The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1898-11-05
lf,N,nln,,lit','
China and ber Emperor.
With the Rich Monarch of thu
An Audience

Flowery Kingdom.

= .7!.-E 81 g /. Er- ~
Busy preparations are under way at !
Pekin for the annual audience with
his Imperial Majesty, Kuang Hsu, the
emperor. of China, which, is to take
place within fortnight. The occasion
is always one OF great moment in dip
lomatic circles Of the empires capital,
and is particularly important this year
in view of the possible partition of the
empire in the near future. In the
present contest for concessions which
the European ministers are conduct
ing, an effort will he made by each to
make an impression on his Majesty
at the audience, SO that the most gor-
geous pageant the empire has ever wit
messed is likely to he seen.
The audience will probably not differ
in other respects from it's usual lines.
Though once a year only does Kuang
Hsu deign to shed the light Of his
countenanre ON the "barbarian'' rep
resentatives of foreign countries, he
rarely permits the interview to last
longer than ten minutes. This is
doubtless due to- a proper respect for
the comfort of the diplomatic corps.
They could not be expected to endure
with comfort longer association
with the dazzling effu1gence which
emanates from the presence of the
*'Son OF Heaven" For this brief peri
cd, however, weeks Of preparation are
necessary to perfect the glory of the
diplomatic uniforms for the eVentful
day.
When the morning arrives there is
a great run ON sedan chairs tit would
be deemed highly indecoroa1s to travel
to the palace in any other convey
ance), and frequently those used at
weddings are brought into requisition.
On the Windows of bridal chair are
inscribed the characters :Shuang Hsi, !"
and when these conveyances pass
through the streets eonsn nerable
amusement lis created among the spec
4tatorsy the more aggish Of whom
with the pertinacity Of a London street
boy, inquire of the occupant whether
he expects to obtain a wife from the
palace - :
The annual audience is the only oc-
casion when foreigners are permitted
to enter the sacred precincts of the
forbidden City" the punishment in
flicted on intruders at other times be-
ing instant death. From a pagoda on
the south wall of the Tartar City the
yellow turrets OF the royal buildings
can plainly be distinguished beyond
the capacious court yard, while in the
@latter there may be seen on any fine
day the Imperial Guards summing
themselves in various postures, all un-
mindful of the fact that they have in
their keeping the Ruler of the Uni
verse.
The members of the foreign lega-
tions, On arriving at a side entrance in
the palace walls, are received by some
two thousand mandarins, gorgeously
appareled in silks and furs, their re-
spective degrees being denoted by the
color of the button on their hats and
the square decoration On their breasts.
The English and American legations
are usually arrayed in sober evening
dress, unless the minister happens to
be a military man, when he wears his
uniform. The .Anglo-Saxons are COM
= pletely outshone by the French, Rus
sian, German, Holland, Austrian,
Spanish, italian and Japanese .1ega-
tions, whose display of gold lace, gold
embroideries, medals, ribbons, insig-
MAS, plumes, spears, swords and he'll
NETS look for all the world like an
Alhambra ballet, and, of course, make
a most profound impression on the
mind of the tinsel-loving Oriental.
The waiting room into which the
= diplomatic corps is shown can best be
compared to a waiting room on the
London, Chatham and Dover Railway.
It is a wretched apartment, sparsely
furnished, and the walls are decorated
with a few scrolls on which are in
scribed Confucian proverbs, more hon
ored in the breach than in the OBJ
s. ==------- -----------%