual results.
On the 15th June three missionaries were attacked and stoned,
and one severely wounded, while passing through the city, and
though protection was asked of the Prefect, he gave none, and
later he and the other officials repeatedly refused to issue a
Proclamation or to take any measures whatever to avert
disturbances. On the 20th the Prefect feigned sickness, and
could not be appealed to, and on the 27th the house leased by
the missionaries was destroyed, with all the property it
contained. The Roman Catholic establishment was also gutted.
"As usual the disturbance did not end at Shun-ch'ing. Later on
a Roman Catholic Chapel at Yung ch'ang Hsien was attacked and
looted, two native Christians killed, 10,000 taels of silver
stolen, and a French priest [Father Fleury] seized and held to
ransom by a band of rioters. I am also informed that other
acts of brigandage have occurred, and that the Protestant
missions at Pao-ning and Shê-Hung are in grave danger. The
Provincial Government appears to absolutely ignore the recent
Imperial Decrees for the prevention of missionary troubles.
All the conditions point to this, or to an utter incapacity on
the part of those officers to exercise satisfactory control. Her
Majesty's Consul, indeed, informs me that there is one band of
brigands, led by an outlaw known as Yü Mau Tzu, which is able
to terrorise two important districts in the centre of Szechuan
and even to overawe the Chêngtu authorities. In connection
with the Shun-ch'ing affair Her Majesty's Consul has made the
following demands:
1. Immediate restoration of their house to the missionaries,
the officers to pay the whole cost of repairs;
2. Punishment of the ring-leaders;
3. The local headmen to give security for future good conduct;
4. Compensation for all property destroyed;
5. Punishment of officials in fault.
I shall look to the Yamên and see that these demands are fully
satisfied and with the least possible delay."
{98}
But urgency from both England and France failed to stimulate
action on the part of the Chinese government, energetic enough
to stop this anti-missionary movement in Central Szechuan. What
seems to have been a riot at first became a formidable revolt.
"The action of the Provincial Government was paralysed by the
fact that Father Fleury was still in Yü's hands, and would be
killed if a move was made against the brigands. On the other
side the Viceroy was informed by M. Haas, the French Consul,
that if anything happened to the Father the consequences to
China would be disagreeable. The Taotai was in consequence
making efforts to secure the release of the prisoners by
paying blackmail." In September it was reported that "Yü's
power was increasing, his emissaries were scattered about in
places beyond his immediate sphere of influence, and were
attempting to stir up Secret Societies, and he had issued a
manifesto. A riot took place at Ho Chou, 60 miles north of
Chungking, on the 14th September, the American mission
hospital being partially looted and a Roman Catholic
establishment destroyed by fire. The Provincial Government was
acting weakly and unprofitably."
Towards the end of September, "Yü marched with about 2,000
uniformed men and took up a position on the Ch'êng-tu road;
thence he moved east to Tung-Liang, pillaging and burning the
houses of Christians, and levying contributions on the rich.
The Viceroy, at the request of the Consuls, was said to have
sent 4,000 troops from Ch'êng-tu, Lu-chou, and Ho-chiang to
converge on Chungking. Twelve of the rebels, who had been
seized at a place only 30 miles south of the port, were
publicly executed with torture in Chungking on the 30th
September." In October the report was that "fresh troops were
arriving, and were taking up positions along the Ch'êng-tu
road, and the passes north of Chungking. Further executions
had taken place. … The Procureur of the French Mission
estimated that up to date the total damage done by Yü Mau-tzu
was twenty persons killed, the houses of 6,000 Christians
burned and their property stolen, and twelve Missions
destroyed."
Great Britain, Papers by Command: China,
Number 1, 1899, page 249, and Number 1, 1900, page 152.
On the 12th of October the United States Minister, Mr. Conger,
sent to the State Department at Washington the following
translation of a decree issued by the Empress Dowager on the
6th:
"From the opening of ports to foreign trade to the present
time, foreigners and Chinese have been as one family, with
undivided interests, and since missionaries from foreign
countries are living in the interior, we have decreed, not
three or four times, but many times, that the local officials
must protect them; that the gentry and people of all the

provinces must sympathize with our desire for mutual
benevolence; that they must treat them truthfully and
honestly, without dislike or suspicion, with the hope of
lasting peaceful relations.
"Recently, there have been disturbances in the provinces which
it has been impossible to avoid. There have been several cases
of riot in Szechuan, which have not been settled. The stupid
and ignorant people who circulate rumors and stir up strife,
proceeding from light to grave differences, are most truly to
be detested. On the other hand, the officials, who have not
been able at convenient seasons to properly instruct the
people and prevent disturbances, can not be excused from
censure.
"We now especially decree again that all high provincial
officials, wherever there are churches, shall distinctly
instruct the local officials to most respectfully obey our
several decrees, to recognize and protect the foreign
missionaries as they go to and fro, and to treat them with all
courtesy. If lawsuits arise between Chinese and native
Christians, they must be conducted with justice and speedily
concluded. Moreover, they must command and instruct the gentry
and people to fulfill their duties, that there may be no
quarrels or disagreements. Wherever there are foreigners
traveling from place to place, they must surely be protected
and the extreme limit of our hospitality extended. After the
issue of this decree, if there is any lack of preparation and
disturbances should arise, the officials of that locality will
be severely dealt with; whether they be viceroys or governors
or others they shall be punished, and it will not avail to say
we have not informed you."
United States Consular Reports,
February, 1899, page 299.
On the 1st of November the British Consul at Chungking
announced "an alarming extension of the rebellion. Flourishing
communities of Christians in four districts were destroyed,
and heavy contributions were laid on non-Christians. The
continued inactivity of the Government troops was chiefly
attributable to orders from the Yamên to the effect that the
first and foremost consideration was the rescue of Père
Fleury. Negotiations were being carried on by the Chungking
Taotai and the Chinese Generals for the Father's release; a
ransom of 100,000 taels was offered, presents were sent to Yü
and his mother, and he and his lieutenants were given buttons
of the third rank." The next month, however, brought on the
scene a new Viceroy who really wished to suppress the
insurrection, though he "complained that his hands were tied
by the Yamên's instructions, which urged him to come to terms
with Yü." At last this singularly energetic Viceroy got
permission to fight the rebels. On arriving in front of the
terrible Yü he "found that the troops who had been stationed
there previously were quite untrustworthy, and that the
Generals and local officials were all more or less in league
with the rebels. However, as soon as it was learnt that the
Treasurer meant business, a number of the rebels dispersed.
The main band, under Yü Mau-tzu, about 6,000 in number, was
then surrounded in Ta Tsu Hsien, after a preliminary encounter
in which the rebels lost some 100 men. By the 19th January, a
Maxim was brought to bear on Yü's camp, and the rebels fled
like rabbits. Yü begged Père Fleury to save his life, and next
day released the Father, who found his way to the Treasurer,
after some narrow escapes. Yü then surrendered."
It was said at the time that the French government was
demanding an indemnity in this case to the amount of £150,000.
Later it was understood that the French Minister at Peking
"had taken advantage of the pending missionary ease to revive
an old request for a Mining Concession."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 1, 1900.
{99}
CHINA: A. D. 1899.
Anti-missionary outbreaks, increasing piracy, and other
signs of growing disorder in the country.
During 1899 there was a notable relaxation of the hard and
ceaseless pressure upon China which governments, capitalists
and speculators had been keeping up of late, in demands more
or less peremptory for harbor leases, settlement grounds,
railway franchises, mining privileges, and naval, military and
commercial advantages of every possible sort. But the irritation
of the country under the bullying and "nagging" of the
treatment it had received from the European nations revealed
itself in increasing outbreaks of popular hostility to
foreigners; and these called out threats and demands, for
indemnity and punishment, which were made, as a rule, in the
truculent tone that had become habitual to western diplomacy
in dealing with the people of the East. It was a tone which
the Chinese provoked, by the childish evasions and treacherous
deceptions with which their officials tried to baffle the
demands made on them; but it gave no less offense, and is no
less plainly to be counted among the causes of what afterwards
occurred.
Throughout most of the year, the British Legation at Peking
and the Consulate at Chungking were busied in obtaining
satisfaction for the murder of Mr. Fleming, a missionary in
the China Inland Mission, stationed at Pang Hai, near
Kwei-Yang. He had been killed and the mission looted in
November, 1898. The Chinese authorities claimed that he had
been killed by a band of rebels. The British Consul
investigated and became convinced that the missionary had been
the victim of a deliberate plot, directed by the headman of the
village of Chung An Chiang, where the murder occurred, and
connived at by the military official Liu. The Chinese
government, yielding to this conviction, caused two of the
murderers to be executed, degraded and exiled all of the local
officials who were involved in the crime, except the headman,
and paid an indemnity of $30,000. But the headman escaped, and
it was claimed by the governor of the province that he could
not be found. The British authorities found evidence that he
was being shielded by the governor, and demanded the dismissal
of the governor, which was persistently refused. Finally, in
October, 1899, the guilty headman was hunted down.
On the 18th of February, the British Minister complained
energetically to the Tsung-li Yamên of the rapid increase of
piracy on the Canton River. "Since November, 1898," he wrote,
"that is in three months, no less than forty-seven cases of
piracy in the Canton waters have been reported in the papers.
In several of these cases life was taken, and it may almost be
said that a reign of terror exists on the waterways of the Two
Kuang. Cargo boats are afraid to travel at night, or to move
about except in company, and trade is becoming to a certain
extent paralysed. The Viceroy is always ailing, and it is
difficult to obtain an interview with him. Her Majesty's
Consul has repeatedly addressed him on the subject of these
piracies in the strongest terms, but can only obtain the
stereotyped reply that stringent instructions have been sent
to the officials concerned. Admiral Ho, the
Commander-in-chief, who should properly be the officer to
inaugurate a vigorous campaign against the pirates, appears
absolutely supine and incapable of dealing with the evil. The
complaints of the Hong Kong Government and Her Majesty's
Consuls show a state of affairs in Canton waters which is
quite intolerable. There is no security for life or property,
and as British subjects are closely concerned, it is my duty
to inform your Highness and your Excellencies that unless
measures are immediately taken to prevent such outrages, I
shall have to report, for the consideration of Her Majesty's
Government, the advisability of taking steps to protect
British lives and property, either by patrolling the waterways
or by placing guards on the steamers, the expense of which
would be the subject of a claim on the Chinese Government."
On the 28th of February, Herr von Billow, the German Imperial
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, announced in the
Reichstag, at Berlin, the reception of a telegram from
Tien-tsin, reporting that several Germans had been attacked
and insulted in that town on the 24th, and had been compelled
to take refuge in the side streets and narrow alleys. The
Imperial Government, he said, had been already aware for some
weeks past that a considerable feeling of irritation had
manifested itself against foreigners in China, especially in
the southern portion of the Province of Shantung. The Chinese
Government were thereupon warned of the necessity of
maintaining order and securing public safety, and, upon the
receipt of the telegram above referred to, the German Minister
at Peking was instructed to impress upon the Chinese
Government that, if such incidents were permitted to recur, or
the perpetrators allowed to escape unpunished, the
consequences for China would be very serious. "We have," Herr
von Bülow declared, "neither the occasion nor the desire to
interfere in the internal affairs of China. But it is our duty
to watch lest the life and property of our fellow subjects,
whether missionaries or traders, should be made to suffer
through the internal complications in China."
In March, however, the state of things at and near Peking was
so far improved that the Legation guards were being withdrawn.
Sir Claude MacDonald obtained leave of absence and left Peking
on the 23d for a visit to England, and the business of the
Legation was conducted for a time by Mr. Bax-Ironside, the
Charge d'Affaires.
In June there was an anti-missionary riot at Kienning, in the
neighborhood of Foochow, excited by the murder of a boy,
popular rumor ascribing the murder to foreigners. "In all
directions," wrote one of the threatened missionaries, who
gave an account of the occurrence, "murders were said to be
taking place, though no bodies were ever found; that seemed of
no consequence to the people, and the story was current, and
was apparently generally believed, that these murders were
done by men in our employ, and that we used the eyes and legs
to make medicine. There were endless stories of people being
kidnapped, chloroformed in the road by a bottle being held out
to their nose, and the day I arrived it was said that eyes had
been found at Tai-lui, a suburb of Kienning, and as I passed a
crowd was actually on the spot seeking for the said eyes." The
missionaries succeeded in escaping from the mob; but one
native convert was killed, and the mission hospital and other
premises were looted.
The ideas and the state of feeling out of which this attack on
the missionaries and their converts grew are revealed in the
following translation of a placard that was posted in Kienning
in June:
"We of this region have hitherto led a worthy life. All the
four castes (scholars, agriculturists, artizans, traders) have
kept the laws and done their duty. Of late foreigners have
suddenly come among us in a disorderly march and preaching
heretical doctrines. They have had from us indulgent
treatment, but they have repaid us by endangering our lives.
This year, in town and country, people have been hewn in two,
men and women in numbers have fallen upon evil days.
{100}
Everywhere the perpetrators have been seized, and everyone of
them has confessed that it was by the missionary chapels they
were ordered to go forth and slay men and women; to cut out
their brains and marrow to make into medicine. The officials
deliberately refrained from interfering. They garbled the
evidence and screened the malefactors. The whole country side
is filled with wrath; the officials then posted Proclamations,
and arrested spreaders of false reports. The hewing down of
men is hateful; but they issued no Proclamations forbidding
that. Now fortunately the people is of one mind in its wrath.
They have destroyed two chapels. The Ou-ning ruffian has
issued another Proclamation, holding this to be the work of
local rowdies. He little knows that our indignation is
righteous, and that it is a unanimous expression of feeling.
If the officials authorize the police to effect unjust
arrests, the people will unite in a body, in every street
business will be stopped, and the Wu-li missionary chapel will
be destroyed, while the officials themselves will be turned
out of the city, and the converts will be slain and
overthrown. When cutting grass destroy the roots at the same
time. Do not let dead ashes spring again into flame."
A settlement of the Kienning case was arranged locally between
the British Consul at Foochow, Mr. Playfair, and the Viceroy
of the province. The views of the Consul were expressed in a
communication to Mr. Bax-Ironside as follows:
"Since the missionaries established themselves there it is the
sixth attempt made to drive them out of the region. The common
people (from what I can gather) have no animus against the
foreign preacher of the Gospel, and show none. On the
contrary, whether moved to accept Christianity or not, they
appear to recognize that missionaries are in any case there
for benevolent and beneficial objects. Schools and hospitals
are independent of proselytizing, and, even if the
missionaries were never to make another convert, they would be
doing good and useful work in spreading Western knowledge and
healing the sick. In addition to this, the presence of
missionaries in out-of-the-way places in China has one
unquestionable advantage. To use the phrase of Sir Thomas
Wade, they 'multiply the points of contact,' and familiarize
the Chinese with the sight of the European. To the missionary,
either as a preacher of the Gospel or as a dispenser of benefits,
the populace at Kienning does not seem to have shown any
aversion; yet six times this populace has risen and tried to
drive the missionaries from the place. The logical inference
is that the Kienning peasant, though tolerant by nature, is
subject to some outside influence. He is moved, not by what he
sees, but by what he is told exists beyond his range of
vision; and these things are pointed out to him by such as he
believes to be his intellectual superiors, and as have,
therefore, the faculty of perceiving what is hid from himself.
The history of almost every anti-missionary movement in China
points to the same process. Why the educated classes of this
land should be so inveterately hostile to the foreigner is a
difficult question to answer. It has been suggested that the
Chinese of this type have an ineradicable conviction that
every European is at heart a 'land-grabber'; that missionaries
are the advance agents of their Governments; that the Bible is
the certain forerunner of the gun-boat; and that where the
missionary comes as a sojourner he means to stay as a
proprietor; consequently, that the only hope of integrity for
China is that her loyal sons should on every occasion destroy
the baneful germ. Extravagant and (in the instance of
Kienning) far-fetched as these notions may seem, I am
convinced that the literati and gentry have been at the root
not only of the present outbreak, but of the others which have
preceded it. While, therefore, I have insisted throughout that
Kienning must be made a place of safe residence for the
British missionary, I have considered that the only way to
attain that result will be to shackle the hands of the gentry
by making any further breach of the peace a sure precursor of
punishment."
To this end, Mr. Playfair's exactions included, not only the
trial and punishment of those guilty of the riot and the
murder, but the signing of a bond by twenty-four leading
notables of Kienning, binding them, with penalties, to protect
the missionaries. His demand was complied with, and, on the
29th of September, he reported that the required bond had been
given. He added: "Before accepting it, however, I required the
authorities to inform me officially that the terms, which to me
seemed somewhat vague, were understood by the authorities to
extend the responsibility of the gentry to any outbreak of the
populace. I received this intimation and I consider that it
supplements the original wording effectually."
In November the German government made public the substance of
an official telegram received from Peking, reporting a serious
state of disturbance in the German missionary districts of
Shantung: "It appears from this communication that the
followers of the sects of the 'Red Fist' and the 'Great Knife'
are in a state of revolt against the Administration and the
people in that province, and are engaged in plunder and rapine
in many places. The native Christians suffer no less than the
rest of the population by this revolt. Money was usually
extorted from them, and their dwellings were pillaged or
destroyed. The Italian Mission, situated in the adjoining
district, were faring no better, and their chapel had just
been burned down. Owing, however, to the unremitting
representations of the German Minister, the Chinese Government
have caused several of the agitators to be arrested by the local
authorities, and they are taking further steps in this
direction, with the result that order is gradually being
restored. At several places the native Christians, with their
non-Christian fellow-countrymen, repulsed the rebels by force
of arms. The Provincial Governor has promised the authorities
of the Mission a full indemnity for the losses suffered by
them and by the other Christians, and several payments have
already been made."
On the 4th of December, the following despatch was sent to
London from the British Legation at Peking:
"During the delimitation of French leased territory at
Kwang-chou-wan on the 13th November, Chinese villagers seized
two French officers and decapitated them. The execution of a
dignitary—the Prefect concerned in the murder—has been
demanded by the French Minister, as well as the dismissal of
the Canton Viceroy, who is also implicated. The Chinese
Commissioner engaged in the delimitation and the gunboat in
which he travelled are held by the French as hostages."
{101}
CHINA: A. D. 1899 (March).
The Tsung-li Yamên.
Its character and position.
The power of the Empress Dowager.
The Tsung-li Yamên is a small body of Councillors who form a
species of Cabinet, with a special obligation to advise the
Emperor on foreign affairs. "They have no constitutional
position whatever, they have no powers except those derived
from the Emperor, and they are very much afraid for
themselves. He may by mere fiat deprive them of their rank,
which is high; he may 'squeeze' them of their wealth, which is
often great; he may banish them from the delights of Pekin to
very unpleasant places; or he may order them to be quietly
decapitated or cut slowly into little pieces. At such times
their preoccupation is neither their country nor their
immediate business, nor even their own advancement, but to
avoid offending the irritable earthly deity who holds their
lives and fortunes in his hands. Such a time it is just now.
The Empress-Dowager is Emperor in all but name, she has ideas
and a will, and she is suspicious to the last degree. There is
no possibility of opposing her, for she has drawn together
eighty thousand troops round Pekin, who while she pays their
Generals will execute anybody she pleases; there is no
possibility of appeal from her, for she represents a
theocracy; and there is no possibility of overpowering her
mind, for she is that dreadful phenomenon four or five times
revealed in history, an Asiatic woman possessed of absolute
power, and determined to sweep away all who oppose, or whom
she suspects of opposition, from her path. Under her regime
the members of the Tsung-li Yamên are powerless nonentities,
trembling with fear lest, if they make a blunder, they may
awaken the anger of their all-powerful and implacable
Sovereign, whose motives they themselves often fail to
fathom."
The Spectator (London),
March 18, 1899.
CHINA: A. D. 1899 (March-April).
Agreement between England and Russia concerning
their railway interests in China.
On the 28th of April, 1899, the governments of Great Britain
and Russia exchanged notes, embodying an agreement
(practically arrived at in the previous month) concerning
their respective railway interests in China, in the following
terms:
"Russia and Great Britain, animated by the sincere desire to
avoid in China all cause of conflict on questions where their
interests meet, and taking into consideration the economic and
geographical gravitation of certain parts of that Empire, have
agreed as follows:
1. Russia engages not to seek for her own account, or on
behalf of Russian subjects or of others, any railway
concessions in the basin of the Yang-tsze, and not to
obstruct, directly or indirectly, applications for railway
concessions in that region supported by the British
Government.
2. Great Britain, on her part, engages not to seek for her own
account, or on behalf of British subjects or of others, any
railway concessions to the north of the Great Wall of China,
and not to obstruct, directly or indirectly, applications for
railway concessions in that region supported by the Russian
Government. The two contracting parties, having nowise in view
to infringe in any way the sovereign rights of China or of
existing treaties, will not fail to communicate to the Chinese
Government the present arrangement, which, by averting all
cause of complication between them, is of a nature to
consolidate peace in the far East, and to serve the primordial
interests of China herself."
Second Note. "In order to complete the notes exchanged this
day respecting the partition of spheres for concessions for
the construction and working of railways in China, it has been
agreed to record in the present additional note the
arrangement arrived at with regard to the line
Shanghaikuan-Newchwang, for the construction of which a loan
has been already contracted by the Chinese Government with the
Shanghai-Hongkong Bank, acting on behalf of the British and
Chinese corporation. The general arrangement established by
the above-mentioned notes is not to infringe in any way the
rights acquired under the said loan contract, and the Chinese
Government may appoint both an English engineer and a European
accountant to supervise the construction of the line in
question, and the expenditure of the money appropriated to it.
But it remains understood that this fact can not be taken as
constituting a right of property or foreign control, and that
the line in question is to remain a Chinese line under the
control of the Chinese Government, and can not be mortgaged or
alienated to a non-Chinese Company. As regards the branch line
from Siaoheichan to Sinminting, in addition to the aforesaid
restrictions, it has been agreed that it is to be constructed
by China herself, which may permit European—not necessarily
British—engineers to periodically inspect it, and to verify
and certify that the work is being properly executed. The
present special agreement is naturally not to interfere in any
way with the right of the Russian Government to support, if it
thinks fit, applications of Russian subjects or establishments
for concessions for railways, which, starting from the main
Manchurian line in a southwesterly direction, would traverse
the region in which the Chinese line terminating at Sinminting
and Newchwang is to be constructed."
Great Britain, Papers by Command,
Treaty Series, Number 11, 1899.
CHINA: A. D. 1899 (April).
Increasing ascendancy of Manchus in the government.
On the 17th of April, Mr. Bax-Ironside reported to Lord
Salisbury: "There has been no change of importance to note in
the political situation. The tendency to replace Chinese by
Manchus in the important political posts of the Empire is
increasing. There are sixty-two Viceroys, Governors,
Treasurers, and Judges of the eighteen provinces and the New
Dominion. Twenty-four of these posts are now held by Manchus,
whereas before the coup d'etat only thirteen of them were so
occupied. So large a percentage of Manchus in the highest
positions tends to indicate a retrograde administration, as
the Manchus are, as a race, very inferior to the Chinese in
intelligence and capacity, and their appointment to important
positions is viewed with disfavour by the Chinese themselves.
The Dowager-Empress has sent special instructions both to
Moukden and Kirin to raise the present standard of the Manchu
schools in those towns to that existing in the ordinary
schools in Peking."-
Great Britain, Papers by Command,
China, Number 1, 1900, page 129.
{102}
CHINA: A. D. 1899 (May-July).
Representation in the Peace Conference at The Hague.
See (in this volume)
PEACE CONFERENCE.
CHINA: A. D. 1899 (August).
Talienwan declared a free port.
"The Emperor of Russia in a quaintly worded Imperial Order
issued on Sunday last [August 13] and addressed to the
Minister of Finance, has declared that after the completion of
the railway Talienwan shall be a free port during the whole
duration of the lease from China. In the course of the Order
the Emperor says: 'Thanks to the wise decision of the Chinese
Government, we shall through the railway lines in course of
construction be united with China,—a result which gives to all
nations the immeasurable gain of easy communication and
lightens the operations of the world's trade.' The Emperor
also speaks of 'a rapprochement between the peoples of the
West and East' (brought about apparently by obtaining an
outlet for the great Siberian rail way) as 'our historic
aim.'"
Spectator (London),
August 19, 1899.
CHINA: A. D. 1899 (December).
Li Hung-chang appointed Acting Viceroy at Canton.
On the 20th of December it was announced that the Viceroy at
Canton had been ordered to Peking and that Li Hung-chang had
been appointed Acting Viceroy of Kwangtung and Kwangsi—the
provinces of which Canton is the Viceroyal seat.
CHINA: A. D. 1899-1900 (September-February).
Pledges of an "open-door" commercial policy in China obtained
by the government of the United States from the governments of
Great Britain, Russia, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.
On the 6th of September, 1899, the American Secretary of
State, Mr. John Hay, despatched to the United States
Ambassador at Berlin the following instructions, copies of
which were forwarded at the same time to the Ambassadors at
London and St. Petersburg, to be communicated to the British
and Russian governments:
"At the time when the Government of the United States was
informed by that of Germany that it had leased from His
Majesty the Emperor of China the port of Kiao-chao and the
adjacent territory in the province of Shantung, assurances
were given to the ambassador of the United States at Berlin by
the Imperial German minister for foreign affairs that the
rights and privileges insured by treaties with China to
citizens of the United States would not thereby suffer or be
in anywise impaired within the area over which Germany had
thus obtained control. More recently, however, the British
Government recognized by a formal agreement with Germany the
exclusive right of the latter country to enjoy in said leased
area and the contiguous 'sphere of influence or interest'
certain privileges, more especially those relating to
railroads and mining enterprises: but, as the exact nature and
extent of the rights thus recognized have not been clearly
defined, it is possible that serious conflicts of interest may
at any time arise, not only between British and German
subjects within said area, but that the interests of our
citizens may also be jeopardized thereby. Earnestly desirous
to remove any cause of irritation and to insure at the same
time to the commerce of all nations in China the undoubted
benefits which should accrue from a formal recognition by the
various powers claiming 'spheres of interest,' that they shall
enjoy perfect equality of treatment for their commerce and
navigation within such 'spheres,' the Government of the United
States would be pleased to see His German Majesty's Government
give formal assurances and lend its cooperation in securing
like assurances from the other interested powers that each
within its respective sphere of whatever influence—
"First. Will in no way interfere with any treaty port or any
vested interest within any so-called 'sphere of interest' or
leased territory it may have in China.
"Second. That the Chinese treaty tariff of the time being
shall apply to all merchandise landed or shipped to all such
ports as are within said 'sphere of interest' (unless they be
'free ports'), no matter to what nationality it may belong,
and that duties so leviable shall be collected by the Chinese
Government.
"Third. That it will levy no higher harbor duties on vessels
of another nationality frequenting any port in such 'sphere'
than shall be levied on vessels of its own nationality' and no
higher railroad charges over lines built, controlled, or
operated within its 'sphere' on merchandise belonging to
citizens or subjects of other nationalities transported
through such 'sphere' than shall be levied on similar
merchandise belonging to its own nationals transported over
equal distances.
"The liberal policy pursued by His Imperial German Majesty in
declaring Kiao-chao a free port and in aiding the Chinese
Government in the establishment there of a custom-house are so
clearly in line with the proposition which this Government is
anxious to see recognized that it entertains the strongest
hope that Germany will give its acceptance and hearty support.
The recent ukase of His Majesty the Emperor of Russia declaring
the port of Ta-lien-wan open during the whole of the lease
under which it is held from China, to the merchant ships of
all nations, coupled with the categorical assurances made to
this Government by His Imperial Majesty's representative at
this capital at the time, and since repeated to me by the
present Russian ambassador, seem to insure the support of the
Emperor to the proposed measure. Our ambassador at the Court
of St. Petersburg has, in consequence, been instructed to
submit it to the Russian Government and to request their early
consideration of it. A copy of my instruction on the subject to
Mr. Tower is herewith inclosed for your confidential
information. The commercial interests of Great Britain and
Japan will be so clearly served by the desired declaration of
intentions, and the views of the Governments of these
countries as to the desirability of the adoption of measures
insuring the benefits of equality of treatment of all foreign
trade throughout China are so similar to those entertained by
the United States, that their acceptance of the propositions
herein outlined and their coöperation in advocating their
adoption by the other powers can be confidently expected. I
inclose herewith copy of the instruction which I have sent to
Mr. Choate on the subject. In view of the present favorable
conditions, you are instructed to submit the above
considerations to His Imperial German Majesty's minister for
foreign affairs, and to request his early consideration of the
subject. Copy of this instruction is sent to our ambassadors
at London and at St. Petersburg for their information."
Subsequently the same proposal was addressed to the
governments of France, Italy and Japan.
{103}
On the 30th of November, Lord Salisbury addressed to
Ambassador Choate the reply of his government, as follows: "I
have the honor to state that I have carefully considered, in
communication with my colleagues, the proposal contained in
your excellency's note of September 22 that a declaration
should be made by foreign powers claiming 'spheres of
interest' in China as to their intentions in regard to the
treatment of foreign trade and interest therein. I have much
pleasure in informing your excellency that Her Majesty's
Government will be prepared to make a declaration in the sense
desired by your Government in regard to the leased territory
of Wei-hai Wei and all territory in China which may hereafter
be acquired by Great Britain by lease or otherwise, and all
spheres of interest now held or that may hereafter be held by
her in China, provided that a similar declaration is made by
other powers concerned."
Ambassador Porter, at Paris, received a prompt reply, December
16, from the French Minister for Foreign Affairs, M. Delcassé,
in the following note:
"The declarations which I made in the Chamber on the 24th of
November last, and which I have had occasion to recall to you
since then, show clearly the sentiments of the Government of
the Republic. It desires throughout the whole of China and,
with the quite natural reservation that all the powers
interested give an assurance of their willingness to act
likewise, is ready to apply in the territories which are
leased to it, equal treatment to the citizens and subjects of
all nations, especially in the matter of customs duties and
navigation dues, as well as transportation tariffs on rail
ways."
Viscount Aoki, Minister for Foreign Affairs, replied for the
government of Japan, December 26, in the following note to
Minister Buck: "I have the happy duty of assuring your
excellency that the Imperial Government will have no
hesitation to give their assent to so just and fair a proposal
of the United States, provided that all the other powers
concerned shall accept the same."
The reply of the Russian government was addressed to
Ambassador Tower by Count Mouravieff, on the 30th of December,
in the following terms:
"In so far as the territory leased by China to Russia is
concerned, the Imperial Government has already demonstrated
its firm intention to follow the policy of 'the open door' by
creating Dalny (Ta-lien-wan) a free port; and if at some
future time that port, although remaining free itself, should
be separated by a customs limit from other portions of the
territory in question, the customs duties would be levied, in
the zone subject to the tariff, upon all foreign merchandise
without distinction as to nationality. As to the ports now
opened or hereafter to be opened to foreign commerce by the
Chinese Government, and which lie beyond the territory leased
to Russia, the settlement of the question of customs duties
belongs to China herself, and the Imperial Government has no
intention whatever of claiming any privileges for its own
subjects to the exclusion of other foreigners. It is to be
understood, however, that this assurance of the Imperial
Government is given upon condition that a similar declaration
shall be made by other Powers having interests in China. With
the conviction that this reply is such as to satisfy the
inquiry made in the aforementioned note, the Imperial
Government is happy to have complied with the wishes of the
American Government, especially as it attaches the highest
value to anything that may strengthen and consolidate the
traditional relations of friendship existing between the two
countries."
On the 7th of January the reply of the Italian government was
addressed to Minister Draper, at Rome, by the Marquis Visconti
Venosta, as follows: "Supplementary to what you had already
done me the honor of communicating to me in your note of
December 9, 1899, your excellency informed me yesterday of the
telegraphic note received from your Government that all the
powers consulted by the cabinet of Washington concerning the
suitability of adopting a line of policy which would insure to
the trade of the whole world equality of treatment in China
have given a favorable reply. Referring to your communications
and to the statements in my note of December 23 last, I take
pleasure in saying that the Government of the King adheres
willingly to the proposals set forth in said note of December
9."
Finally, on the 19th of February, Count von Bülow wrote to
Ambassador White, at Berlin:
"As recognized by the Government of the United States of
America, according to your excellency's note, … the Imperial
Government has from the beginning not only asserted but also
practically carried out to the fullest extent in its Chinese
possessions absolute equality of treatment of all nations with
regard to trade, navigation, and commerce. The Imperial
Government entertains no thought of departing in the future
from this principle, which at once excludes any prejudicial or
disadvantageous commercial treatment of the citizens of the
United States of America, so long as it is not forced to do
so, on account of considerations of reciprocity, by a
divergence from it by other governments. If, therefore, the
other powers interested in the industrial development of the
Chinese Empire are willing to recognize the same principles,
this can only be desired by the Imperial Government, which in
this case upon being requested will gladly be ready to
participate with the United States of America and the other
powers in an agreement made upon these lines, by which the
same rights are reciprocally secured."
Having, now, the assent of all the Powers which hold leased
territory or claim "spheres of interest" in China, Secretary
Hay sent instructions to the Ambassadors and Ministers
representing the government of the United States at the
capital of each, in the following form:
"The —— Government having accepted the declaration suggested
by the United States concerning foreign trade in China, the
terms of which I transmitted to you in my instruction Number
—— of ——, and like action having been taken by all the various
powers having leased territory or so-called 'spheres of
interest' in the Chinese Empire, as shown by the notes which I
herewith transmit to you, you will please inform the
government to which you are accredited that the condition
originally attached to its acceptance—that all other powers
concerned should likewise accept the proposals of the United
States—having been complied with, this Government will
therefore consider the assent given to it by —— as final and
definitive."
United States, 56th Congress, 1st Session,
House Document Number 547.
{104}
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (January).
Imperial Decree relative to the succession to the Throne.
The following is a translation of an Imperial Decree, "by the
Emperor's own pen," which appeared in the "Peking Gazette,"
January 24, 1900:
"When at a tender age we entered into the succession to the
throne, Her Majesty the Empress-Dowager graciously undertook
the rule of the country as Regent, taught and guided us with
diligence, and managed all things, great and small, with
unremitting care, until we ourself assumed the government.
Thereafter the times again became critical. We bent all our
thoughts and energies to the task of ruling rightly, striving
to requite Her Majesty's loving kindness, that so we might
fulfil the weighty duties intrusted to us by the late Emperor
Mu Tsung Yi (T'ung Chih). But since last year we have suffered
from ill-health, affairs of State have increased in magnitude
and perplexity, and we have lived in constant dread of going
wrong. Reflecting on the supreme importance of the worship of
our ancestors and of the spirits of the land, we therefore
implored the Empress-Dowager to advise us in the government.
This was more than a year ago, but we have never been restored
to health, and we have not the strength to perform in person
the great sacrifices at the altar of Heaven and in the temples
of the spirits of the land. And now the times are full of
difficulties. We see Her Gracious Majesty's anxious toil by
day and by night, never laid aside for rest or leisure, and
with troubled mind we examine ourself, taking no comfort in
sleep or food, but ever dwelling in thought on the labours of
our ancestors in founding the dynasty, and ever fearful lest
our strength be not equal to our task.
"Moreover, we call to mind how, when we first succeeded to the
throne, we reverently received the Empress-Dowager's Decree
that as soon as a Prince should be born to us he should become
the heir by adoption to the late Emperor Mu Tsung Yi (T'ung
Chih). This is known to all the officials and people
throughout the Empire. But we suffer from an incurable
disease, and it is impossible for us to beget a son, so that
the Emperor Mu Tsung Yi has no posterity, and the consequences
to the lines of succession are of the utmost gravity.
Sorrowfully thinking on this, and feeling that there is no
place to hide ourself for shame, how can we look forward to
recovery from all our ailments? We have therefore humbly
implored Her Sacred Majesty carefully to select from among the
near branches of our family a good and worthy member, who
should found a line of posterity for the Emperor Mu Tsung Yi
(T'ung Chih), and to whom the Throne should revert hereafter.
After repeated entreaties, Her Majesty has now deigned to
grant her consent that P'u Chün, son of Tsai Yi, Prince Tuan,
should be adopted as the son of the late Emperor Mu Tsung Yi
(T'ung Chih). We have received Her Majesty's Decree with
unspeakable joy, and in reverent obedience to her gracious
instruction we appoint P'u Chün, son of Tsai Yi, as Prince
Imperial, to carry on the dynastic succession. Let this Decree
be made known to all men."
Great Britain, Parliamentary Publications
(Papers by Command: China, Number 3, 1900, pages 15-16).
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (January-March).
First accounts of the secret society of "the Boxers"
and their bloody work.
The murder of Mr. Brooks, the missionary.
Prolonged effort of foreign Ministers to procure an Imperial
Edict for the suppression of the hostile secret societies.
A naval demonstration recommended.
Testimony of Sir Robert Hart as to the causes and the
patriotic inspiration of the Boxer movement.
The year 1900 opened with news of the murder of Mr. Brooks, of
the Church of England Mission in northern Shantung, who was
wounded and captured December 30 and beheaded the day
following, by a band of marauders belonging to a secret
organization which soon became notorious under the name of the
society of "the Boxers." The British Minister at Peking
reported it to London on the 4th of January, and on the 5th he
gave the following account of the state of affairs in northern
Shantung, where the outrage occurred:
"For several months past the northern part of the Province of
Shantung has been disturbed by bands of rebels connected with
various Secret Societies, who have been defying the
authorities and pillaging the people. An organization known as
the 'Boxers' has attained special notoriety, and their ravages
recently spread over a large portion of Southern Chihli, where
the native Christians appear to have suffered even more than
the rest of the inhabitants from the lawlessness of these
marauders. The danger to which, in both provinces, foreign
missionary establishments have been thus exposed, has been the
subject of repeated representations to the Chinese Government
by others of the foreign Representatives—especially the German
and United States' Ministers—and myself. Early last month the
Governor of Shantung, Yü Hsien, was ordered to vacate his post
and come to Peking for audience, and the General Yüan
Shih-K'ai was appointed Acting Governor in his place. In
Southern Chihli the task of dealing with the disturbances was
entrusted to the Viceroy at Tien-tsin. Her Majesty's Consul at
Tien-tsin has had repeatedly to complain to the latter of the
inadequacy of the protection afforded to British life and
property in the districts affected by the rebellion; and in
consequence of these representations and of my own
communications to the Tsung-li Yamên, guards of soldiers have
been stationed for the special protection of the missionary
premises which were endangered. On the 29th ultimo I took
occasion to warn the Yamên by letter that if the disorder were
not vigorously quelled, international complications were
likely to ensue."
After narrating an interview with the Tsung-li Yamên on the
subject of the murder of Mr. Brooks, and repeating the
assurances he had received of vigorous measures to punish the
murderers, Minister MacDonald concluded his despatch by
saying: "In a note which I addressed to the Yamên this morning
I took occasion to remind the Ministers that there were other
British missionaries living in the district where Mr. Brooks
was killed, and to impress upon their Excellencies the
necessity of securing efficient protection to these. I do not,
however, entertain serious apprehensions as to their safety,
because guards of soldiers have been for some time past
stationed to protect the various missionary residences. The
unfortunate man who was murdered was seized when he was
travelling by wheel-barrow, without escort, through the
country infested by the rebels."
{105}
A few days later, Bishop Scott, of the Church of England
Mission, at Peking, received from Mr. Brown, another
missionary in Shantung province, the following telegram:
"Outlook very black; daily marauding; constant danger; Edict
suppressing published; troops present, but useless; officials
complete inaction: T'ai An Prefect blocks; secret orders from
Throne to encourage." On this Sir Claude again called upon the
Yamên, and "spoke to them," he says, "in terms of the gravest
warning. While I could not believe it possible, I said, that
the rumours of secret orders from the Throne were true, the
mere fact of the currency of such rumours showed the
impression which the conduct of the Prefect conveyed to the
public. So much was I impressed by this, that I had come
to-day especially to protest against the behaviour of the
Shantung officials. The whole of the present difficulty could
be traced to the attitude of the late Governor of Shantung, Yü
Hsien, who secretly encouraged the seditious Society known as
'the Boxers.' I had again and again pointed out to the
Ministers that until China dealt with the high authorities in
such cases these outrages would not cease. I asked the
Ministers to telegraph to the new Governor Yüan that I had
called at the Yamên that day to complain of the conduct of the
Prefect of T'ai An. The Ministers attempted to excuse the
inertia of the local officials on the plea that their
difficulties were very great. The primary cause of the trouble
was the bad feeling existing between the converts and the
ordinary natives. This had developed until bands of marauders
had formed, who harassed Christians and other natives alike.
The local officials had hitherto not had sufficient force to
cope with so widespread a rising, but now that Yüan and his
troops had been sent to the province they hoped for the speedy
restoration of order. I impressed upon the Ministers in the
most emphatic manner my view of the gravity of the situation.
The Imperial Edict expressing sorrow for what had occurred and
enjoining strong measures was satisfactory so far as it went; but
Her Majesty's Government required something more than mere
words, and would now await action on the part of the Chinese
Government in conformity with their promises."
On the day of this interview (January 11), an Imperial Decree
was issued by the Chinese government, opening in ambiguous
terms and decreeing nothing. "Of late," it said, "in all the
provinces brigandage has become daily more prevalent, and
missionary cases have recurred with frequency. Most critics
point to seditious Societies as the cause, and ask for
rigorous suppression and punishment of these. But reflection
shows that Societies are of different kinds. When worthless
vagabonds form themselves into bands and sworn confederacies,
and relying on their numbers create disturbances, the law can
show absolutely no leniency to them on the other hand, when
peaceful and law-abiding people practise their skill in
mechanical arts for the self-preservation of themselves and
their families, or when they combine in village communities
for the mutual protection of the rural population, this is in
accordance with the public-spirited principle (enjoined by
Mencius) of 'keeping mutual watch and giving mutual help.'
Some local authorities, when a case arises, do not regard this
distinction, but, listening to false and idle rumours, regard
all alike as seditious Societies, and involve all in one
indiscriminate slaughter. The result is that no distinction
being made between the good and the evil, men's minds are
thrown into fear and doubt. This is, indeed, 'adding fuel to
stop a fire,' 'driving fish to the deep part of the pool to
catch them.' It means, not that the people are disorderly, but
that the administration is bad."
The foreign ministers at Peking soon learned that this
ambiguous decree had given encouragement to the "Boxers," and
the British, American, German, French and Italian
representatives, by agreement, addressed an "identic note" to
the Yamên, dated January 27, in which, referring to the state
of affairs in north Shantung and in the centre and south of
Chihli, each one said: "This state of affairs, which is a
disgrace to any civilized country, has been brought about by
the riotous and lawless behaviour of certain ruffians who have
banded themselves together into two Societies, termed
respectively the 'Fist of Righteous Harmony' and the 'Big
Sword Society,' and by the apathy, and in some instances
actual connivance and encouragement of these Societies by the
local officials. The members of these Societies go about
pillaging the homes of Christian converts, breaking down their
chapels, robbing and ill-treating inoffensive women and
children, and it is a fact, to which I would draw the special
attention of your Highness and your Excellencies, that on the
banners which are carried by these riotous and lawless people
are inscribed the words, 'Exterminate the Foreigners.'
"On the 11th January an Imperial Decree was issued drawing a
distinction between good and bad Societies. The wording of
this Decree has unfortunately given rise to a widespread
impression that such Associations as the 'Fist of Righteous
Harmony' and the 'Big Sword Society' are regarded with favour
by the Chinese Government, and their members have openly
expressed their gratification and have been encouraged by the
Decree to continue to carry on their outrages against the
Christian converts. I cannot for a moment suppose that such
was the intention of this Decree. These Societies are, as I
have shown, of a most pernicious and rebellious character.
"I earnestly beg to draw the serious attention of the Throne
to the circumstances above described: the disorders have not
reached such a stage that they cannot be stamped out by prompt
and energetic action: but if such action be not immediately
taken, the rioters will be encouraged to think that they have
the support of the Government and proceed to graver crimes,
thereby seriously endangering international relations. As a
preliminary measure, and one to which I attach the greatest
importance, I have to beg that an Imperial Decree be published
and promulgated, ordering by name the complete suppression and
abolition of the 'Fist of Righteous Harmony' and the 'Big
Sword Societies,' and I request that it may be distinctly
stated in the Decree that to belong to either of these
Societies, or to harbour any of its members, is a criminal
offence against the laws of China."
{106}
In communicating the above note to Lord Salisbury, Sir Claude
MacDonald explained: "The name of the Society given in the
note as 'The Fist of Righteous Harmony' is the same as the
'Boxers.' The latter name was given in the first instance,
either by missionaries or newspapers, but does not convey the
meaning of the Chinese words. The idea underlying the name is
that the members of the Society will unite to uphold the cause
of righteousness, if necessary by force."
On the 21st of February no reply to the identic note had been
given, and the five foreign Ministers then wrote again. This
brought an answer so evasive that they asked for an interview
with the Yamên, and it was appointed for March 2d. On the
evening of the 1st they received copies of a proclamation
which the Governor-General of Chihli had been commanded to
issue. The proclamation embodied an Imperial Decree,
transmitted to the Governor-General on the 21st of February,
which said: "Last year the Governor of Shantung telegraphed
that the Society known as 'the Fist of Righteous Harmony' in
many of his districts, under the plea of enmity to foreign
religions, were raising disturbances in all directions, and
had extended their operations into the southern part of
Chihli. We have repeatedly ordered the Governor-General of
Chihli and the Governor of Shantung to send soldiers to keep
the peace. But it is to be feared that if stern measures of
suppression of such proceedings as secretly establishing
societies with names and collecting in numbers to raise
disturbances be not taken, the ignorant populace will be
deluded and excited, and as time goes on things will grow
worse, and when some serious case ensues we shall be compelled
to employ troops to extirpate the evil. The sufferers would be
truly many, and the throne cannot bear to slay without
warning. Let the Governor-General of Chihli and the Governor
of Shantung issue the most stringent Proclamations admonishing
the people and strictly prohibiting (the societies) so that
our people may all know that to secretly establish societies
is contrary to prohibition and a breach of the law."
To this the Governor-General of Chihli added, in his own name:
"I (the Governor-General) find it settled by decided cases
that those people of no occupation, busybodies who style
themselves Professors, and practise boxing, and play with
clubs, and teach people their arts; those also who learn from
these men, and those who march about and parade the villages
and marts flourishing tridents, and playing with sticks,
hood-winking the populace to make a profit for themselves, are
strictly forbidden to carry on such practices. Should any
disobey, on arrest the principals will receive 100 blows with
the heavy bamboo, and be banished to a distance of 1,000
miles. The pupils will receive the same beating, and be
banished to another province for three years, and on

expiration of that period and return to their native place be
subjected to strict surveillance. Should any inn, temple or
house harbour these people without report to the officials, or
should the police and others not search them out and arrest
them, the delinquents will be sentenced to eighty blows with
the heavy bamboo for improper conduct in the higher degree.
"From this it appears that teaching or practising boxing and
club play, and deluding the people for private gain are
fundamentally contrary to law. But of late some of the
ignorant populace have been deluded by ruffians from other
parts of the Empire who talk of charms and incantations and
spiritual incarnations which protect from guns and cannon.
They have dared to secretly establish the Society of the Fist
of Righteous Harmony and have practised drill with fists and
clubs. The movement has spread in all directions, and under
the plea of hatred of foreign religions these people have
harried the country. When soldiers and runners came to make
arrests, turbulent ruffians had the audacity to defy them,
relying on their numbers, thereby exhibiting a still greater
contempt for the law. …
"In addition to instructing all the local officials to adopt
strict measures of prohibition and to punish without fail all
offenders, I hereby issue this most stringent admonition and
notify all people in my jurisdiction, gentry and every class
of the population, that you should clearly understand that the
establishment and formation of secret societies for the
practice of boxing and club exercises are contrary to
prohibition and a breach of the law. The assembly of mobs to
create disturbances and all violent outrages are acts which
the law will still less brook. … The converts and the ordinary
people are all the subjects of the throne, and are regarded by
the Government with impartial benevolence. No distinction is
made between them. Should they have lawsuits they must bow to
the judgments of the officials. The ordinary people must not
give way to rage, and by violent acts create feuds and
trouble. The converts on the other hand must not stir up
strife and oppress the people or incite the missionaries to
screen them and help them to obtain the upper hand."
According to appointment, the interview with the Yamên took
place on the 2d of March: "Mr. Conger, United States'
Minister, Baron von Ketteler, German Minister, Marquis
Salvago, Italian Minister, Baron d'Anthoüard, French Charge d'
Affaires, and myself," writes Sir Claude MacDonald, "were
received at the Yamên by Prince Ch'ing and nearly all the
Ministers. On behalf of myself and my colleagues I
recapitulated the circumstances, as detailed above, which had
led to the demand which we now made. My colleagues all
expressed to the Prince and Ministers their entire concurrence
with the language I used, Mr. Conger reminded the Yamên of the
incredulity with which they had listened to his
representations regarding these disturbances over three months
ago, and the promises they had been making ever since, from
which nothing had resulted. Baron von Ketteler laid special
stress on the fact that in the Decree just communicated no
mention was made of the 'Ta Tao Hui,' or 'Big Knife Society,'
the denunciation of which, equally with that of the
'I-Ho-Ch'uan,' or 'Fist of Righteous Harmony,' had been
demanded. The Prince and Ministers protested emphatically that
the Throne was earnest in its determination to put a stop to
the outrages committed by these Societies. They maintained
that the method adopted for promulgating the Imperial Decree,
that of sending it to the Governors of the provinces
concerned, to be embodied in a Proclamation and acted upon,
was much speedier and more effective than that of publishing a
Decree in the 'Peking Gazette,' as suggested by us. With regard
to the omission of the term 'Ta Tao Hui' from the Decree, they
declared that this Society was now the same as the
'I-Ho-Ch'uan.'"
{107}
At the close of the interview the five Ministers presented
identic notes to the Yamên, in which each said: "I request
that an Imperial Decree may be issued and published in the
'Peking Gazette' ordering by name the complete suppression and
abolition of the 'Fist of Righteous Harmony' and 'Big Sword
Societies,' and I request that it may be distinctly stated in
the Decree that to belong to either of these societies or to
harbour any of its members is a criminal offence against the
law of China. Nothing less than this will, I am convinced, put
an end to the outrages against Christians which have lately
been so prevalent in Chihli and Shantung. Should the Chinese
Government refuse this reasonable request I shall be compelled
to report to my Government their failure to take what may be
called only an ordinary precaution against a most pernicious
and anti-foreign organization. The consequences of further
disorder in the districts concerned cannot fail to be
extremely serious to the Chinese Government."
The reply of the Yamên to this "identic note" was a lengthy
argument to show that publication in the "Peking Gazette" of
the Imperial Edict against "Boxers" would be contrary to "an
established rule of public business in China which it is
impossible to alter"; and that, furthermore, it would be
useless, because the common people of the provinces would not
see it. Not satisfied with this reply, the Ministers, on the
10th of March, addressed another identic note to the Yamên, in
the following words: "Acknowledging receipt of your Highness'
and your Excellencies' note of the 7th March, I regret to say
that it is in no way either an adequate or satisfactory reply
to my notes or my verbal requests concerning the suppression
of the two Societies known as the 'Big Sword' and 'Fist of
Righteous Harmony.' I therefore am obliged to repeat the
requests, and because of the rapid spread of these Societies,
proof of which is accumulating every day, and which the
Imperial Decree of the 11th January greatly encouraged, I
insist that an absolute prohibitive Decree for all China,
mentioning these two Societies by name, be forthwith issued
and published in the 'Peking Gazette,' as was done with the
Decree of the 11th January. Should I not receive a favourable
answer without delay, I shall report the matter to my
Government, and urge strongly the advisability of the adoption
of other measures for the protection of the lives and property
of British subjects in China."
On the same day, each of the Ministers cabled the following
recommendation to his government:
"If the Chinese Government should refuse to publish the Decree
we have required, and should the state of affairs not
materially improve, I would respectfully recommend that a few
ships of war of each nationality concerned should make a naval
demonstration in North Chinese waters. Identic recommendations
are being telegraphed home by my four colleagues
above-mentioned."
On the 16th, Sir Claude wrote: "No reply has yet been received
from the Tsung-li Yamên to the note of the 10th March, and it
was with serious misgivings as to the attitude of the Chinese
Government on this question that I read yesterday the official
announcement of the appointment of Yü Hsien, lately Governor
of Shantung, to the post of Governor of Shansi. The growth and
impunity of the anti-Christian Societies in Shantung has been
universally ascribed to the sympathy and encouragement
accorded to them by this high officer, and his conduct has for
some time past formed the subject of strong representations on
the part of several of the foreign Representatives."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 3, 1900, pages 3-26.
"The foundation of the 'Boxers' can be traced to one man, Yü
Hsien, who, when Prefect of Tsao-chau, in the south-west
corner of Shan-tung, organized a band of men as local militia
or trainbands. For them he revived the ancient appellation of
'I-Ho-Ch'üan,' the Patriotic Harmony Fists. Armed with long
swords, they were known popularly as the Ta-tao-huei, or Big
Knife Society. After the occupation of Kiao-chau Bay the
society grew in force, the professed objects of its members
being to oppose the exactions of native Catholics and to
resist further German aggression. They became anti-Christian
and anti-foreign. They became a religious sect, and underwent
a fantastic kind of spiritual training of weird incantations
and grotesque gymnastics, which they professed to believe
rendered them impervious to the sword and to the bullet of the
white man. Three deities they specially selected as their
own—namely, Kwanti, the God of War and patron deity of the
present dynasty, Kwang Chéng-tze, an incarnation of Laotze,
and the Joyful Buddha of the Falstaffian Belly. They made
Taoist and Buddhist temples their headquarters. Everywhere
they declared that they would drive the foreigner and his
devilish religion from China. To encourage this society its
founder, Yü Hsien, was in March, 1899, appointed by the Throne
Governor of Shan-tung. In four years he had risen from the
comparatively humble post of Prefect to that of the highest
official in the province."
Peking Correspondence London Times,
October 13, 1900.
Sir Robert Hart, an English gentleman who had been in the
service of the Chinese government at Peking for many years,
administering its maritime customs, is the author of an
account of the causes and the character of the Boxer movement,
written since its violent outbreak, from which the following
passages are taken:
"For ages China had discountenanced the military spirit and
was laughed at by us accordingly, and thus, ever since
intercourse under treaties has gone on, we have been lecturing
the Government from our superior standpoint, telling it that
it must grow strong—must create army and navy—must adopt
foreign drill and foreign weapons—must prepare to hold its own
against all comers—must remember 'Codlin' is its friend, not
'Short': our words did not fall on closed ears—effect was
given to selected bits of advice—and various firms did a very
remarkable and very remunerative trade in arms. But while the
Chinese Government made a note of all the advice its generous
friends placed at its disposal, and adopted some suggestions
because they either suited it or it seemed polite and harmless
to do so, it did not forget its own thirty centuries of
historic teaching, and it looked at affairs abroad through its
own eyes and the eyes of its representatives at foreign
Courts, studied their reports and the printed utterances of
books, magazines, and newspapers, and the teaching thus
received began gradually to crystallise in the belief that a
huge standing army on European lines would be wasteful and
dangerous and that a volunteer association—as suggested by the
way all China ranged itself on the Government side in the
Franco-Chinese affair—covering the whole Empire, offering an
outlet for restless spirits and fostering a united and
patriotic feeling, would be more reliable and effective, an
idea which seemed to receive immediate confirmation from
without in the stand a handful of burghers were making in the
Transvaal: hence the Boxer Association, patriotic in origin,
justifiable in its fundamental idea, and in point of fact the
outcome of either foreign advice or the study of foreign
methods.
{108}
"In the meanwhile the seeds of other growths were being sown
in the soil of the Chinese mind, private and official, and
were producing fruit each after its kind: various commercial
stipulations sanctioned by treaties had not taken into full
account Chinese conditions, difficulties, methods, and
requirements, and their enforcement did not make foreign
commerce more agreeable to the eye of either provincial or
metropolitan officials,—missionary propagandism was at work
all over the country, and its fruits, Chinese Christians, did
not win the esteem or goodwill of their fellows, for, first of
all, they offended public feeling by deserting Chinese for
foreign cults, next they irritated their fellow villagers by
refusing, as Christians, to take part in or share the expenses
of village festivals, and lastly, as Christians again, they
shocked the official mind, and popular opinion also, by
getting their religious teachers, more especially the Roman
Catholics, to interfere on their behalf in litigation, &c., a
state of affairs which became specially talked about in
Shantung, the native province of the Confucius of over 2,000
years ago and now the sphere of influence of one of the
Church's most energetic bishops,—the arrangement by which
missionaries were to ride in green chairs and be recognised as
the equals of Governors and Viceroys had its special
signification and underlined missionary aspiration telling
people and officials in every province what they had to expect
from it: on the top of this came the Kiao Chow affair and the
degradation and cashiering of a really able, popular, and
clean-handed official, the Governor Li Ping Hêng, succeeded by
the cessions of territory at Port Arthur, Wei-Hai-Wei, Kwang
Chow Wan, &c., &c., &c., and these doings, followed by the
successful stand made against the Italian demand for a port on
the Coast of Chekiang, helped to force the Chinese Government
to see that concession had gone far enough and that opposition
to foreign encroachment might now and henceforth be the key-note
of its policy.
"Li Ping Hêng had taken up his private residence in the
southeastern corner of Pecheli, close to the Shantung
frontier, and the Boxer movement, already started in a
tentative way in the latter province, now received an immense
impetus from the occurrences alluded to and was carefully
nurtured and fostered by that cashiered official—more
respected than ever by his countrymen. Other high officials
were known to be in sympathy with the new departure and to
give it their strongest approval and support, such as Hsü
Tung, Kang I, and men of the same stamp and standing, and
their advice to the throne was to try conclusions with
foreigners and yield no more to their demands. However
mistaken may have been their reading of foreigners, and
however wrong their manner of action, these men—eminent in
their own country for their learning and services—were
animated by patriotism, were enraged at foreign dictation, and
had the courage of their convictions: we must do them the
justice of allowing they were actuated by high motives and
love of country—but that does not always or necessarily mean
political ability or highest wisdom. …
"The Chinese, an intelligent, cultivated race, sober,
industrious, and on their own lines civilised, homogeneous in
language, thought, and feeling, which numbers some four
hundred millions, lives in its own ring fence, and covers a
country which—made up of fertile land and teeming waters, with
infinite variety of mountain and plain, hill and dale, and
every kind of climate and condition—on its surface produces
all that a people requires and in its bosom hides untold
virgin wealth that has never yet been disturbed—this race,
after thousands of years of haughty seclusion and
exclusiveness, has been pushed by the force of circumstances
and by the superior strength of assailants into treaty
relations with the rest of the world, but regards that as a
humiliation, sees no benefit accruing from it, and is looking
forward to the day when it in turn will be strong enough to
revert to its old life again and do away with foreign
intercourse, interference, and intrusion: it has slept long,
as we count sleep, but it is awake at last and its every
member is tingling with Chinese feeling—'China for the
Chinese and out with the foreigners!'
"The Boxer movement is doubtless the product of official
inspiration, but it has taken hold of the popular imagination
and will spread like wildfire all over the length and breadth
of the country: it is, in short, a purely patriotic volunteer
movement, and its object is to strengthen China—and for a
Chinese programme. Its first experience has not been
altogether a success as regards the attainment through
strength of proposed ends,—the rooting up of foreign cults and
the ejection of foreigners, but it is not a failure in respect of
the feeler it put out—will volunteering work?—or as an
experiment that would test ways and means and guide future
choice: it has proved how to a man the people will respond to
the call, and it has further demonstrated that the swords and
spears to which the prudent official mind confined the
initiated will not suffice, but must be supplemented or
replaced by Mauser rifles and Krupp guns: the Boxer patriot of
the future will possess the best weapons money can buy, and
then the 'Yellow Peril' will be beyond ignoring."
Robert Hart,
The Peking Legations
(Fortnightly Review, November, 1900).
{109}
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (March-April).
Proposed joint naval demonstration of the Powers
in Chinese waters.
On receipt of the telegram from Peking (March 10) recommending
a joint naval demonstration in North Chinese waters, the
British Ambassador at Paris was directed to consult the
Government of France on the subject, and did so. On the 13th,
he reported M. Delcassé, the French Minister for Foreign
Affairs, as saying that "he could not, of course, without
reflection and without consulting his colleagues, say what the
decision of the French Government would be as to taking part
in a naval demonstration, but at first sight it seemed to him
that it would be difficult to avoid acting upon a suggestion
which the Representatives of Five Powers, who ought to be good
judges, considered advisable." On the 16th, he wrote to Lord
Salisbury: "M. Delcassé informed me the day before yesterday
that he had telegraphed to Peking for more precise
information. I told him that I was glad to hear that no
precipitate action was going to be taken by France, and that I
believed that he would find that the United States' Government
would be disinclined to associate themselves with any joint
naval demonstration. I added that, although I had no
instructions to say so, I expected that Her Majesty's
Government would also adhere to their usual policy of
proceeding with great caution, and would be in no hurry to
take a step which only urgent necessity would render
advisable."
On the 23d of March, Sir Claude MacDonald telegraphed to Lord
Salisbury: "I learn that the Government of the United States
have ordered one ship-of-war to go to Taku for the purpose of
protecting American interests, that the Italian Minister has
been given the disposal of two ships, and the German Minister
has the use of the squadron at Kiao-chau for the same purpose.
With a view to protect British missionary as well as other
interests, which are far in excess of those of other Powers, I
would respectfully request that two of Her Majesty's ships be
sent to Taku."
On the 3d of April, the Tsung-li Yamên communicated to the
British Ambassador the following information, as to the
punishment of the murderers of Mr. Brooks, and of the
officials responsible for neglect to protect him: "Of several
arrests that had been made of persons accused of having been
the perpetrators of the crime or otherwise concerned in its
committal, two have been brought to justice and, at a trial at
which a British Consul was present, found guilty and sentenced
to be decapitated—a sentence which has already been carried
into effect. Besides this, the Magistrate of Feichen, and some
of the police authorities of the district, accounted to have
been guilty of culpable negligence in the protection of Mr.
Brooks, have been cashiered, or had other punishments awarded
them of different degrees of severity."
For some weeks after this the Boxer movement appears to have
been under constraint. Further outrages were not reported and
no expressions of anxiety appear in the despatches from
Peking. The proposal of a joint naval demonstration in the
waters of Northern China was not pressed.
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 3, 1900, pages 6-17.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (May-June).
Renewed activity of the "Boxers" and increasing gravity of
the situation at Peking.
Return of Legation guards.
Call upon the fleets at Taku for reinforcement and rescue.
About the middle of May the activity of the "Boxers" was
renewed, and a state of disorder far more threatening than
before was speedily made known. The rapid succession of
startling events during the next few weeks may be traced in
the following series of telegrams from the British Minister at
Peking to his chief:
"May 17.
The French Minister called to-day to inform me that the Boxers
have destroyed three villages and killed 61 Roman Catholic
Christian converts at a place 90 miles from Peking, near
Paoting-fu. The French Bishop informs me that in that
district, and around Tien-tsin and Peking generally, much
disorder prevails."
"May 18.
There was a report yesterday, which has been confirmed to-day,
that the Boxers have destroyed the London Mission chapel at
Kung-tsun, and killed the Chinese preacher. Kung-tsun is about
40 miles south-west of Peking."
"May 19.
At the Yamên, yesterday, I reminded the Ministers how I had
unceasingly warned them during the last six months how
dangerous it was not to take adequate measures in suppression
of the Boxer Societies. I said that the result of the apathy
of the Chinese Government was that now a Mission chapel, a few
miles distant from the capital, had been destroyed. The
Ministers admitted that the danger of the Boxer movement had
not previously appeared to them so urgent, but that now they
fully saw how serious it was. On the previous day an Imperial
Decree had been issued, whereby specified metropolitan and
provincial authorities were directed to adopt stringent
measures to suppress the Boxers. This, they believed, would
not fail to have the desired effect."
"May 21.
All eleven foreign Representatives attended a meeting of the
Diplomatic Body held yesterday afternoon, at the instance of
the French Minister. The doyen was empowered to write, in the
name of all the foreign Representatives, a note to the Yamên
to the effect that the Diplomatic Body, basing their demands
on the Decrees already issued by the Palace denunciatory of
the Boxers, requested that all persons who should print,
publish, or disseminate placards which menaced foreigners, all
individuals aiding and abetting, all owners of houses or
temples now used as meeting places for Boxers, should be
arrested. They also demanded that those guilty of arson,
murder, outrages, &c., together with those affording support
or direction to Boxers while committing such outrages, should
be executed. Finally, the publication of a Decree in Peking
and the Northern Provinces setting forth the above. The
foreign Representatives decided at their meeting to take
further measures if the disturbances still continued, or if a
favorable answer was not received to their note within five
days. The meeting did not decide what measures should be
taken, but the Representatives were generally averse to
bringing guards to Peking, and, what found most favour, was as
follows:—
With the exception of Holland, which has no ships in Chinese
waters, it was proposed that all the Maritime Powers
represented should make a naval demonstration either at
Shanhaikuan, or at the new port, Ching-wangtao, while, in case
of necessity, guards were to be held ready on board ship. My
colleagues will, I think, send these proposals as they stand
to their governments. As the Chinese Government themselves
seem to be sufficiently alarmed, I do not think that the above
measure will be necessary, but, should the occasion arise, I
trust that Her Majesty's Government will see fit to support
it. … I had a private interview with my Russian colleague, who
came to see me before the matter reached its acute stages. M. de
Giers said that there were only two countries with serious
interests in China: England and Russia. He thought that both
landing guards and naval demonstrations were to be
discouraged, as they give rise to unknown eventualities.
However, since the 18th instant, he admits that matters are
grave, and agreed at once to the joint note."
{110}
"May 24.
Her Majesty's Consul at Tien-tsin reported by telegraph
yesterday that a Colonel in charge of a party of the Viceroy's
cavalry was caught, on the 22nd instant, in an ambuscade near
Lai-shui, which is about 50 miles south-west of Peking. The
party were destroyed."
"May 25.
Tsung-li Yamên have replied to the note sent by the doyen of
the Corps Diplomatique, reported in my telegram of the 21st
May. They state that the main lines of the measures already in
force agree with those required by the foreign
Representatives, and add that a further Decree, which will
direct efficacious action, is being asked for. The above does
not even promise efficacious action, and, in my personal
opinion, is unsatisfactory."
"May 27.
At the meeting of the Corps Diplomatique, which took place
yesterday evening, we were informed by the French Minister
that all his information led him to believe that a serious
outbreak, which would endanger the lives of all European
residents in Peking, was on the point of breaking out. The
Italian Minister confirmed the information received by M.
Pichon. The Russian Minister agreed with his Italian and
French colleagues in considering the latest reply of the Yamên
to be unsatisfactory, adding that, in his opinion, the Chinese
Government was now about to adopt effective measures. That the
danger was imminent he doubted, but said that it was not
possible to disregard the evidence adduced by the French
Minister. We all agreed with this last remark. M. Pichon then
urged that if the Chinese Government did not at once take
action guards should at once be brought up by the foreign
Representatives. Some discussion then ensued, after which it
was determined that a precise statement should be demanded
from the Yamên as to the measures they had taken, also that
the terms of the Edict mentioned by them should be
communicated to the foreign Representatives. Failing a reply
from the Yamên of a satisfactory nature by this afternoon, it
was resolved that guards should be sent for. Baron von
Ketteler, the German Minister, declared that he considered the
Chinese Government was crumbling to pieces, and that he did
not believe that any action based on the assumption of their
stability could be efficacious. The French Minister is, I am
certain, genuinely convinced that the danger is real, and
owing to his means of information he is well qualified to
judge. … I had an interview with Prince Ch'ing and the Yamên
Ministers this afternoon. Energetic measures are now being
taken against the Boxers by the Government, whom the progress
of the Boxer movement has, at last, thoroughly alarmed. The
Corps Diplomatique, who met in the course of the day, have
decided to wait another twenty-four hours for further
developments."
"May 29.
Some stations on the line, among others Yengtai, 6 miles from
Peking, together with machine sheds and European houses, were
burnt yesterday by the Boxers. The line has also been torn up
in places. Trains between this and Tien-tsin have stopped
running, and traffic has not been resumed yet. The situation
here is serious, and so far the Imperial troops have done
nothing. It was unanimously decided, at a meeting of foreign
Representatives yesterday, to send for guards for the
Legations, in view of the apathy of the Chinese Government and
the gravity of the situation. Before the meeting assembled,
the French Minister had already sent for his."
"May 30.
Permission for the guards to come to Peking has been refused
by the Yamên. I think, however, that they may not persist in
their refusal. The situation in the meantime is one of extreme
gravity. The people are very excited, and the soldiers
mutinous. Without doubt it is now a question of European life
and property being in danger here. The French and Russians are
landing 100 men each. French, Russian, and United States'
Ministers, and myself, were deputed to-day at a meeting of the
foreign Representatives to declare to the Tsung-li Yamên that
the foreign Representatives must immediately bring up guards
for the protection of the lives of Europeans in Peking in view
of the serious situation and untrustworthiness of the Chinese
troops. That the number would be small if facilities were
granted, but it must be augmented should they be refused, and
serious consequences might result for the Chinese Government
in the latter event. In reply, the Yamên stated that no
definite reply could be given until to-morrow afternoon, as
the Prince was at the Summer Palace. As the Summer Palace is
within an hour's ride we refused to admit the impossibility of
prompt communication and decision, and repeated the warning
already given of the serious consequences which would result
if the Viceroy at Tien-tsin did not receive instructions this
evening in order that the guards might be enabled to arrive
here to-morrow. The danger will be greatest on Friday, which
is a Chinese festival."
"May 31.
Provided that the number does not exceed that of thirty for
each Legation, as on the last occasion, the Yamên have given
their consent to the guards coming to Peking. … It was decided
this morning, at a meeting of the foreign Representatives, to
at once bring up the guards that are ready. These probably
include the British, American, Italian, and Japanese."
"June 1.
British, American, Italian, Russian, French and Japanese
guards arrived yesterday. Facilities were given, and there
were no disturbances. Our detachment consists of three
officers and seventy-five men, and a machine gun."
"June 2.
The city is comparatively quiet, but murders of Christian
converts and the destruction of missionary property in
outlying districts occur every day, and the situation still
remains serious. The situation at the Palace is, I learn from
a reliable authority, very strained. The Empress-Dowager does
not dare to put down the Boxers, although wishing to do so, on
account of the support given them by Prince Tuan, father of
the hereditary Prince, and other conservative Manchus, and
also because of their numbers. Thirty Europeans, most of whom
were Belgians, fled from Paoting-fu via the river to
Tien-tsin. About 20 miles from Tien-tsin they were attacked by
Boxers.
{111}
A party of Europeans having gone to their rescue from
Tien-tsin severe fighting ensued, in which a large number of
Boxers were killed. Nine of the party are still missing,
including one lady. The rest have been brought into Tien-tsin.
The Russian Minister, who came to see me to-day, said he
thought it most imperative that the foreign Representatives
should be prepared for all eventualities, though he had no
news confirming the above report. He said he had been
authorized by his Government to support any Chinese authority
at Peking which was able and willing to maintain order in case
the Government collapsed."
"June 4.
I am informed by a Chinese courier who arrived to-day from
Yung-Ching, 40 miles south of Peking, that on the 1st June the
Church of England Mission at that place was attacked by the
Boxers. He states that one missionary, Mr. Robinson, was
murdered, and that he saw his body, and that another, Mr.
Norman, was carried off by the Boxers. I am insisting on the
Chinese authorities taking immediate measures to effect his
rescue. Present situation at Peking is such that we may at any
time be besieged here with the railway and telegraph lines
cut. In the event of this occurring, I beg your Lordship will
cause urgent instructions to be sent to Admiral Seymour to
consult with the officers commanding the other foreign
squadrons now at Taku to take concerted measures for our
relief. The above was agreed to at a meeting held to-day by
the foreign Representatives, and a similar telegram was sent
to their respective Governments by the Ministers of Austria,
Italy, Germany, France, Japan, Russia, and the United States,
all of whom have ships at Taku and guards here. The telegram
was proposed by the French Minister and carried unanimously.
It is difficult to say whether the situation is as grave as
the latter supposes, but the apathy of the Chinese Government
makes it very serious."
"June 5.
I went this afternoon to the Yamên to inquire of the Ministers
personally what steps the Chinese Government proposed to take
to effect the punishment of Mr. Robinson's murderers and the
release of Mr. Norman. I was informed by the Ministers that
the Viceroy was the responsible person, that they had
telegraphed to him to send troops to the spot, and that that
was all they were able to do in the matter. They did not
express regret or show the least anxiety to effect the relief
of the imprisoned man, and they displayed the greatest
indifference during the interview. I informed them that the
Chinese Government would be held responsible by Her Majesty's
Government for the criminal apathy which had brought about
this disgraceful state of affairs. I then demanded an
interview with Prince Ching, which is fixed for to-morrow, as
I found it useless to discuss the matter with the Yamên. This
afternoon I had an interview with the Prince and Ministers of
the Yamên. They expressed much regret at the murder of Messrs.
Robinson and Norman, and their tone was fully satisfactory in
this respect. … No attempt was made by the Prince to defend
the Chinese Government, nor to deny what I had said. He could
say nothing to reassure me as to the safety of the city, and
admitted that the Government was reluctant to deal harshly
with the movement, which, owing to its anti-foreign character,
was popular. He stated that they were bringing 6,000 soldiers
from near Tien-tsin for the protection of the railway, but it
was evident that he doubted whether they would be allowed to
fire on the Boxers except in the defence of Government
property, or if authorized whether they would obey. He gave me
to understand, without saying so directly, that he has
entirely failed to induce the Court to accept his own views as
to the danger of inaction. It was clear, in fact, that the Yamên
wished me to understand that the situation was most serious,
and that, owing to the influence of ignorant advisers with the
Empress-Dowager, they were powerless to remedy it."
"June 6.
Since the interview with the Yamên reported in my preceding
telegram I have seen several of my colleagues. I find they all
agree that, owing to the now evident sympathy of the
Empress-Dowager and the more conservative of her advisers with
the anti-foreign movement, the situation is rapidly growing
more serious. Should there be no change in the attitude of the
Empress, a rising in the city, ending in anarchy, which may
produce rebellion in the provinces, will be the result,
'failing an armed occupation of Peking by one or more of the
Powers.' Our ordinary means of pressure on the Chinese
Government fail, as the Yamên is, by general consent, and
their own admission, powerless to persuade the Court to take
serious measures of repression. Direct representations to the
Emperor and Dowager-Empress from the Corps Diplomatique at a
special audience seems to be the only remaining chance of
impressing the Court."
"June 7.
There is a long Decree in the 'Gazette' which ascribes the
recent trouble to the favour shown to converts in law suits
and the admission to their ranks of bad characters. It states
that the Boxers, who are the objects of the Throne's sympathy
equally with the converts, have made use of the anti-Christian
feeling aroused by these causes, and that bad characters among
them have destroyed chapels and railways which are the
property of the State. Unless the ringleaders among such bad
characters are now surrendered by the Boxers they will be
dealt with as disloyal subjects, and will be exterminated.
Authorization will be given to the Generals to effect arrests,
exercising discrimination between leaders and their followers.
It is probable that the above Decree represents a compromise
between the conflicting opinions which exist at Court. The
general tone is most unsatisfactory, though the effect may be
good if severe measures are actually taken. The general
lenient tone, the absence of reference to the murder of
missionaries, and the justification of the proceedings of the
Boxers by the misconduct of Christian converts are all
dangerous factors in the case."
"June 8.
A very bad effect has been produced by the Decree reported in
my immediately preceding telegram. There is no prohibition of
the Boxers drilling, which they now openly do in the houses of
the Manchu nobility and in the temples. This Legation is full
of British refugees, mostly women and children, and the London
and Church of England Missions have been abandoned. I trust
that the instructions requested in my telegrams of the 4th and
5th instant have been sent to the Admiral. I have received the
following telegram, dated noon to-day, from Her Majesty's Consul
at Tien-tsin:
{112}
'By now the Boxers must be near Yang-tsun. Last night the
bridge, which is outside that station, was seen to be on fire.
General Nieh's forces are being withdrawn to Lutai, and 1,500
of them have already passed through by railway. There are now
at Yang-tsun an engine and trucks ready to take 2,000 more
men.' Lutai lies on the other side of Tien-tsin, and at some
distance. Should this information be correct, it means that an
attempt to protect Peking has been abandoned by the only force
on which the Yamên profess to place any reliance. The 6,000
men mentioned in my telegram
of the 5th instant were commanded by General Nieh."
"Tong-ku, June 10.
Vice-Admiral Sir E. Seymour to Admiralty.
Following telegram received from Minister at Peking:
'Situation extremely grave. Unless arrangements are made for
immediate advance to Peking it will be too late.'
"In consequence of above, I am landing at once with all
available men, and have asked foreign officers' co-operation."
Great Britain, Papers by Command:
China, Number 3, 1900, pages 26-45.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (June 10-26).
Bombardment and capture of Taku forts by the allied fleets.
Failure of first relief expedition started for Peking.
The following is from an official report by Rear-Admiral
Bruce of the British Navy, dated at Taku June 17, 1900:
"On my arrival here on the 11th inst. I found a large fleet,
consisting of Russian, German, French, Austrian, Italian,
Japanese, and British ships. In consequence of an urgent
telegram from Her Majesty's Minister at Peking, Vice-Admiral
Sir Edward H. Seymour, K. C. B., Commander-in-Chief, had
started at 3 o'clock the previous morning (10th June), taking
with him a force of 1,375 of all ranks, being reinforced by
men from the allied ships as they arrived, until he commanded
not less than 2,000 men. At a distance of some 20 to 30 miles
from Tientsin—but it is very difficult to locate the place, as
no authentic record has come in—he found the railway destroyed
and sleepers burned, &c., and every impediment made by
supposed Boxers to his advance. Then his difficulties began,
and it is supposed that the Boxers, probably assisted by
Chinese troops, closed in on his rear, destroyed
railway-lines, bridges, &c., and nothing since the 13th inst.
has passed from Commander-in-Chief and his relief force and
Tientsin, nor vice versa up to this date. …
"During the night of the 14th inst. news was received that all
railway-carriages and other rolling stock had been ordered to
be sent up the line for the purpose of bringing down a Chinese
army to Tong-ku. On receipt of this serious information a
council of Admirals was summoned by Vice-Admiral Hiltebrandt,
Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Squadron, and the German,
French, United States Admirals, myself, and the Senior
Officers of Italy, Austria, and Japan attended; and it was
decided to send immediate orders to the captains of the allied
vessels in the Peiho River (three Russian, two German, one
United States, one Japanese, one British—'Algerine') to
prevent any railway plant being taken away from Tong-ku, or
the Chinese army reaching that place, which would cut off our
communication with Tientsin; and in the event of either being
attempted they were to use force to prevent it, and to destroy
the Taku Forts. By the evening, and during the night of 15th
inst., information arrived that the mouth of the Peiho River
was being protected by electric mines. On receipt of this,
another council composed of the same naval officers was held
in the forenoon of 16th June on board the 'Rossia,' and in
consequence of the gravity of the situation, and information
having also arrived that the forts were being provisioned and
reinforced, immediate notice was sent to the Viceroy of Chili
at Tientsin and the commandant of the forts that, in
consequence of the danger to our forces up the river, at
Tientsin, and on the march to Peking by the action of the
Chinese authorities, we proposed to temporarily occupy the
Taku Forts, with or without their good will, at 2 a.m. on the
17th inst." Early on Sunday, 17th June, "the Taku Forts opened
fire on the allied ships in the Peiho River, which continued
almost without intermission until 6.30 a.m., when all firing
had practically ceased and the Taku Forts were stormed and in
the hands of the Allied Powers, allowing of free communication
with Tientsin by water, and rail when the latter is repaired."
The American Admiral took no part in this attack on the forts
at Taku, "on the ground that we were not at war with China and
that a hostile demonstration might consolidate the
anti-foreign elements and strengthen the Boxers to oppose the
relieving column."
From the point to which the allied expedition led by Admiral
Seymour fought its way, and at which it was stopped by the
increasing numbers that opposed it, it fell back to a position
near Hsiku, on the right bank of the Peiho. There the allies
drove the Chinese forces from an imperial armory and took
possession of the buildings, which gave them a strong
defensive position, with a large store of rice for food, and
enabled them to hold their ground until help came to them from
Tientsin, on the 25th. They were encumbered with no less than 230
wounded men, which made it impossible for them, in the
circumstances, to fight their way back without aid; though the
distance was so short that the return march was accomplished, on
the 26th, between 3 o'clock and 9 of the same morning. In his
report made the following day Admiral Seymour says: "The
number of enemy engaged against us in the march from Yungtsin
to the Armoury near Hsiku cannot be even estimated; the
country alongside the river banks is quite flat, and consisted
of a succession of villages of mud huts, those on the
out-skirts having enclosures made of dried reeds; outside,
high reeds were generally growing in patches near the village,
and although trees are very scarce away from the River,
alongside it they are very numerous; these with the graves,
embankments for irrigation and against flood, afforded cover
to the enemy from which they seldom exposed themselves,
withdrawing on our near approach. Had their fire not been
generally high it would have been much more destructive than
it was. The number of the enemy certainly increased gradually
until the Armoury near Hsiku was reached, when General Nieh's
troops and the Boxers both joined in the attack. In the early
part of the expedition the Boxers were mostly armed with
swords and spears, and not with many firearms; at the
engagement at Langfang on 18th, and afterwards, they were
armed with rifles of late pattern; this together with banners
captured and uniform worn, shows that they had either the
active or covert support of the Chinese Government, or some of
its high officials."
{113}
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (June 11-29).
Chinese Imperial Edicts.
"On June 11 Mr. Sugiyama, the Chancellor of the Japanese
Legation, was brutally murdered [in Peking] by the soldiers of
General Tung-fuh-siang. Two days later the following Imperial
edict was published in the 'Peking Gazette': 'On June 11 the
Japanese Chancellor was murdered by brigands outside the
Yung-ting Mên. On hearing this intelligence we were
exceedingly grieved. Officials of neighbouring nations
stationed in Peking ought to be protected in every possible
way, and now, especially, extra diligence ought to be
displayed to prevent such occurrences when banditti are as
numerous as bees. We have repeatedly commanded the local
officials to ensure the most efficient protection in their
districts, yet, in spite of our frequent orders, we have this
case of the murder of the Japanese Chancellor occurring in the
very capital of the Empire. The civil and military officials
have assuredly been remiss in not clearing their districts of
bad characters, or immediately arresting such persons, and we
hereby order every Yamên concerned to set a limit of time for
the arrest of the criminals, that they may suffer the extreme
penalty. Should the time expire without any arrest being
effected, the severest punishment will assuredly be inflicted
upon the responsible persons.' It is needless to add that the
'criminals' were never arrested and the 'responsible persons'
were never punished. In the same 'Gazette' another decree
condemns the 'Boxer brigands' who have recently been causing
trouble in the neighbourhood of the capital, who have been
committing arson and murder and revenging themselves upon the
native converts. Soldiers and 'Boxers,' it says, have leagued
together to commit acts of murder and arson, and have vied
with one another in disgraceful acts of looting and robbery.
The 'Boxers' are to disband, desperadoes are to be arrested,
ringleaders are to be seized, but the followers may be allowed
to disband.
"Similar decrees on the 14th and 15th show alarm at the result
of the 'Boxer' agitation and lawlessness within the city.
Nothing so strong against the 'Boxers' had previously been
published. Fires were approaching too Closely to the Imperial
Palace. No steps had been taken by the Court to prevent the
massacre and burning of Christians and their property in the
country, but on the 16th the great Chien Mên gate fronting the
Palace had been burned and the smoke had swept over the
Imperial Courts. Yet even in these decrees leniency is shown
to the 'Boxers,' for they are not to be fired upon, but are,
if guilty, to be arrested and executed. On June 17th the edict
expresses the belief of the Throne that:—'All foreign
Ministers ought to be really protected. If the Ministers and
their families wish to go for a time to Tien-tsin, they must
be protected on the way. But the railroad is not now in
working order. If they go by the cart road it will be
difficult, and there is fear that perfect protection cannot be
offered. They would do better, therefore, to abide here in
peace as heretofore and wait till the railroad is repaired,
and then act as circumstances render expedient.'
"Two days later an ultimatum was sent to the Ministers
ordering them to leave Peking within 24 hours. On the 20th
Baron von Ketteler was murdered and on June 21 China
published, having entered upon war against the whole world,
her Apologia:—
'Ever since the foundation of the Dynasty, foreigners coming
to China have been kindly treated. In the reigns Tao Kuang,
and Hsien Feng, they were allowed to trade and they also asked
leave to propagate their religion, a request that the Throne
reluctantly granted. At first they were amenable to Chinese
control, but for the past 30 years they have taken advantage
of China's forbearance to encroach on China's territory and
trample on Chinese people and to demand China's wealth. Every
concession made by China increased their reliance on violence.
They oppressed peaceful citizens and insulted the gods and
holy men, exciting the most burning indignation among the
people. Hence the burning of chapels and slaughter of converts
by the patriotic braves. The Throne was anxious to avoid war, and
issued edicts enjoining the protection of Legations and pity
to the converts. The decrees declaring 'Boxers' and converts
to be equally the children of the State were issued in the
hope of removing the old feud between people and converts.
Extreme kindness was shown to the strangers from afar. But
these people knew no gratitude and increased their pressure. A
despatch was yesterday sent by Du Chaylard, calling us to
deliver up the Ta-ku Forts into their keeping, otherwise they
would be taken by force. These threats showed their aggressive
intention. In all matters relating to international
intercourse, we have never been wanting in courtesies to them,
but they, while styling themselves civilized States, have acted
without regard for right, relying solely on their military
force. We have now reigned nearly 30 years, and have treated
the people as our children, the people honouring us as their
deity, and in the midst of our reign we have been the
recipients of the gracious favour of the Empress-Dowager.
Furthermore, our ancestors have come to our aid, and the gods
have answered our call, and never has there been so universal
a manifestation of loyalty and patriotism. With tears have we
announced war in the ancestral shrines. Better to enter on the
struggle and do our utmost than seek some measures of
self-preservation involving eternal disgrace. All our
officials, high and low, are of one mind, and there have
assembled without official summons several hundred thousand
patriotic soldiers (I Ping "Boxers"). Even children carrying
spears in the service of the State. Those others relying on
crafty schemes, our trust is in Heaven's justice. They depend
on violence, we on humanity. Not to speak of the righteousness
of our cause, our provinces number more than 20, our people over
400,000,000, and it will not be difficult to vindicate the
dignity of our country.' The decree concludes by promising
heavy rewards to those who distinguish themselves in battle or
subscribe funds, and threatening punishment to those who show
cowardice or act treacherously.
"In the same 'Gazette' Yü Lu reports acts of war on the part
of the foreigners, when, after some days' fighting, he was
victorious. 'Perusal of his memorial has given us great
comfort,' says the Throne. Warm praise is given to the
'Boxers,' 'who have done great service without any assistance
either of men or money from the State. Marked favour will be
shown them later on, and they must continue to show their
devotion.' On the 24th presents of rice are sent to the
'Boxers.' Leaders of the 'Boxers' are appointed by the
Throne—namely, Prince Chuang, and the Assistant Grand
Secretary Kang-Yi to be in chief command, and Ying Nien and
Duke Lan (the brother of Prince Tuan, the father of the Crown
Prince) to act in cooperation with them, while another high
post is given to Wen Jui."
London Times, October 16, 1900
(Peking Correspondence).
{114}
Very different in tone to the imperial decree of June 21,
quoted above, was one issued a week later (June 29), and sent
to the diplomatic representatives of the Chinese government in
Europe and America. As published by Minister Wu Ting-fang, at
Washington, on the 11th of July, it was in the following
words:
"The circumstances which led to the commencement of fighting
between Chinese and foreigners were of such a complex,
confusing and unfortunate character as to be entirely
unexpected. Our diplomatic representatives abroad, owing to
their distance from the scene of action, have had no means of
knowing the true state of things, and accordingly cannot lay
the views of the government before the ministers for foreign
affairs of the respective Powers to which they are accredited.
Now we take this opportunity of going fully into the matter
for the information of our representatives aforesaid.
"In the first place there arose in the provinces of Chih Li
and Shantung a kind of rebellious subjects who had been in the
habit of practicing boxing and fencing in their respective
villages, and at the same time clothing their doings with
spiritualistic and strange rites. The local authorities failed
to take due notice of them at the time. Accordingly the
infection spread with astonishing rapidity. Within the space
of a month it seemed to make its appearance everywhere, and
finally even reached the capital itself. Everyone looked upon
the movement as supernatural and strange, and many joined it.
Then there were lawless and treacherous persons who sounded
the cry of 'Down with Christianity!' About the middle of the
fifth moon these persons began to create disturbances without
warning. Churches were burned and converts were killed. The
whole city was in a ferment. A situation was created which
could not be brought under control. At first the foreign
Powers requested that foreign troops be allowed to enter the
capital for the protection of the legations. The imperial
government, having in view the comparative urgency of the
occasion, granted the request as an extraordinary mark of
courtesy beyond the requirements of international intercourse.
Over five hundred foreign troops were sent to Pekin. This
shows clearly how much care China exercised in the maintenance
of friendly relations with other countries.
"The legations at the capital never had much to do with the
people. But from the time foreign troops entered the city the
guards did not devote themselves exclusively to the protection
of their respective legations. They sometimes fired their guns
on top of the city walls and sometimes patrolled the streets
everywhere. There were repeated reports of persons being hit
by stray bullets. Moreover they strolled about the city
without restraint, and even attempted to enter the Tung Hua
gate (the eastern gate of the palace grounds). They only
desisted when admittance was positively forbidden. On this
account, both the soldiers and the people were provoked to
resentment, and voiced their indignation with one accord.
Lawless persons then took advantage of the situation to do

mischief, and became bolder than ever in burning and killing
Christian converts. The Powers thereupon attempted to
reinforce the foreign troops in Pekin, but the reinforcements
encountered resistance and defeat at the hands of the
insurgents on the way and have not yet been able to proceed.
The insurgents of the two provinces of Chih Li and Shantung
had by this time effected a complete union and could not be
separated. The imperial government was by no means reluctant
to issue orders for the entire suppression of this insurgent
element. But as the trouble was so near at hand there was a
great fear that due protection might not be assured to the
legations if the anarchists should be driven to extremities,
thus bringing on a national calamity. There also was a fear
that uprisings might occur in the provinces of Chih Li and
Shantung at the same time, with the result that both foreign
missionaries and Chinese converts in the two provinces might
fall victims to popular fury. It was therefore absolutely
necessary to consider the matter from every point of view.
"As a measure of precaution it was finally decided to request
the foreign ministers to retire temporarily to Tien-Tsin for
safety. It was while the discussion of this proposition was in
progress that the German minister, Baron Von Ketteler, was
assassinated by a riotous mob one morning while on his way to
the Tsung-Li-Yamen. On the previous day the German minister
had written a letter appointing a time for calling at the
Tsung-Li-Yamen. But the Yamen, fearing he might be molested on
the way, did not consent to the appointment as suggested by
the minister. Since this occurrence the anarchists assumed a
more bold and threatening attitude, and consequently 'it was
not deemed wise to carry out the project of sending the
diplomatic corps to Tien-Tsin under an escort. However, orders
were issued to the troops detailed for the protection of the
legations to keep stricter watch and take greater precaution
against any emergency.
"To our surprise, on the 20th of the fifth moon (June 16th),
foreign (naval?) officers at Taku called upon Lo Jung Kwang,
the general commanding, and demanded his surrender of the
forts, notifying him that failing to receive compliance they
would at two o'clock the next day take steps to seize the
forts by force. Lo Jung Kwang, being bound by the duties of
his office to hold the forts, how could he yield to the
demand? On the day named they actually first fired upon the
forts, which responded, and kept up fighting all day and then
surrendered. Thus the conflict of forces began, but certainly
the initiative did not come from our side. Even supposing that
China were not conscious of her true condition, how could she
take such a step as to engage in war with all the Powers
simultaneously? and how could she, relying upon the support of
anarchistic populace, go into war with the Powers?
{115}
"Our position in this matter ought to be clearly understood by
all the Powers. The above is a statement of the wrongs we have
suffered, and how China was driven to the unfortunate position
from which she could not escape. Our several ministers will make
known accurately and in detail the contents of this decree and
the policy of China to the ministers of foreign affairs in
their respective countries, and assure them that military
authorities are still strictly enjoined to afford protection
to the legations as hitherto to the utmost of their power. As
for the anarchists they will be as severely dealt with as
circumstances permit. The several ministers will continue in
the discharge of the duties of their office as hitherto
without hesitation or doubt. This telegraphic decree to be
transmitted for their information. Respect this."
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (June-July).
Failure of attempt to entrust Japan with the rescuing of
the Legations at Peking.
A British Blue Book, issued on the 18th of February, 1901,
contains correspondence that took place between the Powers
late in June and early in July, looking to an arrangement for
the immediate sending of a large force from Japan to the
rescue of the beleaguered Legations in Peking. As summarized
in the "London Times," this correspondence showed that "the
necessity of asking the help of the only Power that was near
enough to intervene promptly was strongly pressed by Lord
Salisbury on the other Powers in the beginning of July. M.
Delcassé fell in entirely with the scheme and insisted on the
need of putting aside all jealousies or afterthoughts which
might hinder unity of action on the spot. The Russian
Government, however, seems to have misunderstood Lord
Salisbury's meaning and to have conceived him to wish Japan to
settle the Chinese crisis by herself and with a view to her
own interests, a misunderstanding which it required a whole
series of despatches to clear up completely. The Japanese
Government itself showed the most commendable readiness to
act, and on July 11 Mr. Whitehead telegraphed from Tokio, in
reply to an appeal from Lord Salisbury to the Japanese
Government, that 'in consequence of the friendly assurances'
given by Lord Salisbury the Japanese Government had decided to
send one or two more divisions to China. To this Lord
Salisbury replied on July 13 that her Majesty's Government
were willing to assist the Japanese Government up to
£1,000,000 if they at once mobilized and despatched an
additional 20,000 men to Peking. But the latter, in the
absence of any definite scheme of operations on the part of
the Powers, showed an unwillingness to accede to this
proposal, which thus fell through."
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (June-August).
The siege of the Foreign Legations at Peking.
The story of two dreadful months as told by one of the besieged.
The most detailed and altogether best account of the dreadful
experience which the foreigners besieged in the quarter of the
Legations at Peking underwent, from the first week in June
until the 14th day of August, when a rescuing army forced its
way into the city, is that furnished to the "London Times" by
its Peking correspondent, who was one of the besieged. His
narrative, forwarded immediately upon the opening of
communication with the outer world, was published in "The
Times" of October 13 and 15. With some abridgment it is given
here under permission from the Manager of "The Times."
"Missionaries in Peking began collecting together into the
larger mission compounds for common protection. Many ladies
went for safety into the British Legation. Railway
communication was now severed and the telegraph communication
threatened. Our isolation was being completed. In the country
disaffection spread to the districts to the east of Peking,
and the position of the American missionaries at Tung-chau
became one of great danger. It was decided to abandon their
great missionary establishments, and with the native
Christians that could follow them to come into Peking. They
asked for an escort, but Mr. Conger felt himself compelled to
decline one, on the ground that he did not venture to send the
small body of men that he could spare from the Legation
through so dangerous a district. Protection must be looked for
from the Chinese Government. What soldiers could not be sent
to do one fearless American missionary succeeded in doing.
Late in the evening of June 7 the Rev. W. S. Ament, of the
Board Mission, left Peking in a cart, and with 20 other carts
journeyed 14 miles to Tung-chau through a country palpitating
with excitement. It was an act of courage and devotion that
seemed to us who knew the country a deed of heroism. His
arrival was most opportune. He brought safely back with him to
Peking the whole missionary body then in Tung-chau—five men,
including the author of 'Chinese Characteristics,' 11 ladies,
and seven children, together with their Christian servants. …
"More troops were sent for to reinforce the Legation guards in
Peking, but they were sent for too late. Already many miles of
the railway had been torn up, and it was hopeless to expect an
early restoration of communication. … The Empress-Dowager and
the Emperor, who had been for some time past at the Summer
Palace, returned to Peking, entering the city at the same hour
by different gates. Large escorts of cavalry and infantry
accompanied them; Manchu bannermen in large numbers were
posted on the walls. It was noticeable that the body-guard of
the Empress was provided by the renegade Mahomedan rabble of
Tung-fuh-siang, who had long been a menace to foreigners in
the province. The return of the Court was expected to have a
tranquillizing effect upon the populace. But this was not the
case. Students were attacked when riding in the country; our
race-course, grand stand, and stables were burnt by 'Boxers'
armed with knives; Europeans could not venture along the
streets outside the foreign quarter without being insulted.
People were saying everywhere, 'The foreigners are to be
ended.' Streets were being patrolled by cavalry, but there was
every fear that the patrols were in league with the 'Boxers,'
who were marching through the streets bearing banners
inscribed 'Fu Ching Mieh Yang.' 'Protect Pure (the Dynasty),
exterminate the foreigner.'
"The London Mission and the Society for the Propagation of the
Gospel handed over their buildings to the Chinese authorities,
holding them responsible for their safe keeping, and all
missionaries and their families went to the British Legation.
The American Board Mission likewise delivered over their
valuable property to the Government and fell back upon the
great Methodist Episcopalian Mission near the Hata Mên Gate,
beyond the foreign quarter. Tung-chau missionaries and their
families and several hundred Christian converts were already
gathered there. Steps were at once taken to fortify the
compound. Under the direction of Mr. F. D. Gamewell deep
trenches were cut, earthworks thrown up, and barbed-wire
entanglements laid down.
{116}
Watch was kept and sentries posted, provisions laid in, and
all preparations made to withstand a siege. Twenty marines and
a captain from the American Legation were sent as a guard, and
some spare rifles were obtained from the British Legation.
Converts were armed with pikes and knives, and a determined
effort was to be made in case of attack. The mission was,
however, absolutely at the mercy of any force holding the high
city wall and Hata Mên Gate. Without the power of reply the
small garrison could have been shot down from the wall, which
is little more than a stone's throw from the nearest point of
the compound. Shell-fire such as was subsequently used against
the Legations would have smashed the buildings into fragments.
All the Maritime Customs staff and their families living in
the East City, a mile or more beyond the foreign quarter, the
professors and teachers of the Tung-wen-Kuan, Dr. Dudgeon, Mr.
Pethick, the secretary of Li Hung Chang, and others, were
forced to abandon their homes and come in for protection.
Preparations for defence went on at all the Legations, for it
was now inevitable that we should have to fight. A 'conseil de
guerre' was held, attended by all the military officers, and a
plan of defence determined. The palace and grounds of Prince
Su, opposite the British Legation, were to be held for the
Christian refugees, and an area was to be defended some half a
mile long by half a mile broad, bounded by the Austrian and
Italian Legations to the east, the street running over the
north bridge of the canal to the north, the British, Russian,
and American Legations to the west, while the southern
boundary was to be the street running at the foot of the great
City Wall from the American Legation on the west, past the
German Legation on the east, to the lane running from the Wall
north past the French Legation, the buildings of the
Inspectorate General of Customs, and the Austrian Legation.
All women and children and non-combatants were to come into
the British Legation. Each position was to be held as long as
possible, and the final stand was to be made at the British
Legation. No question of surrender could ever be entertained,
for surrender meant massacre.
"On the 10th it was announced that reinforcements were on the
way and that they were coming with the approval of the Viceroy
and of the Chinese Government, an approval more readily
accorded since it was known to the Viceroy that the troops
could not come by train. More than one of the Ministers was so
confident that they were coming that carts were sent to await
their arrival at Machia-pu, the terminal railway station at
Peking. … Then Government gave its first public official
recognition of the 'Boxers' by announcing that the notorious
chief of the 'Boxers,' Prince Tuan, had been appointed
President of the Tsung-li-Yamên. Prince Ching was superseded
but was not removed from the Yamên. One harmless old Chinese,
Liao Shou-hêng was sent into retirement while four rabidly
anti-foreign Manchus entirely ignorant of all foreign affairs
were appointed members. The last hope of any wisdom springing
from the Yamên disappeared with the supersession of Prince
Ching by the anti-foreign barbarian who, more than any other
man in China, was responsible for the outbreak. The following
morning most of the Europeans rode to Machia-pu to await the
arrival of the foreign troops. They waited, but no troops
came, and then rode back past the jeering faces of hordes of
Chinese soldiers. Our security was not increased by this
fiasco.
"Soldiers sent to guard the summer residences of the British
Legation in the Western Hills left their posts during the
night. The buildings had been officially placed under the
protection of the Imperial Government. In the pre-arranged
absence of the soldiers the buildings were attacked by
'Boxers' and entirely burnt to the ground; the soldiers
witnessed if they did not assist in the burning. But worse
events were to happen that day. In the afternoon news passed
through Peking that Mr. Sugiyama, the Chancellor of the
Japanese Legation, had been murdered by soldiers. He had been
sent by his Minister a second time to Machia-pu to await the
arrival of the troops. Passing unarmed and alone in his cart
beyond the Yung-ting Mên, the outer gate on the way to the
station, he was seized by the soldiers of Tung-fuh-siang,
dragged from his cart, and done to death in the presence of a
crowd of Chinese who witnessed his struggles with unpitying
interest and unconcealed satisfaction. …
"On the 12th a deputation, consisting of Chi Hsiu, a member of
the Grand Council and newly appointed to the Yamên, Hsu
Ching-chêng, the ex-Minister, the 'Boxer' leader Chao
Shu-chiao, and another Manchu, called upon the British
Minister. Chi Hsiu made a long address, his theme being the
enduring nature of the friendship between China and England
and the duty which China has always recognized as a sacred
obligation to protect the members of the Legations who were
her guests and the strangers within her walls. Chi Hsiu
assured the Minister that the movement was at an end, that all
was now tranquil, and that there was no more reason to fear.
Yet the very next day Baron von Ketteler himself captured a
'Boxer' from amid the crowd in Legation-street. He carried the
consecrated headpiece, and was armed with a sword. Round his
waist he had a belt containing a talisman of yellow paper
smeared with mystic red symbols by which he was rendered
'impermeable to foreign bullets.' And in the afternoon the
'Boxers' came down in force from the north of the city and the
burning of foreign buildings began. The cry arose that the
'Boxers' were coming. Every man ran to his post, a cordon was
established round the foreign quarter and no one was allowed
to pass. Guards were on watch at all the Legations, but their
numbers, spread over so many posts, were very inadequate, and
they were still further reduced by the guards detached for
duty at the Pei-tang Cathedral, where, three miles distant
within the Imperial City, were gathered in the one great
compound Mgr. Favier, the Bishop, his coadjutor, Mgr. Jarlin,
the missionaries and lay brothers, the sisters of charity, and
a vast concourse of Christian refugees, estimated at 2,000,
who had fled from the massacre in the country. A guard of five
Austrians was sent to the Belgian Legation. The Austrians with
their machine gun commanded the Customs-street leading to the
north: the Italians with a one pounder commanded the
Legation-street to the east. The British with their
Nordenfeldt swept the Canal-street to the north and the
North-bridge, the Russians were on the South-bridge, while the
Americans with their Colt machine gun had command of
Legation-street to the west as far as the court facing the
Imperial Palace. The Russians, having no gun, dropped their
heavy ammunition down the well.
{117}
"As darkness came on the most awful cries were heard in the
city, most demoniacal and unforgettable, the cries of the
'Boxers,' 'Sha kweitze'—'Kill the devils'—mingled with the
shrieks of the victims and the groans of the dying. For
'Boxers' were sweeping through the city massacring the native
Christians and burning them alive in their homes. The first
building to be burned was the chapel of the Methodist Mission
in the Hata Mên-street. Then flames sprang up in many quarters
of the city. Amid the most deafening uproar the Tung-tang, or
East Cathedral, shot flames into the sky. The old Greek Church
in the north-east of the city, the London Mission buildings,
the handsome pile of the American Board Mission, and the
entire foreign buildings belonging to the Imperial Maritime
Customs in the East City burned throughout the night. It was
an appalling sight. Late in the night a large party of
'Boxers' bearing torches were seen moving down Customs-street
towards the Austrian Legation. The machine gun mounted was in
waiting for them. They were allowed to come within 150 yards
in the open street near the great cross road, and then the
order was given and the gun rained forth death. It was a
grateful sound. The torches disappeared. They had come within
a restricted space, and none, we thought, could have escaped.
Eagerly we went forth to count the dead, expecting to find
them in heaps. But there was not one dead. The gun had been
aimed very wide of the mark. Two hundred yards north of the
'Boxers' there is a place where 30 ft. above the level road
the telegraph wires crossed to the station. Next morning they
were found to have been cut by the Austrian fire. The only
persons who suffered injury were possible wayfarers two miles
up the street. There can be little doubt that this fiasco
helped to confirm the Boxers in a belief in their
invulnerability.
"The Tung-tang, or East Cathedral, having been burned, it, was
clear that the Nan-tang, the South Cathedral, was in danger.
Père Garrigues, the aged priest of the Tung-tang, had refused
to leave his post and had perished in the flames. But the
fathers and sisters at the Nan-tang might yet be saved. Their
lives were in great peril; it was necessary to act quickly. A
party of French gentlemen, led by M. Fliche of the French
Legation and accompanied by M. and Mme. Chamot, rode out at
night, and early the following morning safely escorted to the
hotel every member of the mission—Père d' Addosio and his two
colleagues, a French brother, five sisters of charity, and
some twenty native nuns of the Order of Josephine. They were
rescued just in time. Scarcely had they reached a place of
safety when the splendid edifice they had forsaken was in
flames. … It continued burning all day, the region round it,
the chief Catholic centre of Peking, being also burnt. Acres
of houses were destroyed and the Christians in thousands put
to the sword. …
"On the 15th rescue parties were sent out by the American and
Russian Legations in the morning, and by the British and
German Legations in the afternoon, to save if possible native
Christians from the burning ruins around the Nan-tang. Awful
sights were witnessed. Women and children hacked to pieces,
men trussed like fowls, with noses and ears cut off and eyes
gouged out. Chinese Christians accompanied the reliefs and ran
about in the labyrinth of network of streets that formed the
quarter, calling upon the Christians to come out from their
hiding-places. All through the night the massacre had
continued, and 'Boxers' were even now shot redhanded at their
bloody work. But their work was still incomplete, and many
hundreds of women and children had escaped. They came out of
their hiding-places crossing themselves and pleading for
mercy. It was a most pitiful sight. Thousands of soldiers on
the wall witnessed the rescue; they had with callous hearts
witnessed the massacre without ever raising a hand to save.
During the awful nights of the 13th and 14th Duke Lan, the
brother of Prince Tuan, and Chao Shu-Chiao, of the
Tsung-li-Yamên, had followed round in their carts to gloat
over the spectacle. Yet the Chinese Government were afterwards
to describe this massacre done under official supervision
under the very walls of the Imperial Palace as the handiwork
of local banditti. More than 1,200 of the poor refugees were
escorted by the 'foreign devils' to a place of safety. Many
were wounded, many were burnt beyond recognition. All had
suffered the loss of every thing they possessed in the world.
They were given quarters in the palace grounds of Prince Su,
opposite the British Legation. Among them was the aged mother
and the nephew of Ching Chang, recently Minister to France,
and now Chinese Commissioner to the Paris Exhibition. The
nephew was cruelly burnt; nearly every other member of the
family was murdered. A Catholic family of much distinction—a
family Catholic for seven generations—was thus almost
exterminated and its property laid in ashes. It was announced
this day that only 'Boxers' might enter the Imperial City. The
Government was rushing headlong to its ruin.
"On June 16 a party of twenty British, ten Americans, and five
Japanese, with some Volunteers, and accompanied by
Lieutenant-Colonel Shiba, the Japanese military attache,
patrolled the East City, visiting the ruins in the hopes that
some Christians might yet be in hiding. But to our calls
everywhere no reply was given. Refugees, however, from the
East City had managed to escape miraculously and find their
way, many of them wounded, to the foreign Legations, seeking
that protection and humanity that was denied them by their own
people. As the patrol was passing a Taoist temple on the way,
a noted 'Boxer' meeting place, cries were heard within. The
temple was forcibly entered. Native Christians were found
there, their hands tied behind their backs, awaiting execution
and torture. Some had already been put to death, and their
bodies were still warm and bleeding. All were shockingly
mutilated. Their fiendish murderers were at their incantations
burning incense before their gods, offering Christians in
sacrifice to their angered deities. They shut themselves
within the temple, but their defence availed them nothing.
Everyone of them, 46 in all, was in 'Boxer' uniform armed with
sword and lance. Retribution was swift; every man was shot to
death without mercy. In the afternoon a fire broke out in the
foreign drug store in the native city outside the great gate
of the Chien Mên.
{118}
It was the work of 'Boxers,' done while the soldiers were
looking on. In order to burn the foreign drug store and do the
foreigners a few pounds worth of damage, they did not hesitate
to jeopardize by fire property worth millions of pounds, and that
is what happened. Adjoining buildings took fire, the flames
spread to the booksellers' street, and the most interesting
street in China, filled with priceless scrolls, manuscripts,
and printed books, was gutted from end to end. Fire licked up
house after house, and soon the conflagration was the most
disastrous ever known in China, reducing to ashes the richest
part of Peking, the pearl and jewel shops, the silk and fur,
the satin and embroidery stores, the great curio shops, the
gold and silver shops, the melting houses, and nearly all that
was of the highest value in the metropolis. Irreparable was
the damage done. …
"During the night the Americans, fearing an attack from the
street at the back of their Legation, kept the street clear
till daybreak. During one of the volleys four of the
Tsung-li-Yamên Ministers called upon the American Minister.
They were blandly assuring him that all was now quiet, that
there was no need for further alarm, that great was the
tenderness of the Throne for men from afar, when a rattle of
musketry was heard which rendered them speechless with fear.
They hurriedly went away. Assurances of the Throne's
tenderness did not deceive us. Our barricades were everywhere
strengthened and defences systematically planned, for rumour
was quick to reach us that the relief forces had been driven
back to Tien-tsin, and this did not add to the security of our
position. Inside the Imperial City wall, within one hundred
yards of the British picket on the north bridge a large
Chinese camp was formed. Peking was in a state of panic, all
the streets near the foreign quarters were empty, and people
were fleeing from the city. There was a run on the banks, and
the Ssu-ta-hêng, the four great banks, the leading banks of
Peking, closed their doors, and paper money was not in
circulation. The Palace of Prince Su was occupied by the
refugees, and its defence, the most important of all and a
vital one to the British Legation, was entrusted to Colonel
Shiba and Japanese marines and volunteers.
"The crisis was approaching. On the morning of June 19 Mr.
Cordes, the Chinese Secretary of the German Legation, was at
the Yamên, when the secretaries told him that the allied
fleets had taken the Ta-ku forts on June 17. This was
remembered when at 4.30 in the afternoon an ultimatum was sent
to the foreign Ministers. It was a bolt from the blue. They
were to leave Peking within 24 hours. 'A despatch,' they
wrote, 'has arrived from the Viceroy Yu Lu, forwarding a note
which he has received from the doyen of the Consular body in
Tien-tsin, the French Comte du Chaylard, to say that, unless
foreign troops are at once permitted to land at Tien-tsin, the
allied fleets will bombard the Ta-ku forts. As this is
equivalent to a declaration of war, the Tsung-li-Yamên
herewith notify the foreign Ministers that they must leave
Peking within 24 hours, otherwise protection cannot be
guaranteed to them. They will be given safe conduct and
transport.' It was quite in accordance with Chinese custom
that a despatch saying that the seizure of the Ta-ku forts had
been threatened should be sent after the seizure had been
effected. What is distasteful to them to say they avoid
saying. A meeting of the diplomatic body was at once held. It
was decided to accept the ultimatum. They had been given their
passports by the Chinese Government; what other course was
open to them? … Word was passed round that preparation had to
be made to leave Peking the following day. Mr. Conger, the
American Minister, asked for 100 carts; and his Legation spent
most of the night making preparations. No packing was done at
the British Legation, for it was there considered
inconceivable that China should insist upon sending the
Ministers their passports. Only two days before, in the
'Peking Gazette' of June 17, it had been officially announced
that the road to Tien-tsin was unsafe. … When the decision of
the Diplomatic Body became known in Peking the most profound
indignation was everywhere expressed at so unworthy a decision
and the most profound astonishment that such a course of
action should have received the support of M. Pichon, the
French Minister 'Protecteur des Missions Catholiques en
Chine,' and of so humane a man as Mr. Conger, the American
Minister; for to leave Peking meant the immediate abandonment
to massacre of the thousands of native Christians who had
trusted the foreigner and believed in his good faith.
"Early on the morning of the 20th a meeting of the Diplomatic
Body was held at the French Legation. No reply had been
received from the Tsung-li-Yamên to the request for an
audience, and the proposition that all the Ministers should go
to the Yamên found no seconder. Had it been carried out, there
would have occurred one of the most appalling massacres on
record. Two chairs later left for the Yamên. In the first was
the German Minister, Baron van Ketteler, who had this
advantage over the other Ministers, that he spoke Chinese
fluently. In the second was the Chinese Secretary of the
German Legation, Mr. Cordes. News travels quickly in Peking.
Not many minutes later my boy burst into my office—'Any man
speakee have makee kill German Minister!' It was true. The
German Minister had been assassinated by an Imperial officer.
The Secretary had been grievously wounded, but, running for
his life, shot at by a hundred rifles, had escaped as if by a
miracle. A patrol of 15 men under Count Soden, the commander,
went out to recover the body. Fired on by Chinese soldiers
from every side, they were forced to retire. … There was no
more question about leaving for Tien-tsin. Later in the day
the Yamên, evidently indifferent to the gravity of the
position created by the Government, sent an impudent despatch
to the German Legation to the effect that two Germans had been
proceeding in chairs along the Hata Mên-street, and at the
mouth of the street leading to the Tsung-li-Yamên one of them
had fired upon the crowd. The Chinese had retaliated and he
had been killed. They wished to know his name. No reply was
sent, for it was felt to be a mockery. Only too well the Yamên
knew whom they had murdered. Weeks passed before the body was
recovered, and it was not until July 18 that any official
reference was made to the murder. In the course of the morning
a despatch was sent to the Diplomatic Body in reply to the
answer they had sent to the ultimatum of yesterday.
{119}
The country, it said, between Peking and Tien-tsin was overrun
with brigands, and it would not be safe for the Ministers to go
there. They should therefore remain in Peking. It is difficult
to write with calmness of the treachery with which the Chinese
were now acting. Four p. m. was the hour given in the ultimatum
for the Ministers to vacate their Legations, but the ultimatum
had been rescinded, and the Ministers invited to remain in
Peking. Thus it was hoped that they would be lulled into a
false security. Chinese soldiers were secretly stationed under
cover at every vantage point commanding the outposts. At 4 p.
m. precisely to the minute, by preconcerted signal, they
opened fire upon the Austrian and French outposts. A French
marine fell shot dead through the forehead. An Austrian was
wounded. The siege had begun.
"At this time (June 20), at the opening of the siege, the
total strength of the combined Legation guards consisted of 18
officers and 389 men, distributed as follows:
"American.
Three officers, Captain Myers in command, Captain Hall,
Surgeon Lippett, and 53 marines from the Newark.
"Austrian.
Five officers, Captain Thomann, the Commander of the Zenta,
Flag-Lieutenant von Winterhalder, Lieutenant Kollar,
two mid-shipmen, and 30 marines from the Zenta.
"British.
Three officers, Captain B. M. Strouts in command,
Captain Halliday, Captain Wray, and 79 men R. M. L. I.
-30 from H. M. S. Orlando and 49 from Wei-hai-wei.
"French.
Two officers, Captain Darcy and Midshipman Herbert, and
45 marines from the D'Entrecasteaux and Descartes.
"German.
Lieutenant Graf Soden and 51 marines of the
3rd Battalion Kiao-chau.
"Italian.
Lieutenant Paolini and 28 blue-jackets from the Elba.
"Japanese.
Lieutenant Hara and 24 marines from the Atago.
"Russian.
Two officers, Lieutenant Baron von Rahden and Lieutenant
von Dehn, and 79 men—72 marines from the Sissoi Veliki and
Navarin and seven Legation Cossacks.
"Total,
18 officers and 389 men.
"In addition the French sent Lieutenant Henry and 30 men to
guard the Pei-tang Cathedral, and the Italians detached one
officer, Lieutenant Cavalieri, and 11 men for the same humane
mission. To this insignificant force of 18 officers and 389
men of eight nationalities the entire foreign quarter had to
trust for its defence. Fortunately several visitors or
residents had received military training, and they at once
went on the active list and rendered invaluable service. … A
volunteer force numbering altogether 75 men, of whom 31 were
Japanese, was enrolled and armed with all available rifles.
They added greatly to the strength of the garrison, taking
watch and watch like the Regulars, fighting behind the
barricades, and never shrinking from any duty imposed upon
them. There was also an irregular force of 50 gentlemen of
many nationalities, who did garrison guard duty in the British
Legation and were most useful. They were known, from the
gentleman who enrolled them, as 'Thornhill's Roughs,' and they
bore themselves as the legitimate successors on foot of
Roosevelt's Roughriders. Armed with a variety of weapons, from
an elephant rifle to the 'fusil de chasse' with a picture of
the Grand Prix, to all of which carving knives had been lashed
as bayonets, they were known as the 'Carving Knife Brigade.' …
Such were the effective forces. They were provided with four
guns, an Italian one-pounder with 120 rounds, an American Colt
with 25,000 rounds, an Austrian machine gun, and a British
five-barrel Nordenfelt, pattern 1887. Rifle ammunition was
very scanty. The Japanese had only 100 rounds apiece, the
Russians 145, and the Italians 120, while the best provided of
the other guards had only 300 rounds per man, none too many
for a siege the duration of which could not be foreseen.
"Punctually, then, at 4 o'clock Chinese soldiers began firing
upon us whom they had requested to remain in peace at Peking.
And immediately after the Austrian Legation was abandoned. No
sufficient reason has been given for its abandonment, which
was done so precipitately that not an article was saved. It
was left to the mercy of the Chinese, and the guard retired to
the corner of Customs-lane, leading west to the Prince's
Palace. This involved the sacrifice of Sir Robert Hart's and
all the Customs buildings, and hastened the advance of the
Chinese westward. As previously arranged, the American mission
buildings had been abandoned in the morning, for they were
quite untenable. All the missionaries, their wives, and
families crossed over to the British Legation. Converts to the
number of several hundreds joined the other refugees. The
captain and 20 American marines returned to the American
Legation. By an error of judgment on the part of the captain
the mission was finally left in a panic. Almost nothing was
saved, and nearly all the stores accumulated for a siege were
lost. The British Legation was now thronged. Rarely has a more
cosmopolitan gathering been gathered together within the limits
of one compound. All the women and children were there, all
the missionaries, American, British, French, and Russian, all
the Customs staff, the French, Belgian, Russian, American,
Spanish, Japanese, and Italian Ministers, and their families,
the entire unofficial foreign community of Peking, with the
exception of M. Chamot, who remained in his hotel throughout,
though it was in the hottest corner of the besieged area. …
French volunteers bravely stood by their own Legation, and the
Austrian Charge d'Affaires and Mme. von Rosthorn remained there
as long as there was a room habitable. Mr. Squiers, the first
Secretary of the American Legation, with Mr. Cheshire, the
Chinese Secretary, and Mr. Pethiek, the well-known private
secretary of Li Hung Chang, stayed by the United States
Legation, and the staff of the German Legation also kept
stanchly to their posts. … At the British Legation
fortification began in real earnest, the refugees working like
coolies. Sand-bags were made by the thousand, and posts
mounted round the Legation. A way was knocked through the
houses to the Russian Legation, so that the Americans, if they
had to fall back, could pass through to the British Legation.
During the day every Legation was exposed to a continuous fire
from surrounding house-tops, and in the case of the British
Legation from the cover in the Imperial Carriage Park. Chinese
put flames to the abandoned buildings, and the Belgian
Legation, the Austrian Legation, the Methodist Mission, and
some private houses were burned.
{120}
"June 22 opened disastrously. The evening before, Captain
Thomann, the Austrian commander, announced that as the senior
officer he had taken command in Peking. This morning, hearing
from an irresponsible American that the American Legation was
abandoned, he, without taking steps to verify the information,
ordered the abandonment of all the Legations cast of
Canal-street, the detachments to fall back upon the British
Legation. There had been no casualties to speak of, none of
the Legations had been attacked, and every commander who
received the order to retreat regarded the action as madness.
Peremptory orders were sent to the Japanese to abandon the
Prince's Palace or Fu (as I shall henceforth call it), and
they retired to their Legation. In the British Legation
nothing was known of the order when, to the amazement of all,
the Italians, Austrians, and French came running down
Legation-street, followed a little later by the Japanese, and
subsequently by the Germans, who recalled their post on the
wall and marched without a shot being fired at them down under
the wall to Canal-street. Americans and Russians, learning
that all east of Canal-street had been abandoned, saw
themselves cut off, though their communications had not even
been menaced, and retreated precipitately into the British
Legation. It was a veritable stampede—a panic that might have
been fraught with the gravest disaster. Prompt action was
taken. Captain Thomann was relieved of his command, and Sir
Claude MacDonald, at the urgent instance of the French and
Russian Ministers, subsequently confirmed by all their
colleagues, assumed the chief command. The French and
Austrians reoccupied the French Legation, but the barricade in
Customs-street was lost. One German only was killed and the
position was saved, but the blunder might have been
disastrous.
"It was obvious from the first that the great danger at the
British Legation was not so much from rifle-fire as from
incendiarism, for on three sides the compound was surrounded
by Chinese buildings of a highly inflammable nature. Before
time could be given to clear an open space round the Legation,
the buildings to the rear of Mr. Cockburn's house were set on
fire, and as the wind was blowing strongly towards us it
seemed as if nothing could prevent the fire from bursting into
the Legation. Water had to be used sparingly, for the wells
were lower than they had been for years, yet the flames had to
be fought. Bullets were whistling through the trees. Private
Scadding, the first Englishman to fall, was killed while on
watch on the stables near by. Men and women lined up, and
water passed along in buckets to a small fire engine that was
played upon the fire. Walls were broken through, trees hastily
cut down, and desperate work saved the building. It was the
first experience of intense excitement. Then the men set to
with a will, and till late at night were demolishing the
temple and buildings outside the wall of the Legation. Work
was continued in the morning, but when it was proposed to pull
down an unimportant building in 'the Hanlin Academy that abuts
upon the Legation to the North, the proposition was vetoed.
Such desecration, it was said, would wound the
susceptibilities of the Chinese Government. It was 'the most
sacred building in China.' To lay hands upon it, even to
safeguard the lives of beleaguered women and children, could
not be thought of, for fear of wounding the susceptibilities
of the Chinese Government! So little do the oldest of us
understand the Chinese.
"A strong wind was blowing from the Hanlin into the Legation,
the distance separating the nearest building from the
Minister's residence being only a few feet. Fire the one and
the Minister's residence would have been in danger. Suddenly
there was the alarm of fire. Smoke was rising from the Hanlin.
The most venerated pile in Peking, the great Imperial Academy,
centre of all Chinese learning, with its priceless collection of
books and manuscripts, was in flames. Everyone who was off
duty rushed to the back of the Legation. The Hanlin had been
occupied during the night by Imperial soldiers, who did not
hesitate, in their rage to destroy the foreigners, to set fire
to the buildings. It was first necessary to clear the temple.
A breach was made in the wall, Captain Poole headed a force of
Marines and volunteers who rushed in, divided, searched the
courts, and returned to the main pavilion with its superb
pillars and memorial tablets. Chinese were rushing from other
burning pavilions to the main entrance. They were taken by
surprise and many were killed, but they had done their evil
deed. … To save the Legation it was necessary to continue the
destruction and dismantle the library buildings. With great
difficulty, with inadequate tools, the buildings were pulled
down. Trees endangering our position were felled. An attempt
was made to rescue specimens of the more valuable manuscripts,
but few were saved for the danger was pressing. Sir Claude
MacDonald, as soon as the fire was discovered, despatched a
messenger to the Tsung-li-Yamên, telling them of the fire and
urging them to send some responsible officials to carry away
what volumes could be rescued, but no attention was given to
his courteous communication. The Dutch Legation was burned on
the 22nd, and next day Chinese soldiers set fire to the
Russo-Chinese Bank, and a greater part of the buildings were
destroyed, involving in danger the American Legation. Chinese
volunteers were called for. They responded readily, worked
with much courage exposed to fire from the wall, and the
Legation was saved. All the buildings back from the bank to
the Chien Mên (the main gate between the Chinese and Tartar
cities facing the entrance to the Forbidden City) seemed to be
on fire. Then all the Customs buildings were fired, so that
flames were on every side, and the smoke was tremendous, while
the fusillade was incessant. An Italian and a German died of
their wounds. The first American was killed, shot from the
wall, then a Russian fell. They were dropping off one by one,
and already we were well accustomed to the sight of the
stretcher and the funeral. Wounded were being brought in from
every Legation to the hospital in the British Legation. …
{121}
"Then a new terror was added to the fears of the besieged, for
the Imperial troops mounted a 3 in. Krupp gun on the Chien Mên,
the gate opposite to the Forbidden City, and began throwing
segment shells from a distance of 1,000 yards into the crowded
Legation. The first shell struck the American Legation, others
burst over the British compound, while others crashed into the
upper rooms of the German Legation. It was known that the
Chinese had ten similar guns in Peking, while we had nothing
with which to answer their fire, and no one ever knew where
the next gun might be mounted. Immediately all hands dug
bomb-proof shelters for the women and children. Rifle fire
also played on the Americans from the wall quite close to them
at a distance of a few hundred feet only, whence, safely
sheltered by the parapet of the wall, men could enfilade the
barricade which was held by the Americans on the street
running east and west under the wall. The barricade became
untenable, and to occupy the wall was a paramount necessity
which could no longer be delayed. … Down in the besieged area
the enemy pressed upon every side. Again they attempted to
fire the British Legation from the Mongol market on the west;
but a sortie was made by British Marines and Volunteers, and
the Chinese were driven from house to house out of the market.
The work was dangerous, and Captain Halliday was dangerously
wounded, while Captain Strouts had an extraordinary escape,
the bullet grazing the skin above the carotid artery. The
sortie was entirely successful; some rifles were captured, and
ammunition, which was more precious than silver. The buildings
were then fired by us, the fire being kept under control,
which cleared a long distance round the west of the Legation.
Fortification proceeded without intermission and all the
defences of the besieged area quickly gathered strength. For
the first time in war, art was a feature in the fortification.
Sandbags were of every colour under the sun and of every texture.
Silks and satins, curtains and carpets and embroideries were
ruthlessly cut up into sandbags. In the Prince's Fu the
sandbags were made of the richest silks and satins, the
Imperial gifts and accumulated treasures of one of the eight
princely families of China. In the Prince's Fu the Chinese
made a determined attempt to force their way into the Palace
in their frenzy to slaughter the native Christians. In the
angle of the wall in the northeastern court of the Palace they
made a breach in the wall and rushed wildly in. But the
Japanese were waiting for them and from loopholes they had
made opposite rolled them over like rabbits, driving them
helter-skelter back again. Some 20 were killed, and but for
the unsteadiness of the Italians who were assisting the
Japanese the execution would have been greater. The Chinese
were driven back, but the same evening they threw fireballs of
petroleum over the wall and set fire to the building. Flames
spread to the splendid main pavilion of the Palace. The
Japanese in their turn were driven back, and the Christians
escaping from the burning building overflowed from the Fu into
all that quarter lying between the Palace grounds and
Legation-street.
"On June 25 a truly Oriental method of weakening our defence
was attempted by the Chinese. Up to 4 o'clock in the afternoon
the shooting of rifles and field guns had been continuous,
when suddenly bugles were sounded north, east, south, and
west, and, as if by magic, the firing ceased. It was under
perfect control—Imperial control commanded by responsible
central authority. The silence abruptly following the
fusillade was striking. Then an official of low rank was seen
to affix to the parapet of the north bridge near the British
Legation a board inscribed with 18 Chinese
characters:—'Imperial command to protect Ministers and stop
firing. A despatch will be handed at the Imperial Canal
Bridge.' A placard whereon was written 'Despatch will be
received' was sent by one of the Chinese clerks employed in
the Legation, but when he approached the bridge a hundred
rifles from the Imperial Palace gate were levelled at him. The
despatch was never received. The artifice deceived no one.
Treachery was feared, vigilance was redoubled. Sandbags were
thrown on positions which during fire were untenable. So that
when at midnight the general attack was made upon us we were
prepared, and every man was at his post. The surprise had
failed. As firing had ceased so it began. Horns were sounded,
and then from every quarter a hail of bullets poured over us,
sweeping through the trees and striking with sharp impact the
roofs of the pavilions. No harm was done though the noise was
terrific. Great steadiness was shown by the men. They lay
quietly behind the sandbags and not a shot was fired in reply.
It was suggested as an explanation of this wild firing that
the shots were to kill the guardian spirits which were known
to hover over us. Similar fusillades took place at the
American Legation and at the French Legation, and with the
same result. During the armistice the Chinese had availed
themselves of the quiet to throw up earthworks in the Carriage
Park alongside the British Legation, in the Mongol market
between the British and Russian Legations, and at both ends of
Legation-street facing the Americans on the west and facing
the French Legation corner on the east.
"Our isolation was now complete, and the enemy's cordon was
constantly drawing closer. Every wall beyond the lines was
loopholed. Not only was the besieged area cut off from all
communication with the world outside Peking, but it was cut
off from all communication with the Pei-tang. No messenger
could be induced for love or money to carry a message there.
Bishop Favier and his guards must have been already hard
pressed, for they were exposed to the danger not only of rifle
and cannon, but of fire and starvation. The small garrison
detached from the guards was known to be inadequately supplied
with ammunition. It was known, however, that the danger of the
situation had long been foreseen by Monseigneur Favier, who,
speaking with unequalled authority, had weeks before the siege
vainly urged his Minister to bring troops to Peking. When the
crisis became inevitable and Christian refugees poured into
the city the Bishop endeavoured to buy arms and ammunition, so
that there was a hope, though a faint one, that the Chinese
themselves had assisted in the defence. So with stores. Large
quantities of grain were stored in the Pei-tang, but whether
sufficient for a siege for a garrison of 3,000 souls was not
known. Their condition was a constant source of anxiety to the
Europeans within the Legations, who were powerless to help
them. Watch was kept unceasingly for any sign of the disaster
that seemed inevitable—the massacre and the conflagration.
{122}
"Towards evening of the 28th a Krupp gun was mounted in the
Mongol market, not 300 yards from the British Legation, and
fire was opened upon a storeyed building occupied by marines
in the south court of the Legation. Fired at short range, the
shells crashed through the roof and walls. For an hour the
bombardment continued, but no one was injured, though a crack
racing pony in the stables below was killed, and next day
eaten. It was determined to capture this gun, so in the early
morning a force consisting of 26 British, ten Germans, ten
Russians, five French, and five Italians, and about 20
volunteers made a sortie from the Legation to try and capture
the gun and burn the houses covering it; but the attempt was a
fiasco. The men got tangled up in the lanes so that the reserve
line with the kerosene marched ahead of the firing line; there
was a Babel of voices, no one knew where to go, the captain
lost his head and set fire to the houses in the rear and the
men retreated pell-mell. … The Chinese, however, were alarmed
and removed the gun. Meanwhile both French and German
Legations had suffered heavily. …
"On the 29th the French Legation was hard pressed. One of
their officers, the midshipman Herbert, was shot.
Reinforcements were hastily sent from the Fu, and the attack
was repulsed; but some of the outer buildings of the Legation
were burned, and the French had to retire further into the
Legation. In this siege it was striking what a powerful part
petroleum was made to play. Already the French Legation had
suffered more severely than any other Legation; of their 45
men 16 had been killed or wounded. Krupp guns had been mounted
not 50 yards to the eastward, and the eastern walls of the
pavilions were being gradually and systematically battered
into ruins. All day now and until the cessation of hostilities
shells were pounding into the French Legation, into Chamot's
hotel, and from the Chien Mên on the wall, promiscuously,
everywhere. Much property was destroyed, but, though the
shells burst everywhere and escapes were marvellous, few
people were hit. Bullets whistled in the Legation compounds.
Surgeon Lippett was talking to Mr. Conger in the American
Legation when he was hit by a bullet that smashed the thigh
bone. Had the bullet not struck the surgeon it would have hit
the Minister. Mr. Pethick was sitting at a window of the
American Legation fanning himself when a bullet pierced the
fan. A civilian was wounded in the British Legation, and a
marine, Phillips, was killed while walking in the compound.
A fragment of shell fell on a patient inside the hospital.
"The cordon was drawing closer. In the Fu nearly one-third of
the buildings had been abandoned and the Japanese retired to a
second line of defence. Shells were fired by the hundred. On
the 29th 70 shells were thrown into the British Legation. The
difficulty of holding the American and German barricades on
the city wall was increasing. The positions were very much
exposed. A Krupp gun was brought close to the American
barricade. The Russo-Chinese Bank and all the buildings near
were occupied by Chinese troops, the walls being loopholed and
lanes barricaded. And all were so close that you could not
look through a loop-hole without being shot at. Yet the
American barricade, with its mixed guard of Americans,
Russians, and British, had to be held at all hazards;
otherwise the Krupp gun could be brought down the wall and
play havoc upon the Legations, the furthest of which—the
British—was at its nearest point not 400 yards distant. Still
more exposed than the American barricade was the outpost on
the wall held by the Germans. At first they had been
reinforced by the French and Austrians, but the needs of the
French Legation were equally pressing and the guards were
withdrawn and a small picket of British sent to aid the
Germans. … In the morning of July 1 the Chinese climbed up the
ramp and surprised the guard. The order was hastily given to
retire, and the picket, shaken by its losses of yesterday,
left the wall. The German non-commissioned officer who gave
the order was severely blamed for thus abandoning a position
that he had been ordered to hold. Withdrawal left the
Americans exposed in the rear. They saw the Germans retire,
and in a panic fell back to the Legation, rushing pell-mell
down the ramp. Nothing had occurred at the barricade itself to
justify the retreat, although two men had fallen within a few
hours before. Yet the wall was the key of the position and had
to be maintained. A conference was held at the British
Legation, and as a result orders were given to return to the
post. Captain Myers at once took back a strong detachment of
14 Americans, ten British, and ten Russians, and reoccupied
the barricade as if nothing had happened. The Chinese,
ignorant that the post had been evacuated, lost their
opportunity. Then the guard in the French Legation was driven
a stage further back and M. Wagner, a volunteer, was killed by
the bursting of a shell. …
"It was a day of misfortunes. In the afternoon the most
disastrous sortie of the siege was attempted. A Krupp gun,
firing at short range into the Fu (i. e., the Prince's
Palace), was a serious menace to our communications. Captain
Paolini, the Italian officer, conceived the idea that he could
capture the gun if volunteers could be given him and if the
Japanese could assist. … By this ineffective sortie our small
garrison was reduced by three men killed, one officer and four
men and one volunteer wounded. Fortunately it was no worse.
The gun that was not captured was brought up again next day
into play and continued battering down the Fu walls. The enemy

were working their way ever nearer to the refugee Christians.
Their rage to reach the Christians was appalling. They cursed
them from over the wall, hurled stones at them, and threw
shells to explode overhead. Only after the armistice, when we
received the 'Peking Gazette,' did we find that word to burn
out and slaughter the converts had come from the highest in
the land. The Japanese were driven still further back. Already
they had lost heavily, for upon them had fallen the brunt of a
defence the gallantry of which surpassed all praise. When the
siege was raised it was found that of the entire force of
marines only five men had escaped without wounds; one was
wounded five times. Colonel Shiba early raised a force of
'Christian volunteers,' drilled them, instructed them, and
armed them with rifles captured from the enemy. They made an
effective addition to the Japanese strength. …
{123}
"At daybreak on July 3, the Chinese barricade on the top of
the wall near the American outpost was successfully stormed by
a party of British, Americans, and Russians, under the leadership
of Captain Myers, Captain Vroublevsky, and Mr. Nigel Oliphant.
… The position was intolerable. It was imperative to rush the
barricade and drive out the Chinese; nothing else could be
done. An attack was planned for 3 in the morning, and before
that hour a strong force of British was sent over from the
legation. The combined force assembled for the attack
consisted of 26 British marines under Sergeant Murphy and
Corporal Gregory, with Mr. Nigel Oliphant as volunteer, 15
Russians under Captain Vroublevsky, and 15 Americans, all
being under the command of Captain Myers. When asked if they
came willingly one American begged to be relieved and was sent
below. This left the total force at 56, of whom 14 were
Americans. So close were the Chinese that it was only a couple
of jumps from our barricade to their fort. There was a rush to
be first over, the fort was stormed, and dashing round the
covering wall the 'foreign devils' charged behind the
barricade. Taken by surprise the Chinese fired in the air,
fled incontinently, and were shot down as they ran along the
open surface of the wall. Captain Vroublevsky and his
detachment acted with especial gallantry, for their duty it
was to attack the Chinese barricade in the front, while the
British and Americans took it in the rear. Two banners marked
'General Ma' were captured. Fifteen Chinese soldiers of
Tung-fuh-siang were killed outright and many more must have
been wounded. Some rifles and ammunition were captured. Then
the allied forces, exposed to a heavy fire, retired within
what had been the Chinese barricade and employed it against
the enemy who had built it. Captain Myers was wounded in the
knee by tripping over a fallen spear, two Americans, Turner
and Thomas—one having accidentally jumped on the wrong side of
the barricade—were killed, and Corporal Gregory was wounded in
the foot. News of the successful sortie gave much pleasure to
the community. Chinese coolies were sent on the wall, and a
strongly intrenched redoubt was built there; the camp was made
safe by traverses. Unfortunately, the wound of Captain Myers
proved more serious than was at first suspected, and he was
not again able to return to duty. The services of a brave and
capable officer were lost to the garrison; his post on the
wall was taken most ably by Captain Percy Smith and other
officers in turn.
"Most of the shelling was now directed against the French and
German Legations and Chamot's Hotel. The hotel was struck 91
times and was several times set on fire, but the flame was
extinguished. Work continued there, however hot the shelling,
for food had to be prepared there for half the community in
Peking, Russians, French, Germans, and Austrians. The energy
of Chamot was marvellous. He fed the troops and a crowd of
Christian refugees, killed his own mules and horses, ground
his own wheat, and baked 300 loaves a day. Shelled out of the
kitchen he baked in the parlour. His courage inspired the
Chinese, and they followed him under fire with an amazing
confidence.
"Then suddenly a new attempt was made to reduce the British
Legation. Guns firing round shot, eight-pounders and
four-pounders, were mounted on the Imperial City wall
overlooking from the north the Hanlin and the British
Legation. With glasses—the distance was only 350 yards—one
could clearly see the officers and distinguish their Imperial
Peacock feathers and Mandarin hats. … Three batteries in all,
carrying five guns, were mounted on the Imperial City wall
where the bombardment could be witnessed by the Empress
Dowager and her counsellors, and day after day round shot were
thrown from them into the British Legation, into a compound
crowded with women and children. … On July 5 Mr. David
Oliphant, of the British Legation, was killed. He was felling
a tree by the well in the Hanlin when he was shot by a sniper
concealed in a roof in the Imperial Carriage Park, and died
within an hour. Only 24 years of age, he was a student of
exceptional promise and ability. …
"Day by day the Chinese were pressing us more closely. In the
Fu they were gradually wedging their way in from the
north-east so as to cut the communications between the British
and the Legations to the east. They burned their way from house
to house. Keeping under cover, they set alight the gables
within reach by torches of cloth soaked in kerosene held at
the end of long poles. If the roof were beyond reach they
threw over fireballs of kerosene, or, if still further, shot
into them with arrows freighted with burning cloth. In this
way and with the use of the heavy gun they battered a way
through the houses and courtyards of the Prince's Palace. A
daring attempt made by the Japanese to capture the gun
resulted in failure. Coolies failed them when they were within
four yards of success, and they were forced to retire. Their
gallant leader Captain Ando was shot in the throat while
waving on his men, one marine was seriously wounded, and one
Christian volunteer killed. … By the 8th the position in the
Fu was alarming, for the Japanese force had been reduced to 13
marines and 14 volunteers; yet with decreasing numbers they
were constantly called upon to defend a longer line.
Reinforcements were sent them of half-a-dozen Customs and
student volunteers and of six British marines. Nothing can
give a better indication of the smallness of our garrison than
the fact that throughout the siege reinforcements meant five men
or ten men. Strong reinforcements meant 15 men. Our
reinforcements were counted by ones, not by companies. With
this force a line of intrenchments stretching from the outer
court of the Fu on the east across the grounds to near the
extreme northwest corner was held till the end. … The position
was one of constant solicitude, for the loss of the Fu would
have imperilled the British Legation. A Krupp gun, mounted 50
yards away, had the range and raked the post with shell and
shrapnel. To strengthen the breastwork exposure to rifle fire
was incurred from 20 yards' distance, while to reach the post
required crossing a zone of fire which was perhaps the hottest
in the whole of the defences. Many men were wounded there, and
one Italian had his head blown off. Shell fire finally made it
impossible to live there. The advanced posts were abandoned,
and the sentries fell back to the main picket. No sooner was
the advanced post abandoned than it was occupied by the
Chinese, and the defences we had made were turned against us.
{124}
"Meanwhile, the French and German Legations were being roughly
handled, and men were falling daily. At the German Legation
shells burst through the Minister's drawing-room. Most of the
other buildings conspicuous by their height were
uninhabitable, but every member of the Legation remained at
his post. So, too, in the French Legation, where the Austrians
were, Dr. and Madame von Rosthorn remained by the side of
their men. The French volunteers and Dr. Matignon stood
stanchly by their Legation, although it was fast tumbling into
ruins, their coolness and resolution being in curious contrast
to the despair of their Minister, who, crying, 'Tout est perdu,'
melodramatically burned the French archives in a ditch at the
British Legation. Chinese and French were so close that the
voices of the Chinese officers could be heard encouraging
their men. Chinese were within the Legation itself. Their guns
literally bombarded the Minister's residence 'à bout portant,'
and the noise of the exploding shells was terrific. Yet the men
never flinched. … July 11 was a day of many casualties. One
German was mortally wounded; one Englishman, one Italian, and
one Japanese were seriously wounded. Mr. Nigel Oliphant, a
volunteer, received a bullet wound in the leg, while Mr.
Narahara, the well-known secretary of the Japanese Legation,
wounded by the bursting of a shell, suffered a compound
fracture of the leg, which from the first gave cause for
anxiety. He gradually sank and died on July 24. …
On the 11th 18 prisoners were captured by the French in a
temple near the Legation. They were soldiers, and a Chinese
Christian gave information as to their whereabouts. Everyone
of them was put to death without mercy in the French Legation,
bayoneted by a French corporal to save cartridges. Questioned
before death they gave much information that was obviously
false. One man, however, declared that a mine was being driven
under the French Legation. His story had quick corroboration.
As the afternoon of the 13th was closing a feint attack was
made on the Japanese intrenchments in the Fu. Then the sound
of many bugles was heard from the camps round the French
Legation, to be followed in a few minutes by a terrific
explosion, and in a moment or two by another; and bricks and
debris were hurled into the air. It was a dull roar in the
midst of the devilish cries of hordes of Chinese, shrieking
like spirits in hell, the rattle of musketry, and the boom of
heavy guns. The mine of which the prisoner had warned us had
exploded and burst an entrance into the French Legation. When
the first mine exploded the French Captain Darcy, the Austrian
Charge d'Affaires, two French marines, and Mr. Destelan of the
Customs were standing over the death-trap. Mr. Destelan was
buried up to the neck, but was rescued unhurt, the two marines
were engulfed and their bodies were never recovered, Captain
Darcy and Dr. von Rosthorn escaped miraculously. The latter
was buried by the first explosion and released unhurt a moment
or two later by the second. Driven out of the main buildings,
the small garrison (it consisted only of 17 Austrians with
three officers, 27 French with two officers, and nine
volunteers) fell back a few paces to a line of defence, part
of which had only been completed in the afternoon, and
securely held the position.
"Simultaneously with this attack upon the French Legation the
Chinese made a determined assault upon the German Legation,
the effective strength of whose garrison numbered only one
officer and 31 men. They broke into the Club alongside the
Legation and were on the tennis ground when Count Soden and a
handful of German soldiers gallantly charged them at the point
of the bayonet and drove them out headlong. … Uniforms on the
dead Chinese showed that the attack had been carried out by
the troops of Yung Lu, reinforced by the savages of
Tung-fuh-siang. Some of the dead were armed with the latest
pattern Mauser and the newest German army revolver. Some
ammunition, of which the guards were in much need, was
recovered and distributed among the Japanese and Italians.
Firing continued round the other Legations; every battery
opened fire; the air hissed with bullets. There was momentary
darkness, then flames broke out from the large foreign houses
between the German Legation and Canal-street. It seemed at one
time as if the whole of the quarter would be burned, but the
fire did not spread. Heavy rain came on, and the rest of the
night passed in quiet.
"On July 14, a messenger, sent out on the 10th, with a letter
for the troops, returned to the British Legation. He had been
arrested by the Chinese, cruelly beaten, and taken, he said,
to the yamên of Yung Lu, and there given the following letter,
purporting to be written by Prince Ching 'and others,'
addressed to the British Minister. It was the first
communication of any kind whatsoever that had reached us from
outside for nearly one month. 'For the last ten days the
soldiers and Militia have been fighting, and there has been no
communication between us, to our great anxiety. Some time ago
we hung up a board, expressing our intentions, but no answer
has been received, and contrary to expectation the foreign
soldiers made renewed attacks, causing alarm and suspicion
among soldiers and people. Yesterday the troops captured a
convert named Chin Ssu-hei and learnt from him that all the
foreign Ministers 'were well, which caused us very great
satisfaction. But it is the unexpected which happens. The
reinforcements of foreign troops were long ago stopped and
turned back by the "Boxers," and if, in accordance with
previous agreement, we were to guard your Excellencies out of
the city, there are so many "Boxers" on the road to Tien-tsin
and Ta-ku that we should be apprehensive of misadventure. We
now request your Excellencies to first take your families and
the various members of your staffs, and leave your Legations
in detachments. We should select trustworthy officers to give
close and strict protection, and you should temporarily reside
in the Tsung-li-Yamên, pending future arrangements for your
return home, in order to preserve friendly relations intact
from beginning to end. But at the time of leaving the
Legations there must on no account whatever be taken any
single armed soldier, in order to prevent doubt and fear on
the part of the troops and people, leading to untoward
incidents. If your Excellencies are willing to show this
confidence, we beg you to communicate with all the foreign
Ministers in Peking, to-morrow at noon being the limit of
time, and to let the original messenger deliver the reply in
order that we may settle the day for leaving the Legations.
This is the single way of preserving relations which we have
been able to devise in the face of innumerable difficulties.
If no reply is received by the time fixed, even our affection
will not enable us to help you.
Compliments.
(Signed) Prince Ching and others.
July 14, 1900.'
{125}
"Following as it did immediately after the attack on the
French Legation, which reduced it to ruins, the letter did not
lack for impudence. 'Boxers' had driven back our troops,
'Militia,' not 'Boxers,' had been attacking us in Peking. The
letter was read with derision. It was interpreted as a
guileless attempt to seduce the Ministers away from their
Legations and massacre them at ease. News we heard
subsequently had just reached the Chinese of the taking of
Tien-tsin city. … On the 15th a reply was sent declining on
the part of the foreign representatives the invitation to
proceed to the Tsung-li-Yamên, and pointing out that no
attacks had been made by our troops, who were only defending
the lives and property of foreigners against the attacks of
Chinese Government troops. The reply concluded with a
statement that if the Chinese Government wished to negotiate
they should send a responsible official with a white flag. …
"The morning of the 16th opened with a disaster. Captain
Strouts, the senior British officer, was shot while returning
from the outposts in the Fu. He was struck in the upper part
of the left thigh by an expanding bullet, and died an hour
after being brought into the hospital, to the grief of the
entire community. … While shells were bursting in the trees,
and amid the crack of rifle bullets, the brave young fellow to
whose gallant defence we all owed so much was laid to rest. …
While the service was proceeding a messenger bearing a flag of
truce was approaching the gate. … The letter was from 'Prince
Ching and others.' It explained that the reason for suggesting
the removal of the Legations to the Tsung-li-Yamên was that
the Chinese Government could afford more efficient protection
to the members of the Legations if concentrated than if
scattered as at present. As the foreign Ministers did not
agree, however, the Chinese would as in duty bound do their
utmost to protect the Legations where they were. (While the
latter sentence was being read the translator had to raise his
voice in order that it should be heard above the crack of the
Imperial rifle bullets.) They would bring reinforcements and
continue their endeavours to prevent the 'Boxers' from firing,
and they trusted that the foreign Ministers on their part
would restrain their troops also from firing.
"By the same messenger a cipher message was brought to Mr.
Conger, the American Minister. It said:—'Communicate tidings
bearer.' It was in the State Department cipher and had no date
or indication by whom it had been sent. Mr. Conger replied in the
same cipher:—'For one month we have been besieged in British
Legation under continued shot and shell from Chinese troops.
Quick relief only can prevent general massacre.' When
forwarding his reply he asked that it should be sent to the
address from which the other had come, which address had not
been communicated to him. Next day the Yamên sent him an
answer saying that his message had been forwarded and
explaining that the telegram sent to him had been contained in
a telegram from Wu Ting Fang, the Chinese Minister at
Washington, dated July 11. This telegram read:—'The United
States cheerfully aid China, but it is thinking of Mr.
Minister Conger. The Hon. Secretary of State inquires after
him by telegram, which I beg to be transmitted to him and get
his reply.' From this we could well imagine what specious
assurances had been given to Mr. Hay by Wu Ting Fang's bland
assurances that there had been a most regrettable outbreak on
the part of lawless bands in the north of China which the
Government was vainly struggling to cope with. … From July 17
there was a cessation of hostilities; not that men were not
wounded afterwards and Christian coolies fired upon whenever
they showed themselves, but the organized attacks ceased and
the Krupp guns were muzzled. Fearing treachery, however, we
relaxed none of our vigilance. Trenches were cut where mines
might have been driven. All walls and shelters were so
strengthened as to be practically shell-proof. Our
preparations were purely defensive. On their part the Chinese
also continued work at their barricades. From their barricade
on the top of the wall near the German Legation they advanced
westward so that they could fire directly down into the German
Legation and pick off men going up the steps of the Minister's
house. They built a wall with loop-holes across
Legation-street not 20 yards from the Russian barricade. In
nearly every position the enemy were so close that you could
shoot into the muzzles of their rifles thrust through the
loop-holes. The cordon was still drawn tightly round us, and
we were penned in to prevent our acting in co-operation with
the troops who were coming to our relief. No provisions were
permitted to reach us, but a few eggs for the women and
children were surreptitiously sold us by Chinese soldiers. All
were on reduced rations, the allowance for the 2,750 native
Christians whom we had to provide for being barely sufficient
to save them from starvation. Their sufferings were very
great, the mortality among the children and the aged pitiful.
No one could have foreseen that within the restricted limits
of the besieged area, with the food supply therein obtainable,
473 civilians (of these 414—namely, 191 men, 147 women, 76
children—were inside the British Legation), a garrison of 400
men, 2,750 refugees, and some 400 native servants could have
sustained a siege of two entire months. Providentially in the
very centre of Legation-street there was a mill with a large
quantity of grain which turned out 900 lb. of flour a day
divided between the hotel and the Legation. One day the
Tsung-li-Yamên insultingly sent us a present of 1,000 lb. of
flour and some ice and vegetables, but no one would venture to
eat the flour, fearing that it might be poisoned.
Communications now passed almost daily with the Tsung-li-Yamên
or with the officials whose despatches were signed 'Prince
Ching and others.' On July 17, Sir Claude MacDonald replied to
the suggestion that the Ministers would restrain their troops
from firing upon the Chinese. He said that from the first the
foreign troops had acted entirely in self-defence, and would
continue to do so. But the Chinese must understand that
previous events had led to a want of confidence and that if
barricades were erected or troops moved in the vicinity of the
Legations the foreign guards would be obliged to fire. In the
afternoon the Chinese replied, reviewing the situation and
ascribing the hostilities to the attacks previously made by
the Legation guards. They noted with satisfaction that a
cessation of firing was agreed to on both sides, but suggested
that as foreign soldiers had been firing from the city wall
east of the Chien Mên, they should be removed from that
position.
{126}
Next day, Sir Claude MacDonald replied with a review of the
situation from the foreign point of view. … He hoped that
mutual confidence would gradually be restored, but meanwhile
he again pointed out that cessation of hostile preparations as
well as firing was necessary on the part of the Chinese troops
to secure that the foreign troops should cease firing. As for
the suggestion that the foreign troops should leave the city
wall, it was impossible to accede to it, because a great part
of the attacks on the Legations had been made from the wall.
He concluded by suggesting that sellers of fruit and ice
should be allowed to come in. They were never permitted to
come in. It was clear, however, that events were happening
elsewhere to cause alarm in the Imperial Court. On the
afternoon of the first day of what might be called the
armistice M Pelliot, a French gentleman from Tongking, entered
the Chinese lines and to the great anxiety of all was absent five
hours. He was taken by soldiers to a yamên of one of the big
generals—he knew not which—was plied with questions which,
speaking some Chinese, he could answer, and was sent back
unmolested with an escort of 15 soldiers 'to protect him
against the Boxers.' This unusual clemency was interpreted
favourably. It was clear that the Chinese had sustained a
severe defeat and that relief was coming. Next day direct
communication was for the first time held with an official of
the Tsung-li-Yamên. A secretary named Wen Jui came to the
Legation to see Sir Claude MacDonald and was received by the
Minister outside the gate, not being permitted to enter. He
said that the regrettable occurrences were due to 'local
banditti,' that the Government had great concern to protect
the foreigners, that Baron von Ketteler's body had been
recovered from the hands of the 'local banditti' who had
murdered him and been enclosed in a valuable coffin. He urged
that the maintenance of foreign troops on the city was
unnecessary and that they should be withdrawn. It was pointed
out to him that, as we had been very continuously shelled from
the city wall both from the Ha-ta Mên and the Chien Mên, it
would be inadvisable to retire. Asked to send copies of the
'Peking Gazette,' he hesitated a moment and then stammered
that he really had not himself seen the 'Peking Gazette' for a
long time, but he would inquire and see if they could be
bought. He never came back and never sent a 'Gazette.' His
name was Wen Jui. When we did obtain copies of the 'Gazette'
it was interesting to find two items that must have been
especially unpleasant for him to have us know. On June 24, by
Imperial decree, leaders were appointed to the 'Boxers,' or
'patriotic militia.' Among the chiefs was Wen Jui.
"The visit of Wen Jui was on the 18th. Up to the time of his
visit, though more than four weeks had passed since the
assassination, no allusion of any kind whatever had been made
in any 'Peking Gazette' to the murder of Baron van Ketteler.
Then the Empress-Dowager, yielding to her fears, published an
allusion to the murder. Will the German Emperor rest satisfied
with the tardy official reference to the brutal assassination
of his Minister by an Imperial officer? 'Last month the
Chancellor of the Japanese Legation was killed. This was,
indeed, most unexpected. Before this matter had been settled
the German Minister was killed. Suddenly meeting this affair
caused us deep grief. We ought vigorously to seek the murderer
and punish him.' No more. The date July 18; the murder June
20!
"Yet even in this decree there was a complete 'volte-face.'
Missionaries who were by the decree of July 2 'to be at once
driven away to their own countries' were by the decree of July
18 'to be protected in every province,' 'to be protected
without the least carelessness.' The truculence and
belligerence of the decrees issued when our troops had been
driven back had disappeared; the tone now was one of
justification and conciliation. Only one interpretation was
possible—that the Chinese had been defeated. Confirmation came
the same day. A messenger sent out by the Japanese
successfully passed the enemy's lines and brought us the news
that we had so long awaited. … By the same messenger a letter
was received by the French Minister. … The same messenger also
brought to the Belgian Minister a despatch from his Consul at
Tien-tsin. … Days followed quietly now, though 'sniping' did
not cease. Several casualties occurred among the garrison. A
Russian was killed and an Austrian wounded; an Italian wounded
and also a Japanese. In the Fu it was still dangerous for the
Christian refugees to move about, and several were hit and two
killed. But the Yamên became more and more conciliatory, until
we could gauge the advance of the reliefs by the degree of
apology in their despatches. But all supplies were rigorously
cut off, and the sufferings of the Christians were acute. …
"On the 22nd Sir Robert Hart received a despatch from the
Tsung-li-Yamên. They naïvely remarked that it was now one
month since they had heard from him, and his silence gave them
concern for his welfare. Moreover, a report had just reached them
that his house had been burned, but they expressed the hope
that he and al his staff were well. Another despatch requested
his advice upon a Customs question that had arisen in
Shanghai. Sir Robert Hart wrote a dignified reply. For more
than a month, he said, he had been a refugee in the British
Legation with all his staff, having had to flee from his house
without warning; that all Customs records and papers, and
every paper and letter of value that he had accumulated during
a lifetime, had been destroyed; that not only his house, but
some 19 other buildings in the occupation of his staff had
been burned with all their contents; that the acting postal
secretary had been killed by a shell, and two other members of
his staff—Mr. Richardson and Mr. Macoun—had been wounded by
bullets. …
"Meanwhile, the armistice continued, if armistice it can be
called where true armistice there was none. Desultory firing
continued, and sniping was still the chief pastime at the
Chinese outposts. Friendly relations were, however, opened
with some Chinese soldiers in the Fu. A Japanese Volunteer
established a bureau of intelligence to which the enemy's
soldiers had access. One soldier was especially communicative,
and earned high reward for the valuable information that he
conveyed to us. For a week from July 26 to August 2 daily
bulletins based upon this information of the advance of the
relief column were posted on the bell tower of the British
Legation.
{127}
An unbroken series of victories was attending our relief
forces. … Letters were given to the soldier to take to the
General of the relief column, and a reward offered if an
answer should be brought next day, but no answer was ever
brought. Our informant had brought the armies along too
quickly. He was compelled to send them back. Accordingly on
the 31st he made the Chinese recapture Chang-chia-wan, killing
60 of the foreigners; advancing upon Matou he killed 70
foreigners more, and drove them back to An-ping. Next day he
drove the foreigners disastrously back to Tien-tsin with a
loss of 1,000. The day was equally disastrous to himself. Our
informant had killed the goose that lay the golden egg. For a
messenger arrived on that day with letters from Tien-tsin,
dated July 30, informing us that a large force was on the
point of leaving for our relief. … Meanwhile, while our
informant was marching our relief backwards and forwards to
Tien-tsin, Prince Ching and others were vainly urging the
Ministers to leave Peking, but whether they left Peking or not
they were to hand over the Christian refugees now under the
protection of the Legations to the mercies of the Government,
which had issued a decree commanding that they be exterminated
unless they recanted their errors. In other communications
Prince Ching 'and others' urged that the foreign Ministers
should telegraph to their Government 'en clair' lying reports
of the condition of affairs in Peking.
Two days after the cessation of hostilities Prince Ching 'and
others' sent a despatch to Sir Claude MacDonald to the effect
that it was impossible to protect the Ministers in Peking
because 'Boxers' were gathering from all points of the
compass, and that nothing would satisfy them (the 'Boxers')
but the destruction of the Legations, and that the Ministers
would be given safe conduct to Tien-tsin. Sir Claude, in
reply, asked why it was that protection could be given to the
Ministers on the way to Tien-tsin and yet could not be given
to them while in the Legations in Peking. Prince Ching 'and
others' replied: 'July 25, 1900. … As to the inquiry what
difference there is between giving protection in the city or
on the road, and why it is possible to give it in the latter,
there is only an apparent discrepancy. For the being in the
city is permanent, the being on the road is temporary. If all
the foreign Ministers are willing to temporarily retire we
should propose the route to Tung-chau and thence by boat down
stream to Tien-tsin, which could be reached in only two days.
No matter what difficulties there might be a numerous body of
troops would be sent, half by water to form a close escort,
half by road to keep all safe for a long way on both banks.
Since the time would be short we can guarantee that there
would be no mishap. It is otherwise with a permanent residence
in Peking, where it is impossible to foretell when a disaster
may occur.' … In the envelope which brought this letter were
two other communications of the same guileless nature. 'On
July 24,' said the first, 'we received a telegram from Mr.
Warren, British Consul-General in Shanghai, to the effect that
while China was protecting the Legations no telegram had been
received from the British Minister, and asking the Yamên to
transmit Sir C. M. MacDonald's telegram to Shanghai. As in
duty bound we communicate the above, and beg you to send a
telegram "en clair" to the Yamên for transmission.' Tender
consideration was shown for us in the second letter:—'For the
past month and more military affairs have been very pressing.
Your Excellency and other Ministers ought to telegraph home
that your families are well in order to soothe anxiety, but at
the present moment peace is not yet restored, and your
Legation telegrams must be wholly "en clair," stating that all
is well, without touching on military affairs. Under those
conditions the Yamên can transmit them. The writers beg that
your Excellency will communicate this to the other foreign
Ministers.'
"Evasive replies were given to these communications. … Our
position at this time compelled us to temporize. We knew from
the alteration in tone of the Chinese despatches that they had
suffered defeats and were growing alarmed, but we did not know
how much longer international jealousies or difficulties of
obtaining transport were to delay the departure of the troops
for Tien-tsin. … Though now nominally under the protection of
an armistice sniping still continued, especially in the Fu,
into any exposed portion of the besieged area. … The Chinese
worked on continuously at their fortifications. … Finding that
the Ministers declined to telegraph to their Governments 'en
clair' that all was well with the Legations, the
Tsung-li-Yamên wrote to Sir Robert Hart asking him to send
home a telegram in the sense they suggested. Sir Robert
replied diplomatically, 'If I were to wire the truth about the
Legations I should not be believed.'
"A malevolent attempt was next made by the Chinese to obtain
possession of the refugees who were in our safe keeping. On
July 27 they wrote to Sir Claude MacDonald saying that 'they
hear that there are lodged at the Legations a considerable
number of converts, and that, as 'the space is limited and
weather hot, they suggest that they must be causing the
Legations considerable inconvenience. And now that people's
minds are quieted, these converts can all be sent out and go
about their ordinary avocations. They need not have doubts or
fears. If you concur, an estimate should be made of the
numbers and a date fixed for letting them out. Then all will
be in harmony.' The reply of the diplomatic body was to the
effect that while they were considering the two last
letters—one offering safe conduct to Tien-tsin and the other
declaring that the converts might leave the Legations in
perfect security—heavy firing was heard in the direction of
the Pei-tang, which was evidently being attacked in force;
that yesterday and last night a barricade was built across the
North Bridge, from behind which shots are being continuously
fired into the British Legation. The French and Russian
Legations are also being fired upon. As all this seems
inconsistent with the above letters, an explanation is asked
for before further consideration is given to the offer.
Promptly the Yamên sent its explanation. The Pei-tang
refugees, it seemed, who were starving, had made a sortie to
obtain food. And they had fired upon the people. 'A decree,'
it went on to say, 'has now been requested to the effect that
if the converts do not come out to plunder they are to be
protected and not to be continually attacked, for they also
are the children of the State. This practice (of continually
firing upon the converts) will thus be gradually stopped.'
{128}
Such a callous reply was read with indignation, and there was
not the slightest intention on the part of any Minister to
leave Peking. Yet on the 4th of August a decree was issued
appointing Yung Lu to conduct the foreign Ministers safely to
Tien-tsin 'in order once more to show the tenderness of the
Throne for the men from afar.' …
"On August 10, Friday, a messenger succeeded in passing the
enemy's lines, and brought us letters from General Gaselee and
General Fukushima. A strong relief force was marching to
Peking, and would arrive here if nothing untoward happened on
the 13th or 14th. Our danger then was that the enemy would
make a final effort to rush the Legations before the arrival
of reinforcements. And the expected happened. …
"Yesterday [August 13] passed under a continuous fusillade
which increased during the night. Then at 3 on this morning we
were all awakened by the booming of guns in the east and by
the welcome sound of volley firing. Word flew round that 'the
foreign troops are at the city wall and are shelling the East
Gate.' At daylight most of us went on to the wall, and
witnessed the shelling of the Great East Gate. We knew that
the allies would advance in separate columns, and were on the
qui vive of excitement, knowing that at any moment now the
troops might arrive. Luncheon, the hard luncheon of horse
flesh, came on, and we had just finished when the cry rang
through the Legation, 'The British are coming,' and there was
a rush to the entrance and up Canal-street towards the Water
Gate. The stalwart form of the general and his staff were
entering by the Water Gate, followed by the 1st Regiment of
Sikhs and the 7th Rajputs. They passed down Canal-street, and
amid a scene of indescribable emotion marched to the British
Legation. The siege has been raised.
"Peking, August 15. On reading over my narrative of the siege
I find that in the hurry and confusion of concluding my report
I have omitted one or two things that I had wished to say. In
the first place, I find that I have not in any adequate way
expressed the obligation of all those confined in the British
Legation to the splendid services done by the Reverend F. D.
Gamewell, of the American Episcopal Mission [who was educated
as a civil engineer at Troy and Cornell], to whom was due the
designing and construction of all our defences, and who
carried out in the most admirable manner the ideas and
suggestions of our Minister, Sir Claude MacDonald. To the
Reverend Frank Norris, of the Society for the Propagation of
the Gospel, our thanks are also specially due. He
superintended, often under heavy fire, the construction of
defences in the Prince's Fu and in other exposed places,
working always with a courage and energy worthy of admiration.
He was struck in the neck once by a segment of a shell, but
escaped marvellously from serious injury. He speaks Chinese
well, and Chinese worked under him with a fearlessness that
few men can inspire. In the second place, I noticed that I
have not sufficiently recorded the valuable services rendered
by Mr. H. G. Squiers, the First Secretary of the American
Legation, who on the death of Captain Strouts became Chief of
the Staff to Sir Claude MacDonald. He had been for 15 years in
the United States cavalry, and his knowledge and skill and the
resolution with which he inspired his small body of men will
not readily be forgotten. …
"To-day the Pei-tang Cathedral was relieved. Bishops, priests,
and sisters had survived the siege and, thanks to the
wonderful foresight of Bishop Favier, the Christians had been
spared from starvation. Japanese coming down from the north of
the city relieved the cathedral; French, British, and Russians
from the south arrived as the siege was raised. Mines had been
employed with deadly effect. The guards had lost five French
killed and five Italians. Some 200 of the Christians had
perished."
London Times,
October 13 and 15, 1900.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (June-December).
Upright conduct of the Chinese Viceroys in
the Yang-tsze provinces.
In his annual message of December 3, 1900, to Congress,
referring to the occurrences in China, the President of the
United States remarked with much justice: "It is a relief to
recall and a pleasure to record the loyal conduct of the
viceroys and local authorities of the southern and eastern
provinces. Their efforts were continuously directed to the
pacific control of the vast populations under their rule and
to the scrupulous observance of foreign treaty rights. At
critical moments they did not hesitate to memorialize the
Throne, urging the protection of the legations, the
restoration of communication, and the assertion of the
Imperial authority against the subversive elements. They
maintained excellent relations with the official
representatives of foreign powers. To their kindly disposition
is largely due the success of the consuls in removing many of
the missionaries from the interior to places of safety." The
viceroys especially referred to in this are Chang Chih-tung
and Liu Kun-yi, often referred to as "the Yang-tsze viceroys."
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (July).
Speech of German Emperor to troops departing to China,
commanding no quarter.
See (in this volume)
GERMANY: A. D. 1900 (OCTOBER 9).
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (July).
American troops sent to co-operate with those of other Powers.
Capture of Tientsin by the allied forces.
Death of Colonel Liscum.
Reported massacre of foreign Ministers and others in Peking.
The long month of dread suspense.
Overtures from Earl Li Hung-chang for negotiation.
"On the 26th of June Major Gen. Adna R Chaffee, U. S. V., was
appointed to the command of the American forces in China. He
embarked from San Francisco on the 1st of July, reached
Nagasaki on the 24th, and Taku, China, on the 28th. … On
reaching Nagasaki he received the following instructions,
dated, … July 19: 'Secretary War directs that you proceed at
once with transport Grant, Sixth Cavalry, and Marines to Taku,
China, and take command of American land forces, which will be
an independent command known as the China relief expedition.
You will find there the Ninth and Fourteenth Infantry, one
battery of the Fifth Artillery, and one battalion of Marines.
Sumner sailed from San Francisco July 17 with Second Battalion
of Fifteenth Infantry and recruits to capacity of vessel.
{129}
Reinforcements will follow to make your force in the immediate
future up to 5,000, and very soon to 10,000. … Reports now
indicate that American Minister with all the legation have
been destroyed in Pekin. Chinese representative here, however,
insists to the contrary, and there is, therefore, a hope which
you will not lose sight of until certainty is absolute. It is
the desire of this Government to maintain its relations of
friendship with the part of Chinese people and Chinese
officials not concerned in outrages on Americans. Among these
we consider Li Hung Chang, just appointed viceroy of Chili.
You will to the extent of your power aid the Government of
China, or any part thereof, in repressing such outrages and in
rescuing Americans, and in protecting American citizens and
interests, and wherever Chinese Government fails to render
such protection you will do all in your power to supply it.
Confer freely with commanders of other national forces, act
concurrently with them, and seek entire harmony of action
along the lines of similar purpose and interest. There
should be full and free conference as to operations before
they are entered upon. You are at liberty to agree with them
from time to time as to a common official direction of the
various forces in their combined operations, preserving,
however, the integrity of your own American division, ready to
be used as a separate and complete organization. Much must be
left to your wise discretion and that of the admiral. At all
times report fully and freely to this Department your wants
and views. The President has to-day appointed you
major-general of volunteers.' …
"In the meantime the Ninth Infantry, from Manila, reached Taku
on the 6th of July. Two battalions of that regiment, under
Colonel Liscum, pressed forward to Tientsin, reaching that
point on the 11th, and on the 13th took part with the British,
French, and Japanese forces in an attack upon the southwest
part of the walled city of Tientsin, which had been rendered
necessary by the persistent shelling of the foreign quarters,
outside of the walls, on the part of the Chinese troops
occupying the city. Colonel Liscum's command formed part of a
brigade under General Dorward, of the British army, and was
assigned to the duty of protecting the flank of the allied
forces. In the performance of that duty it maintained a
position under heavy fire for fifteen hours, with a loss of 18
killed and 77 wounded. Among the killed was the gallant
Colonel Liscum, who thus ended an honorable service of nearly
forty years, commencing in the ranks of the First Vermont
Infantry at the outbreak of the civil war, and distinguished
by unvarying courage, fidelity, and high character. The
regiment was withdrawn from its position on the night of the
13th, and on the morning of the 14th the native city was
captured, and the southeast quarter was assigned to the
American forces for police and protection. …
"At the time of the capture of Tientsin the most positive and
circumstantial accounts of the massacre of all the ministers
and members of the legations in Pekin, coming apparently from
Chinese sources, had been published, and were almost
universally believed. The general view taken by the civilized
world of the duty to be performed in China was not that the
living representatives of the Western powers in Pekin were to
be rescued, but that their murder was to be avenged and their
murderers punished. In the performance of that duty time and
rapidity of movement were not especially important. The
resolution of the commanders of the allied forces,
communicated by Admiral Kempff on the 8th of July, to the
effect that 80,000 men would be required—20,000 to hold the
position from Taku to Tientsin and 60,000 to march to Pekin,
while not more than 40,800 troops were expected to have
arrived by the middle of August, practically abandoned all
expectation of rescuing the ministers and members of the
legations alive, for it proposed that after the middle of
August any forward movement should be still deferred until
40,000 more troops had arrived. On the 11th of July, however,
the American Secretary of State secured, through the Chinese
minister at Washington, the forwarding of a dispatch in the
State Department cipher to the American minister at Pekin, and
on the 20th of July, pursuant to the same arrangement, an
answer in cipher was received from Minister Conger, as
follows: 'For one month we have been besieged in British
legation under continued shot and shell from Chinese troops.
Quick relief only can prevent general massacre.' This dispatch
from Mr. Conger was the first communication received by any
Western power from any representative in Pekin for about a
month, and although it was at first received in Europe with
some incredulity, it presented a situation which plainly
called for the urgency of a relief expedition rather than for
perfection of preparation. It was made the basis of urgent
pressure for an immediate movement upon Pekin, without waiting
for the accumulation of the large force previously proposed."
United States, Secretary of War,
Annual Report, November 30, 1900,
pages 14-16, 19-20.
As mentioned above, in the instructions of the American
government to General Chaffee, the veteran Chinese statesman
and diplomat, Earl Li Hung-chang, well known in Europe and
America, had now been recalled by the Peking government to the
viceroyalty of Chili, from which he was removed six years
before, and had been given the authority of a plenipotentiary
to negotiate with the allied Powers. He addressed a proposal
to the latter, to the effect that the Ministers in Peking
would be delivered, under safe escort, at Tientsin, if the
allies would refrain from advancing their forces to Peking.
The reply from all the governments concerned was substantially
the same as that made by the United States, in the following
terms: "The government will not enter into any arrangement
regarding disposition or treatment of legations without first
having free communication with Minister Conger. Responsibility
for their protection rests upon Chinese government. Power to
deliver at Tientsin presupposes power to protect and to open
communication. This is insisted on." Earl Li then asked
whether, "if free communication were established, it could be
arranged that the Powers should not advance pending
negotiations," and was told in reply: "Free communication with
our representatives in Peking is demanded as a matter of
absolute right, and not as a favor. Since the Chinese
government admits that it possesses the power to give
communication, it puts itself in an unfriendly attitude by
denying it. No negotiations seem advisable until the Chinese
government shall have put the diplomatic representatives of
the Powers in full and free communication with their
respective governments, and removed all danger to their lives
and liberty."
{130}
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (July-August).
Boxer attack on the Russians in Manchuria,
and Russian retaliation.
See (in this volume)
MANCHURIA: A. D. 1900.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (August).
Appointment of Count Waldersee to command the allied forces.
Field-Marshal Count von Waldersee, appointed to command the
German forces sent to China, being of higher military rank
than any other of the commanding officers in that country, was
proposed for the general command of the allied armies, and
accepted as such. Before his arrival in China, however, many
of the American, Russian, and some other troops, had been
withdrawn.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (August 4-16).
The advance of the allied forces on Peking and the capture
of the city.
The following is from the report of General Chaffee,
commanding the American forces in the allied movement from
Tientsin, to rescue the beleaguered Legations at Peking: "On
my arrival at Tientsin I called on the various generals
commanding troops, and on August 1 a conference of generals
was held at the headquarters of Lieutenant-General Linivitch,
of the Russian army. Present at the conference were the
commanding general of the Russian army and his chief of staff;
Lieutenant-General Yamagutchi and his chief of staff;
Major-General Fukushima, of the Japanese army;
Lieutenant-General Gaselee, of the British army, and his chief
of staff, General Barrow; General Frey, of the French army; the
Germans were also represented by an officer of the German
navy; myself and Major Jesse M. Lee, Ninth Infantry, and
Lieutenant Louis M. Little, of the marines, who speaks French.
The purpose of this conference was to decide whether the
armies were ready to make a movement for the relief of Pekin.
It was disclosed in the conference that the Japanese, whose
forces occupied the right bank of the river in and about
Tientsin, where also were located the British and American
forces, had by various patrols determined that the Chinese
were in considerable force in the vicinity of Pei-tsang, about
7 miles distance up the river from Tientsin, and that they
were strengthening their position by earthworks extending from
the right bank of the river westward something like 3 miles,
and from the left bank east to the railroad embankment was
also being strengthened. The forces were variously estimated,
from reports of Chinese, at from 10,000 to 12,000 men in the
vicinity of Pei-tsang, with large bodies to the rearward as
far as Yangtsun, where it was reported their main line of
defenses would be encountered.
"The first question submitted for decision was 'whether a
movement should be made at once,' which was decided in the
affirmative, two Powers only dissenting, and these not
seriously, as their doubt seemed to be that the force we could
put in movement was not sufficiently strong to meet the
opposition that might be expected. The decision was that the
attack should be made on Sunday, August 5, and as the
Japanese, British, and American forces occupied the right bank
of the river, the Russians the left, the attack should be made
without change of situation of the troops, the British to send
four heavy guns to aid the Russian column. The strategy on the
right bank of the river was left to the determination of the
British, American, and Japanese generals. The force reported
to the conference as available for the movement was: Japanese,
about 8,000; Russian, 4,800; British, about 3,000; American,
2,100; French, 800. With special effort on the part of
Captains Byron and Wood, Reilly's battery was gotten to
Tientsin August 3 and assembled. We were also able to make one
pack train available on the 4th, just in time to march with
the column. The marines and Sixth Cavalry were gotten off the
'Grant' and to Tientsin August 3. The presence of the Sixth
Cavalry at Tientsin, dismounted, enabled me to take all
available men of the Ninth and Fourteenth, also all the
marines except one company 100 strong, left to assist the
civil government of the city. By arrangement prior to my
arrival the officers selected to establish a civil government
for Tientsin were to be allowed a military force, of which the
United States should furnish 100. I was compelled, of course,
to leave the Sixth Cavalry, because the horses had not
arrived. … The troops moved out from the city of Tientsin
during the afternoon and night of August 4 and bivouacked in
the vicinity of Si-ku arsenal, the same that was taken by
Admiral Seymour in his retrograde movement."
The Chinese were driven from the Arsenal by the Japanese,
before whom they also fell back from Pei-tsang, and the first
serious battle was fought at Yang-tsun, on the 6th. Having
rested at Yang-tsun and cared for its sick and wounded, on the
7th, the army moved forward on the 8th, encountered slight
resistance at Shang-shia-wan on the 11th, found Tong-chow
abandoned, on the 12th, and reached Pekin on the 14th, having
suffered more from heat, fatigue, and the want of potable
water on the march, than from "Boxers" or imperial troops.
Returning now to the report of General Chaffee, we take from
it his account of the final movement to the walls of Pekin, of
the forcing of the gates and of the clearing of Chinese troops
from the city: "The Japanese when taking possession of
Tong-Chow in the morning [of the 12th] advanced troops toward
Pekin for a distance of 6½ miles. It was finally agreed that
the next day, the 13th, should be devoted to reconnaissance;
the Japanese should reconnoiter on the two roads to the right
or north of the paved road which is just north of the canal;
the Russians on the paved road, if at all; the Americans to
reconnoiter on the road just south of the canal; the British a
parallel road 1½ miles to the left of the road occupied by the
Americans. On the 14th the armies should be concentrated on
the advance line held by the Japanese, and that that evening a
conference should be held to determine what the method of
attack on Pekin should be. On the morning of the 13th I
reconnoitered the road to be occupied by the Americans with
Troop M, Sixth Cavalry, Reilly's battery, and the Fourteenth
Infantry up to the point specified in our agreement, or about
7 miles from Tong-Chow. Finding no opposition, I directed the
remainder of my force to march out and close in on the advance
guard. This force arrived at midnight. The British
reconnoitered their road with some cavalry. The Japanese
reconnoitered their front and also the front which properly
belonged to the Russians.
{131}
"For reasons unknown to me the Russians left their camp at
Tong-Chow about the time that my troops were marching to close
on my advance guard. They followed the road which had been
assigned to them, and about nine o'clock heavy firing was
heard in the vicinity of Pekin. It was the next day
ascertained that they had moved forward during the previous
evening and had attacked the 'Tong-pien-men Gate,' an east
gate of the city near where the Chinese wall joins the Tartar
wall. Very heavy artillery and considerable small-arm firing
was continued throughout the night. At the time of the
occurrence I supposed the firing to be the last efforts of the

Chinese troops to destroy the legations. …
"The 14th being the day decided upon for the concentration on
the line 7 miles from Tong-Chow, I made no preparations for
carrying on any operations beyond a small reconnaissance by a
troop of cavalry to my front, which duty I assigned to Captain
Cabell. … My cavalry had been absent not more than an hour,
when Mr. Lowry, the interpreter who had accompanied it, raced
back and informed me that Captain Cabell was surrounded by
Chinese cavalry. I immediately ordered a battalion of the
Fourteenth Infantry to fall in, and we went forward about a
mile and a half and found Captain Cabell occupying some
houses, firing from the roofs on a village in his front. I
insisted on the French troops giving me the road, which they
reluctantly did. Having joined Cabell, I continued the
reconnaissance to my front, wishing to get as near the wall of
the city as I could, but not expecting to move my whole force,
which was contrary to the agreement at Tong-Chow on the
evening of August 12. Without serious opposition we arrived at
the northeast corner of the Chinese city, having brushed away
some Chinese troops or 'Boxers' that fired from villages to
our left and front. About 10 o'clock I saw the advantage of
holding the ground that I had obtained, and directed all my
force to move forward, as I had then become aware of Russian
troops being in action on my right, and could also hear the
Japanese artillery farther to the right. My left flank at this
time was uncovered, except by a small force of British
cavalry. The British troops did not advance from Tong-Chow
until the 14th, owing to the agreement previously referred to.
On that day they marched for the line of concentration and
found my force advancing on Pekin. At noon a British battery
was at work a mile to my left and rear.
"At 11 a. m. two companies of the Fourteenth Infantry, under
the immediate command of Colonel Daggett, had scaled the wall
of the Chinese city at the northeast corner, and the flag of
that regiment was the first foreign colors unfurled upon the
walls surrounding Pekin. The two companies on the wall, with
the assistance of the troops facing the wall, drove away the
Chinese defenders from the corner to the east gate of the
Chinese city, where the British entered without opposition
later in the day. About noon it was reported to me that the
Russians had battered open 'Tung-pien-men gate' during the
night and had effected an entrance there. I arrived at the
gate soon afterwards and found in the gate some of the
Fourteenth Infantry, followed by Reilly's battery. The Russian
artillery and troops were in great confusion in the passage,
their artillery facing in both directions, and I could see no
effort being made to extricate themselves and give passage
into the city. One company of the Fourteenth Infantry deployed
itself in the buildings to the right of the gate and poured
effective fire onto the Tartar wall. Captain Reilly got two
guns through a very narrow passage to his left, tearing down a
wall to do so, and found a position a few yards to the left of
the road where he could enfilade the Tartar wall, section by
section, with shrapnel. The Fourteenth Infantry crossed the
moat and, taking position paralleling the moat, deployed along
a street facing the Tartar wall, and with the aid of the
artillery swept it of Chinese troops. In this way, gradually
working to the westward, the Tartar wall was cleared of
opposition to the 'Bait-men gate' and beyond.
"Orders were sent to the Ninth to follow up the movement of
the Fourteenth Infantry and Reilly's battery as soon as the
wall was cleared of Chinese; also to follow the movement to
the 'Chien-men' gate of the Tartar city. The marines were to
follow the general movement, but later were ordered to protect
the train. At about 3 o'clock p. m. our advance had arrived
opposite the legations, the fire of the Chinese having
practically ended, and we drew over to the Tartar wall and
entered the legation grounds with the Fourteenth Infantry by
the 'water gate or moat,' Reilly's battery passing through the
'Chien-men' gate, which was opened by the American and Russian
marines of the besieged force. The Fourteenth Infantry was
selected on this occasion in recognition of gallantry at
Yang-tsun and during this day. The British troops entered at
the 'Shahuo' gate of the Chinese city, and following a road
through the center of the city to opposite the legations,
arrived there through the 'water gate or moat' in advance of
the United States troops. Having communicated with Minister
Conger, I withdrew the troops from the legation and camped
just outside near the Tartar wall for the night. My casualties
during the day were 8 enlisted men wounded in the Fourteenth
Infantry, 1 enlisted man wounded of Battery F, Fifth
Artillery, and 1 officer and 2 enlisted men wounded of the
marines. …
"I was informed by Mr. Conger that a portion of the imperial
city directly in front of the Chien-men gate had been used by
Chinese to fire on the legations, and I determined to force
the Chinese troops from this position. On the morning of the
15th I placed four guns of Reilly's battery on the Tartar wall
at Chien-men gate and swept the walls to the westward to the
next gate, there being some slight opposition in that
direction, supported by poor artillery. About 8 o'clock a. m.
the Chinese opened fire on us at Chien-men gate, from the
second gate of the imperial city north of Chien-men gate,
whereupon I directed an attack on the first gate to be made,
and in a short while Lieutenant Charles P. Summerall, of
Reilly's battery, had opened the door of this gate. Our troops
entered, and were met with a severe fire from the next gate,
about 600 yards distant. Fire was directed upon the second
gate with the battery and such of the infantry as could be
elevated on the Tartar wall and side walls of the imperial
city and act effectively. In the course of half an hour the
Chinese fire was silenced, and Colonel Daggett led forward his
regiment to the base of the second gate. Lieutenant Summerall
was directed to open this gate with artillery, which he did.
The course just indicated was pursued for four gates, the
Chinese troops being driven from each gate in succession, the
fourth gate being near what is known as the 'palace grounds,'
which is surrounded by the 'imperial guards.'
{132}
"At a conference that afternoon it was decided not to occupy
the imperial city, and I withdrew my troops into the camp
occupied the night before, maintaining my position on the
Tartar wall at Chien-men gate. The idea of not occupying the
imperial city was not concurred in by the ministers in a
conference held by them the next day. In their opinion the
imperial city should be occupied. It was later decided by the
generals to occupy the imperial grounds, and in consequence of
this decision I reoccupied the grounds we had won on the 15th,
placing the Ninth Infantry within as guard at the gate where
our attack ceased.
"During the 15th and the attack upon the gates referred to our
losses were 2 enlisted men killed and 4 wounded, Ninth
Infantry; 3 enlisted men killed and 14 wounded, Fourteenth
Infantry; 1 enlisted man, Battery F, Fifth Artillery, wounded.
At 8.50 o'clock a. m. of this date Captain Henry J. Reilly,
Fifth Artillery, was struck in the mouth and almost instantly
killed when standing at my left elbow observing the effect of
a shot from one of his guns by his side.
"At a conference of the generals on the afternoon of the 16th
the Chinese and Tartar cities were divided to the various
forces for police and protection of the inhabitants. The
United States troops were assigned to the west half of the
Chinese city and to that section of the Tartar city lying
between the Chien-men gate and Shun-chin gate of the south
wall of the Tartar city and north to the east and west street
through the Tartar city, being bounded upon the east by the
wall of the imperial city."
United States, Secretary of War,
Annual Report, November 30, 1900,
pages 61-71.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (August 5-16).
The horrors of the allied invasion.
Barbarity of some divisions of the army in the march
from Tien-tsin to Peking.
Murder, rape, pillage and destruction.
Of the conduct of some divisions of the allied army which
advanced from Tien-tsin, and which represented to "the heathen
Chinee" the civilized and Christian nations of Europe and the
Western world, a writer in "Scribner's Magazine," who
evidently shared the experience and witnessed the scenes of
the march, gives the following account: "The dreary stretches
through which the Pei-ho flows, never attractive to the
Western eye, presented, as the allied armies slowly traversed
them, a scene of indescribable desolation. … In a region which
usually contained a population of many millions, scarcely a
human being, besides those attached to the allied armies, was
to be seen. Towns and villages were completely deserted. In
China an ordinary town will have from one to three hundred
thousand inhabitants, while villages not of sufficient
importance to be designated on the maps, have populations
varying from ten to thirty thousand. These villages line the
banks of the Pei-ho and the main road to Peking by hundreds.
The troops were never entirely clear of them. … So hurried had
been the flight of the inhabitants that hundreds of houses
were left open, such household possessions that could not be
carried away being tousled about in great disorder. Of all
that dense population, only a few scattered hundreds of aged,
decrepit men and women, and some unfortunate cripples and
abandoned children, remained. A great majority of these were
ruthlessly slain. The Russians and Japanese shot or bayoneted
them without compunction. Their prayers for mercy availed not.
If these miserable unfortunates chanced to fall into the hands
of American or British troops they had a chance for their
lives, but even our armies are not free from these wanton
sacrifices. Every town, every village, every peasant's hut in
the path of the troops was first looted and then burned. A
stretch of country fully ten miles in width was thus swept.
Mounted 'flanks in the air' scoured far and wide, keen on the
scent of plunder, dark columns of smoke on the horizon
attesting their labors. In this merry task of chastising the
heathen Chinese, the Cossacks easily excelled. … Like an
avenging Juggernaut the Army of Civilization moved. Terror
strode before it; Death and Desolation sat and brooded in its
path. Through such scenes as these, day after day, the army
glided. A spirit of utter callousness took root, and enveloped
officers and men alike. Pathetic scenes passed without comment or
even notice. Pathos, involved in a riot of more violent
emotions, had lost its power to move."
T. F. Millard,
A Comparison of the Armies in China
(Scribner's Magazine, January, 1901).
Another eye witness, writing in the "Contemporary Review,"
tells the same sickening and shameful story, with more
vividness of description and detail: "As a rule," he remarks,
"the heathen Chinee suffers silently, and dies calmly. He has,
it is true, a deep-rooted hatred of war, and sometimes a
paralysing fear of being shot down in battle. But he takes
beheading, hanging, or death by torture with as much
resignation as did Seneca, and a great deal less fuss. And he
bears the loss of those near and dear to him with the same
serenity, heroism, or heartlessness. But he does not often
move to pity, and very seldom yearns for sympathy. The dire
sights which anyone might have witnessed during the months of
August and September in Northern China afforded admirable
illustrations of this aspect of the national character. The
doings of some of the apostles of culture were so heinous that
even the plea of their having been perpetrated upon wild savages
would not free them from the nature of crimes. I myself
remember how profoundly I was impressed when sailing on one
calm summer's day up to the bar of Taku towards the mouth of
the river Pei-ho. Dead bodies of Chinamen were floating
seawards, some with eyes agape and aghast, others with
brainless skulls and eyeless sockets, and nearly all of them
wearing their blue blouses, baggy trousers, and black glossy
pigtails. Many of them looked as if they were merely swimming
on their backs. …
{133}
"The next picture that engraved itself upon my memory had for
its frame the town of Tong-kew. … On the right bank [of the
Pei-ho] naked children were amusing themselves in the infected
water which covered them to the arm-pits, dancing, shouting,
splashing each other, turning somersaults, and intoxicating
themselves with the pure joy of living. A few yards behind
them lay their fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers, dead,
unburied, mouldering away. On the left bank, which was also
but a few yards off, was the site of Tongkew: a vast expanse
of smoking rubbish heaps. Not a roof was left standing; hardly
a wall was without a wide breach; formless mounds of baked
mud, charred woodwork, and half-buried clothes were burning or
smouldering still. Here and there a few rootless dwellings
were left, as if to give an idea of what the town had been
before the torch of civilisation set it aflame. Everyone of
these houses, one could see, had been robbed, wrecked, and
wantonly ruined. All the inhabitants who were in the place
when the troops swept through had been swiftly sent to their
last account, but not yet to their final resting-place. Beside
the demolished huts, under the lengthening shadows of the
crumbling walls, on the thresholds of houseless doorways, were
spread out scores, hundreds of mats, pieces of canvas,
fragments of tarpaulin, and wisps of straw, which bulged
suspiciously upwards. At first one wondered what they could
have been put there for. But the clue was soon revealed. In
places where the soldiers had scamped their work, or prey
birds had been busy, a pair of fleshless feet or a plaited
pigtail protruding from the scanty covering satisfied any
curiosity which the passer-by could have felt after having
breathed the nauseating air. Near the motionless plumage of
the tall grass happy children were playing. Hard by an
uncovered corpse a group of Chinamen were carrying out the
orders they had received from the invaders. None of the living
seemed to heed the dead. …
"Feeling that I never know a man until I have been permitted
to see somewhat of his hidden springs of action and gauge the
depth or shallowness of his emotion, I set myself to get a
glance at what lay behind the mask of propriety which a
Chinaman habitually wears in Tongkew as in every other town
and village in the Empire. As soon as the ice seemed broken I
asked one smiling individual: 'Why do you stay here with the
slayers of your relatives and friends?' 'To escape their fate,
if we can,' was the reply. 'We may be killed at any time, but
while we live we must eat, and for food we have to work.'
'Were many of your people killed?' I inquired. 'Look there,'
he answered, pointing to the corpses in the vast over-ground
churchyard, 'and in the river there are many more. The
Russians killed every Chinaman they met. Of them we are in
great fear. They never look whether we have crosses or medals;
they shoot everyone.' 'You are a Christian, then?' I queried.
'Yea, a Christian,' he eagerly answered. 'And I,' 'And I,'
chimed in two others. Ten minutes' further conversation,
however, brought out the fact that they were Christians not
for conscience' sake but for safety, and they were sorely
afraid that they were leaning on a broken reed. The upshot of
what they had to tell me was that the Europeans, mainly the
Russians, looked upon them all as legitimate quarry, and
hounded them down accordingly. They and theirs, they declared,
had been shot in skirmishes, killed in sport, and bayoneted in
play.
"But the ever-recurring refrain of their narrative was the
massacre in cold blood of the three hundred coolies of Taku. …
The story has been often told since then, not merely in the
north but throughout the length and breadth of China. The
leading facts, as narrated on the spot, are these: Some three
hundred hard-working coolies eked out a very cheerless
existence by loading and unloading the steamers of all nations
which touched at Taku. For the convenience of both sides they
all cooped themselves up in one boat, which served them as a
permanent dwelling. When times were slack they were huddled
together there like herrings in a barrel, and when work was
brisk they toiled and moiled like galley slaves. Thus they
managed to get along, doing harm to no man and good to many.
The attack of the foreign troops upon Taku was the beginning
of their end. Hearing one day the sharp reports of rifle
shots, this peaceable and useful community was panic-stricken.
In order to save their dreary lives they determined to go ashore.
Strong in their weakness, and trusting in their character of
working men who abhorred war, they steered their boat
landwards. In an evil hour they were espied by the Russian
troops, who at that time had orders, it is said, to slay every
human being who wore a pigtail. Each of the three hundred
defenceless coolies at once became a target for Muscovite
bullets. It must have been a sickening sight when it was all
done. …
"The river Pei-ho, could it bear witness in words to the
dramas of blood enacted on its banks by Europeans, would have
many a tale to tell as grewsome as that of the slaughter of
the three hundred coolies. … I lived for twelve or thirteen
days on that foul river, and never was I more profoundly
impressed than by what I saw in its waters and on its banks.
The first day after I had left Tientsin I was towed by
untiring coolies through a land thickly studded over with what
had once been human dwellings, but were now high heaps of
smouldering rubbish. … A wave of death and desolation had
swept over the land, washing away the vestiges of Chinese
culture. Men, women, boys, girls, and babes in arms had been
shot, stabbed, and hewn to bits in this labyrinth of streets,
and now, on both banks of the river, reigned the peace
described by Tacitus. …
"Fire and sword had put their marks upon this entire country.
The untrampled corn was rotting in the fields, the pastures
were herdless, rootless the ruins of houses, the hamlets
devoid of inhabitants. In all the villages we passed the
desolation was the same. … The streets and houses of
war-blasted cities were also the scenes of harrowing
tragedies, calculated to sear and scar the memory even of the
average man who is not given to 'sickly sentimentality.' In
war they would have passed unnoticed; in times of peace
(hostilities were definitely over) they ought to have been
stopped by drastic measures, if mild means had proved
ineffectual. I speak as an eye-witness when I say, for
example, that over and over again the gutters of the city of
Tungtschau ran red with blood, and I sometimes found it
impossible to go my way without getting my boots bespattered
with human gore. There were few shops, private houses and
courtyards without dead bodies and pools of dark blood. … The
thirst of blood had made men mad. The pettiest and most
despicable whipper-snapper who happened to have seen the light
of day in Europe or Japan had uncontrolled power over the life
and limbs, the body and soul, of the most highly-cultivated
Chinaman in the city. From his decision there was no appeal. A
Chinaman never knew what might betide him an hour hence, if the
European lost his temper. He might lie down to rest after
having worked like a beast of burden for twelve or fourteen
hours only to be suddenly awakened out of his sleep, marched a
few paces from his hard couch, and shot dead.
{134}
He was never told, and probably seldom guessed, the reason
why. I saw an old man and woman who were thus hurriedly
hustled out of existence. Their day's work done they were
walking home, when a fire broke out on a little barge on the
river. They were the only living beings found out of bed at
the time, and in the pockets of the woman a candle and some
matches were stowed away. Nobody, not even the boat-watchman,
had seen them on or near the boat. They were pounced upon,
taken to the river's edge, shot and buried. It was the work of
fifteen minutes or less. …
"The circumstantial tales told of the dishonouring of wives,
girls, children, in Tientsin, Tungtschau, Pekin, are such as
should in normal beings kindle some sparks of indignation
without the aid of 'sickly sentimentality.' … I knew well a
man whose wife had been dealt with in this manner, and then
killed along with her child. He was one of the 'good and loyal
people' who were on excellent terms with the Christians; but, if
ever he gets a chance of wreaking vengeance upon the
foreigners, he will not lightly let it slip. I knew of others
whose wives and daughters hanged themselves on trees or
drowned themselves in garden-wells in order to escape a much
worse lot. Chinese women honestly believed that no more
terrible fate could overtake them than to fall alive into the
hands of Europeans and Christians. And it is to be feared that
they were right. Buddhism and Confucianism have their martyrs
to chastity, whose heroic feats no martyrology will ever
record. Some of these obscure, but rightminded, girls and
women hurled themselves into the river, and, finding only
three feet of water there, kept their heads under the surface
until death had set his seal on the sacrifice of their life.
This suicidal frenzy was catching. … So far as I have been
able to make out, and I have been at some pains to investigate
the subject, no officers or soldiers of English or
German-speaking nationalities have been guilty of these
abominations against defenceless women."
E. J. Dillon,
The Chinese Wolf and the European Lamb
(Contemporary Review, January, 1901).
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (August 15-28).
Occupation of Peking by the allied forces.
International jealousies.
License to some of the soldiery.
Shameful stories of looting and outrage.
Formal march through the "Forbidden City."
"Early on the morning of the 15th [of August]—the day after
the siege of the Legations was raised—General Chaffee [the
American commander] advanced his men from the Chien Mên, which
he had held overnight, and drove the Chinese from gateway to
gateway back along the wide-paved approach to the far-famed
'Forbidden City.' From the wall at the Chien Mên the American
field battery shelled each of the great gateways before the
infantry advanced, and Captain Reilly, who commanded the
battery, was killed while directing the operations—a bullet
striking him full in the face and passing out through the back
of his head. In him was lost a popular and efficient officer. The
movements of the Americans were watched with no little anxiety
by certain of the allies, who evidently feared that General
Chaffee was about to enter and seize the Forbidden City
itself. The French, who had only that morning arrived, were
apparently very keen to establish a claim by joining in the
attack, for they took their mountain guns to the top of the
wall opposite the Legations, and began blazing away in the
direction of the approaches to the Palace. It so happened that
by this time the Americans had penetrated nearly to the
gateway of the Palace itself, and this French fire, so
suddenly opened, was directed upon them, instead of, as the
French General thought, upon the enemy. General Chaffee rode
down himself from the Chien Mên to where the guns were placed
on the wall, and from below conducted a spirited conversation
with the French General and M. Pichon. 'Stop firing those
guns,' the General shouted up from 60 ft. below, 'you are
killing my men.' Not understanding, the French General replied
to the effect that he was firing for the honour of France, and
M. Pichon joined in with similar protestations. General
Chaffee's protests increased in vigour, and the force,
perhaps, rather than the lucidity of them eventually induced
the French General to desist from firing upon the Americans
for the honour and glory of 'la patrie.' The Russians also
displayed a marked desire to participate in the operations in
front of the Palace, coming up after the fighting was
practically finished and attempting to occupy a part of the
position won by the Americans. Again General Chaffee had to
speak forcibly to persuade the Russians to retire. General
Chaffee cleared and occupied the whole length of the
approaches—a series of noble paved courtyards—from the Chien
Mên to the south gate of the Palace, before which he set a
strong guard. His doings were quite evidently being watched
with suspicion, and in the afternoon a conference was held, at
which it was solemnly agreed by the representatives of the
allies that in the meantime, pending the arrangement of some
concerted plan, the Forbidden City should not be entered. In
other parts of the city the work of clearing out the enemy was
meanwhile progressing, the Japanese and Russians operating on the
east and to the north, and the British to the south in the
Chinese city.
"It was thought that an expedition would have been undertaken
by the French to relieve the besieged in the Pei-tang. Help
could have been obtained for the asking, and it is difficult
to understand why no effort was made to reach the unfortunate
people, who, be it noted, were still being attacked, and whose
position, for all that was known, might have been desperate to
the last degree. The story of the long and weary weeks of
fighting round the stately cathedral pile—alas, now, now
battered and rent!—must be written by no outsider from
hearsay, but first hand by a survivor. As heard from the lips
of Père Favier, it is, indeed, a thrilling narrative in many
respects, surpassing in wonder even its sister story of the
defence of the Legations. … The relief was effected the
following morning by a combined force of French and Russians,
with whom also were the British Marines under Major Luke, R.
M. L. I., the whole under the command of the French general.
When this force arrived it was found that the Japanese had
already practically raised the siege, having started earlier
and worked along on the north-west of the Imperial City,
driving the Chinese before them. However, the Japanese had not
actually penetrated into the Pei-tang defences, and the French
had the satisfaction, after all, of being first in to receive a
joyful welcome from their long-suffering fellow-countrymen.
{135}
The raising of the siege was signalized by the slaughter of a
large number of Chinese who had been rounded up into a cul de
sac and who were killed to a man, the Chinese Christian
converts joining in with the French soldiers of the relieving
force, who lent them bayonets, and abandoning themselves to
the spirit of revenge. Witnesses describe the scene as a
sickening sight, but in judging such acts it is necessary to
remember the provocation, and these people had been sorely
tried. …
"The French general had given orders to Major Luke to remain
with his men to guard a bridge in the rear while the relief of
the Pei-tang was being effected. Afterwards the main body of
the relieving force was pushed on through the Imperial City,
leaving the British contingent behind. After waiting some time
Major Luke came to the conclusion that he must have been
forgotten, and, leaving a guard on the bridge, followed on in
the track of the French troops, to find that they had
penetrated into the Imperial City along the wall of the Palace
as far as the Meishan (Coal Hill), from the pagodas on which
the tri-colour was flying. The Russians had taken up a
position near the North Gate of the Palace, and he was only
just in time to secure the temple building at the foot of the
Meishan, and the camping-ground alongside of it. There was
great enthusiasm between the Russians and French, who cheered
each other as their forces appeared, in marked contrast to the
coolness with which the arrival of Major Luke and his men was
received. … The Russians are camped round the old place and
will permit no one in to see over it; in fact, in this part of
the city French or Russian sentries make it difficult to see most
of the many objects of art or interest. …
"Now that the common bond of interest in the success of the
relief expedition was removed, the points of difference at
once began to appear, and the underlying jealousy and
suspicion with which it seems each nation regards almost every
other manifested itself in various ways, particularly in the
unseemly race for loot and the game of general grab that now
started up, the methods of which were indicated above with
regard to the seizure of the Meishan. The Japanese seized the
Board of Revenue and must have found a huge amount of money
there, to judge by the length of the line of pack mules that
it took to carry it away. Through a mistake, it is said, on
the part of the Americans, the French got possession of the
Palace of Prince Li, said to contain treasure to the extent of
many millions of dollars. The Russians also got some treasure,
seizing on a large bank.
"Inside the Forbidden City, the Chinese say, there is fabulous
wealth in treasure stowed away or buried, and it is
principally lest this should prove true that so much jealousy
exists about the privilege of entering. Of course, the
question is also of great importance politically, and after
several diplomatic conferences it was eventually decided that,
on a date still to be arranged, the Ministers and Generals of
all the Powers should enter at the same time and proceed
together through the Palace, ascertaining the nature and value
of its contents and then sealing the whole place up and
withdrawing to await instructions from the home Governments. …
As regards the larger game of grab, the Russians succeeded in
winning the last large prize, the Wan Shen Shan, or new Summer
Palace, seven miles out near the western hills, racing for it
against a body of Japanese and coming in a quarter of an hour
ahead, having had a long start. So the story goes, but it is
not easy to check such stories, both Japanese and Russians
being very reticent about their relations with each other. One
thing only is certain, that the Russians are in jealous
possession of the Wan Shen Shan. Two British officers who rode
out there a couple of days ago in uniform were refused
admission to the grounds.
"Alongside of this official looting, private looting on the
part of the foreign soldiers was freely permitted during the
first few days; in fact, the city was abandoned for the most
part to the soldiery, and horrible stories of the kind common
in war, but nevertheless and everlastingly revolting, were
current—stories of the ravishing of women in circumstances of
great savagery, particularly by the rough Russian soldiers and
their following of French. The number of Chinese women who
committed suicide rather than submit to dishonour was
considerable. A British officer of standing told me he had
seen seven hanging from the same beam in the house of
apparently a well-to-do Chinaman. These stories, and I heard
of many more, reflect credit upon Chinese womanhood and
something very different upon the armies of Europe, which are
supposed to be the forerunners and upholders of civilization
in this particular campaign. However, this period of licence
was not of long duration. The soldiers having had their fling,
the city was divided, by arrangement, into districts, each
under the control of one of the Powers, proclamations were
issued reassuring the remaining peaceable citizens and
encouraging others to return, and gradually the work of
restoring law and order and confidence is progressing. …
"Where is the Chinese Government? Fled to Je-hol? No one seems
to know for certain. It is only certain that on the morning of
the 14th the Empress-Dowager and her following, and the
Imperial Court, fled by the west gate of the city and
disappeared. This flight took place while the Japanese were
actually engaged in shelling the Tse-kwa Mên and the city
wall. If they had succeeded in their first attempt on the gate
in the morning, the flight of the Court might have been
prevented. The Empress and her advisers had a narrow escape. …
"August 28. After deliberations occupying a full fortnight the
question of what was to be done with the Forbidden City has
been settled, at any rate, for the time being. The main
problem presented was not new; Lord Elgin had to face it forty
years ago. Considerations of immediate political expediency
guided his action then, as they have dictated the course
adopted now. He spared the Imperial Palace, and burnt instead
the Yuen Ming Yuen, or Summer Palace, seven miles from Peking.
As a result the fact that British troops ever entered Peking
does not appear in Chinese history, indeed the idea is
ridiculed by Mandarindom. Remembering this, many people here
thought it would be desirable in the present instance to burn
the Imperial Palace, after carefully removing the art
treasures, and thus, if possible, impress upon the whole
Chinese nation some idea of the enormity of the crime which
their Government has committed against civilization at large.
{136}
On the other hand, it was held that if this were done the
Imperial Court, through loss of 'face,' could never return to
Peking, and this contingency appealed strongly to the
representatives of both Russia and Japan, who conceived that
the interests of their respective countries demanded the
retention of Peking as the capital. What the representatives
of the other Powers thought has not transpired, nor does it
matter much at present, the overwhelming position of Russia
and Japan combined making all opposition to their proposals
futile. Germany may insist upon burning the Palace when he
forces have all arrived, and those who think it ought to be
done hope that she will; but in the meantime the conference of
commanding officers, in consultation with the Ministers,
decided not to do more than march a small force of foreign
troops through the 'sacred precincts' from the South Gate to
the North, after which these were to be again closed, leaving
the Palace intact. There was to be no looting. Everything was
to be done to provide against the idea arising that the place
had been desecrated. The ceremony was merely to be a display
of military power. …
"Arrangements were made for certain Chinese officials to be
present during the ceremony and also for a number of
attendants to open up the various halls through which the
troops would require to pass, and to close the doors behind
the 'barbarians' when they finally withdrew. Yesterday there
were reports of further friction and possible further
postponement of the ceremony, but by evening these had died
away and the programme had assumed at last a definite shape.
According to it the various troops were to parade this morning
between 7 and 8 outside the Tien-an Mên, the Inner Gate of the
Imperial City. There at the time appointed they were drawn up,
and the interest of a great historic event began. The Imperial
Palace, or Forbidden City, is an enclosure about two-thirds of
a mile long from north to south and about half a mile broad
from east to west. It is surrounded by a high wall. Outside
this wall on the west, north, and east lies a broad moat. From
the south it is approached by a series of immense paved
courtyards divided one from the other by high and massive
gateways, above which rise imposing pavilions with
yellow-tiled overhanging roofs, flanked by great towers built
in the same style and similarly roofed with Imperial yellow.
This Forbidden City or Imperial Palace enclosure is situated
within the Imperial City, a larger enclosure, also surrounded
by a high tile-topped wall. It was outside the Inner Gateway
to this Imperial City that the troops were drawn up. The
Russians took up their position on the centre, close to the
stone bridge in front of the Tien-an Mên; the Japanese were
opposite the gateway on the left; the British to the right of
the Russians in a wide paved avenue running east and west
outside the inner wall of the Imperial City. The remainder of
the allies were drawn up to the rear of the Russians and
Japanese in the wide avenue running north and south from the
Outer Gateway (Ta-ching Mên). As a pageant it was not a
success. Soldiers on service do not make a fine show. … Inside
the Tien-an Mên the central stone road continues for about
half a mile down a broad, flagged avenue running between
handsome temple buildings on either hand, until the Wu Mên, or
south gate, of the Forbidden City is reached. It is an
imposing entrance. The gateway itself is high and massive, and
the towers on top are particularly fine. Thus far, on the
morning of the 15th, the American troops fought, driving the
Chinese before them into the city. The self-denial displayed
by General Chaffee on that occasion has not, perhaps, received
proper recognition. There was at that time no agreement to
hold him back, and he might have pressed on and taken the
palace and hoisted the Stars and Stripes over it. It would
have been a fine prize, and the temptation must have been
great, but General Chaffee, acting, possibly, under the advice
of Mr. Conger, the United States Minister, refrained—a
noteworthy act. This gateway has been held by an American
guard ever since, and American troops have been quartered in
the approach to it. …
"After it was over the generals and staff officers and the
Ministers and other privileged persons returned by the way we
had come through the Forbidden City. Tea was provided by the
Chinese officials in the summer-house of the palace garden,
the quaint beauties of which there was now time to appreciate.
Beautiful stone carvings and magnificent bronzes claimed
attention. The march through had occupied about an hour, and
another was spent sauntering back through the various halls
and courtyards. As the halls were cleared the Chinese
attendants hastily closed the doors behind us with evident
relief at our departure. A few jade ornaments were pocketed by
quick-fingered persons desirous of possessing souvenirs, but
on the whole the understanding that there was to be no looting
was carried out. Arrived at the courtyard where their horses had
been left, the generals and staff officers mounted and rode
out of the palace, and the rest of us followed on foot. The
gates were once more closed and guards were stationed outside
to prevent anyone from entering. The Forbidden City resumed
its normal state, inviolate, undesecrated. The honour of the
civilized world, we were told, had been thus vindicated. But
had it?"
London Times,
Peking Correspondence.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (August-September).
The flight of the Imperial Court.
The following account of the flight of the Court from Peking
to Tai-yuen-fu was given to a newspaper correspondent, in
October, by Prince Su, who accompanied the fugitive Emperor
and Dowager-Empress, and afterwards returned to Peking:
"The day the Court left Peking they travelled in carts to
Kuan-shi, 20 miles to the north, escorted by 3,000 soldiers of
various commands. This composite army pillaged, murdered, and
outraged along the whole route. At Kuan-shi the Imperial
cortege was supplied with mule litters. The flight then
continued at the rate of 20 miles daily to Hsuan-hua-fu, where
a halt was made for three days. This place is 120 miles from
Peking. Up to this time the flight had been of a most
panic-stricken nature. So little authority was exerted that
the soldiers even stole the meals which had been prepared for
the Emperor and the Dowager-Empress. Some improvement was
effected by the execution of several for murder and pillaging,
and gradually the various constituents of the force were
brought under control.
{137}
Many of the Dowager-Empress's advisers were in favour of
remaining at Hsuan-hua-fu, on account of the comparatively
easy means of communication with the capital. The majority,
however, were in such fear of pursuit by the foreign troops
that the proposition was overruled. The flight was then
resumed towards Tai-yuen-fu. Before leaving Hsuan-hua-fu,
10,000 additional troops under Tung-fuh-siang joined the
escort. The newcomers, however, only added to the discord
already prevailing. The Dowager-Empress did little else but
weep and upbraid those whose advice had brought them into such
a position. The Emperor reviled everyone irrespective of his
opinions. The journey to Tai-yuen-fu took 26 days, the longest
route being taken for fear of pursuit. On arriving there the
formation of some kind of Government was attempted, but owing
to the many elements of discord this was found to be next to
impossible. Though many edicts were issued they could not be
enforced. Neither party cared for an open rupture, and affairs
rapidly assumed a state of chaos. Prince Su further said that
the Emperor did not desire to leave Peking, preferring to
trust himself to the allies, but his objections were not
listened to and he was compelled to accompany the flight."
The final resting-place of the fugitive Imperial Court for
some months was Si-ngan-fu, or Sin-gan Fu, or Segan Fu, or
Sian Fu (as it is variously written), a large city, the
capital of the western province of Shensi.
CHINA: A. D. 1900 (August-December).
Discussions among "the Powers" as to the terms to be made
with the Chinese Government.
Opening of negotiations with Prince Ching and Li Hung-chang.
Immediately upon the capture of Peking, Li Hung-chang
addressed appeals to the Powers for a cessation of
hostilities, for the withdrawal of troops from Peking, and for
the appointment of envoys to negotiate a permanent peace.
Discussion among the governments followed, the first definite
outcome of which appeared in the announcement of an intention
on the part of Russia to withdraw her troops from Peking as
soon as order had been re-established there, and of a
disposition on the part of the United States to act with
Russia in that procedure. This substantial agreement between
the two governments was made public by the printing of the
following dispatch, dated August 29, from Mr. Adee, the
American Acting Secretary of State, to the representatives of
the United States in London, Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Rome, and
Tokio:
"The Russian Charge d'Affaires yesterday afternoon made me an
oral statement regarding Russia's purposes in China to the
following effect:—'That, as she has already repeatedly
declared, Russia has no designs of territorial acquisition in
China; that, equally with the other Powers now operating
there, Russia sought the safety of her Legation in Peking and
to help the Chinese Government to repress the troubles that
arose; that incidentally to the necessary defensive measures
on the Russian border, Russia has occupied Niu-chwang for
military purposes, and as soon as order is re-established she
will withdraw her troops from the town if the action of the
other Powers be no obstacle; that the purpose for which the
various Governments have co-operated for the relief of the
Legations in Peking has been accomplished; that taking the
position that as the Chinese Government has left Peking there
is no need for the Russian representative to remain, Russia
has directed her Minister to retire with his official
personnel from China; that the Russian troops will likewise be
withdrawn, and that when the Government of China shall regain the
reins of government and can afford an authority with which the
other Powers can deal, and will express a desire to enter into
negotiations, the Russian Government will also name its
representative.' Holding these views and purposes, Russia has
expressed the hope that the United States will share the same
opinion.
"To this declaration our reply has been made by the following
memorandum:—'The Government of the United States has received
with much satisfaction the reiterated statement that Russia
has no designs of territorial acquisition in China and that,
equally with the other Powers now operating in China, Russia
has sought the safety of her Legation and to help the Chinese
Government to repress the existing troubles. The same purposes
have moved, and will continue to control, the Government of
the United States, and the frank declarations of Russia in
this regard are in accord with those made to the United States
by the other Powers. All the Powers, therefore, having
disclaimed any purpose to acquire any part of China, and now
that the adherence thereto has been renewed since relief
reached Peking, it ought not to be difficult by concurrent
action through negotiations to reach an amicable settlement
with China whereby the treaty rights of all the Powers shall
be secured for the future, the open door assured, the
interests and property of foreign citizens conserved, and full
reparation made for the wrongs and injuries suffered by them.
"So far as we are advised, the greater part of China is at
peace and earnestly desires to protect the life and property
of all foreigners, and in several of the provinces active and
successful efforts to suppress the 'Boxers' have been taken by
the Viceroys, to whom we have extended encouragement through
our Consuls and naval officers. This present good relation
should be promoted for the peace of China. While we agree that
the immediate object for which the military forces of the
Powers have been co-operating—the relief of the Ministers in
Peking—has been accomplished, there still remain other
purposes which all the Powers have in common, which have been
referred to in the communication of the Russian Charge d'
Affaires, and which were specifically enumerated in our Note
to the Powers.
"These are:—To afford all possible protection everywhere in
China to foreign life and property; to guard and protect all
legitimate foreign interests; to aid in preventing the spread
of disorders in the other provinces of the Empire and the
recurrence of such disorders; to seek a solution which may
bring about permanent safety and peace in China; to preserve
the Chinese territorial and administrative entity; to protect
all rights guaranteed by treaty and international law to
friendly Powers; and to safeguard for the world the principle
of equal and impartial trade with all parts of the Chinese
Empire. In our opinion, these purposes could best be attained
by the joint occupation of Peking under a definite
understanding between the Powers until the Chinese Government
shall have been re-established and shall be in a position to
enter into new treaties containing adequate provisions for
reparation and guarantees for future protection.
{138}
"With the establishment and recognition of such authority the
United States would wish to withdraw its military forces from
Peking and remit to the processes of peaceful negotiation our
just demands. We consider, however, that the continued
occupation of Peking would be ineffective to produce the
desired result unless all the Powers unite therein with entire
harmony of purpose. Any Power which determines to withdraw its
troops from Peking will necessarily proceed thereafter to
protect its interests in China by its own method, and we think
this would make a general withdrawal expedient. As to the time
and manner of withdrawal, we think that, in view of the
imperfect knowledge of the military situation resulting from
the interruptions of telegraphic communication, the several
military commanders in Peking should be instructed to confer
and to agree together upon the withdrawal as a concerted
movement, as they agreed upon in advance.
"The result of these considerations is that, unless there is
such a general expression by the Powers in favour of the
continued occupation as to modify the views expressed by the
Russian Government and lead to a general agreement for
continued occupation, we shall give instructions to the
commander of the American forces in China to withdraw our
troops from Peking after due conference with the other
commanders as to the time and manner of withdrawal.
"The Government of the United States is much gratified by the
assurance given by Russia that the occupation of Niu-chwang is
for military purposes incidental to the military steps for the
security of the Russian border provinces menaced by the
Chinese, and that as soon as order is established Russia will
withdraw her troops from those places if the action of the
other Powers is not an obstacle thereto. No obstacle in this
regard can arise through any action of the United States,
whose policy is fixed and has been repeatedly proclaimed."
Even before the communication received from Russia, the
government of the United States had taken steps to withdraw
the greater part of its troops. "On the 25th of August," says
the American Secretary of War, in his annual report, November
30, 1900, "General Chaffee was directed to hold his forces in
readiness for instructions to withdraw, and on the 25th of
September he was instructed to send to Manila all the American
troops in China with the exception of a legation guard, to
consist of a regiment of infantry, a squadron of cavalry, and
one light battery."
The expressions from Russia and the United States in favor of
an early withdrawal of foreign troops from Peking, and the
opening of pacific negotiations with the Chinese government,
were unsatisfactory to several of the concerted Powers, and
were sharply criticised in the British and German press. The
German government, especially, was disposed to insist upon
stern and strenuous measures in dealing with that of China,
and it addressed the following circular note, on the 18th of
September, to all the Powers:
"The Government of the Emperor holds as preliminary to
entering upon diplomatic relations with the Chinese Government
that those persons must be delivered up who have been proved
to be the original and real instigators of the outrages
against international law which have occurred at Peking. The
number of those who were merely instruments in carrying out
the outrages is too great. Wholesale executions would be
contrary to the civilized conscience, and the circumstances of
such a group of leaders cannot be completely ascertained. But
a few whose guilt is notorious should be delivered up and
punished. The representatives of the powers at Peking are in a
position to give or bring forward convincing evidence. Less
importance attaches to the number punished than to their
character as chief instigators or leaders. The Government
believes it can count on the unanimity of all the Cabinets in
regard to this point, insomuch as indifference to the idea of
just atonement would be equivalent to indifference to a
repetition of the crime. The Government proposes, therefore,
that the Cabinets concerned should instruct their
representatives at Peking to indicate those leading Chinese
personages from whose guilt in instigating or perpetrating
outrages all doubt is excluded."
The British government was understood to be not unwilling to
support this demand from Germany, but little encouragement
seems to have been officially given to it from other quarters,
and the government of the United States was most emphatic in
declining to approve it. The reply of the latter to the German
circular note was promptly given, September 21, as follows:
"The government of the United States has, from the outset,
proclaimed its purpose to hold to the uttermost accountability
the responsible authors of any wrongs done in China to
citizens of the United States and their interests, as was
stated in the Government's circular communication to the
Powers of July 3 last. These wrongs have been committed not
alone in Peking, but in many parts of the Empire, and their
punishment is believed to be an essential element of any
effective settlement which shall prevent a recurrence of such
outrages and bring about permanent safety and peace in China.
It is thought, however, that no punitive measures can be so
effective by way of reparation for wrongs suffered and as
deterrent examples for the future as the degradation and
punishment of the responsible authors by the supreme Imperial
authority itself, and it seems only just to China that she
should be afforded in the first instance an opportunity to do
this and thus rehabilitate herself before the world.
"Believing thus, and without abating in anywise its deliberate
purpose to exact the fullest accountability from the
responsible authors of the wrongs we have suffered in China,
the Government of the United States is not disposed, as a
preliminary condition to entering into diplomatic negotiations
with the Chinese Government, to join in a demand that said
Government surrender to the Powers such persons as, according
to the determination of the Powers themselves, may be held to
be the first and real perpetrators of those wrongs. On the
other hand, this Government is disposed to hold that the
punishment of the high responsible authors of these wrongs,
not only in Peking, but throughout China, is essentially a
condition to be embraced and provided for in the negotiations
for a final settlement.
{139}
It is the purpose of this Government, at the earliest
practicable moment, to name its plenipotentiaries for
negotiating a settlement with China, and in the mean time to
authorize its Minister in Peking to enter forthwith into
conference with the duly authorized representatives of the
Chinese Government, with a view of bringing about a
preliminary agreement whereby the full exercise of the
Imperial power for the preservation of order and the
protection of foreign life and property throughout China,
pending final negotiations with the Powers, shall be assured."
On the same day on which the above note was written the
American government announced its recognition of Prince Ching
and Li Hung-chang, as plenipotentiaries appointed to represent
the Emperor of China, in preliminary negotiations for the
restoration of the imperial authority at Peking and for a
settlement with the foreign Powers.
Differences between the Powers acting together in China, as to
the preliminary conditions of negotiation with the Chinese
government, and as to the nature and range of the demands to
be made upon it, were finally adjusted on the lines of a
proposal advanced by the French Foreign Office, in a note
dated October 4, addressed to the several governments, as
follows:
"The intention of the Powers in sending their forces to China
was, above all, to deliver the Legations. Thanks to their
union and the valour of their troops this object has been
attained. The question now is to obtain from the Chinese
Government, which has given Prince Ching and Li Hung-chang
full powers to negotiate and to treat in its name, suitable
reparation for the past and serious guarantees for the future.
Penetrated with the spirit which has evoked the previous
declarations of the different Governments, the Government of
the Republic has summarized its own sentiments in the
following points, which it submits as a basis for the