the Chinese Government shows by its action within the next few days, whether Nr. 12362. or not it has the will and the power to do its duty.

Claude M. MacDonald.

Grofsbrisannien. 21. Mai 1900.

Anlage 1.

Placard posted in West City, Peking.

(Translation.) || In a certain street in Peking some worshippers of the I-ho Ch'üan (,,Boxers") at midnight suddenly saw a spirit descend in their midst. The spirit was silent for a long time, and all the congregation fell upon their knees and prayed. Then a terrible voice was heard saying:—|| „I am none other than the Great Yü Ti (God of the unseen world) come down in person. Well knowing that ye are all of devout mind, I have just now descended to make known to you that these are times of trouble in the world, and that it is impossible to set aside the decrees of fate. Disturbances are to be dreaded from the foreign devils; every-where they are starting Missions, erecting telegraphs, and building railways; they do not believe in the sacred doctrine, and they speak evil of the Gods. Their sins are numberless as the hairs of the head. Therefore am I wrath, and my thunders have pealed forth. By night and by day have I thought of these things. Should I command my Generals to come down to earth, even they would not have strength to change the course of fate. For this reason I have given forth my decree that I shall descend to earth at the head of all the saints and spirits, and that wherever the I-ho Ch'üan are gathered together, there shall the Gods be in the midst of them. I have also to made known to all the righteous in the three worlds that they must be of one mind, and all practice the cult of the I-ho Ch'üan, that so the wrath of heaven may be appeased. | ,,So soon as the practice of the I-ho Ch'üan has been brought to perfectionwait for three times three or nine times nine, nine times nine or three times three then shall the devils meet their doom. The will of heaven is that the telegraph wires be first cut, then the railways torn up, and then shall the foreign devils be decapitated. In that day shall the hour of their calamities. come. The time for rain to fall is yet afar off, and all on account of the devils. I hereby make known these commands to all you righteous folk, that ye may strive with one accord to exterminate all foreign devils, and so turn aside the wrath of heaven. This shall be accounted unto you for well doing; and on the day when it is done, the wind and rain shall be according to your desire. ||,,Therefore I expressly command you make this known in every place." || This I saw with my own eyes, and therefore I make bold to take my pen and write what happened. They who believe it shall have merit; they who do not believe it shall have guilt. The wrath of the spirit was because of the destruction of the Temple of Yü Ti. He sees that the men of the

Nr. 12362. I-ho Ch'üan are devout whorshippers and pray to him. || If my tidings are Grofs- false, may I be destroyed by the five thunderbolts.

britannien.

21. Mai 1900.

4th moon, 1st day (April 29, 1900).

Anlage 2.

Consul Carles an Sir C. MacDonald.

Tien-tsin, May 2, 1900.

Sir, I have the honour to report that the measures taken by the authorities in this neighbourhood to repress the activity of the,,Boxers" have produced some result, though placards of an offensive character are still widely distributed. At Yung Ching the author of some placards attacking the English Mission there had to apologise to the Rev. Mr. Norman, and the hostility of the people since then has apparently died away. || The Magistrate at Tung-an-hsien, who has done his utmost to repress the „Boxers", had issued a reward for the arrest of the leaders and information as to their lodges, when instructions received by him, as it was reported, from the Empress Dowager, but which probably were those contained in the recent Edict, led to the sudden withdrawal of the rewards posted, and to an immediate display of hostility by the people in the town towards native Christians of so marked a character that Mr. Grant, a missionary residing there, withdrew his family at once. The Viceroy, on my representing the matter to him, sent soldiers there, and within a few days an improvement was manifested. || The worst placards I have seen emanate from Ta-ching-hsien. I communicated them to the Viceroy, and his Excellency at once issued orders for their suppression, and the punishment of their authors, if possible. || M. du Chaylard informed me on the 22nd April last that he had received a telegram from Pao-ting, stating that the Christians of the environs of Lung-lu had been killed in great numbers in the village of Chiang-chia-chuang on the previous day. || Two days later he told me that the affray had, it was true, been of a serious character, but that only one Christian had lost his life, and that seventy ,,Boxers" had been killed. He also informed me that, acting on his advice, the Roman Catholic priests had placed fire-arms in the hands of their converts. The only further details regarding this affair which have reached me came from Paoting-fu, and were to the effect that 1100,,Boxers" had been threatening the place, and that a collision occurred between them and the Roman Catholics, with the result mentioned by th French Consul-General. || I am sorry to have to qualify my report as to the improvement by adding that in the north and north-east of the province considerable uneasiness seems to exist. Brigandage in the country between Chao-yang and Chin-chou has broken out again, and in the neighbourhood of Jehol Ping-ch-'üan, and Ta-tzu-k'ou: the Chin Tan" and „Tsai Li" Societies are said to be preparing to revenge themselves for the punishment inflicted on the latter Society in 1891. W. R. Carles.

Anlage 3.

Sir C. MacDonald an das Tsung-li Yamen.

Peking, May 18, 1900.

Grofs

MM. les Ministres, || I have just heard that at a place called Kung Nr. 12362. Ts'un, south of Ku-an and Chochou, a chapel belonging to the London Mission britannien. has been destroyed by ,,Boxers", and that a native preacher, named Chao 21. Mai 1900. Ting-chün, has been killed after barbarous treatment. || I also hear that at Wu-ch'ing, Fangshan, and other districts to the south of Peking, the people are in a state of dangerous unrest owing to the activity of this lawless organization, and that threats are openly made to attack Mission stations and put converts to death. || I have the honour to remind your Highness and your Excellencies that for the last six months I have unceasingly, both by written communications and personal interviews, striven to awake the Chinese Government to the extreme danger involved by their continued failure to take adequate measures for the complete suppression of the ,,I-ho-chüan" and the ,,Tatao-hui". My representations have been invariably met by assurances that the dangers I apprehended were exaggerated, and that the Chinese Government were doing all that was necessary in the interests of peace. || Now that riotous attacks on foreign Missions are taking place within a few miles of the capital, I trust that your Highness and your Excellencies will at last cease to treat my representations with the apathy which has hitherto characterized the attitude of the Yamên, and it is in this hope that I hasten to bring to your notice this latest lamentable outrage, of which I have as yet received no detailed particulars. Claude M. MacDonald.

Anlage 4.

M. Pichon an M. de Cologan.

Légation de France à Pékin, le 19 Mai, 1900. M. le Doyen et cher Collègue, || J'ai l'honneur de vous prier de vouloir bien communiquer à nos collègues la lettre ci-incluse qui vient de me parvenir. En présence des informations qu'elle soutient, et qui confirment celles qui me viennent de toutes parts; en présence aussi de l'impossibilité d'obtenir du Gouvernement Chinois par une action isolée les mesures nécessaires pour assurer la sécurité des étrangers dans le Tche-ly et à Pékin, j'ai l'honneur de vous prier de vouloir bien convoquer d'urgence une réunion du Corps Diplomatique dans le but de délibérer sur la situation.

Anlage 5.

Père Favier an M. Pichon.

(Signé) S. Pichon.

Vicariat Apostolique de Pékin et Tche-ly Nord,

Pékin, le 19 Mai, 1900.

M. le Ministre. || De jour en jour la situation devient plus grave et plus menaçante. Dans la Préfecture de Paoting-fu, plus de soixante-dix Chrétiens ont été massacrés; trois autres néophytes ont été coupés en morceaux. Plu

britannien.

Nr. 12362. sieurs villages ont été pillés et livrés aux flammes; un plus grand nombre Grofs- d'autres ont été complètement abandonnés. Plus de 2000 Chrétiens sont en 21. Mai 1900. fuite, sans pain, sans vêtements et sans abri; à Pékin seulement, environ 400 réfugiés, hommes, femmes et enfants, sont déjà logés chez nous et chez les soeurs; avant huit jours nous en aurons probablement plusieurs milliers; nous allons être obligés de licencier les écoles, les collèges et tous les hôpitaux pour faire place à ces malheureux. | Du côté l'est le pillage et l'incendie sont imminents; nous recevons à chaque heure les nouvelles les plus alarmantes. Peking est cerné de tous côtés; les Boxeurs se rapprochent chaque jour de la capitale, retardés seulement par l'anéantissement qu'ils font des Chretientés. Croyez-moi, je vous prie, M. le Ministre, je suis bien informé et je n'avance rien à légère. La persécution religieuse n'est qu'un rideau; le but principal est l'extermination des Européens, but qui est clairement indiqué et écrit sur les étendards des Boxeurs. Leurs affiliés les attendent à Pékin; on doit commencer par l'attaque des églises et finir par celle des Légations. Pour nous, ici au Pei-tang, le jour est même fixé; toute la ville le connaît, tout le monde en parle, et l'effervescence populaire est manifeste. Hier soir encore, quarantetrois pauvres femmes avec leurs enfants, fuyant le massacre, sont arrivées chez les sœurs; plus de 500 personnes les accompagnaient, en leur disant que, si elles ont échappés une fois, celles y passeront bientôt ici avec les autres. || Je ne vous parle pas, M. le Ministre, des placards sans nombre qui sont affichés dans la ville contre les Européens en général; chaque jour il en paraît de nouveaux, plus clairs les uns que les autres. || Les personnes qui ont assisté, il y a trente ans, aux massacres de Tien-tsin, sont frappées de la ressemblance de la situation d'alors avec celle d'aujourd'hui; mêmes placards, mêmes menaces, mêmes avertissements, et même aveuglement. Alors aussi, comme aujourd' hui, les missionaires ont écrit, supplié, prévoyant l'horrible réveil. || Dans ces circonstances, M. le Ministre, je crois de mon devoir de vous prier de vouloir bien nous envoyer, au moins au Pei-t'ang, quarante ou cinquante marins pour protéger nos personnes et nos biens. Cela s'est fait déjà dans des circonstances beaucoup moins critiques; et j'espère que vous prendrez en considération mon humble supplique.

Alph. Favier, Ev. Vic. Ap. de Pékin.

--, Ev. Coadjuteur.

C. M. Guillaume, Vic. Gén.

Anlage 6.

M. de Cologan an das Tsung-li Yamen.

Pékin, le 21 Mai, 1900.

J'ai l'honneur de communiquer à votre Altesse et à vos Excellences le texte d'une résolution prise hier par les Représentants des Puissances étrangères accrédités à Pékin: „Le Corps Diplomatique, s'appuyant sur les

Grofs

Décrets Impériaux déjà rendus qui ont édicté la dissolution des Boxeurs, ré- Nr. 12362. clame: - ||,,1. L'arrestation de tout individu se livrant aux exercices de cette britannien. association, provoquant des troubles sur la voie publique, affichant, imprimant 21. Mai 1900. ou distribuant des placards qui contiendraient des menaces contre les étrangers; |,,2. L'arrestation des propriétaires et gardiens de temples ou autres endroits où les Boxeurs se réuniraient, et l'assimilation aux Boxeurs eux-mêmes de ces complices de provocations criminelles. ||,,3. Le chatîment des agents de la force publique qui se rendraient coupables de négligence dans la repression dont ils seront chargés ou qui seraient de connivance avec les émeutiers; || „,4. L'exécution des auteurs d'attentats (meurtre, incendie, &c.) contre les personnes ou les propriétés;,,5. L'exécution des individus qui subventionnent et dirigent les Boxeurs dans les troubles actuels. ||,,6. La publication dans Pékin, dans le Tche-ly, et les autres provinces du nord, portant ces mesures à la connaissance de la population."

Je suis en outre chargé par le Corps Diplomatique d'informer votre Altesse et vos Excellences qu'il attend dans le plus bref délai une réponse satisfaisante à cette demande. B. J. De Cologan.

Nr. 12363. GROSSBRITANNIEN. - Der Gesandte in Peking an den Minister des Auswärtigen. Weitere Verhandlungen mit dem Tsung-li Yamen.

Peking, May 28, 1900. (July 9.)

Grofs

My Lord, In continuation of my despatch of the 21st instant, I have Nr. 12363. the honour to forward to your Lordship herewith a translation of the Yamên's britannien. reply to the doyen's note of that date, on the subject of the Boxer distur- 28. Mai 1900. bances. The Yamên's note as it stands cannot, as your Lordship will perceive, be considered a satisfactory reply to the demands made by the foreign Representatives for specific measures of suppression. It alludes to the Edict, of which the Ministers had already informed me at my interview of the 18th instant, without mentioning what the terms of the Edict were, and it states vaguely that the measures contemplated for the suppression of the Boxers are on the lines of those suggested by the Diplomatic Body, without indicating what is actually being done. || I had, accordingly, the honour to telegraph to your Lordship on the 25th instant to the effect that the Yamên's reply seemed to me most unlikely to be accepted as satisfactory, but that I was awaiting the opinion of my colleagues thereon. The note in question having been circulated to the foreign Representatives a meeting was summoned by the doyen on the evening of the 26th instant to consider the situation. The French Minister began by expressing in forcible terms his opinion of the unsatisfactory nature of the Yamên's reply, and proceeded to describe the results of his investigation into the causes of the alarm that existed in the Roman Catholic Missions. He said that all his information