[Inclosure in No. 2536.]
Mr. Jones to
Mr. Denby.
Consulate of the United States,
Chinkiang, May
20, 1896.
Sir: I have the honor to inform you, beyond
what my telegram conveyed, that a serious disturbance occurred at
Kiangyin, within this consular district, on the 12th instant, in
which the American Presbyterian Mission at that place was attacked
by a mob of several hundred people, the premises broken and torn and
robbed of the furniture and personal effects. There were two
American missionaries occupying the premises at the time, Messrs. R.
A. Hayden and L. L. Little, who succeeded in making their escape
unharmed to a neighboring fort and came on here the next day and
laid their complaint before me.
The circumstances of the disturbance, as related to me by Messrs.
Hayden and Little, are as follows:
These missionaries had rented the house in which they live for a
period of ten years, and had paid the rent for five years in
advance. About ten days before the disturbance a Chinese man, known
as the “Doctor,” and of doubtful reputation, came to see the
missionaries (the same man who was employed by the Rev. Mr. Du Bose
in the purchase of some property at the same place two years or more
ago), stating that he called at the instance of the proprietor of
the premises to take away the windows and doors of the house, which,
he claimed, were not included in the articles of lease, or in lieu
thereof to pay him $100. This the missionaries declined to do. A few
days after the proprietor himself called, he said, to induce them to
extend the period of the lease one more year and pay him the rent in
advance, and that he would, in further consideration, give them a
feast. This they agreed to and paid
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the additional rent. The feast was given, but
in some way the “Doctor,” the intermediary, was left out of the
entertainment and “lost face.”
A few days after this, one morning at daylight, a next-door neighbor,
a widow woman, gave an alarm, crying out “Robbers,” etc. The
missionaries ran out and found a back gate open, and evidences of
some person or persons having been inside. They thought that someone
had been there to steal their pigeons, and paid no more attention to
it. The next night the servants of the house discovered a man in the
back yard and tried to catch him, but he got away. Some three or
four days subsequent to this, on the 12th of May, a mob of a hundred
or more people led by this “doctor” came to the house with the
intention, he said, to search the premises for two missing children.
They were denied admission. It was known later that placards were
posted that morning announcing this search. In the meantime the
crowd was greatly increased in numbers, and the magistrate was sent
for who, in a little while, came accompanied by about a dozen
runners of the Yamên. The missionaries told him that there was a
report that two missing children were concealed on their premises
and that the mob had come to search for them, and requested that he,
the magistrate, would make the search and thus allay the excitement
and suspicion of the people. The magistrate made the search and
nothing was discovered.
At this point the “doctor” came forward and told the magistrate that
he knew the missing children were concealed in the house or on the
premises and that he could find them. The magistrate told him to
make the search. He proceeded immediately to the back yard and
pointed out the place where the children were buried. The proper
implements were provided him, and he was told to dig, and did so. In
a few moments a bundle was unearthed, wrapped in coarse matting,
which, upon being opened, disclosed the dead body of an infant about
18 months old and that apparently had been dead fifteen or twenty
days. Upon this the magistrate turned to the missionaries and said,
“Here is a dead child found buried on your premises; what have you
to say about it?” By this time the crowd, greatly augmented, was
much excited and had begun crying out, “Kill the foreign devil,”
etc. The magistrate attempted to quell the disturbance with his
unarmed runners, but all ineffectually. The fort was only ten
minutes away, but he did not send for assistance from the soldiery,
and the mob, unopposed, wrecked the house and looted its effects.
The missionaries made their escape through the back premises and
reached the fort in safety and soon after came here.
On this statement being made to me I immediately communicated it to
the taotai and requested that he telegraph the magistrate to arrest
the rioters and investigate the circumstances of the matter. The
taotai sent a deputy to Kiangyin to make searching investigation and
to report. This deputy has not yet returned. In the meanwhile the
viceroy has ordered a speedy settlement.
I should be glad of any advice or suggestions concerning the
affair.
The commanding officer of the United States cruiser Boston, now at Shanghai, on learning of the trouble
through a letter from me to Consul-General Jernigan, and whose ship
is undergoing some repairs, sent an officer to confer with me, in
the event a demonstration should be required, to show to the Chinese
officials and people that the American Government is watchful of the
interests of her citizens and will no longer tolerate the spirit of
outrage on the part of Chinese mobs. I do not yet know the temper of
the officials in the matter, as they await
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the report of the deputy sent to the scene
before receiving any demands I may make. But I do not anticipate any
obstructions in the settlement of the affair.
I shall endeavor in the settlement of the Kiangyin affair, as you
suggest in your telegram, to secure at the same time the property at
Chu-chou Fu for the Presbyterian Mission.
I have, etc.,
