The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1900-07-16

WASHINGTON, July l5.-Such news as
came to Washington to-day from China
was distinctly bad. 1t consisted of Cable
gram to Minister wu from Sheng. the i'm
perial director of posts and telegraphs at
Shanghai and, according to the minister,
was In reply to the urgent message he him
self had sent yesterday to that official,
asking him TO try TO secure some news
from the Chinese capital. This cabIegram
Minister WI regarded as OF sufficient i'm
portance to carry in person directly to Sec
retary Hay, who was waiting at his home
for news. The message as resolved from
the cipher as follows:
Picking news of July says that Gen.
Tuan Fuh Slang. in disobedience to i'm
perial orders. was about TO use guns. Le-
cations and the government will be in
peril"
This news is corroborative of that con-
tanned in a recent cablegram from Consul
General Goodnow at Shanghai although
the consular generals dispatch give his
Peking news the date of the 9Th, saying
that the final attack upon the legations
with guns was about to begin on the 7th
of July. 1t is surmised here that Mr.
Goodnow got his news from Sheng, who
Is certainly in a position to secure the
first news from Peking. Aside from the
gloomy forecast given of the end Of the
terrible struggle of the legationers against
the inevitable. the significant feature of
the message Is the coupling of the fate of
the imperial government with that of the
foreign ministers. Officials here get some
satisfaction from this portion of the dis
patch. as 1t sustains them in the position
they have held from the first, that the
Chinese government Is not at war with
Christendom, but is confronting for
midable insurrection.
There still remains a suspicion that.
while Minister Wu is undoubtedly acting
with perfect sincerity, Sheng, who is rep
resented to be a clever and adroit man.
may know more OF the actual happenings
at Peking than he is willing TO reveal at
once. IL is feared that he is trying to pre-
pare the way for the disclosure of terrible
news. hoping that by letting it come out
gradually the blow will not fall with such
severity. and perhaps with such disas-
trous results to his own people as might be
the case IL the whole story were impaired
to the world at once.
No DIRECT WORD
This news. IL may be noted, comes ell
tirely from Chinese sources. IL is now
twenty-one days since "A word has come
directly from any of the unfortunates be-
sieged i'm the legations at Peking The
last message from there was from Sir
Robert Hart. the Englishman i'm charge
of she Chinese customs service. and was of
undoubted authenticity. II represented the
situation of the legationers as desperate
and implored help The last word from
Minister Conger came to the State De-
partment from Peking under date of June
Il. At that time he asked that Seymour
international relief column. which was
even then doomed to fail. should signal It's
approach when near Peking. That was just
one month and three days ago, and IL
would be an unprecedented defense fol-
such an inadequate and ill-fitted and pro-
visioned force, as was al the command OF
the foreign ministers. TO hold out for tina,
length Of time.
Minister wu's cablegram from Sheng
above given. should not be taken as ar
answer 90 the cipher message forwarded
at Secretary Hays request. to China. ir
the effort 10 get IL through 10 Minister
Conger. That message went 10 Yo Mar
shih Kai. the Governor OF the province OF
shan-Tung- That Official has replied In.
formally that he has no news himself. but
II is assumed that he will take prompt
steps TO forward the cipher message. His
status at this critical juncture is. unfortu,
nateiy. not beyond suspicion. though Mr.
wu retains IuII confidence in him.
To-day's news served 10 settle only more
forcihly In the cif,cial mind the conviction