The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-05-08
MARTYRDOM
IN CHINA
Forty-Five Whites
Go to FrightfuI
Deaths.
NARROWING TALE
OF BARBARlSM
Missionaries and Their Wives and
Children Beheaded in Gov
errors Yamen.

AT the request of Rev. DR.. S. E.
the Advertise reprints the fol-
lowing account of the missionary mar
tyrdom in China, from the Chinese
Recorder, which has not been report
ed in the daily papers. 1t relates the
execution of forty-five whites, as fol-
lows, and is the account of an eye
witness:
The following is the first account
that has reached the coast of the muir
ders at Tai-yuen-fu in the Yamen of
Governor Yu Hsien, by an actual eye
witness, a Christian who escaped with
his life, and whose absolute trustwor-
thiness is vouched for by DR.. Creasey
Smith, who sends the account from
Peking. 1t is known thai the mis-
sionaries, men and women, Catholic
and Protestant, met their death with a
heroism that moved the admiration
even of their executioners. The ac-
count is as follows:
Il, Yung Cheng, am member of the
Baptist church, and was baptized by
Pastor Farthing eighteen months ago
months previous to the massacre l had
been living on the Baptist Mission So
ciety's premises at Tai-yuen-fu, hav-
ing a sickness which was being treat
ed, and spending my time in study OF
the Scriptures When DR.. Edwards
hospital was burned down l returned
to my home June 2Sth). 1 returned
to the city, however. from Lou-pu,
and was on the Sth of July at the viii
lage of Tie-tSun, about ten Ii south
east of Tai-yuen, about ) o'clock in the
afternoon, when / saw Pastor Pigott,
of Shou-yang, with his wife and son,
a gentleman (Mr. John Robinson) and
a lady Miss DuvaD, and two girls
(Atwater girls, going along in two
carts. They stopped at a food shop,
and the soldiers who We're accompany
ing them Il only saw seven or eight
bought them some food. The two gen.
tlemen were handcuffed. 1 saw Mrs.
Pigott feeding her husband with small
cakes and 'mien' (boiled dough
strings). Mr.. Robinson fed himself,
eating cakes only. Mr.. Pigott, recog-
nizing me, asked where the pastors
were in Tai-yuen-fu, and l told him all
had been taken to Chu-tou- hong, near
resting a short time, Pastor Pigott and
Mr.. Robinson preached to the people
who gathered around. The people were
much astonished and said: You are
to be killed for preaching, and yet you
go on doing So That night the whole
party of seven were placed in the dis
trict prison
The next day I was on the street
near the Governors yamen; l saw a
big crowd and went to see what 1t was
they were following. l found it was
the foreign pastors and their wives and
children, and the Roman Catholic
priests and nuns, and some Christians.
l heard people say they We're going to
be killed, and I tried to get out of the
crowd, but could not, so stayed and
witnessed with my own eyes the kill
ing of all the foreigners. The first to
be led forth was Pastor Farthing. His
wife chung to him, but be gently put
her aside, and going in front of the
soldiers, himself knelt down without
saying a word, and his head was
struck off by one blow OF the eXecu-
toner's knife.
He was quickly followed by Pastor
Hoddle and Beynon, Drs. Levitt and
Wilson, all of whom Were beheaded
with one blow by the eXecutioner. Then
| the Governor, Yu Hsien, grew impa-
tient and told his bodyguard, all OF
whom carried big beheading knives
with long handles, to help kill the 9th
ers. Pastors Stokes, Simpson and
Whitehouse were next killed, the last
one by one blow only, the other two
by several. When the men were finish
ed, the ladies We're taken. Mrs. Far
thing had hold of the hands of her
children, who chung TO her, but the
soldiers parted them. and with one
| cutioner beheaded all the children and
did it skillfully, needing only one blow
| but the soldiers were clumsy, and
some of the ladies suffered several cuts
| before death. Mrs. Levitt was wearing
her spectacles, and held the hand OF
| her little boy even when she was kill
| ed. She spoke 10 the people, saying
as near as L can remember: We al
| came to China TO bring you the good
news of salvation by Jesus Christ; we
have done you 40 harm, only good
why do you treat us so?' A soldier
! took off her spectacles before behead-
| ing her, which needed two blows. When
| the Protestants were killed the Roman
| Catholics We're led forward. The Bish-
| op, an old man, with a long white
| beard, asked Governor Yu Hsien why
he was doing tai3 wicked deed. 1 did
answer, but he drew his sword and
| cut the Bishop across the face with
one heavy stroke. Blood poured down
| his white beard and he was beheaded
| The priests and nuns quickly followed
| him in death. Then Pastor Pigott
and his party were led from the dis
| trict JAIL which is close by He was
still handcuffed, and so was Mr.. Rob-
inson. He preached to the people till
| the very last, when he was beneaded
with one blow. Mr.. Robinson suffered
death very calmly. Mrs. Pigott held
the hand of her son, even when she
was beheaded, and he was killed imme-
diately after her. The lady and two
girls were killed also, quickly. In all,
on that day forty-five people were be-
headed-thirty-thr Protestants and
twelve Roman Catholics. A number
of native Christians were also killed;
I did not see them all, but I was told
there were thirteen. The bodies Of all
were left where they fell until next
morning, as it was evening before the
work was finished. During the night
they were stripped Of clothing and 9TH
er things, such as rings and watches.
Next day they were removed to a place
inside the great south gate, except
some of the heads, which were placed
in cages on the gates of the city wall.
On July 18th the remains were tenn
porarily buried outside the great south