**
14
+
August 29, 1895.]
7
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE RÉPORT.
FURTHER DISTURBANCES
AT FOOCHOW,
ATTACK ON AN AMERICAN MISSION SCHOOL
GROWING ANTI-FOREIGN FEELING FROM A CORRESPONDENT BY TEL GRAPH].
FооCHOW, 22nd August, 7.30 a.m. Captain Newall, of the American cruiser Detriot, and Dr. Hart are proceeding to Kutien.
A crowd attacked the American Mission chapel and school outside the West gate of Foo- chow. They used weapons and four (? Chinese pupils) were wounded. The teacher escaped.
A strong anti-foreign feeling is growing here. The people are talking about driving out the foreigners.
At Kutien the situation is unchanged:
Foocнow, 23rd August, 5.50 p.m. The wounded reported in Thursday's telegram were Chinese. It was a local affair only. No foreigners were present.
THE KUCHENG MASSACRE.
THE COMMISSION OF ENQUIRY. [FROM A CORRESPONDENT BY TELEGRAPH.
Foocnow, 19th August.
« ‹ Volunteers have a bunker capacity of "several hundreds of tons of coals, and "would most likely be at their best steam- ing trim with someting like two thousand "tons of coal in their holds as dead-weight. "What six or seven such cruisers might do "amongst our shipping all the way from
Suez to Japan it is hard to say.
There "would be no catching them or escaping "them. Our Atlantic flyers,' even if they "had not other work to do, could not possibly get to the Straits of Malacca or the China "Sea in time; and it is well to remember "that the Peninsular aud Oriental liner "which finds its way to the Far East is but a 12 or 13 knot craft, sent there most likely because she is not fast enough for "their Australian service." He goes on to point out that cables are apt to get out of working order in times of profoundest peace, and are still more liable, to be "interrupted during time of war, while even if the tele- graph was available the admiral might not always have a fast cruiser at his immediate disposal. Mr. Ross is evidently disposed to advocate an alliance with Russia, with whom he thinks we should be fast friends but that does not blind him to the neces of Great Britain being prepared for alllents The Prefect of the Kucheng district, together tualities, for he says: "It seem
ity of
with the Chinese officials sent with the Com- And if sistent, to say the least of it, to
mission of enquiry to Kucheng, have refused to police "millions on our navy and our f
allow the Consuls to be present during the ex Lêm is
amination of the prisoners The matter bas coaling stations in the Far East,
been referred to the Viceroy of the Province "fastest steamers in seas where E ---and serious difficulties are anticipated. "terests are so important fly a foreign flag. "Our Russian friends are surely teaching us that we should have vessels of a certain "type designed for permanent service in "Eastern waters." The steamers of the Canadian Pacific Company are the nearest to the mark, but there are but three Empresses and probably only one would be available at short notice. The moral is that the British should increase the subsidy paid to the P. & O. S. N. Co., and require them to put on the service eighteen knot boats which would be available for fast cruisers in the event of war. Here is a matter for the local branch of the Navy League to take up. British trade in Eastern seas is so vast and so valuable that we cannot allow it to be ex- posed to possible attacks. We are friendly with Russia and earnestly desire to continue so, but however satisfied we may be now and in the future of the pacific intentions of the CZAR it is surely the height of folly to invite attack by a show of weakness. The maxim that the best way to preserve peace is to be prepared for war ought never to be lost sight of by those responsible for the defence of the Empire.
FoocHow, 24th August, 7.20 p.m. The latest advices from Kucheng are that the Chinese have yielded the point as to foreigners being present at the trial.
On Wednesday the Mixed Court began its sittings. All the foreign members were present. been convicted and eighty arrests made.
Torture opened mouths. Six murderers have The officials are co-operating and extending every facility,
Both Consuls (British and American) are firm.
Home guards are protecting every village.
THE DEPARTURE OF THE COMMISSION.
Fonchow, 17th August.
157
should say. I only knew one of the girls that was killed; that was Miss Elsie Mars hall, a very pretty fair English girl, with curly golden-brown hair, who was the daughter of a vicar at Black- heath. She fought very hard with the Chinese for her life. poor soul, and was terribly cut
She about, her head almost severed from her body, and her hands out in a dreadful manner. was only about 23, and had been out here about two years, I fancy.
C+
V
The Stewart baby of 13 months old died on the 10th, and was buried on the 11th. The poor child had one eye quite knocked out, and would have been killed right out, only the Irish nurse, Lena Yellop, lay right across him to protect him, and “she was killed. The Stewarts were awfully uice people. The little Stewart girl of 12 or 18 had her knee so badly cut that if she recovers she will be a oripple all her life, and one of the little boys was thrashed by the Chinese, and is now in such a nervous state that he can't bear the sight of a Chinaman at all. Miss Codrington, although she was very badly wonuded, is recovering, but will be very much disfigured. Can you ima- gine the feelings of the one man left, Mr. Phillips, who had to put all the dead bodies into their coffins, dress the wounded, and for a long time he couldn't get a single Chinaman to help him, but at last, the mandarins insisted on their helping, and then he got Dr. Gregory to help
after.
Perhaps the eloquence of these dumb months will at last move the British Foreign Office ?- N. C. Daily News.
A LETTER FROM ARCHDEACON
WOLFE.
In the course of a private letter which has been kindly placed at our (N. C. Daily News) disposal, Archdeacon Wolfe writes to a friend in Shanghai
"This terribly atrocions affair came upon us like a thunder-clap in a serene sky! Everything was as quiet as possible, and it was only the day before that Stewart was congratulating himself and the Mission that the Vegetarians had been giving them no trouble of late. They were all resting quietly at Whasang for their summer vacation, expecting no dangor, when suddenly, before they were dressed on Thursday morning, 1st August, they were brutally murdered. It appears now that they first cut off Stewart's hands and legs, and then set fire to the house. Mrs. Stewart was found, or rather her charred bones were found, lying close to Mr. Stewart's H.B.M. Consul, Mr. Mansfield, and the U.S.charred remaius. Miss Codrington is progress tions from their respective Ministers in Peking girl here, is also getting better, but she will Consul, Mr. Hixson, having received instruc. ing favourably. Mildred Stewart, the eldest to co-operate in enquiring into the late outrage
ever carry with her in a maimed leg the at Kuchong, with a view to the prompt punish token of this horrible affair. Poor children! ment of the culprits concerned, started from the The other two are quite well now, though Sun-bing jetty at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, the 13th
much frightened. Their aunt, Miss Smylee, is inst. Mr. Mansfield was accompanied by Mr.
on her way out to take them home. The man E. L. B. Allen, Vice-Consul Pagoda, the
who killed Stewart has been caught, and forty Rev., W. Banister, and the Rev. L. Starothers of the sect or society. The soldiers are and Mr. Hixson, by Lieut. Evans, of the Detroit. scouring the country and the people everywhere and Dr. Gregory. The whole party occupied are warm in their desire to put down the Vege- but two houseboats, in which they were to go as tarians. One feels so indignant. and almost far as Sueykow before taking the road to mad, that one is in great danger of forgetting Kucheng. A third (native) houseboat was
that these poor people who did the deed did The Chingchou correspondent of the N. C. occupied by the high official appointed to the not know what they were doing in thus mur Daily News writes:-Two years ago the wife of investigation of the matter in hand conjointly dering their best friends, and so one is in a missionary here began to teach lace-making to with the English and American Consuls. This a few Chinese girls. The capital required in high official, Cha Tsung-Ping by name, is Chief danger of crying out for vengeance on these
poor misguided people, this work is very little; a dollar or so will buy Deputy of the Tung Chang-chü, or Board justice should be done, and certainly the au- pillow, bobbins, pins, and some thread to start of Foreign Trade (of Prefect rank).
thorities, who shamefully neglected (their duty, with, then with time. which the Chinese have escort consisted of a hundred picked men of should be punished, and some effectual steps plenty of, and deft fingers the cheap thread can the Foochow garrison under the command taken to render such things impossible in the soon be turned into beautiful lace worth money.of Colonel Chu (by chance the same name as future. We are not discouraged a bit on account Then the lace being light and not bulky can the Chief Deputy). Each boat was towed by a
We know God can and I believe of out work. easily be sent into the foreign market and very steam-launch and each launch carried a guard of little has to be added on to the price for packing ten soldiers. The rest of the military escort was and freight. A foreign firm has guaranteed to in a boat towed astern of the Chinese official's. take for some time, at a definite price all that | The party arrived at Sdeykow at noon can be supplied from the neighbourhood, and sc Thursday, the 15th inst., and left the boats at 6 the market being secure quite a new industry o'clock yesterday morning for Kucheng; and seems springing up, The lady who began the news has been received by wire from Sueykow work had to return to England, but the girls teach this morning of their having reached their one another, and many are now earning at the destination last night. Important arrests have rate of $1 to $2 per month in their own homes; been made. and those who know the homes of the agrical frightened.-Echo. tural poor will think it no small thing that girls and women should have a light and clean occupa tion that enables them to earn more than their food, perhaps even doubling the income of the family. Of course it is a very small thing com pared with mining and railway schemes, except that it has the advantage so far of being an accomplished fact and not in the air merely.
The
on
The people were quiet, but
A PATHETIC STATEMENT. Nothing that we could write could surpass in simple pathos the following extract from a private letter from the wife of a merchant at Foochow, which has been kindly placed at our disposal:
The massacre at Kucheng has been the most ghastly thing that has ever happened in China, I
I do think, however,
will bring great good, even out of this terrible trial. I cannot find ont at present the motive or cause of this awful tragedy. None of the Christians have been molested, and not one of the churches has been touched. It was all con- fined to the English Mission party."
The Tientsin Press has issued in pamphlet form a reprint from the Peking and Tientsin Times of the " Verbal discussions during peace negotiations, between the Chinese plenipoten- tiary Viceroy Li Hung.chang and the Japan- ese plenipotentiaries Connt Ito and Viscount. Mutsu, at Shimonoseki, Japan." There is given as a frontispiece a photograph of Li Hung- chang, taken at Tientsin, 18th July, 1895, after his return from Japan. The bullet mark under his left eye shows very plainly.