Mr. Conger to Mr.
Hay.
No. 552.]
Legation of the
United States,
Peking,
China, February 28, 1901.
Sir: I inclose copy of the final Imperial edict
decreeing satisfactory punishments.
All the executions, except the two in this city, were to, and I suppose did,
take place on the 24th, and the two here on the 26th.
Those at Sian Fu were to be verified by an Italian priest residing there,
those in the city by the Japanese legation, and the others by an Imperial
edict to be afterwards published, naming the place and time of each
punishment and certifying that they were carried out as stated and witnessed
by certain named officials.
It was thought by all the ministers that some of the most prominent
provincial and local officials who were responsible for the murder, and, in
many cases, torture of the missionaries, ought to be severely punished at
the place of the massacres, in order to bring home to the people of the
localities a realization of the enormity of their crimes.
I acquainted my colleagues with the President’s views, and the probability
now is that the death penalty will only be demanded for ten or twelve of the
most guilty officials and degradation and perpetual prohibition from holding
office for many others.
I have, etc.,
[Inclosure with dispatch
552.]
Translation of decree of February 21, 1901, received
by Chinese plenipotentiaries from Grand Council February 22, 1901,
and transmitted to Doyen on February 23, 1901.
In a late decree, dealing with those chiefly responsible for the recent
misfortune, we meted out to them varying degrees of severe
punishment.
I-K’uang (Prince Ching) and Li Hung-chang now report to us by telegraph
that the note presented by the foreign plenipotentiaries calls for yet
heavier penalties, and they pray that We take the matter into further
consideration.
[Page 93]
Leaving out of account Tsai Hsün (Prince Chuang), who has already been
granted the privilege of committing suicide, and Yü Hsien, orders for
whose immediate decapitation had been issued—officers in each case being
deputed personally to supervise the carrying out of the sentence—We
hereby decree as follows:
Tsai I (Prince Tuan) and Tsai Lan are to be imprisoned pending
decapitation. Bearing in mind, however, the fact that they are our near
relatives and having regard to the ties of kinship, We, as a special act
of grace, commute this sentence to one of perpetual incarceration on the
most remote frontier of the new dominion. Officers will forthwith be
appointed to take them into custody and set out with them on the journey
to their place of exile.
Kang Yi’s guilt is characterized by features of exceptional gravity. His
sentence ought to be that of immediate decapitation, but as he has
already died a natural death, no further action need be taken.
Our previous decree sentenced Ying Nien and Chao Shu-chiao to
imprisonment pending decapitation. They are now granted the privilege of
committing suicide. T’sen Chun-hsuan, governor of Shensi, will himself
supervise the execution of this sentence.
Ch’i Hsiu and Hsü C’heng-yu were recently deprived of their rank. The
foreign powers having pointed out that they materially abetted the Boxer
rebels and were noted for their antiforeign attitude, I K’uang and Li
Hung-chang are hereby directed to apply to the powers for their
rendition, and when this shall have been effected, immediately to
decapitate them. The heads of the boards of punishments will see that
these sentences are carried into execution.
Hsü Tung, by lightly placing confidence in the Boxer rebels, seriously
compromised the situation. Li Ping-heng, by his magniloquent language
and bigoted obstinance, was instrumental in bringing about trouble. Both
ought to have been sentenced to imprisonment pending decapitation, but
as on the eve of adversity they committed suicide and have already been
deprived of their rank and posthumous distinctions, no further action
need be taken.
The crimes of which the chief delinquents were guilty have been clearly
set forth in detail in Our former decree.
