The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-10-13
The Latest Report from China.

According to q despatch from Shanghai,
the Empress Dowager, ISL AN, and her
supporters have adopted q new Emperor.
He is, We are also told, u son Of the late
Emperor TUNaoHE, and will be proclaimed
shortly. It Is further announced that the
choice Of KwANasU was a mistake that has
proved disastrous to China. The 1Gst part
Of this report is probable enough; the Sec
Ond part is unintelligible, and the third
part Is absurd.
The adoption and proclamation Of q new
Emperor could only take place IN the event
Of KwANasu's death. For although In the
history Of China an Emperor has some
times mounted the throne during the life
time Of his predecessor, this has only taken
place when the latter was a captive in the
hands Of a public enemy, or when his
dynasty was disputed or overthrown. There
Is no such pretext for O change Of rulers l n
this case. KwANasU, II q captive at all, was
made 80 by pretended friends, and there is
no dynastio question involved In his per-
sonal misfortunes. Only, therefore, by his
decease could room be made for a successor.
That is o condition precedent, however,
which would give the Empress Dowager
no trouble. She would find it as easy
to dispose Of KwANGsU as she did of
his predecessor, TUNGoHE, some twenty
three years ago. On Sept. 10, 1874,
tho Emperor TUNaCHE, then 19 years
old, gave token Of independence by
announcing in a vermilion edict that he de-
graded Prince KUNa, who was then the
f~avorite both Of the Empress Isl AN and
of the other Empress DowGger, Isl THsI,
- - AAnA Atnoa 100 Am ls-s-~ TLn
very next day his authority was practically
set aside by The imperial ladies, for a decree
was iss~uedintheir names, reinstating Prince
KUNa In his former dignities. Not long
after this coup d'etat in the interior OF the
palace, it was rumored that TUNaCHE was Sc
riously LII, and, on Dec. 10, appeared an
edict ~ostensibly signed by him, requesting
the Dowager Expresses to assume charge
Of the administration. On Jan. IL, 1875,
he died. In view Of these u~ndisputed facts,
which have many counterparts In Chinese
annals, there Is nothing improbable in the
hypothesis that KwANGsU has, by death,
made way for the choice OF a successor.
What is unintelligible in the report from
Shanghai ls the statement that the newly
selected Emperor is a son OF the late EN-
peror TUNaCHE. The official announce
ment of LUNCHES death contained the
averment that he left no offspring, and it
was on this express ground that the choice
of the Expresses fell on KwANGsU, the son
ofPrince CHUNG, the seventh brother of the
Emperor HmNFUNa. 1t was well known,
however, that LUNCHES widow, the young
Empress AHLUTA, was pregnant. and that,
should she bear a ~posthumous child, and
should that child happen to be a son, he
would be. by law, Emperor, and AHLUTA
could not be excluded from a share in the
Government. All the notice that the two
Dowager Expresses took Of this possibility
was to announce that, in case a postum
nous son were born to TUNacHE, he should
be proclaimed H~eir-Apparent to KwANGsU.
They are believed, however, to have taken
precautions against such o contingency,
for AHLUTA siokened and died, and her
child was never born. A story was started,
but received with u good deal OF
skepticism, that she had refused to
partake of food through grief for her
young husband. Whatever may have
been the cause Of her demise, her failure
to, bear u son corroborated the original
declaration Of the two Empresses, that
TURaoHE had died without leaving any
male offspring, Under the circumstances,
1t will be difficult for Isl AN to explain to
the inhabitants OF Pekin how it can be a son
of TUNooHE that she has picked out for
their new sovereign.
As to the announcement that the seleo-
tion OF KwAEGsU had proved for China
Rdisastrous mistake, this is absurd upon
its face. 1t is notorious that the late EN-.
peror was never permitted to possess
more than the sembanoe of power, and
that for the oatastrophes which have
bsiallen tho Middle Kingdom during
his reign the Empress Isl AN and
her fayOrites are alone responsible.
We say Isl AN, because In 1881 her nomi.
nhlly senior but really Junior colleague,
Ihu raai. dad lOavinV the conolhina IA