The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1900-07-23
Terrible TorturcS Inflicted Upon
Foreigners During the Massa-
crcs Thirty Years Ago.
TWO NUNS ROASTED ALIVE.
Indcscribahle Atrocities Visited
Upon Victims nj Ticn-Tsin
Substitutes Executed
in Punishment.

| RI.PJ ELIC SPEtIAr.
| Washington. July % me idea of tho
| awful fortunes inflicted by the Chine-c upon
| foreigners MAY be gathered from what
| happened at Tien-Tsin in 1870" said "A re-
| tired naval officer. who has spent mary
| years i'm tie orient. Ever since the !n:-
! e!Su Ministers were c1oPol up in pehIn
have feared that the Tien-Ts!n horrors
/ would be dupli. a;.d when the story of the
| Pckin massacre came TO be known to the
| world. ! notice that the horror story n
the t0r;ur;rs u ". DE Giers. the Russian
! envoy. has besn denied officially. but II
| seems Ia me that the story IS more likely
| 20 br 80 awful that the officials dare not
make the fun details public Just yet.
| Trouble About Christianity.
| THE Tien-Tsin massacre was aimed at
| the French missionaries. and the French
| Consul. though If missionaries OF other ma
| tioualiics had been on the ground l be
| leve they would have shared the common
| fate. The cause WIS Christianity th'n as
| row. the revolt of the Chinese against
religion foreign TO their traditions. For
| DAYS preceding the outbrcak-which. Curl
ousiy enough. came iii June. just ms 40
| the present one--ihe Foreign Consuls at
. Iitl-ISln knew lNtl IItuult hiS
ing. On June 20 1870. Mr.. Lay. the British
| Consul at Tien-Tsin. wrote to the British
Minister. Mr. Wade. at Pskin. as follows:
I'VE must have 4 man-of-war. for when
| there IS none disorders Increase. There is
| no doubt the Chinese are most hostile 10
| all foreigners; :he fire Is smoierins ana
! may at any moment break forth.
This remarkable communication as ap-
p,icahle 10 r.cen; events "a to those or
| thirty years ago. reached the British Min
I lister a; Pckin he following day. and ne
Immediately cabiei 10 Shanghai asking itr
| a warship. Before one could arrive. now
c.s- the Tica-Tsin horror had happened
| on the morning Of June q, the confidSra-
| tion by.k. OUT in all its fury. Early in the
morning IT,. gong WAS heard suTnni"aihS
| th,. loyal Chinese, and the foreign r. al
rien-Tsin heard II with dread They masSed
together 1T TIE British Consulate wheFr
they remained all during the exciting events
OF the next few hours Lnjy a British war
ship arrived to Queli the disturbance
Chinese Atrocities.
A vast horGe OF China's lowest scum sur
rounded ihe French Consulate and EU'Ied
stones at its gates, windows and doors. Iht
French Consul was VI. FOntainer. who had
all along prot sJcd that the rumo-s Of trou-
BE ard IN uprising wee exaggeraiei- TOO
late came his awakening, TO md the enemy
surrounding his house and threatening his
life. Re his -glisence what IL may ne
faced Death as Frenchmen IN the FACE Oh
danger always do. Starting 10 speak 10
the mob he was cut down before he ma Il
chance to finish his fist sentence. HAN a
dozen swords weTs thruSt at him, and he
fell MORALLY wounded. Instantly. with that
fe:ccious bIrbarism, which. in my opinion.
places the Chinese almost on the leHe! OF
caniiibalS the head Of the French NH
lister was severed from his body and placed
on A pole. while the rest OF tI!s bvlJ WIS
horribly mutillted.
The mob then forced its way into the
gardens Of the consulate, where the most
awful atroc;tleS took place. 80 revolving that
IL Is siCkt ming to even describe them IN dc
tail. la the ga;Jen We're walking VI. simon
and NJ and Nine. Tomassin, friends OF the
Consul. who heard the uprJar. but did not
appreciate what it meant. Instantly the
mob dispatched them and placed their heads
ON long poies, mutllatns The bodies
Nuns MaSsacred.
Separated from the French Consulate
by u stone wal! were the French Catholic
Church. PreSbytery. convent and orphan
age. Fathers Chcvrier ana Gu, the latter
d native priest. fastened - nlcct the riot
vrs. in the hope 81 Dctus in time To Az
minister the last rites OF their church -
th,. trenci. Consul and his friends. hey
were at cnc. surrounded and murdered
their bodies cut in 4 Thousand different
places ana .f;,rwari thrown ir;o the river.
Ih- naddencd moo then made its way To
the convent gate. whore Sister NonSut;,
OF the nuns. awaited them.
y cut from 1t twO-hanGei Sabcr severed
her skull! and her body was sul,fully
mutiiatcd. Sister Andr,oni was the next
to fall from a blow of hatch,t. Her body
was carried high over the heads cf the
rioters.
Sister Cavelin met her uiurder,rs az the
southeast angle of the convent, She Was
dragged 10 the pharmacy. and while still
alive she was tortured in the most indie
sCribable manner until she died. Tier
shrieks rose high above the yells and exc
crationS of her dSsaSsnS. Sister Violet. i
delicate nun. was next seized. but. forturate-
ly for her. tainted. ard was not tortured.
being killed on the spot ihstcd /. Sister
Lcgras was feli.d and her body cut in
halves. Sister O'Suilivau was -clIe,l close
by the kitchen. The rioters. seeing large
ket.leful of boiling water close al hard.
threw IL over her. The poor sister. mad
dened with pain and half Blinded rushed
TO the chapel where she was dispatched.
Victims Roasted Alive.
IN appalling death awaited Sisters Pa
Wilton and Tillet They had sought refuge
with some OF their orphan children in the
crypt beneath the chapel but the chinese
discovered them. The wretChes then kin
died fire and roasted alive their victims.
the men holding their legs and arms. Sis
ter Lcnu was the last 10 meet her death
from blow Of n lance on the temple.
Substitutes Executed.
THE rioters then. apparently frightened
a; the erorm;ty Of their deed. withdrew.
after looting the consulate and the church
The arrival Of the British warship from,
Shanghai restored order, The French Am
bassador at Pckin signed collective note
of protest to the Chine So Minister Of For
eIg1 Affairs. whose Government paid a
substantial morey indemnity for the loss
of property. and To the families of the
murdered people. exilcd several mandar!ns
Of lesser degree. ard dccapitated certain
coolies. vino came forward as substitutes
for those really guilty. in consideration cf
the sum OF 800 tae!s-about SiJl-beinE
handed TO their families. ard themselves
being laid to earth IN fine clothes and COT
fins. Ii is more than probable that had not
France been ia the throes Of the German
war. measures more vigorous than threats
would have been taken by the Paris Gov
ernmont.