The times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1897-1901, 1900-02-15
THE MYSTERIOUS TsoU. HsI.
A French Estimate of the Dowsges
Empress of China.

Empress of China
PARIS, Feb. s.-Tsou- Hist Is a mysteri-
Gus woman. sometimes called an agrip-
pima, and styled by others Maria Theresa
The Dowager Empress. of Tartar origin,
was born in a central province Of China.
on November IL. 1894 At that time she
was called Tsou. Her father had been
ruined in one Of the rebellions that period
icaliy devastated the country The family
did not even have bread TO eat. She wish
ed to leave home. AID begged her mother
to allow her to be sold as a servant to the
Viceroy OF the province. Tie little Tsou.
only eleven years old. learned to knit and
to embroider and applying herself quickly
to work. became skillfui in these branches.
She embroidered for her master a tune
so exquisite that he was enchanted. The
Vieeroy ordered the maker OF the gar
ment to be brought before him. and prom
ised. like a fairy godmo;her. to give her
what she should ask.
Her life is romance. or rather fairy
tale. A veritab-e Cinderella minus the
sincerity. Tsou-I.si was elevated to the
throne. as IL by a Hash. by the King of the
Magician, Emperor Hsenfung and more
wicked than the pretty maiden with the
small feet, the Tartar adventures nched
, the magic ring and used it later to fay the
Mandarins. and to make her turbulent
herds march at her command.
II wish 10 learn TO read" replied the
child. The viceroy, delighted. adopted her
then and there. to fill the place in his
home OF child whom he had Just lost
Tsou-Hsi was not a person to falter
when once started in such a pleasant road
Her adopted father. having received from
the Emperor a signal favor. for which he
wished to manifest his gratitude. accepted
the offer when the young Tartar girl pro-
posed herself as a gift to the monarch.
Entering The palace as a simple slave.
she attracted the attention OF the Son OF
Heaven and was elevated TO the rank OF
favorite. The birth OF son added the
las. rung In the ladder. She became the
second wife Of the Emperor. who al
ready had a lawful spouse. Rebeling
against her captivity in the harem. an in
cident later Occurred that enabled her to
leave. 1t was the death Of Hsienfung
The former slave girl seized the power
OF state with the title Of co-regent- AS a
matter of fact, however, she governed
alone. By persistent and determined la
Dor she made herself skillful in the man
agement OF public affairs.
When the young Emperor attained his
majority, thepwidowed Empress, aided by
Iii Hung chang. kept him under her tutil-
age until 1915, when she deemed IT proper
to suppress" him, and TO substitute for
him a nephew. still very young. whom
she had kidnapped during the ght. This
was Kuang-Su. The Dowager then re-
sumed the regency. Kuang-Su younger
brother of the Emperor Hsienfung. and
thus a nephew of the Empress. was four
years old at the time In 1857 he. in turn,
assembled to the throne, but he never pos
sessed anything beyond purely per-
functory power. Tsou-Hsi continued TO
govern conformity with Ii Hung Chang.
The aged lady exercised supreme con-
troll of the imperial harem through the
aid of her favorite. the eunuch Pitsianti.
In 1898, the Emperor KuangSu, prae-
tically ignored by everyone. made an eff
fort to rid himself OF the dominion of the
Dowager. Counseled by KaDg- Yu-Mei. he
revoked the authority OF Ii Hung Chang,
and promulgated various edicts. announce
ing his intention OF introducing reforms
into China. Misfortune. however. attend
ed his efforts. Tsou-Hsi isolated from the
affairs of state all the partisans of the
sovereign, and the accomplice OF his eff
fort for independence, and kept the mon
arch himself in stricter confinement than
ever. She seized anew the reins Of g!vern-
ment, and restored Ii Hung Chang to hia
former power.
1t is probable. however. that even these
steps failed to reassure completely the
ambitious woman, for the signs of indie
pendence that had been manifested by the
youns sovereign disquieted her. Sne evi-
IDENTIFY realized how much easier IL is to
exercise absolute power as the proxy of a
child Emperor. incapable of any distinct
will. than the name OF a young man who
might take the fancy of wanting to reign
himself
Thus II was that she executed certain
precautionary measures for any eontin-
gency by forcing Kuang-Su TO adopt and
to recognize as his heir to the throne his
little cousin. Pou-Tsing. Nobody better
than the wonderful old woman herself.
knew how much Journalism and supersti-
ton count for among tie Chinese. and
that all she needed to do to invest the
child with reverential attributes in the
eyes of his countrymen was to have him
declared the heir to the throne.
This having been done, Tsou-Hsi is once
more of tranquil mind. At the very first
rebellious move on the part of Kuang-
Su, he would disappear from the earth
as victim of malignant fever cast upon
him by a dragon from the moon Pou-
Using would be proclaimed Emperor. and
the venerable Empress would continue to
hold in her withered, but still mighty hand.
that power which. as is always the case
araJ douhlv styear with