Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1900-09-06
REFUGEES ACCOUNT.
War Of the Boxers Approved by
the Empress Dowager.
GRAND COUNCIL HELD At The PALACE
~ Emperor Bssought the Empress Not
- Plunge Chiaa Into War, bat She
Treated Him with Contempt sad
He Left the Chamber.


from Pekin, whose name is not giver
furnishes the North China Dali
News, received by the Doric yester
day, an account Of events in Pekin
which shows that the war Of the box
ers on foreigners was approved by tn
empress dowager The writer says:
ION June 16 the empress dowagel
suddenly issued decree summonint
Ill the Manchu princes, dukes, no
tables and high officials Of the 81,
boards and nine ministers to be pres
Ant at a grand council to be held al
once in the palace. The suspicious
part of this was that, when all had
gathered at the palace those who
were Manchus were first called by
the empress dowager to a secret audi.
ence, while all of Chinese descent were
left In the waiting room. After the
Manchus had ended their secret coun-
ell and had come back to the waiting
room they were again called back,
this time with those Of the Chinese
descent, in the empress dowagers
council room. When all had PROS
trated themselves before the empress
dowager and emperor they waited for
her to speak first.
"She said: 'The foreign powers have
browbeaten and prosecuted us in such
Q manner that we cannot endure this
any longer. We must therefore com
bine TO fight all foreigners to the
last, to save our face in the eyes of
the world. All our Manchu princes,
dukes and mobiles and ministers, high
and low, are unanimous in this deter
mination for war to the knife and |
approve Of their patriotic choice. |
therefore give all you this announce
ment and expect all to do their duty
to their country
The writer then goes on to say that
Hsu Ching Cheng Chinese cx-minis-
ter to Russia, Marquis Using, son
Of the late minister to Great Britain,
and other Chinese mobiles tried TO in
fuence the empress dowager to re-
verse her decision, or at least to make
q distinction between nations, not
making war upon friendly nations.
The empress dowager declared that in
this war China would have the box
ers, who were invulnerabla to bullet
and sword on her side and could not
be conquered. His majesty, the
emperor, says the writer, who had
maintained d fearful silence, finally
implored the empress dowager to re-
consider her decision, but she turned
her back on him.
Continuing, the writer says; "Four
OF the friendly Chinese ministers Wis
tied United States Minister Conger,
ct the risk of their lives, explained
the situation to him and asked il an
srmistice could not be arranged. The
murder of the German minister
opened the eyes of the imperial court.
They saw that things were now in
danger of going beyond recall,
"'rhe most prominent and active of
the Manchu party presented them
selves at the palace on the Goth of
June, the day after the murder of
the German minister, and got the
empress dowager to issue decree to
Yung Lu, as generalissimo of the
grand army of the north, commanding
him to bring in his army to Pekin
and formally attack the legations,
destroy them and them leaving Pekin
for Tien Tsin, to destroy the foreign
ers there and so on until all were
driven into the sea-"
Just as the empress dowager was
about to sign the degree, says the
writer, the emperor again besought
her not to plunge the nation into war,
but she treated him with contempt
and he left the council chamber
weeping.