New-York tribune., 1900-08-11
rERMS OF PEACE IN CHINA.

We said some time ago that certain edict or
message of the Chinese Government had been
answered in advance by the Government at
Washington. The same may be said again
concerning the alleged authorization of Ii Hung
Chang to negotiate for peace, in case that
report from Shanghai proves less mendacious
than most of the stuff which comes thence. 1t
is not upon the face of it. AT all unlikely that
the Chinese Government has taken some such
action In the natural sequence of incidents it
is Just about time for il to do so. And, despite
all that has been said. chiefly njudiciously,
against him in the last few weeks Ii Hung
Chang is pre-eminently the best man in China
TO be intrusted with the task of making set
tlement with the Powers. Nevertheless. as we
have said. any such Overtures from China are
in a large measure unnecessary. They nave
been discounted and answered in advance, and
only day or two ago the ineXOrable answer
was reafirmed with an emphasis that can leave
no rational room for doubt as to its purport.
Strictly speaking, there is no occasion TOT
peace negotiations because there has been and
there is no war; in the technical sense or the
term-no. nor in the actual sense, either. The
United States Minister at Peking has been
menaced with death and has been prevented
from communicating with his Government, and,
since the Chinese Government has for some
reason failed to correct those intOlerable condl-
TONS the United States Government has under
taken to do so. In that task il has in the most
friendly and cordial manner solicited the co
operation of the Chinese Government All the
Chinese Government has to do is to acQuesce
in the eminently moderate and reasonable re-
uuirements of the United States and fulfil its
treaty obligations. That is all. We seek no
conquest. We want no partition of the Empire.
We are not clamoring for revenge. We want
.od or16 f11a
treaties between it and the United States main
tanned. and nothing more. But we cannot for
a moment tolerate the cooping up of our Min
lister and his staff as prisoners, the interruption
of their free communication with the Washing
ton Government the driving of them out OF
the country as though they were malefactOrs
or unwelcome intruders.
The terms of the settlement which are
ceptable to this country have been stated with
admirable cIearness and precision by the Presi-
dent and Secretary of State They have been
acquiesced in by China as to the first and
second items. All that now remains for China
to do is similarly to acquiesce in the third point
which is certainly as reasonable and as easy
as either Of the others. The best service Ii
Hung Chang can do, if a peace making mission
| has been given 10 him, is TO persuade the
| Peking Government that the United States Gov
| ernment is in full earnest in this matter. and
| that the best and, indeed, the only thing to be
| done is TO accept and to execute the conditions
| which it has already named 1t is significant
that this move for peace comes at the very
time when the resolute character and success
full progress of the relief expedition are demon
| strated. That fact is another vindication of
| the courageous and straightforward policy of
| the United States Government. 1t was the
American policy which preserved the Ministers
| from destruction. 1t was the American policy
which secured the first authentic news from
Peking. and ultimately a reOpening Of COM
munication with the Ministers. II is the Amer
| lean policy which now brings the Chinese Gov
| ernment TO sue for peace. There is are
tOl change in the attitude Of the author
| tiles at Washington. There is no occasion for
any. The policy at first adopted and thus far
| consistently maintained will. If maintained to
the end. result in a complete victory for civil
| iZaton.