The Washington weekly post. (Washington, D.C.) 1878-1916, 1900-06-26


Although WI Ting Fang. Chinese Mn
istcr 90 the United States announced ta
other DAY that be was totally without Pc
liable information as TO the so-cai.C.
Boxer secret societies u the Chine,
Empire, certain newspaper correspondent
have been assiduOus.y trying 20 tell N.
people who the Boxers are. Returre.
miss.onsT.gs. too. have boldly come 10 th'
rescue With volUble information. Will
nearly every town and hamlet has bee
able 20 dig Up al least one engineer o.,
professor who Travelled IN China year
ago and Is intimately acquainted with al
81 The secrets % the Boxer Society, hav
ins Just retained from ihe Orient"
All this makes very interesting reading
even u one can never be quite convince.
thai one Is getting the truth The fac
that no two published explanations Of the
Boxers agree ls a fact which IS lost sigh
o. a. the prevailing rush for Information
J; IS therefore highly dlverting 10 cou
pare the so-called expert explanations au-
personal "reminiscences Of the people who
claim 20 stand high IN secret Boxer cOuU
els. remembering while reading the fol
lowing diverse opinions that Wa Tins
Fang himself said he did not understand
who the Boxers are.
Nearly every Wisc8Cre able 10 get into
print on this disputed question announces
that the Boxer movement originated IL q
certain rrOvince. Each names a different
one, each gives a different translation Of
the Chinse word commonly translated into
Boxer" One SAYS that IL means "tnC
righteous fist" another that IL is the 80
ciety Of the Great Sword" One says thai
IL originated thousands Of years ago. and
Is similar 10 Masonry. Another returned
missionary declares tina. il was formed
only last year 10 fight Manchurians. bur
instead turned against the Christians. As
China is long way off and o0mmunica-
ton with Pekin is interrupted. il is nat
urally safe proceeding for any one 10
venture a theory as 10 who the Boxers
are. 40 one will take the trouble 10 deny
anything. That's how most Of these Boxer
explanations get into print Here are a
few Of them. culIod from some Of ;he
choicest journals Of the United States.
Theory from New York.
Mr.. Clarence Carey. described as "a
member OF the University Club who has
just returned from China" gives TO the
New York sun the following explanation
Of the Boxers and their origin:
THE Boxers originated in the Shantung
province. in which the Germans claim the
sphere of influence. They began among
villagers who were allowed by the To-
cal Chinese governors to carry arms to
put down robDer bands in their particular
nedghborhOOds. Gradually they became
possessed with the idea Of turning robbers
themselves and they gathered in all Of the
malcontents and the many who were
out Of work on accoun: Of tne
great drouEh: last winter. When
thpy became possessed OF cOnsiG-
erahle strength in numbers they went
west'to Pao Ting Flu, the terminus Of the
Lu Han Railroad. about sixty miles from
Pekin. There they murdered an English
missionary named Brooks. They advanced
along the line OF the railroad, tearing up
tracks and burning stations. until they
reached the main line, Fcng II, which
they also tore up and destroyed IN sec
tons Our marines are now engaged IN
repairing the parts so destroyed.
The name 5 an arbitrary one. given
10 them doubtless by some English-speak-
ing person, who got II from their Chinese
name-I no Tran. This being interpreted
means faith, righteousness. and the two
fists / supi ose we would call it the Good
Right ARM Society. or something Ike
that They Rre doubtless taking in all OF
the old secrl-t societies and all of the law
less and d,iscOntentcd ones. They have
only been in existence for year, and no
one knows. much more than this about
In the Csame issue OF the Sun is a dia-
metricafly opposite view from the forego-
ing, voiced by M" A ROthstein a Rus
sian ihnancier and railroad man" who also
bias just returned from China" Asked
II he regarded the Boxer riots as fanati-
cal religious outbreaks. Mr. Rothstein
said that he did not at all The China
man." he said, lis never a fanatic. He is
not eXCitable by temperament The tenn
permanent is the thing one must always
keep in mind. They care but little for
l!fe or death They are calm. In my
Manchuria concessions il has frequently
come TO the point that we must arrest
some great rObber. Very good But II
is not well that we execute him. w,
send him 10 the government 10 be execut-
cd But because We are acquainted with
the Chinese temperament and do not de-
sire a few poor coolies TO be bcheaded in
stead of the men we have sent, before
VIC send them We have each one carefully
photographed. Then We politely ask the
government that il will kindly send Us
the head OF the murderer after the eXecu-
ton that We may compare il with the
photograph"
simply WAN Railroad Iron.
'1f the Chinese are not fanatlcal" he
was asked. why do the Boxers tear ~
the railroad tracks and tear down the
telegraph wiVes"'
For a very good reason" he replied.
They are only band of robbers. The
railroad iron and steel is worth a great
deal 10 them. 1t Is much cheaper to tear
il up from the ties than 10 import II.
About tho tcl'"raph-it has been a char
acteTistIc OF childish and disOTderly popu-
lauous in other countries than China 10
attack the telegraph wires and poles.
nave heard OF countries where there arc
men who shoot the glass insulators from
the poles for amusement" M Rothstein
almost smiled.
1T will not be caused by the present dis
tUrtauces.' he went on but there will
Dc little more railroad building in China
for some time. Recently have had much
trouble with the tsuug-ll.yamen. Thav
showed a great unWillingnUSs TO hays
me execute my contracts, even where !
had already obtained my concessions. If
we went ahead We were interfcred with.
They killed engineers. Now that is too
expensive. Ensineers-they 90 not Tx
10 be- killed either. 1t Is peculiar. but
they do not Nobody does. except the
missionaries"
Inc valued Chicago Inter Ocean dis
poses Of the Boxer question by dragging
the Rev. John y. y. Smith, d. D., OF
NlngpO. China. into the controversy. He
mas been IN China nineteen years. and
Ike the others has just returned" DR.
smiths explanation is couChrd In classic
language. says he:
Blow 10 Progress.
"WHen the Empress DOwagcr III 1885
forced the Emperor 70 resign his power