Mr. Hay to Mr. Wu Ting-fang.
Washington, June 25, 1900.
Sir: I have the honor to acknowledge the receipt of a copy of the telegram sent you by His Excellency Chang Chih Tung, viceroy of [Page 276] Hunan and Hupeh provinces, on the 23d of June, in which he informs you that the Imperial Government has no intention whatever of breaking off friendly relations, and desires that this Government shall confer with the governments of the several powers, urging them to telegraph instructions to commanders of their respective forces about Tientsin to refrain from further fighting, and to await until the Grand Secretary Li Hung Chang arrives at Pekin and receives Imperial instructions to open negotiations with the diplomatic representatives. His excellency also advises you that the viceroys and governors of the provinces bordering on the Yangtze and the coast have assumed the responsibility and are doing all in their power to afford protection to life and property.
I have communicated this information to the President, who directs me to acknowledge receipt of your communication, and is greatly gratified to receive the viceroy’s assurance that the deplorable events of the last few weeks have been without the authority and against the wishes of the Chinese Imperial Government. He is also pleased to learn of the disposition of the viceroys to maintain order in their jurisdiction, and to protect the lives and the property of the foreign residents therein.
He is unable, however, to give any orders to our naval and military officers in China which would prevent them from doing everything in their power to open up communication with our countrymen who are in peril of their lives in Tientsin and in Pekin, and to assist in the restoration of peace and order where it has been so lamentably disturbed, nor can he engage to recommend such action to the other powers. He sincerely hopes that the Imperial Government of China, in cooperation with the powers, may speedily provide means to put an end to lawlessness and disturbance, and to provide against their renewal.
Accept, etc.,