The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1897-09-23
IN THE Ii HUNG CHANG CASE.
AN IMPORTANT MATTER SIDE
TRACKED BY JUDGE SEARLES
AT BUFFALO.
PROPOSED HONOR FOR vIcERoY,
Although Highly Endorsed Seems tO
Have Been Ignored by Every
body.

encampment is held in February next.
Upon that occasion Gettysburg post,
of ST. Paul, will inquire of Department
Commander Wood why the proposition
of that post and the resolution of the
department of Minnesota expressing
their distinguished consideration for
Ii Hung Chang was sidetracked at the
Buffalo national encampment; for
sidetracked the documents were, so
says Judge E. H. Wood, of Gettysburg
post.
Gettysburg post is nothing if not pa
triotic. Having in mind the resent tour
of this country by the great Oriental,
and remembering the strong friend
ship that arose between Ii Hung Chang
and Gen. Ulysses S. Grant upon the
occasion of the Iatter's sojourn in the
Celestial empire, Gettysburg post con-
ceived the idea that nothing in the
Grand Army line was too good for Mr..
Ii. If the rules of the order would per-
init, Gettysburg post, what though it's
lodge hall was located in West st.
Paul, stood ready to confer upon the
prime minister Of China the degree of
honorary membership. If that honor
could not be bestowed, then Gettys-
burg post wanted Ii Hung Chang to
have the next best thing-a resolution
of thanks-if not badge and the right
to draw a pension.
Gettysburg post, knowing that it's
| heart was in the right place, commune
Gated with his Oriental eXcellency
through the Chinese minister at WASH
ington, and received a most gracious
| response. Mr.. Li-for these across-the
Pacific brethren put their last names
| in front-would be pleased to receive
badge of membership, if a button
was coming. If hot, he had lots of
thanks to watt across the seas in token
of his appreciation of the esteem in
which he was held by Gettysburg post.
1t is matter of history that Get
| tysburg post also communicated with
Mrs. Grant, the generals widow, and
| With Bishop Newman, his close friend
! and spiritual adviser, and received
fervent letters in reply. expressing the
hope that the Grand Army of the Re
| public would f1ttfngly honor the CHI
nese primate
| All this correspondence, diplomatic
and otherwise, was treasured up by
| the Gettysburg post. When the. state
! encamp1nent was in session last Feb
ruary, the proposition was submitted
to the encanapment. Gettysburg post,
as regiment of the Minnesota G. A.
r., didn't want to go too far. It sim
I ply wanted to honor a great man who
honered a great man. If it couldn't
make this great man an honorary
| member the department of Minnesota
q. A. r. could at least thank him for
his appreciation of the hero of Apo
mattoX. The department of Mime
sofa couldn't see it's way clear to let
ting Ii Hung Chang 'jine,' or even
have button, but it could thank ''i1is
| Vieeroy," and it did, in a set of res
olutions several inches long.
SO far, things progressed smoothly
| but trouble has now arisen. The res
olutions Of the Minnesota department.,
| the letters from Mrs. Gen. Grant Bish-
OPP Newman and the Chinese minister
We're done up in a package, together
with an address to the national Ell
campment to be held at Buffalo This
address besought the national en-
campment to confirm the action of the
| department of Minnesota Judge
| Wood, of Gettysburg post, had charge
of this packet. The judge says that
he entrusted 1t to Department Com
mander Wood, of Minnesota but thet
| the matter was never brought before
the national encampment. Instead, it
! fell Immediately into the hands of
| committee and was never heard FROM
| Judge Wood explained it this way.
| when seen last night:
Il took the package" said the judge
ito Commander Wood, and asked him
if he would take charge of it and pre-
| sent the matter to the national en-
campment at Buffalo. The command
er refused at first to take it. Very
well then said 1, TIL forward it my
self and say that you, the department
| commander of Minnesota, refused to
! take it Commander Wood suggested
that when the train from his district
got to st. Paul. that he would stop it
| and refer the matter to Judge Searle
of st. Cloud. I told him that he
couldn't stop any trains anywhere, and
| that the communication wasn't adj
dressed to Judge Searle or anybody but
| the National Encampment of the
Grand Army of the Republic. So final
" he consented to take the package.
THAT was the last 1 heard of it until
after the encampment. Then I wrote
to Commander Wood to find out what
had been done. L received no answer
wrote again. This time Commander
Wood answered. He said he had hand
ed the papers to Judge Searle, who was
a member of the committee on resolu-
| tienS. Mind you, he had no right to
do this, for the whole matter was adj
! dressed to the national encampment.
"Then I had some correspondence
with Judge Searle. Judge Searle, 1 felt
sure, would be loyal to the depart
ment of Minnesota. But what was nv
surprise to be informed by him that
the committee on resolutions had de-
! clined to consider the matter deeming
! 1t wholly within the jurisdiction of the
committee on rules and regulations, to
which Judge Searle informed me it
! had been referred. But upon writing
! to the official Stenographer, I found
| that quite different state of facts ex-
listed than Judge Searle represented. 1
! found that the committee had en-
dorsed on the outside Of the package
! of papers these words:
&c Matter relative to honorary membership
! and certain unfounded newspaper reports.
| Referred tc ander-in-chief for informa-
! tion.'
THAT was nice treatment wasn't
| it?'' exclaimed Judge Wood, for the
committee on resolutions, of which
! Judge Searle was a member, to give to
the department of Minnesota. 1 might
! add that it was also nice treatment to
| give a communication that included a
letter from Mrs Gen. Grant. Perhaps
| the Grand Army of the Republic can
| afford to slap the widow of Gen. Grant
! in the face, but I don't think it will"
BROUGHT SAD NEWS.