The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-06-19
CHINA DECLARES " AR.
Taku Forts Open Fire on the
Foreign Fleet.
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Engagement Is of Short Duration, Two Of
the Forts Being Blown Up and -Four
Hundred Chinese Killed-Three Ger
mans Slain.
LONDON, June 19.-China declared
war against two worlds when the Taku
forts opened fire on the International
fleets. The accounts of what took place
are still unsatisfactory, the best semi
official information being the dispatch.
received at Berlin from Che Foo:
''On the afternoon of June 16, in view
Of the large bodies of Chinese troops as
sembling at the forts and of the facts
that torpedoes had been laid in the river
and that all communications were in
terrupted, the naval commanders held q
council and decided to send an ulti-
matum calling for the disbandment of
the troops and announcing that if this
demand were not complied with before
"a. m. OF the following day the united
squadron would destroy the forts.
Shortly after midnight the forts
opened fire. The British, French, Ger
man, Russian and japanese warships
replied. Two of the forts were blown
up and the rest were cleared by assault.
Two British, one American and five
Japanese warships are in Che Foo
harbor"
The unofficial narratives coming by
way of Shanghai vary and bear evil
dence of supplementing the main facts
with guess work. One dispatch says
that the Yorktown participated in the
bombardment Another asserts that
American marines formed part of the
storming force of 1900. An Associated
Press dispatch from Che Foo dated yes
terday afternoon says:
sThe forts on both sides of Taku are
now occupied. The Chinese opened
fire Unexpectedly. The casualties to
the mixed force were as follows:
"Killed, British, 1; German, 8; Rus
a; German, Z; Russian, 40; French, I.
Chinese torpedo boats were seized"
The Shanghai correspondent of the
!, Daily Mail telegraphing yesterday says:
"The forts began firing in observance of
orders from Peking, conveyed in the
personal edict of the empress dowager,
by advice of Kang vi, president of the
ministry of war. Several warships were
struck by shells from the 12-inch guns
of the forts. The heavy Russian losses
were due to the blowing up of the maga-
zines of Mandshur. Four hundred
Chinese are reported killed. The Chinese
while retreating fell into the hands Of
the Russian land force"
The Daily News has the following
from Che Foo: Two of the forts were
blown up. The 80 warships at Taku
aggregated 100000 tons and carried
more than 800 guns.
The failure of Admiral Seymour's
column and its retreat to Tien Tsin in
crease, it is presumed, the peril of the
legations in Peking, which is still
feared, though Shanghai still forwards
rumors that the legations were attacked
by mobs, who were moved down by
machine guns, and also that the men,
bers of the legations were massacred.
The situation at New Chwang is re-
ported critical. The British consul at
Kiu Kiang has requested all foreigners
to leave Ku Ling and Nau King
Chang. The powers are taking prompt
action Four thousand German troops
have been ordered to China; 10000
French troops are waiting to embark at
Saigon capital of French Cochin China,
and from 5000 to 5000 more Russians
have been ordered from Port Arthur to
Taku. c.
The Brussels corresponS Mt of the
Standard in a dispatch dated " sarday
says: Russia has massed 10000 men
with seven batteries at Kiachta, with
orders to proceed to Maimatchin,
Chinese town contiguous to Kiachta,
and thence to advance along the tele-
graph route to the Mongol town of
Urga, two miles south of Kiachta and
75O miles northwest of Peking"
The morning papers consider that a
state of war practically exists and that
the issue is between eastern and west
ern civilization. The Times says the
latest news indefinitely increases a
situation already sufficiently serious.
The reports regarding the burning of
the legation and the murder of the Ger :
man minister, Won Ketteler, have not
been confirmed.
News From French Consul
PARIS, June l9.-The French consul
general in south China, who was in
structed to send into Tonquin all the
French citizens at Yunnan Sen, cables
from the latter place, under date of
Thursday, June IA, that he had been
prevented from leaving with his com
panions by the viceroy, and that his
house and all the missions have been
hnrped He odds that axarythi,c l.,