The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1900-08-02

Now that the advance on Pekin has act
ual1y begun. the State Department officials
have decided that it is unnecessary longer
to suppress the official correspondence
which Immediately preceded the movement
toward the CefasEf Efal capital. The docu-
ments were made public by Secretary Hay
prior TO the meeting of the Cabinet this
morning, but evidently with the sanction
of the President and his advisers.
This correspondence was inaugurated by
Consul General Goodnow, at Shanghai, who
transmitted to the State Department mes
sage from Ii Hung Chang. formally re-
questing that the advance of the American
troops OH Pekin be abandoned on the stip-
ulation that the foreign ministers would be
sent under safe escort to Tientsin.
Secretary Hays reply to this PROPOSE
tion was as follows:
This Government will not enter into
any arrangement regarding disposition
or treatment OF legations without first
having free communication with Minis
ter Conger. Responsibility for their
protection rests upon Chinese Govern
ment. Power to deliver at Tientsin
presupposes power to protect and to
open communication. This is insisted
en-
This message was delivered by Mr.. Good
now on July 81 to Viceroy Ii. who then
enquired whether if free communication
were established between the ministers AMI
their Governments it could be arranged
that the powers should not advance on
Pekin pending negotiations"
To this enquiry the following reply was
sent on August /:
''Goodnow, Consul General, Shanghai:
II do not think il expedient to sub
NIT the proposition of Earl Ii to the
other powers. Free communication
with our representatives in Pekfn is
demanded matter of absolute
right and not as a favor. Since the
Chinese Government admits that It
possesses the power to give commun3-
cation, 1t puts itself in an unfriend-
ly attitude by denying it. No nego-
tiations seem advisable until the Chi
nese Government shall have put the
diplomatic representatives Of the pow
ers in full and free communication
with their respective Governments and
removed all danger to their lives and
liberty We would urge Earl Ii
earnestly to advise the imperial au-
thorities of China 10 place themselves
in friendly communication and CO.
operation with the relief expedition
bility in acting otherwise. HAY.
you will communicate this informa-
tion to the Minister of Foreign At
fairs
Discussed by the Cabinet.
When the Cabinet met at II o'clock
there were present Secretaries Hay, Ro5t,
Gage, Wilson, and Postmaster General
Smith.
The Chinese situation was gone over at
length, in the light of the Ii Hung Chang
correspondence.
At the conclusion of the meeting these
two decisions on the part of the Admins
tration were made public:
First, TO push on to Pekin for the relief
or Tie IeSation people, regardless or chi
nese threats or promises.
Second, to call the Chinese Government
to the fullest accountability AT the very
least, the Imperial rulers viii be- held
liable for very grave misconduct in not
affording fuller protection to the minis
ters
If. as has been declared the Chinese
Government has actually taken part in the
attacks on the legations, then proof of such
conduct will be followed by declaration
OF war on the part of the United States.
The Administration is strongly hopeful
that the culpability Of the Empress is not
so great that atonement will be impossi-
bic except through actual war But the
Government is now considering open hos
tilities as one of the contingencies which
may be found necessary.
The chief interest in the Cabinet meet
ing centred around the offer of Ii Hung
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