Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1871-06-21

EIEuCu treaty stl pUlhLc1 lllaL II - per-
mitted 20 French missionaries to rent
and purchase land in all the provin-
ees, and to erect buildings thereon at
pleasure, and what is permitted to the
French missionaries Is equally so to
all other missionaries why then
should a similar right be denied to the
>"
The Chinese dIseerned clearly in
1867, in the very beginning OF the
that the claim for inland
for the merchants would be
based upon the "Permissive rightn
enjoyed by the missionaries,
and could not well be refused so long
as the latter were.allOwed their present
quiet occupancy. Aside
therefore from their endeavors to re-
dress their chronic grievances from
the ROmanists, there was apparent the
necessity of some serious demOnstra-
ton against missionaries Of all creeds
and all nationalities. This demonstra-
ton needed to be directed against,
not those living at the ports, but at
those who were away from the treaty
ports and it needed to be executed
promptly and vigorously inOrder that
the authorities might have an unOb-
structed vantage ground when they
came to oppose the demand Of the
TOR an inland residence in
the expected treaty discussions. Very
soon the troubles began. The year
1868 became noted for what in the
blue book were desig-
mated missionary disturbances" ~
Occasional and slight difficulties there
had been before that time, as there
had been with foreigners everywhere
and of all classes, but those had such
a marked character as to lead Sir
Rutherford AlcOck, in 1869, to speak
Of them as "the recent missionary
troubles and disturbances"
Special attention must be given to
the mode of carrying out the demon
stration that seems to have been deci-
ded upon. For the officials themselves
to have taken q formal part in the
expulsion Of the missionaries, would
not have been at all polite; but they
have other forces at their command
which they can incite at will, without
seriously compromising themselves.
The Literati and the Plebs, though
having no legal status, are neverthe-
less governing forces in China, the
power Of which no wise foreign diplo-
matist will ignore. The Mandarins
can drop a hint to the Literati, and
the Literati know how to excite the
passions of the mob, by whose hands
the mischief is usually done. We
have Sir Rutherford AlcOckis own
testimony, that there appears "a long
series Of plaeards in every town and
locality where the disturbances had
taken place." and that elsewhere,
memorials to the throne were sent in,
and notes came from the Yamun OF
Foreign Affairs to the diplomatic rep
resentatives, all at that particular
time. There was something very re-
markable in the suddenness with
which these all appeared in widely
different localities but at one and the
same period OF time, Just preceding
the treaty revision, when the Yamun
Of Foreign Affairs was making ready
for their diplomatic stand against in
land residence. The most horrible
stories were told of the missionaries
gOuging ont the eyes OF children to
make medicine Of; and pamphlets,
written by the Literati, filled with
beastly defamatiOns, not only Of mis-
siOnaries but of all foreigners, were
circulated among the common people,
to stir up their wrath and successfully
they effected their purpose. In For
moso, in April, 1858, mObs attacked
and destroyed q Protestant chapel and
q Roman Catholic chapel, in a place
away from the treaty-pOrt. In August
followed the YangehOw affair and
soon after, another demonstration at
q city near HankOw, and still Others
Of which mention need not be made.
Hankow is more than a thousand
miles distant from FOrmOsa- The dis
turbances occurred in quick succession;
they were preceded by exactly the
same stories in every instance, show
ing that they were part Of common
movement, and had a common de-
sign,-that Of excluding missionaries
from nOn-treaty ports. Between the
people Of these two places there is
very little Intercourse. It is impOssi-
BILE to believe that they had any con-
sultstiOn with each other. 1t is also
impossible to believe that such a SINH
larity of action was the result Of 8
fOrtuitOus coincidence. And yet q
unity of plan is TO be accounted for,
and that can be done only by suppOs-
ing the master-spirits were in the on
eial Yamuns, stirred up 10 an unusual
zeal for some special object, which as
yet had not become known
But the Chinese received an abrupt
check in their plans, whatever they
were. The British Minister demanded
and compelled satisfaction at Yang
Chau, as the Consul Gibson had pre-
viOusly done at FOrmOsa. The policy
of croiCdiRg back, it was found, would
be attended with too much Danger
The consequence was q sudden quiet
which promised to become perma-
nent, and there was q fair prospect OF
the missionary question" sinking
from the unexpected importance ii
had assumed, and becoming, as it had
been before "thereeent disturbances, y
merely one Of many questions about
which there was a divergence between
the Cinnamon and the Western men,
and which experience and caution on
both sides would help to divest of any
dangerous consequences. But the
subject was not destined to be treated
as other question had been. The do
ings Of the missionaries were taken
up and and treated with remOrseless
criticism by some of the English pa
pers, and by British officials in Eng
land. The parties who had been en-
gagged in securing protection to the
missionaries, received the sharpest
rebukes Tor having taken the decisive
Mhlaw~ NaA nwn 90 Nharaa -
particular, Counsel Gibson, was de-
graded from his position. twas a
long stretch Of time NEARLY two years.
from the Yang Chow affair to the
Tien-tsin massacre in June, 1870. Du-
ring that time, all the bitter COM
ments about missionaries that had
been made at home, and the official
rebukes administered 10 consular and
naval officers, found their way back
to China, and the Chinese would have
belied their own natures If they had
not drawn their inference that the
next time they began a crusade against
they would nOt1ind con-
suls and others so ready to protect
them. It was now quite apparent
that there was the proper point to at
tempt to break the foreign line
some fresh cause of COM
plant arose about the French PrOtec-
torate Of Roman Catholics. Charges,
too, began to be made against the
Protestant missiOnaries,-the old pla-
cards again began to be posted up
The British Minister openly took
sides against their going into the inte-
rior. The cloud began to gather and
and the way was being steadi-
ly prepared for the outbreak at Tien-
tsin w. AsHlIORE