New-York tribune., 1900-08-11
WORD FROM MISSIONARIES
ONE TELLS HOW THE AMERICANS
BLUFFED A RUSSIAN GUNBOAT.
ANOTHER DESCRIBES THE BURNING AND
LOOTING OF A PRESBYTERIAN
MISSION BY BOXERS.

MISSION BY BOXERS.
The China mail brought a lot of interesting
letters to this city yesterday from missionaries
in that Boxer ridden land. One relates. much too
briefly, how the captain of United States war
ship refused to allow Russian gunboat to seize
a Chinese gunboat, because the Chinese com
mGnder had protected American missionaries
from mob violence. The American commander
took the Chinese gunboat under his protection
and, the letter implies, told the Russian to sheer
off or suffer the consequence. The Russian
sheered. The missionary gives the name OF the
American warship as the Oregon but in this
he must be mistaken as the Oregon was not at
that time anywhere near that region
Another letter gives incident which tells
graphically how the Russians needlessly exas-
nerate the natives and foment their hatred
against all foreigners
third graphically describes the burning and
Iooting of the Presbyterian mission at Weih-
sien by Boxers, and the narrow escape from
death which befeIl the Rev. F. II. Chalfant. the
missionary who practically unaided. held a
mob of fully one thousand Chinese rufians at
bay for hours before they surrounded him. set
the buildings on fire and thus forced him to nee
with the women of the mission and a few
faithful servants. Mr.. Chalfant himself tells
this thrilling story in a letter which he writes
is nine miles south of Weihsien, where he found
refuge at some German coal mines He says In
part:
Che-F'oo under date of yesterday that Weihsien is
ruin, and that all the missionaries escaped m n9
Monday, June -. on June 10 was TO have escort
old son Ned from Tsingtau back to WehsIen- On
the eve of the starting came the news Of the pom
forts at the mouth of the Pei-Ho (river(. This
caused us to decide it myself 99 on the
10Th in company with a German engineer, MI Az.
ing Weihsien on the evening of June u found the
following persons at home: Mr. and Mrs tItch ana
dren. DIR. Edna Parks and my little daughteF; yer
son David at Shanghai; Miss Boughton. away ex-
aminng her schools, and Miss HaWeS, nrty nles s
the station decided it was expedient leave Mr.
Fitch volunteered to escort the women ana GEt I
dren then on the place leaving on SaIu[ody; Ey,S
plan to go direct to Tstngtau-ohe huhdreu
At that date no alarming kilograms nor other
messages had reached Weihsen other than the
special messenger came from Mr.. C9rn%el IollI who
was i'm charge of ship sent by our efficient consul
Mr. Fowler TO the Junk port of Yang -Kiao-Kau
fifty miles northwest of Weihsien- Ihls message
steamer Ie We decided the first party should go
there, and they started on Saturday az i : a: I "a
recall the. Misses Bought9n and Hawes and y | re-
tend to the thousand and one emergencies ikeiy
70 On "a Saturday Miss Boughton arrived and on Sun
day we had the usual Chinese service e-Iated 70 pc
our last at Weihsien for many ddg tAavasd All
night We three then worked hard to pack the
most valuable small belongings, and to provide for
The schoos-boys and girls hlgh schoolsLntq a.
We sent away the few remaining schoolgirls TO
ton. BY this time urgiy rum9rS were a1oaIi i anu
Christians and helpers adXlseo uS 70 ledNs- %
aveTse to the foreigners all leaving At 4 p. M
one of our native pastors d @ ding S GT own MA and
others While loading the cart an uqrHlY cTow8-
Saving he could not restrain them. took a cane
and went up, supposing could get 5heIn EN- 10 flin S
smashed the tile work OF coping thereon l drove
the gateway till Mr.. Lis cart went out, Al once once
they attacked the cart, and In moment stoIe
everything in it. could do nothing outside ana SO
shut the large gate against the mob's return
Meanwhile, seeing the sudden turn in affairs.
an rev Tsae advised the women to 90 TO my house
as the most secure and wait for me. / ran back
TO find the dispensary windows smashed and a
Ro%ng eS sfoImD I0 on The % 3ace with bricks and tiles
ran back took from the safe taels 10 of sycee and
the safe and returned to try to keep back the mob
till help should come from famen, The hv4s OF
many depended upoA keeping hack the mon. ran
forward amid a shower of bricks and tiles, and at
twenty PAGES warned them back They jeered at
A brick hit my foot. slightly injuTing but not not
disabling the defending garrison The mob fell
ishing his gun. He was from the Yamen. saluted
him Sordially and asked him to help then opened
the wicket gate and our large gate (Only large
enough for person to enter and ran out TO the
noGth%ssd corner % Tb me sTound the
compound. presumably to see If there was an at
tack on the other side, He ns.of agair appeared
arrival of the soldier. began > hoot at me and
man had returned, and my feals were correct
afterward learned that he had not been sent out
bnstRePs }S mess Out was ''s0'' -- ''l''S 'O' '''
ong S te s09m S6 was m s ahh nigh De Nv hop @ and
prayer then TO keep back the mob until sun
comnonnd Outside Thev stood still and s5on said
do and at this point the presence of soldier
from the Yamen would have ayerted the calamity
No human help came I stood my ground quietly
started toward me. but they skunk back, At 7;l5
they made onset, Some had crept along the
behind me / saw my disadvantage and warned
those to the northwest to halt. They came on,
amid a fusnade of missiles There was no ques-
safely. slammed and barred the gate, and ran up
unused south gate and We're swarming up the
Gcirg III at Miss Boushtons safe and around by
the east private pathway joined our women
We barricaded the doors and windows with fur
u the DINING Toom and Sitting rooms a1d went
stairs Our servants aud several Chinese women
hour we had previously set for a community prayer
few short earnest prayers then the cry Was 5Ia
raised by the Chinese women. The chapel is on
doing downstairs We found the front yard free
from the mob but could hear the crash of win
doWS in the rear of the house Here a most re-
markable thinE light. which saved our
lives. ! had had Il short ladder carried 10 my
front porch for the purpose of getting up To in
spect the roof OF my porch, which had been leak
ing. Hastily placing this ladder on the wall We
climbed over, ard all got out Everywhere else the
rioters doing their nefartous. work except in
my front yard. The chapel, Miss -Toughtons house
and other buildings We're burning hercely and the
mob busy piling fuel the front porch OF
the womens home just next 10 my house. Only
one man us, and crying The devils are eS-
Gaping, kill ne threw brick. which passed over
our heads No rioters We're outside at that point
mi farl liSfn