The scene strongly confirms _what. we maintained from the first,
that the only way to impress the Chinese was to refuse to negotiate with the ultimate cause of the whole calamity, the Empress-Regent herself. That would have brought all her enemies to the front, and ultimately hive procured her deposition. -which would have struck her subjects as a great event. As it is, they regard her as a victor; which in the main she is, she having, at a cost of money only, restored the prestige of the dynasty. Nothing is more remarkable in the history of the war than the entire failure of disasters to shake her authority, which can only be explained by the admission that the majority of Chinamen held' her action to be entirely right. The barbarians had insulted China, and were properly sentenced to death, the, fact that they rebelliously re slated execution and actually caused the Empress to fly only adding to their offences. It is this fact, the deadly hostility of the people, with which we shall in futire have to reckon, and not merely the cunning of the Maiidarins. Thioukh the length and breadth of China not a
living being, except the Christian converts, has been on our side, the Southern Viceroys, who pretended to be, forwarding money, provisions, and troops to Sian as ordered. The killing of Christians as traitors has, we perceive from the telegrams, been resumed, though the Mandarins threaten death for the offence. Subjects in •China are not allowed to be premature.
