The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1896-08-15

their names are not even known at
the American legation.
Notwithstanding the publications in
the Chinese and Japanese papers and
the reports of his despair and de-
spondency. Earl Ii undertook his du-
ties as senior grand secretary with the
greatest degree of cheerfulness and
confidence, recognizing that no other
position under the government could
afford him such advantages for recov-
ering his prestige and power and car
rying out his plans for the regenera-
ton of China. There are few men In
the world who possess his cunning, his
shrewdness and his tact. No man
understands better than he the Pc
culiarities of the Chinese character,
and none has been more successful in
applying this knowledge for his own
purposes in the past.
Earl Ii has had many ups and
downs. This was not the first time he
had been in disgrace, but he had al
ways fallen upon his feet and had
never failed to accomplish his plans
among his own people. While he was
deceived and imposed upon by his
subordinates in making preparations
for the war, and while his hordes of
half-starved, half-armed and ragged
coolies could not for a moment resist
the advance of the highly skilled and
patriotic battalions of Japan, his
nerve, foresight and judgment have
never erred in Chinese politics. His
ability was demonstrated when he
passed through all of the severe ex-
aminations that are required of office
holders in China and stood first among
10000 scholars at the Pekin competI-
ton. while his patriotism was tested
when General Gordon, at the head OF
the ever-victorious army that put
down the Tai-Ping rebellion some
years ago. proposed to place him on
the throne of China and permit him
to restore a distracted empire He
undertook the restoration, but his 10y
atty to an idiotic sovereign would not
permit him even to approach the
throne.
The next we hear of Ii Hung Chang
in the official records of the government,
secretary, was an announcement in the
early part of November that he had
been directed by the emperor to take
measures to suppress the insurrection
of the Mohammedan population in the
province of Kan sub, in the northwest
ern paEt of the empire; and that funds
were placed at his disposal for that pur-
pose. With his old-time energy, troops
cd fn fhn 1t-tt t,.1,
tions, a new governor general of his
own choice was appointed, the officers
who had failed to meet the emergency
were removed and ordered to Pekin and
men of well-known energy and ability
were sent to replace them. with instruc-
tions to use the most vigorous means
to restore order. Recent mails bring
tidings that the REBELLION. which threat
cned to involve the whole empire has
been completely checked: that the lead
ers have been arrested and put to death;
that their followers have been disarmed
and sent back to their villages, and that
peace has been almost enirely restored.
The next gossip that came from Pekin
rela ted to an alliance that Is said to
have been formed between Earl LII and
Weng Tung Ho, formerly the tutor of
the emperor and now president of the
board of revenue-a position which COR
responds to that of minister Of finance.
The recent change in the polio! of the
government concerning railways and
other foreign innovations is ascribed to
this reconciliation, and Immediately af-
terward came the news of the dismissal
of the two ultra conservative members
of the Tsung-li Yamen, and the edict of
Dec. s, directing the construction with
public funds Of a double-track railway
between Pekin and Tientsin, and a
single track line by a private corpora
ton from Pekin to the Yang-tse river,
and the granting of concessions for two
other railways in the neighborhood of
Shanghai
Those who are familiar with the con-
servative policy of the Chinese court
before this date at once recognized that
Earl Ii had recovered his influence with
the emperor, and therefore there was
no great surprise at the announcement
a few weeks later that he had been Sc
lected as special envoy to represent the
| emperor at the coronation of the czar.
V. Gribayedoff writes to the New
York Sun the following interesting mar
| rative concerning the distinguished Ii:
Even Ii has had his troubles! And
when say this am not only referring
| to the temporary withdrawal of his yell
| low Jacket or his peacock feather during
the war with Japan two years ago. Let
| us go a good deal further back than
that-to the time when formidable re-
belliOn threatened the very existence of
the reigning Manchu dynasty, and we
| find that on one occasion, for three long
| days and nights, the great Ii was en-
| gagged in lodging in a most undignified
manner an avenging nemesis in the per-
| son of 'Chinese" Gordon. Ii was a COM
paratively young man in those days.
| and presumably good sprnter, and it
Is to this circumstance that he probably
owed his salvation, for Gordon had
sworn to riddle him with bullets on
sight. How all this came about 1 will
endeavor to explain briefly as follows:
In the year 1850 there broke out in the
south of China a formidable insurrec-
ton against imperial authority headed
| by Scholomaster named Hung tsue-
Schuen of TAPPING. This individual de-
| clared himself to be an emissary from
| the gods sent to remove the Manchu
dynasty and to occupy the throne Of
China. He styled himself the Heaven
ly King" gathered aroud his banners
many thousands of followers, and by a
bold dash captured the important and
populous city of Marking. With this
place as base of operations he organ
lied a systematic campaign against the
government forces, and. being uniform
| ly victorious, began in 1860 to threaten
Shanghai and the other ports. It was
at this juncture that the Chinese au-
fhci:i fil,s hathaiiIrlat