The Portland daily press., 1900-10-04
CIVILIZATIONS REVENGES.
The Precedents for China's Punish
ment-HOw Christian Vengeance Has
Rivaled Heathen Outrages.
From the London Expregg.l

The civilized world Is aghast at the
most awful crime Of the century. Never
has such a shout for vengeance gone up;
never before has che head Of great en-
pire pledged his own imperial word that
the murder of his subjects shall be ter
ribly avenged.
1t is too true that the history of the last
hundred years has been stained with the
records of more than one foul massacre,
but in each case retribution, If not al
ways swift, has been stern and sure.
Twenty years ago, almost to day,
Tien-Tsin, now apparently in peril, was
the scene of a murder grim and great. 1t
was the French population that the rage
of the yellow hordes was directed against.
The French Consul, with his family
and guests, was slain amid circum-
stances of sickening horror. The Con-
sulate was fired, as was the cathedral
an act which resulted in the total de-
struction Of both edif1ces. Nor was this
all. Not the sanity lives and gentle
deeds of the sisters of mercy attached to
the French mission could save them from
an awful fate. The worst feature Of the
outrages was that the fanaticaI mob,
composed OF the SCUM and sweepings Of
the city, were instigated and directed by
the local Mandarins. Prompt and vigor-
Gus representations secured the arrest,
trial, and execution OF a large number
OF persons alleged to be concerned in the
crimes; but so tortuous are the ways of
Chinese officials that there is only too
much reason to suppose that the con-
demned persons were In very few cases
the actual rioters. The date of the mas
sacre was June 81, 1870.
The nearest parallel to the crime of Pc
kin is found in that OF Cawnpore, more
than forty years ago. July 10, 1857, saw
this orgy of innocent blood. The male
portion of the garrison having been
treacherously murdered after having been
first induced to lay down their arms, the
women and children were carried to a
building formerly used as an assembly
room, where they were kept close prisO-
ners. Mana Sah1b, having learned that
nothing could stop the march of the Brit
ish column under Ha7elOck, IN his fury
gave the fearful order that the whole Of
the prisoners were to be killed. The
dreadful work done by five men two
peasants, two butchers, and one soldier
of the body guard. The massacre began
by some SepOys firing vOlleys into the
window of the building. Then the five
assassins, armed with sabres entered and
closed the door. What next took place
not one was spared to tell. Heartrend-
ing screams and the noise of struggling
reached the ears of those outside. Occ a.
sionally one OF the mur5erers would come
to the door, hand out hacked and
bloody sabre, and obtain a new one In
exchange. The screams became fewer
and fainter, and at night all had ceased
altogether; only feeble moaning could
be heard at intervals Then the black
fends who were the hired instruments OF
this CHASTITY crime emerged from the
slaughterhOuse covered from head to foot
with the blood of the women and children
who had been done to death.
A touch of unusual horror was added
to the thing by the fact that the murder
ers had not troubled to finish their bloody
work. Three women and a couple of
children, sOrely wounded, were alive
when the doors Of the slaughterhouse
were opened the next morning. Imag-
inc their sutferings during that awful
night The bodies of the hapless Victims
were thrown into we'll in the COM
pound. the wounded being cast still Ilv-
ing into the depth with the dead.
The dread news of the massacre did not
reach England officially till the end of
August, causing thrill of the most in
tense horror and rage among all classes.
Stern retribution followed hard on the
heels of crime. Remember CaWnporei'i
was the WatohWoTd during the~~remainder
of the campaign, and our soldiers felt a
grim joy In driving the bayOnet home to
the cry on their lips. Many of the cap
tured rebels we're blown from guns-a
fearful punishment. as the Sepoys be-
lieved that in this way soul and body
were destroyed together, Before exc
cutiOn the condemned men were dragged
to the scene Of the massacre and forced to
lick the blood from the floor OF the room
in which the Victims had perished. What
this meant to the high caste Hindus may
be imagined.
Sept. 16, 1850, was a day of blood, when
the Christian population of Aleppo were
massacred by the fanatical Moslems. Fire
and sword were carried into the Chris
tian quarter OF the city, and ghastly
scenes were enaotsd. Every Chris
tian place Of worship was burned to the
ground, dwellings were plundered, and
their inhabitants slaughtered. v Vengeance
was taken in summary fashion. No few
er than 1900 OF the rebels were shot and
their quarter of the city razed to the
ground.
There is sad similarity between the
Pekin horror and the massacre OF the
members Of the British mission in Cabul
on Sept. 3, 1879 1t was the month of
Ramazan and MOslem fanaticism was at
It's height, Hatred of the stranger and
the ''infdel'' and hope of plumber COM
bined fired the mob, and they attacked
the residency first with stones and then
with rifles obtained by force from the
Ameer's arsenal. Very soon the build
ings OF the mission were in a state OF
siege. The defenders were driven from
point to point of their frail fortress. The
men of the guides, who formed the guard
at the residency, fought like heroes, head
ed by their British officers. The latter
fell one by one, and the native officers as
sumed the command, and with unabated
spirit headed the desperate charges with
which the tiny force hoped to beat back
its multitudinous assailants. At last the
buildings were set on fire, and the de-
tenders, rushing oft, were slain to a
man. The British resident, Sir Louis
Cavagnari, fell, and with him all the
members of the mission,
England was not slow to take ample
vengeance, An army was quickly in mo-
tion, and the command was intrusted to
the great little general who is now Field
Marshal Lord Roberts The Ameer, af-
fer 0ifo0I1GlV 0r0foEtinO hfc 30nOOnT7 "a of