98
4
It was originally stated, from local official Chinese sources during the last week in September, that the Chinese losses were about 200 civilians killed, and these figures were repeated when H.M.S. Consul at I Chang inspected the damage to the town with General Yang Sen's Secretary and a member of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce on 4th of October. The subsequent publication of largely inflated figures is therefore clearly a falsification of facts.
On September 7th, General Lu Chin-shan, who was in command at I Chang, offered to negotiate between General Yang Sen and His Majesty's Consul at that place, and it was decided that the Commissioner of Foreign Affairs at Chung King, Dr. Ki, should come to I Chang, at which place he arrived on 16th September.
In the meantime, on 12th September, General Lu Chin-shan informed His Majesty's Consul that General Yang was willing to hand back the two steamers, but earnestly requested that gunboats should not proceed up river until the conclusion of negotiations. After some discussion, to facilitate a peaceful settlement of the incident, it was on 17th September conceded that the steamers should be delivered up at I Chang through a non-British intermediary, pilots and crew being provided by General Yang Sen.
It was agreed upon by both parties that the intermediary should be Mr. Lancing Hoyt, an American, of the Yangtsze Rapids Steamship Co., and he, in company with Dr. Ki, left for Wan Hsien on 20th September. After some discussions there, during which the Chinese officials stated the casualties at the figure to which reference has already been made, he took charge of the two ships and returned to I Chang, at which place they were both handed over to the British Consul, the S.S. Wantung on the 25th September and S.S. Wanhsien on 28th September.
His Majesty's Consul proceeded up river in the Kiawo on 30th September, and exchanged visits with Yang Sen on the 2nd and 5th of October, at Wan Hsien, and thence went to Chung King to take charge of negotiations on outstanding points for settlement.
From the above account of the "Wan Hsien Incident" the following points emerge clearly: Not a shot was fired by the British until fire had first been opened by Chinese soldiers concealed in S.S. Wanhsien. Nor did His Majesty's gunboats fire on the troops on land until these gunboats had themselves been subjected for some time to a heavy fusilade from the positions on shore. And, finally, it is at no time even claimed by the Chinese authorities that there was any cause of com- plaint whatever against the two ships which were seized, or their officers who were forcibly detained. On the contrary, it is plain that the whole incident was provoked by Chinese troops and their leaders.