“The Boxers started in eighteen villages of the Kuan district of Shantung and they were originally called the ‘Plum Blossom Fists.’ When Li Ping-heng was Governor of the Province (1895) he did not forbid their proceedings, but, on the contrary, proceeded to enrol them as Militia. Last summer there were several conflicts between these Boxers and the Imperial troops, but the Military commander was cashiered by order of the Governor for his action and all the Boxer prisoners were released. Their leader at this time openly described himself as a descendant of the Ming Emperors and the female branch of his society called ‘Red Lamp Light’ was named after him. Last autumn, thus encouraged, the movement spread into Chihli. The magistrate at Chingchou put out a proclamation warning the people not to believe in their so-called magic arts; he said these Boxers were only the ‘White Lily Sect’ under another name. This magistrate was a good friend to the French missionaries, and the Viceroy, hearing of the incident, enquired into the matter and promptly had him dismissed. This caused me great regret, for both Wang Wen-shao and I had known the man well, when we held the Chihli Viceroyalty, and respected him.

“At the end of the 9th Moon of last year there were Boxers openly displaying huge banners in Chihli, on which was written, ‘The Gods assist us to destroy all foreigners; we invite you to join the patriotic Militia.’ At one place a Buddhist abbot was the head of the Society and he led on the mob, burning the Christian chapel there. Subsequently, while they were burning converts’ houses at Liupa, the magistrate came out and attacked them with his troops. The soldiers opened fire and the Boxers retreated, but their priest leaders were captured, and some thirty or forty were shot dead. This ought to have demonstrated to the people at large how nonsensical were the stories about the invulnerability of these mountebanks: our soldiers dealt with them as easily as if they had been trussing chickens! There were charms and forms of incantation found on the persons of the priests who, after an examination by the magistrate, were summarily executed.

“The provincial treasurer, T’ing Yung,[65] was largely responsible for the beginning of the trouble. I hear that about ten days ago he sent for all his subordinates to attend at his Yamên, and the Prefect of Hsüanhua,[66] who was passing through, came to pay his respects with the others. This man said, ‘in the reign of Chia Ch’ing there were heterodox cults of this kind, and the Emperor ordered them to be suppressed.’ T’ing Yung replied, ‘circumstances alter cases. Why should you now refer to those days?’ The Prefect answered him, ‘It is quite true that the calendar is no longer the same as it was at that time, but the enlightened principles laid down by our sacred ancestors should be a guidance to us for ever.’ T’ing had of course nothing to say, and could only glare at him in silence and change the conversation.

“When first I read Her Majesty’s decree of the 21st June in which she orders us to form train-bands of these brave Boxers, describing them as patriots of whom large numbers are to be found, and should be enrolled, in every province, I lay awake all the next night thinking over this matter. Unable to sleep, more than once I sprang from my bed restless and excited with mixed feelings of joy and fear. The idea of enlisting these patriotic volunteers to repel the aggression of the foreigner is undoubtedly a good one, and, if carefully worked out and directed by firm discipline and good leadership, it might no doubt be of the very highest utility. But if otherwise handled, these men will inevitably get out of hand, and the only result will be chaos and disaster. You will, no doubt, agree with me, my old friend and colleague, that the motive which inspires these Boxers is a patriotic one. So great is the ill-feeling that exists between the mass of our people and the converts to Christianity that we have been unavoidably dragged to the very verge of hostilities, and our Government has embarked upon a desperate course ‘of inviting the enemy to meet us in battle before the walls of our capital.’ It is as if we were treading on naked swords without flinching; there can be no question as to the enthusiasm and ardour in our cause.

“But, at the beginning of the movement, these Boxers were afraid to come together in large numbers lest the Imperial troops should attack and destroy them; from this alone we may reasonably infer that they are not devoid of the common instinct of fear. By themselves they cannot be fully trusted, but it seems to me (though you may consider the idea absurd) that one might profitably use them to inspire, by their fanaticism, the martial ardour of our regular troops. As a fighting force they are absolutely useless, but their claims to supernatural arts and magic might possibly be valuable for the purpose of disheartening the enemy. But it would be quite wrong, not to say fatal, for us to attach any real belief to their ridiculous claims, or to regard them as of any real use in action. Even if there were any truth in these tales of magic they must necessarily be founded in heresy, and you know full well that Chinese history records numerous instances of such superstitious beliefs ending in rebellions against the reigning Dynasty. You recently telegraphed me advising me not to be unduly anxious, because in your opinion the Boxers acquitted themselves exceedingly well in the fights at Tientsin and Taku on the 20th June. I am not so sure of this myself; in any case it is well to bear in mind that there is a very great difference between the fighting capacity and temperament of the natives of the north and south of China.[67] All the southern provinces are teeming with secret and revolutionary societies, salt smugglers, and other kinds of desperadoes; so much tinder, which any spark may kindle into flames of disturbance at any moment. These southern people are gamblers and disorderly characters by profession, but they are certainly not animated by any patriotic instinct, and if you were to enlist any large number of them as a military force, it would be just like organising bands of jackals and wolves to fight tigers. The result would be that while none of the tigers would be destroyed, millions of your own people, who may be likened to sheep, would suffer miserably. On the other hand these northern Boxers are not inspired by any lust of plunder, but by a species of religious frenzy. Now, as you know, northerners are dull and obstinate by nature, while the southerners are alert but unreliable, so that it is difficult, if not impossible, to arrive at any fixed policy or joint action in dealing with them together. Was it not because of this characteristic of the southerners that the Grand Council was so indignant in 1894, when, in fighting against the Japanese, our men feared them worse than tigers, and, recognising their own hopeless inferiority, threw down their weapons and would not face the enemy?

“These Boxers are not trained troops, but they are ready to fight, and to face death. It is indeed a very gratifying surprise to see any of our people display courage, and to witness their enthusiasm for paying off old scores against the foreigner; but if, inspired by the sight of these brave fellows, we imagine for a moment that the whole Empire is going to follow their example, and that we shall thus be enabled to rid ourselves of the accursed presence of the foreigner, we are very much mistaken, and the attempt is foredoomed. My advice therefore to your Excellency, is not to hesitate in disobeying the Edict which commanded you to raise these train-bands. I do not hesitate to give you this advice and to assure you that you run no risks in following it. You should, of course, act with great discretion, but the main thing is to prevent the Throne’s Decree becoming an excuse for the banding together of disorderly characters. I write this private letter under stress of much natural apprehension, and you will therefore pray forgive the haste and confusion of its contents, and I trust that you will favour me in due course with your reply.

(Signed)

“Jung Lu.”