The daily morning journal and courier., 1900-07-11
SAFETY OF THE LEGATIONS
NO AUTHENTIC NEVIS YET RE-
 CEIVED FROM PEKIN.

A D!sposition, However, to Believe the
 sources-Fighttnsa at Tien Tsin, July
 3and 1, the Hardest Yet-Ailies Mar
 rowiy Escaped Total Defeat--Their
 Losses Henvy-Opportune Arrival of
 Russian and Japanese Guns-Terri-
 bic's Guns Alone Able 10 Silence Chi
 nese Fire.
 London July 11-"No authentic news from Pekin'' is still the burden of the despatches from the far east, and, al though the disposition Is to believe the optimistic reports from Chinese sources no real confidence is possible until the legations if they are still in existence, are permitted to communicate with their governments. If as alleged the Boxer movement is losing ground in Pekin, it might have been supposed that the Boxers would have endeavored to send up endorsements from Tien Tsin, but instead of that they are still in great force in the neighborhood of the latter place and are assisted by the imperial Chinese troops with ample and efficient artillery.
 According to a special Che Foo des- patch, the fighting around Tien Tsin on < Ln O,,I d+l, ot experienced The British losses alone were thirty killed or wounded. The Chinese had 75,000 men attacking sim ultaneously from the west north and east, and made excellent practice with over one hundred guns. The defenders numbered 14,000 with scant supplies and 1t was only the presence of the newly arrived Japanese and Russian guns that prevented disaster. One Russian company of infantry, numbering 120 men, had 115 killed or wounded. The German contingent also suffered heav- fly. By the evening of the fourth the situation was very critical. The allies narrowly escaped total defeat.
 Providentially, when things were at their worse, torrential rain fall com pelled tie Chinese to retire.
 On July 6 the rain having abated, the Chinese renewed the attack, opening on Tien Tsin with two batteries of four inch guns, but the allies aided by two of H. M. s. Terrible's Az guns, suc- ceeded in silencing the Chinese artillery after eight hours of fighting.
 At Shanghai it seems to be the gen. eral belief now that the date of the dispatch of July 3rd asserting that two legations were still standing, was an error, either accidental or intentional
 According to the Shanghai correspon- dent of the Express it is war to the knife between the dowager empress and Prince Yuan. In recent edict, the lat ter boldly discarded his mask and signs himself emperor He warmly con- mends the prowess of This faithful Boxers and in 1owery language ap- peals to their cupidity and fanaticisn. In the same decree Prince Yuan ap- points Prince Tsuan, the iron capped" and "Prince Tsashian," his imperial clansmcn and Rank Vi to command the three chief wings of the Boxer army.
 Threo hundred European refuges from Tien Tsin have arrived at Shanghai l in state of destitution after terrible | suffering. The Chinese version of the | origin of the outbreak as published in | Shanghai is that Baron von Kettler was hated by the Pekinese, who, taking ad- vantage of the disturbed condition of affairs, shot him out of revenge, there by causing conflict between the Chi nese troops and the Germans, the latter of whom destroyed the Tsung Lii Ya- men. The infuriated soldiers under | Prince Tuan then gained complete con- | trol over the dowager empress. ' The Daily News Tian Tsin corre- spondent says the allies have decided to lombard the native city which they have hitherto hesitated to attack, owing to the heavy commercial interests in volved.
 The London Daily papers comment favorably upon Secretary of State Hays circular.
 The Times says: "It will meet with general apDrobation and welcome in Great Britain. While it is manifestly dictated by regard forl American inter- ests it coincides closely almost in all important respects with Englands avowed D9licv. The reason is simple. In China the interests of both countries IS primarily commercial and it is from their commercial interests that their po litical interests are derived Seo-etary Hay bears this fundamental far@ stead lily in mind"