Ostober 13, 1900.)
MACAO
FROM OUR CORRESPONDENT.]
* konia Macao, 11th October. THE GOVERNOR'S BIRTHDAY.
CHINA OVERLAND TRADE REPORT. negotiations.-Jung Im is the incarnation of the ambitious trimmer, he has had it in his power ever since the conspiracy was incubated to crush it, but his essential weakness of character, his Chinese Mr. Facing-Both-Way's tendency, and his atter inability to rise to the dictates of The city will bo en fête on the 20th inst., the patriotism rather than self-interest have proved occasion being the birthday of the Governor baneful both to his country and himself. No H.E. Senhor Horta e Costa. The preliminary one at the present moment knows to which par- arrangements for carrying out a demonstration ty he belongs: no one is sure if he was with on a large scale are being managed by a Tuan Wang in his atrocious intentions, or how strong Committee, and the hearty manner the he advised the Throne. Only of one thing idea has been received
the unstinted might sure prediction have been made, that he support, pooming and otherwise, made among first to trim would mised from all classes, is a safe sugury of the finally come out of the mess and melee a-top. success which will follow The spacious ball The Court has now ordered this man to go to rooms of the Club have been kindly placed Peking and assist Li Hung-chang; it will be at the disposal of the Committee, and in one interesting to see if the Ministers change of them a banquet will be given in His their minds. When his name was suggested Excellency's honour. A public subscription some time ago by Prince Ching, the Legation has been started to meet the necessary expenses, people promptly and emphatically said no. which will remain open till the 15th inst. Already the list contains several hundreds of names, and applicants by the score are almost daily registering their contributions, towards the cost of the day's celebrations. Arrange. ments are also being perfected for a grand ball,
MANCHU ASTUTENESS.
The impertinence of the Manchus is really astounding with their capital in military pos-- session of the Allies, they nominate a Manchu, formally and by the usual imperial decree, one Ch'ing-hsin, to the post of military governor of
OG ON THE LINE TO SHAKKAIWAN The Russian column
ange
last Thursday (Sep. 20) is now utai greatest military-Centre of our There must be at least fifty or si there, but the Russians found them all The bulk of Nich's men left Lntsi in May to deal with the Boxers, but both general and men experienced many vicissitudes of fortune since then. It is feared that the few men who fled out of the three big Pehting forts have gone up the line, towards Shanhai- kwan, and that they will wreck the Tongshan mines or rather plant er route. is impossible, but I have found we nearly always deduce the probable actions of the Chinese wrongly. If is quite as likely the men are deserting largely disbanding, 'and returning home as peaceful villagers. There are said to be 200 Cantonese resolute to defend their own lives and the pits if attacked at Tongshan the southerners have always been more or less at feud with the natives at the mines
- PRINCE NAPOLEON, GR out Sinco Poh-tang was taken there have been daily explosions of mines, in one or two cases with out loss of a single life. The battle, as such, was a skill, equipment, &c.,
to be given in the Club rooms on the evening Peking. The astuteness of this nomination is farce: in numbers, supeof the
of the 20th, at which His Excellency and suite will attend. This function will take the place of the one it was proposed to hold on the occasion of His Excellency's arrival at Macão, a proposal which at that time received unlimited support, and was only dropped until a more convenient time. There are to be a number of other attractions; and a day of pleasure, sport and pastime by the colonists, will be a certain indication of the respect and esteem in which His Excellency is held by the people of Macao.
BAD WEATHER,
We are having some nasty weather just now, and for the past fortnight have experienced much wind and rain, which have made things rather dull. However unpleasant the rain has been, the coolness of the atmosphere has been an agreeable relief to the excessive heat we had to pass through last month.
Á GOVERNMENT PRESS.
The Government is going to have its own printing press, and the necessary machines arrived a few days ago. They will be fixed up on the ground floor of Government House.
TIENTSIN.
[FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.]
Tientsin, 25th September.
THE SITUATION AT PEKING.
not less than the impudence. The Court heard of the resolution of the Allies to admini- ster the city on something like the old lines, i.e. by the help of Chinese officials: it immediately nominated its man, not of course with the faintest hope that he would therefore be accept ed, but to delude the provincials with the notion that Imperial Power is still paramount in the City. Well might an old China resident urge that a sine qua non of peace be that the Peking Gazette be under foreign power for two years, and that during that time steps be taken to inform the provinces of the true state of affairs.
CLEANSING PEKING.
The most striking issue of the fall of Peking is that it is now being cleansed: the state of its To Chieh is worse than thie Augean ctable, and would require a dozen Herculeses with a big scouring river, and a huge sea of disinfectants. The sanitary state of the city was strangely suggestive of the Manchu dynasty- rotten, and
moribund.
A TIME-SERVING OFFICIAL
There is talk of an expedition to Paotingfa; it is interesting to state that the Fan-tai or Trea- surer, Ting Jung, a bitter anti-foreigner and a man directly and wholly responsible for the murder of the missionaries and for the encour agement of the Boxers, has had a sudden con version. It followed the fall of Peking and the suggestion of the Prefect that the foreigners would soon be at the Provincial Capital. Ting The political situation for the moment over-spoke of opposing them by the Boxers; the shadows the military one, the latter being in Prefect then remarked that if he (Ting Jung) abeyance pending, the arrival of Count von wished to save his own head and the city, ho Waldersee, who is expected to-morrow; yet the had better give some instant proof of bis non- political situation is obscure enough and seems complicity with the I-ho Chuan. A body of to drift rather than to be a product of intellect horsemen was at once sont out to the neighbour or will-power. It is still believed that for ing camp and ning heads were off in a twinkling some occult reason Russia desires to withdraw and were promptly poled at the City Gate as a her Legation and her Bank (Russo-Chinese) terror to ovil-doers and a praise to them that do from Peking and is using the leverage of the well. It is to be hoped that the tardy repen Dual Alliance to persuade France into a similar tance of this precious rascal will not help his course. I say the reason is occult, as it is but escape from the only proper reward of his too obvious that the Northern Power cannot villiany. possibly desire to see Peking lose its pride of place as the Capital of China.
LI AND TUNG LU.
Li in his northern pilgrimage has met but scant consideration from any of the military or diplomatic men except those of Russia: the latter went out of their way to act the role of Lord Chesterfield. The old Viceroy took up his quarters in the foreign-looking re-trick building built some years ago behind the old Yamen, when the Dowager was expected to visit Tientsin. He has kept exceedingly quiet, and even, his Chinese visitors have come as pri vate callers. He is extremely desirous of gut ting on to Peking, and I do not think it is the difficulties of travel or old age which have thus far barred the attempt. Ile has probably been told to wait until the Mini sters have policy to follow, i.c. until the F. 0. 0. of America. Japan and Europe have agreed on some possible, common line. Mean while the crafty
trying to advance the old Dowageri
by urging Jung Lube
the
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courage,
Allies was overwhelming. Fire began at 10.30 p.m.: was intermittent till 2 a.m., then active : intermittent till 6 a.m. The Chinese cleared out at 8 and the Allies had possession at 11. All the casualties were due to Sappers the mining was excellent. The little Austrian conting ent lost 8 killed, 15 wounded. By turn- ing aside to let some Russians pass friend told me that the Russian guardsman; Prince Napoleon, had a narrow escape from shell which passed within a foot of his head. I heard a Russian officer speaking beautiful French in a Tientsin store last week, and as his follower called him Monsignor I won- dered who he could be. It was probably the Bonaparte. I am sorry to say he was express- ing Russian annoyance at British shilly-shally **First they would and then they wouldn't.”
Said they could, but found they couldn't.”
THE BRITISH DECADENCE, itly
64
:
I refer to this, because we Britishers here are - deluding ourselves with the notion that we are being jockeyed out of everything it is: nothing of the sort. We are by our oursed lack of resolution and by not knowing our own minds being beaten all round by people who know what they want and act up to the knowledge, Either a very inferior brain and will power now enters the British Army, the Diplomatic and Consular services; or some subtle enervating power sits enthroned in London, reducing our men to impotency. If neither of these alternatives be granted, then the only other is that the Britisher is played out. The way he is being ignored, passed by, and sometimes even sat upon, might well make Pal- merston turn under the stones of Westminster Abbey and would probably hurl Lord Balisbury from power if the fact was duly appreciated at home. Itissimply maddening to British residents here to stand by and see their interests fooled away by a hundred and one little sins of omission and commission which could easily be avoided. * Our men seem to be as clay in the hands of the potter; they can be moulded to this or that at will; even when they do not, they generally do so at the wrong time and place-witness the neglect to seize the terminus at Ma-chia-pu near Peking, and then taking Fong-tai; a step which could only give offence to Russia with. out being of service to us. A flag is in these days not only the emblem but the proof of possession; throughout the campaign wo have lost coign after coign of advantage through negligence in providing flags. Over and over again we have let important places slip through" our hands from the culpable indifference : leaders in this and other details; witnom the The military people affect to say that the storen of Tientsin, valued as a sum between communications between Peking and Tientsin and five million taels. We had them, are unsafe; but the evidence of every one that our sentries, and then let thé : comes down is that the road from Tungehow get possession of the prise. to Tientsin is a desert: oʻtem not one single | the railway, but that has living man (except those employed by the to try and get foreign commimariata), is seen the whole-
"WAY occasionally one or two miserable old can be soon furtively trying to reap a Hitle in-liang,K but they on being.
The fear of death has aäfered their
THE TUNGCHOW EXPLOSION. - Last week the second
accident of the campaign distressing powder
at Tang chow a large fatigue party, composed of Royal Welsh, 7th Rajputs, 1st Sikhs, and 1st Chinese, were shifting some powder under the direction of Capt. A. J. Hill, formerly of the East Survey Regiment, now of the 1st Chinese, when an explosion took place-Canse unknown. Thirty five were hurt; of these seventeen died at once, eight more within a day, and the doctors fear that only two or three may recover at all.
AVA DISERTED ROAD,
L
claima in charge time to
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