Graham guardian., 1900-11-23
THE CHINESE SIDE.
German Officer TestiHes to Bravery
of Mongolian Troops.
How Christfan Humanity Compares
with the Raw Feroeity of the
Boxers-The Foreign
era in China.

The Europeans are beginning to find
out that after all the Celestial is not
such bad soldier, says a Chicago ex-
change. Lieut.. Won Krohn, lying
wounded in the German hospital at
Yokohama, whittier he was brought
from Taku, is very positive on that
point. He thinks, according to local
paper which has interviewed him, that
"they are splendid material, and if they
had good officers would probably be in
vincible." Elsewhere he says that
Everybody in general has very greatly
underestimate the quality of the Chi
nese troops. 1t would be utter folly to
think that with an army of forty, fifty
or even a hundred thousand the allied
forces could reach Peking, but force
of at least 10000 and especially large
force of artillery and cavalry and a
carefully planned campaign will be
necessary to attain that end"
Incidentally Lieut.. Won Krohn let's
us see how beautifully our Christian
humanity and civilization compares
with the raw ferocity of the Boxers:
"As far as the capture of prisoners 10
concerned" he says, "this is an impos-
sibility, as the Chinese are not civilized
enough for that kind of warfare. I'm
der the circumstances of the present
warfare in China the allies have been
and probably will be in the future COM
PEELED to kill the wounded with the bay
onet. In the beginning they even sent
wounded to the hospital at Tientsin,
but they soon found out that as long
as man was able to raise hand he
would try and stab the foreigners; and
as, moreover, they found the prisoners
very refractory and had all they could
do to attend to themselves, they were
compelled TO kill all wounded with bay
onets and, generally speaking, accept
no prisoners, but to kill everybody that
stood up against them"
Even the anger of the throne, feeble
and at the same time bombastic as it
often is in China, becomes almost sub
lime in view of the unparalleled affront
of Taku. The rescript, which is in the
name of the emperor, OF course, tells
with good deal of ability and clear
ness how many benefits the Chinese
government conferred on the foreign
ers, how it permitted them to trade
with the Chinese, how it permitted
them to send their missionaries among
the people though the latter did not
want them. But lately the foreigners
had usurped territory and plundered
the people of China by force, and in so
doing they had insulted the empire.
As result their churches had been
destroyed and their missionaries mur-
dered. The government had done its
best to protect foreigners and had is
sued instructions for the protection of
the legations in Peking and the rescue
of the missionaries. Despite this action
the foreigners, needless Of the benevo-
lent intentions of the government. had
demanded with display of force the
Withdrawal of the Chinese troops from
the Taku forts. AT this point the writ
er of the reScript seems to lose con-
troll of himself, or herself. We "soI-
emnly and with tears declare" he cries
that we will carry on this war to the
bitter end rather than suffer this ig-
nomy and live. Oh! hear We, our loval
and patriotic subjects and people!
Come in hundreds of thousands from
Chilli and Shantung and assemble in
the imperial capital, for it is our inten-
ton to fight with the enemy for our
20 provinces and their 100000, 900 in
habitants."
In Pharaoh or a Babylonian mon
arch this outburst would be considered
fine, and the Chinese empire is contem-
porary of the empire of the Pharaohs
and the empire of the Babylonians and
should consequently have the same
privileges. In hundred years the
blood-guiltiness, the treachery, the
want OF faith, the craft, the mendacity
and the cruelty will have been forgot
ten and people will look back on the
last struggle of the Oldest empire that
the world ever say with sympathy, ad-
mirntion and pity.