The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1912-02-12
Edict at Noon Today States That
u Imperial Family Has Decided
to Discontinue Exer-
cisIns Power.
Monsol Princes state That Yuan
Must be President or They
Will Resist to the Bit
ter End.

PEKIN, Feb. 12-An edict, formal
ly announcing the abdication of the
throne, was issued at noon today by
Yuan Shi Kai who has had the imper-
ial order In his possession for more
than q week
The premier had been notified that
he should not make the edict public
until he was satisfied he had enough
Chinese soldiers in the capital to pro-
tect the royal family from the Man
chus, who threatened them with
death if they surrendered to the revo-
lutionists Several detachments of
troops reached the capital today and
the premier believed he had enough
soldiers to cope with the Manchus.
In the edict the word abdication
! was carefully omitted. 1t was simply
stated that the imperial family had
/ decided to discontinue exercising gov
ernmental powers and would confine
its future effort merely to spiritual
matters.
Although the Mongol princes were
most bitter against abdication they
were said to have finally consented
| when the other members of the i'm
4 lperial clan assured them that Yuan
4 Shi Kai would be elected president
i and they would be shown every cour
tesy by him.
4 Several hours after the edict wal
Il tissled, however, they were assailes
with misgiyings and wired DR.. SUI
i Vat Sen threatening that unless Yual
!. headed the new government the,
;. would resist the republic to the end
At a late hour today it had no
been finally decided whether thu
, members of the royal family woult
, remain in Pekin or retire to one o
i the summer palaces. 1t was regarded
as likely, however, that they woult
, stay In Pekin unless it was believed
that there was danger of an outbreal
4 against them by members of thei
, own race who are very bitter agains
l the abdication edict.
| The abdication Of Pu Wi, Son Q
!. heaven marks another climax in tn
series of struggles that have rage
between Manchus and Chinese TO
many centuries.
z The Manchus are of ancient origi
). and legend has it that the founder c
: the race was of divine birth. Thei
first ruler was Aysin Goro, VINO name
: his dynasty Manchu or Pure"
Early in the year 1000 they wer
driven out of China proper, after
!, bloody conflict. They estabiishe
themselves on the Liago Tung penil
. sula and vowed eternal hatred for tn
! celestials to the south.
For six centuries the Manchr
!, nursed their wrath and then can
! their time to strike. The Sung-Chen
emperor of China, ascended tt
throne in 1927 The country was tor
! with dissention. Revolution brol
!, out in the north and west. Two reb
leaders, LII Tscheng and Shang Ko
agreed to divide the empire betwet
them and they led their troops to F
r. kin. A treacherous eunuch open'
y the gates and the government fore
Iy fled. Emperor Tsung- -Cheng comm
ted suicide. His son was proclaim
emperor and attempted to subdue Z
victorious rebels, but his task was
hopeless that he instructed his &c
eral in the north to appeal to t
- Manchus.
The vials of tartar wrath that h
been filled to overflowing by the lo
wait for revenge, were outpoure
1 They sent an army into China, rout
= the rebels and then seized the throI
A son OF Tien-Ming, the tartar chi
- tain. was made emperor. He call
~ his dynasty Ta-Ching-Chao. meant
the Great Pure Dynasty"
a. Until the recent revolution the
y scendants of Tien-Ming sat upon t
~ ~ throne and subjected the hated Oh
~ ese to every humiliation. Pu WI.
hs baby emperor, was the tenth OF I
line.
a Strikers in Riot.
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