The Portland daily press., 1900-03-20
Not for Purpose of Do
ing Any Fighting.
Ship VIII Go As Near Pckin
As Possible.

WHsni@Etons MAron lbs-AutuiEhl Wut-
son has not yet advised the navy depart
ment OF the name Of this vessels he has Sc
looted to proceed from Manila to Taku,
In accordance with the request Of the
state department. that ship be sent to
China 10 safeguard American interests.
1t is said at the state department. that the
extent of the agitation In China has been
very much exaggerated. 1t Is asserted
that o. matter Of fact there Is no more
disturbance In China now as q whole
than at any time during the past twenty
years. But the concentration Of the
worlds attention upon the fiowery king
dom, has had the sffeot of magnifying
little troubles In the various provinces
out of all proportion to their real import
ance and Significance. This 10 said 70 be
true as to this last demonstration by the
"Boxers." This ID q secret society Of
anti foreign tendencies. and is the sue
cessor to long line of just such societies
that have preceded it. Usually these So
cietiss are more annoying than dangerous
to foreign interests, but sometimes they
dabbls In politics as is said to be the case
with the Boxers" and thus threaten In
reference with large foreign politics.
Minister Conger's cablegram to the
state department about week ago. while
referring to the "Boxers" and suggesting
the advisatility Of sending q warship to
ensure the American missionaries from
attack, did not refer to any imminent
outbreak, nor did the minister have any
thing to say about our ''open door negoti-
ations being ieopardized.
"The state department rather inferred
from this osb,egram that the ship was
wanted for its m oral effect, rather than
for any expectation that 1t would be
called upon 10 render active service. In
deed, II that had been the case, the de-
pertment would never have felt war
rantsd in sending a single gunboat to
China. 1t lie quite certain that only one
vessel Is destined for this service. and the
pre- sence of other United States warships
on the Asiatio coast Is sasily explained at
the navy department. Admiral Watson
was some time ago authorized by the
navy DEPARTING mt to Eend vessels Of his
feet to the cooler and more invig oratinR
airs of northern China and Japan when
ever q change was necessary to preserve
the health of the crews. The Admiral
awaited imself OF this permission in the
casa of the Oregon and the New Orleans.
The former lie now at Yokohama and the
latter at Nagasaki.
The New Orleans arrived at Nagasaki
February s5, and the Oregon reached
Yokohama February 81, almost three
weeks before Minister Conger had made
any report TO the state department on the
subject. Ihe dispatch OF the Newark to
Hong Kong reported today by Admiral
Watson, was merely for the purpose Of
conveying to Manila the monitor Monad-
mock. The monitor was cent to Hong
Kong to be locked and 1t Ia not regarded
as safe to allow that type of warship to
cruise alone In the open sen. 1t is expected
by the navy department. that Admiral
Watson will select small Runboat to
meet Mr.. Conger's request
Contrary to the first impression, this
vessel Ia going to China, not to operate
in Shan Tuns prnvince, but to get as
near 20 the United States legation as
Pekin as possible, to give weight to the
minister's utterances. A deep draft vessel
cannot pass up the Pei Ho river, and
even light draft gunboats must stop at
Tfen TslD. Then IL the United States
legation Is In nesd Of protection, marines
can be sent overland from lien Tsin to
Pekln, as was done last year under just
such conditions as now exist.