New-York tribune., 1908-11-16
CHINA'S DOWAGER DEAD
Continued from frst rags.

of Chinese patriots and an increasing antf-Manchu
party, which sought the suppression Of the dyna sty
or nt the least the restoration Of The Msnchu
Emperor 70 the throne She wore the Manchu gar
merits, but her speech wes Chinese. She was donai
mating to last degree and magnetic and seemed
70 he s-saeing her courtiers who stood as II on
eggs in her presence She was theatrical in publtc
exhibiting the stage training which she had ac-
qured in private. Her ofHsals did not hesitate on
occasion TO speak of her fierce temper her Tartar
character, and to refer to her terrible
woman
FEARED AND HATED BIT PEOPLE
Among the populacs she was feared and hated
principally because Of Ter treatment Of the En-
peror for whom the enlightened and the common
people had a sympathetic liking. She was com
monly referred to the old Btlddha" and her
character in the eyes of the masses was that of the
tyrant OF the Emperor
She law unto herself She violated the con-
stttution of the dynasty that forbids z woman
ruler and broke the customs given By the
sages. She relentlessIy ordered all betrothaIs and
marriages in the imperial household. family and
imperial court, and supervised scrupuIousy the con-
duct of individuals
Two nominal enpeTors succeeded to the title held
by her husband. and she was responsible for both
She put her son, Tung Chih. the throne and on
MS sudden death. enthrOned the of her dead
husbands brother The latter the late Emperor
KUang Hsu. She dethroned him IN 1905 and mad.
out authority. the succession IN China is only
rightfuy determined by the emperor She then
degraded Pu Chun in obedience the mandate Of
the allies because his father the palace leader
Of the Boxers. and restored Kuang Hsu During
the minority OF her own son she ruled through her
appointed regent Prince Kung. She was then an
undisputed tyrant, who forbade any one consulting
the Eastern Empress" Hsien FenE's real wife on
political matters But IN 1871 the Eastern En-
press died leaving her autocrat in both name and
deed
IGNORANCE Of OUTSIDE WORLD
As to political wisdom, her talents appeared to be
strictly limited to the field of the palace
This ground she knew well. She personally passed,
however, much of the business with foreign ma
tious. which she would decide on the advice of the
councillors But in lhe realm Of International poll
tics hers was long record Of vsywardness and
lack of knowledge She seemed to have learned
nothing from the suppression in 1854 of the Tai
Ping rebellion through the tnstrumentality OF for
eigners from the invasion by the allies who took
Peking in 1850 and destroyed the Summer Palace
She inspired the declaration Of war in 1894 and.
although il recoed the throne she apparently
saw no significance in the defeat by the Japanese.
for in 1900 she entered upon struggle for third
time. with all the foreign nations combined.
The greatest Of her political acts was the coup
4 'etat Of 1895 in this she showed her power.
combining crsftness and courage. She stopped
to the role of reforner that she might conquer
and when she had perfected the disguise she
slaughtered the reformers and incarcerated the
Emperor in whose name she had acted keeping
him a prisoner for nearly two years Following
this she champinned the Boxer war which proved
to be the greatest stain which marked the empire
under the Nanchus-
The personal qualities of the Empress DowaEer
are said to have been great and such as belong to
a gifted woman. Though whimsical and stubborn
and exacting with her officials and often pettish
and Jealous with the women Of the court, she had
a gift of humor. and sometimes turned a solemn
audience into q laughing one. when provoked to
rnfrth by the awkward drolieries OF some of the
old councillors who had 70 be helped about in
their courtosies by ofttimes stin more nfrm asso-
oiatss.
OBSTACLE TO CHINAS DEVELOPMENT.
She was regarded by the progressives educated
broad as China.s greatest enemy. because she
was the greatest obstacle to advancement. II vas
nointsd out by some OF the most enlightened Chi
nese that she could by no possibility have any
Of the real significance OF constltu-
ton in. China the idea of which Was Tldiculed
always by her most advanced minister, Chang Chi
T,rne VINO old not believe in her apparent deter
rninarion TO grant constitution to the country
r2aeinning her career as the beautiful concu-
5ine" she represented AZ the close the decadence
n 4ha assaucblIs though her career has been more
cn+arfui than that Of any female sovereign Of her
time and she was called the only man in China
She managed the empire without modern advisers.
md far as the repose of ner people [1la1t
,as bAen said of her that she vas more able ruler
IIsr anv man who sat upon the dragon throne
The whole nation is now thrown into mourning
he rites being of stringent character For a
?urdred dav= the court and people OF rank wear
,-oiTe trimmed with white f1r, this being the
nn1lrnina color in China For the same period the
,7en abstajn from sharing. while the women lay
side the favorte Ornamental heacdress After TINS
irrt term the garments must he Of black or DARK
ne for the following twelve months. During thls /
eriod no betrothal mar take place among the bet
a -isezes while for the others the corresponding
err, Is limited TO q hundred DAYS All entertain /
oen+s ard public reiocings must be suspended for
ne year