New-York tribune., 1900-05-06
DEPOSING AN EMPEROR
AN EYEWITNESS TELLS OF THE CHINESE
DOWAGER'S ACTION IN THE
PEKING PALACE
From The London Globe.

tion from an eyewitness. one Of the Empress
DoWagers eunuGRs, T 1t is tEansiated literally
of March s, which remarks that perfect reliance
may be placed on the statements:
ITO begin with the beginning previous 10
! January - last Peking was filled with dis
| quieting rumOrs, which gradually filtered into
! the Palace Some declared that the Emperor
had already been secretly deposed; others again
stated that the Emperor had been made away
with by poison; but when the Empress DOwager
heard of them she simply smiled in that grin
way of hers which to the terrorized eyes of those
! around her meant that she had decided on
| some which, if it were paved with
the blood Of thousands, would not deter her from
her subsequent goal 1t is also significant of the
woman that none-except perhaps her favOrfte
eunuch, Ii Lien-Ying. and Prince Ching-Of
| those who daily attended her knew exactly
what the Empress Dowager actually intended
/ to do. although il quite clear that some
| sort of a coup on the tapis. But when the
fateful January "A, 1900, came, every one knew
! that only few hours before the Emperor had
! been forced to sign his abdcation. and a gloom
/ spread over the capital like pail, accentuated
as it was by chilly, lowering skies.
Il was one of those who stood around with
! ink slab and pen for the Emperor TO use, while
| the Empress Dowager herself held out the pen
| to him. Even then His Majesty hesitated TO
! take It and sign the ready prepared Imperial
decree of abdiCatiou held out to him but an i'm
perious stamp of the right foot and those pierre
/ ing, menacinS eyes Of the Empress Dowager
/ frowninS upon him seemed to enthral and fas-
cinate the Emperor, who Immediately stretched
/ forth a trembling hand and the next moment,
win d Sroah ana a gesture OF despair, as 1t
were, the fatal deed was done, and the Empress
!
| from her nepheW's hand.
Then a sudden change occurred. which those
around her were too accustomed to see to be
/ startled or astonished at The Empress Dow
/ ayers face became instantly suffused with
smiles her eyes became soft and benevolent, and
she was all kindness and mOtherly SOlicitude for
her Imperial nephew, He. poor. fallen Majesty,
had sunken down on his chair after signing the
/ fatal paper. while a sudden deadly paIeness
| manifested itself in his countenance and a mo-
ment after he had dyed his robe and the carpet
! beneath with his life blood. His Majesty's eX-
I trITTsa had n n COLT
and it seemed that he had burst one # his lesser
/ blood vessels.
| Very kindly and gently the Empress Dowager
! herself attended TO the Emperor, and when he
/ seemed to have somewhat recovered himself she
supported him on one side. waving away the
eunuch who had come forward TO do 50, and
with a surprising solicitude for his health and
/ comfort arranged the pillows and cushions in
/ His Majesty's sedan chair. which was to carry
! him back TO his usual prison, the water sur
| rounded kiosk at the Southern Lake Palace,
which is very near the Empress Dowager's own
residence of Eho Park. She herself escorted the
! emperor 70 ms place OF retreat called the
Ying-t'ai. and having seen him securely confined
within its high walls and the drawbridge once
more brought over, her face resumed that hard
look usual to it as she and her numerous retinue
returned to Peking. All the way from Peking
! to his prison l heard the Emperor weeping at
his hard fate He utterly broken down
| and oppressed Poor Majesty, His meanest
subject among his four hundred million people
would have refused to exchange places with
him on that day. Many of US who escorted His
Majesty dropped tears Of sympathy, and
!
| she took it. Her heart seemed to be of stone.
There that set, stern look in her eyes but
not the least sign of sOftening.
! 4 can assure you that the Empress Dovager
/ had everything prepared for the CrOWning Of
| the Emperor on the first day of the
! year January 3l), but on the 9th of the month
| the Tsung Ii Yamen handed 10 her Kin Lien
/ shan's memorial, praying that the Emperor be
| allowed to resume the reins Of government, even
in his illness, for that the only way to sat
isfy His Majesty's millions Of subjects through
| out the empire
"Oh, the rage Of the Empress Dowager when
many Of her displays of temper and anger, but
none like this one-It surpassed even her rage
| at Kang Yu Wei and his refOrmers. We eunuchS
and even the Prince of Ii, who brought the tele
gram, were simply terrified, and trembled lest
! her anger should fall on any one present Who
| dare send such telegram at last came her
/ question. Kin Yuan-Shan (kin'S official name),
| of Shanghai, and thousand others
the Prince Of Lis reply. Very Well Well
show them how deal with traitors who cross
our path And the Prince of Ii backed out OF
the presence with a sense of relief clearly de
picted on his face.
LAS matter of fact, 7 really think if this had
been the only protest sent the Empress DOWaGer
and her advisers would have tried to brazen il
out and have ignored the telegram: but uufortu-
nately for their schemes. no less than fOrty-SiX
protests Of the same kind Peking.
| after the other. dozen in a day. until the
Empress DOWager believed that there was really
! something in il, and decided defer her coup
mark me did not give up her Intentions but
merely deferred them.
"As a consequence, Kin Lien-shan is praised
sky high a devoted patriot and supporter Of
the Emperor by almost every in PeknE. al