The San Francisco call., 1906-04-14
SAYS CHINESE
ARE FRIENDLY
Bishop Bashford Declares
That Reports of Riots in
China Were Exaggerated
IN ORIENT FOUR YEARS
Methodist Divine Who Has
Recently Visited Disturbed
Districts Comes Home

Bishop J. w Bashford of the Methodist
episcopal church, who for the last four
years has made his headquarters at
shanghai, says that the reports of dis
Sturbances in. China have been greatly ex-
aggerated in the United States. He de-
fciares that the Chinese generally are
friendly to Americans. He bases his opin-
ion on. observations made during a 5000
mile journey in and around the empire
since the American boycott was put into
effect and 10000 miles travel through
.China since the Boxer uprising.
Bishop Bashford arrived here Yesterday
from Shanghai on the liner Mongolia. He
sail: >--@
Dsen grossly exaggerated in the United States.
I,here have been three riots in the empire
since the inauguration of the American boy
cott year ago. In the Shanghai riot not a
foreigner was killed, although a score or more
OF natives lost their lives at the hands OF
Foreigners and forty or fifty were wound
ed At Iiengchou five Americans were killed.
AZ Nanchang six French subjects and three
English subjects were killed and day or
two following the riot more than score of
chinese lost their lives in a wild stampede
made by them to escape through the city
gates and on boats on the report that for
eign gun boats were coming to destroy their
city Each one of these riots was due TO local
causes and similar causes would have pro-
States.
line Chinese generally friendly to Amer
leans l have travelled 5000 miles in and
around the empire since the American boy
colt and 10. 600 miles in China since the Boxer
uprising | have visited six provinces since
the boycott began and eleven of the eighteen
provinces In all. Since the boycott was an
rouncedss have spent at least thirty days
travelling IN Isolated parts of the empire, en-
tirely out of reach of American and Euro
pean governments. and with only the two or
three Americans who composed our party. In
all this travel 1 have not witnessed a single
manifestation OF hostility.
The mission hospitals, schools and colleges
In China crowded. Owing to the boycott
of American goods beginning in China IN
May, 1900. the missionaries at their summer
gatherings last year unanimous in the
conviction that the attendance upon the schools
and colleges in the fall of 1905 would be
smaller than usual. At first some OF the
students wrote timid letters during the sum-
mer vacation expressing fear of return
ing to the schools. But the Chinese soon lost
their fear OF persecution IL they attended
American schools During the last six months
over 5000 Chinese students have been in at
tendance at Methodist schools in the empire
and over 1000 students at all the Protestant
schools.
cannot sforetell the effect, of an adjourn
ment OF Congress with modification OF the
exclusion act and with no provision for a
more rational and just enforcement of IT, II
that difficulty were out of the way l would
say without hesitation that the prospects OF
American trade, of American influence and OF
Christian missions In China are better than
at any preceding period in history.