The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1900-07-17
THE CHINESE ATROCITIES.

49,
ing more serious every day. At
present we know that the German
Ambassador has been assassinated,
the Russian Minister tortured and
boiled to death, his wife outraged
and killed. the fate of our own
Minister and those of other coun-
tries has not been learned, but no
one can tell but that the atrocities
which they have suffered have
been equal, if not surprising in
ferocity those endured by the rep
resentatives of Germany and Rus
STA. The whole of China seems to
be on the eve of rule of fanatical
mob violence. The city of Pekin
is in the hands of the mob and the
international forces are virtually
besieged and held captive in the
city of Tien Tsin. 1t would seem
that the great and inevitable strug-
gle between the civilizations of the
East and West is at hand. The
world is growing smaller as the
means of communication are per-
fected, and the result is that we
are much closer neighbors to China
today than we were to Canada
one hundred years ago. AS fur
ther result, it has become apparent
that neighbors holding such abso-
lutely different views of life, such
radically opposed methods of
thought and living, cannot dwell
in harmony. 1t is an old saying
that "No house is large enough
for two families, and the world is
becoming too small for more than
one kind of civilization. Either
the Monaghan or the Caucasian
will triumph in the coming con
flict, one or the other will be sub
dued and made subject. By this
we do not mean the dis member
ment of China, we do not mean the
actual political control of that
country, but we mean that the
strength and vitality of one of the
civilizations must succumb. The
conflict between these civilizations
has been inevitable. Scholars and
statesmen have prophesied it for
years. 1t is but part of the uni
versal plan, a Pigment of that
great scheme of the universe which
involves the survival of the httest
and the amalgamation of all the
peoples of the earth in one great
worldwide government.
For the present, while we may
speculate as to the future, there is
but one thing left for us to do, the
representatives of this government
have been sent to China in the
same way that the representatives
of China have been sent here.
They went under assurances of
good will and protection. The
Chinese government has either VIC
lated its pledges by encouraging
and secretly cooperating with mob
violence, or it is too weak and too
| impotent to restrain and control
its own people. In either event
it is the plain duty of this country,
as we'll as of every European ma
ton, hrst,to protect the lives of its
representatives and citizens if pos
slble. Secondly, to restore peace
and order, and to establish such a
strong government that a similar
outbreak will not occur in future,
and third to intlict such drastic
punishment as will be lesson to
the Chinese people for years to
come. Naturally we feel the spirit
of revenge. In this instance the
atrocities in China appeal to us
personally. We knew Edwin H.
Conger and his wife and daughter,
they were personal friends. We
feel that the lives of thousand of
those heather Chinese would not
be just retribution for the harming
of hair of their heads. When
we think of them sacrificed to the
fury of mob, our blood boils and
we feel that the whole power of
the United States government,
even to the enlistment of every