The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-11-15
DR.. MARTINS ADDRESS.
HIS THRILLING STORY OF THE
SIEGE OF PRKIN.

the Boxers and Their Part In the
Trouble GalIantry of the Women in
the Beleaguered Legation.
The Rev. DR.. w. A. P. Martin, presi-
dent of the Imperial University of Chi
ma, told the story of the siege of Pekin
and something of the origin of the re-
cent outbreak in China, to large audi
ence at Hosmer Hall last evening, all
the connecting halls being thrown into
4 one. He was introduced by President
u e. d. Hartranft, of the Hartford Theo-
logical seminary, who referred to him
as having contributed to the Chinese
what they knew of international law.
In beginning his address DR.. Martin
said that he had indeed translated three
we'll known authorities on international
law for the Chinese but recent occur
FENCES had left the impression that
about all the good International law
had done the Chinese was to give them
I desire to get all nationalities cooped
together and cut them up. The recent
remarkable outbreak was, he thought,
wholly outside Of the traditions of the
Chinese, who were peaceable, and he
quoted from the ancient history of the
people to show that this was the case.
1t resembled the Sepoy mutiny, when
,fanaticism reigned. The Chinese had
trampled on all their traditions, al
{ though he held the Tartars more to
blame than the Chinese themselves.
The present race of Chinese was not,
I In the opinion of the speaker, the equal
L In training or culture of the generations
that have gone, but still there We're
able men among them, Ii Hung Chang
being without doubt the ablest in diplo-
macy, literature and military affairs,
but he was not what he ought to be.
He had not the high moral integrity
that would give him the confidence of
3 the world nations.
Dr. Martin went Immediately into a
description of the siege Of Pekin and
the reasons for it, touching upon the
important capture of Taku as being the
key to the rescue of those who had been
forced into the British legation for
safety. He had himself witnessed
many years ago two attacks upon
those forts at Taku by allied forces of
English and French, and he had fears
that the allied eight powers would not
be able to capture them, but they did /
and their banners foated over the forts !
The American flag did not, however |
join in this demonstration, as the !
American admiral had not felt called |
upon to enter into the combination. !
Later. a change came over him and the
American forces did much to aid the ,
work of rescue.
The Chinese in the Taku forts had
trained their guns upon the gunboats
sof the fleet on the Pei-Ho at night,
ready to fire upon them in the morn
ing, but during the night the tide
changed and the gunboats veered about
SO that the shots. except in one in
stance where the boat was moored fore
and aft did not hit the mark. This
was but an illustration Of the Chinese
lack of facility to adapt themselves to
changing circumstances If they could
only be brought to this point they
would be superior to the Japanese.
The discrimination of trouble for the
diplomatic representa- lives was in cir
cular from the Tsung Ii Yamen saying
that the powers had demanded the sur
render of the Taku forts, that this was
regarded as a declaration of war and
that the ministers would be given twen-
ty-four hours in which to leave Pekin,
The circular did not give the fact that
these forts had already been captured
The ministers did not leave, but agreed
to call in the missionaries, the native
Christians and to rendezvous in the
British legation, which was capable of
being strongly defended. The German
was shot in the street, and the
other ministers and missionaries took
refuge in the citadel. The hardships
endured in the long weeks of the siege
that followed could only be realized by
those who were on the inside. DR. Mar
tin himself was a guest of Minister
Conger, who was one of the coolest and
most courageous men he had ever
known, fit for any place to which he
might be called. Mrs. Conger was a
most remarkable woman and had an
unwonted calm, obtained from teach
ings at the feet of either Bishop Berke-
ley or Mrs Eddy, and seemed to have
an impression that the firing of the
shells and cannon balls into the lega-
lion was but the veriest phantasmago- l
Ild Oh ullG llDdS lildllOl <aC LII llill5Glly
after picking up nine-pound cannon !
,all that had penetrated the wall Of the l.
legation, he thought 1t was very much Y
Of a reality. Miss Conger, the minis
ter's daughter, served the table and
Justitia herself could not have been )
more exacting than she in weighing out
he exact three ounces of horse meat to =
each person at the table, whether it was II
horse a la carte or horse hash. She had y
been all over the world in search of u
health and had tried all the noted water q
,ures, but the fire-cure at Pekin cured
her. Seriously there was great hero u
SIN among the women in the legation
Their husbands had given them revol- y
yers, instructing them to shoot them u
selves and their daughters rather than ?
% fall into the hands of the ruthless =
oe. And withal they were always :
milling. cheerful and courageous. a
The most important day for the Legal =
ions safety was when the Chinese had y
ecured a bit of wall upon which they IL
we're to plant cannon and train them u
non the compound. Captain Myers, at II
he head of the American, English and
Russian guards of the legation, sixty
men altogether, captured the wall and
,a1d III and il was directly underneath 81