BlackHat's Journal: It tightens up our vocal cords/ And loosens up our pecs

Trying out some of the new format adjustments, assorted news, and a texttoon--with jpg version for the textually-challenged. Quote today is a rather long topical rant. While the events illustrated may get a bit tangled, just as they were for the participants, the overall flow of the events resonates quite well with our own time.

Quote:
If the Chinese government had promptly accepted the inevitable, and if Kweiliang had negotiated with as much celerity as he pretended to be his desire, peace might have been concluded and the Chinese saved some further ignominy.

But it soon became clear that all the Chinese were thinking about was to gain time, and as the months available for active campaigning were rapidly disappearing, it was imperative that not the least delay should be sanctioned. On September 8, Lord Elgin and Sir Hope Grant left Tientsin with an advance force of about 1,500 men; and, marching by the highroad, reached the pretty village of Hosiwu, half-way between that town and the capital. A few days later this force was increased by the remainder of one division, while to Sir Robert Napier was left the task of guarding with the other Tientsin and the communications with the sea.

At Hosiwu negotiations were resumed by Tsai, Prince of I, a nephew of the emperor, who declared that he had received authority to conclude all arrangements; but he was curtly informed that no treaty could be concluded save at Tung-chow, and the army resumed its advance beyond Hosiwu. The march was continued without molestation to a point beyond the village of Matow, but when Sir Hope Grant approached a place called Chan-chia-wan he found himself in presence of a large army.

This was the first sign of any resolve to offer military opposition to the invaders since the capture of the Taku forts, and it came to a great extent in the manner of a surprise, for by a special agreement with Mr. Parkes the settlement of the difficulty was to be concluded at Chan-chia-wan in an amicable manner. Instead, however, of the emperor's delegates, the English commander found Sankolinsin and the latest troops drawn from Pekin and beyond the wall in battle array, and occupying the very ground which had been assigned for the English encampment.

The day before the English commander perceived that he was in face of a strong force Mr. Parkes and some other officers and civilians had been sent ahead with an escort of Sikh cavalry to arrange the final preliminaries with the imperial commissioners at Tungchow, both as to where the camp was to be pitched and also as to the interview between the respective plenipotentiaries of the opposing powers. This party proceeded to Tungchow without encountering any opposition or perceiving any exceptional military precautions. Troops were indeed observed at several points, and officers in command of pickets demanded the nature of their business and where they were going, but the reply "To the Commissioners" at once satisfied all inquiries and opened every barrier. The one incident that happened was of happy augury for a satisfactory issue if the result went to prove the fallaciousness of human expectations.

A change had in the meanwhile come over the minds of the imperial commissioners, whether in accordance with the working of a deep and long-arranged policy, or from the confidence created by the sight of the numerous warriors drawn from the cradle of the Manchu race for the defense of the capital and dynasty, can never be ascertained with any degree of certainty, Their tone suddenly assumed greater boldness and arrogance.

To some of the Englishmen it appeared "almost offensive," and it was only after five hours' discussion between Mr. Parkes and the commissioners at Tungchow that some sign was given of a more yielding disposition. The final arrangements were hastily concluded in the evening of September 17 for the arrival of the troops at the proposed camping ground on the morrow, and for the interview that was to follow as soon after as possible. While Mr. Parkes and some of his companions were to ride forward in the morning to apprise Sir Hope Grant of what had been agreed upon, and to point out the site for his camp, the others were to remain in Tungchow with the greater part of the Sikh escort.

On their return toward the advancing English army in the early morning of the following day, Mr. Parkes and his party met with frequent signs of military movement in the country between Tungchow and Chan-chia-wan. Large bodies of infantry and gingall-men were seen marching from all quarters to the town. At Chan-chia-wan itself still more emphatic tokens were visible of a coming battle. Cavalry were drawn up in dense bodies, but under shelter. In a nullah one regiment of a thousand sabers was stationed with the men standing at their horses' heads ready for instant action. At another point a number of men were busily engaged in constructing a battery and in placing twelve guns in position. When the Englishmen gained the plain they found the proposed site of the English camp in the actual possession of a Chinese army, and a strong force of Tartar cavalry, alone reckoned to number six or seven thousand men, scouring the plain.

To all inquiries as to what these warlike arrangements betokened no reply was made by the soldiers, and when the whereabout of the responsible general was asked there came the stereotyped answer that "he was many li away." To the most obtuse mind these arrangements could convey but one meaning. They indicated that the Chinese government had resolved to make another endeavor to avert the concessions demanded from them by the English and their allies, and to appeal once more to the God of Battles ere they accepted the inevitable. When the whole truth flashed across the mind of Mr. Parkes, the army of Sir Hope Grant might be, and indeed was, marching into the trap prepared for it, with such military precautions perhaps as a wise general never neglected, but still wholly unprepared for the extensive and well-arranged opposition planned for its reception by a numerous army established in a strong position of its own choosing.

It became, therefore, of the greatest importance to communicate the actual state of affairs to him, and to place at his disposal the invaluable information which the Englishmen returning from Tungchow had in their possession. But Mr. Parkes had still more to do. It was his duty to bring before the Chinese imperial commissioners at the earliest possible moment the knowledge of this flagrant breach of the convention he had concluded the day before, to demand its meaning, and to point out the grave consequences that must ensue from such treacherous hostility; and in that supreme moment, as he had done on the many other critical occasions of his career in China--at Canton and Taku in particular--the one thought in the mind of Mr. Parkes was how best to perform his duty. He did not forget also that, while he was almost in a place of safety near the limits of the Chinese pickets, and not far distant from the advancing columns of Sir Hope Grant, there were other Englishmen in his rear possibly in imminent peril of their lives amid the Celestials at Tungchow.

Mr. Parkes rode back, therefore, to that town, and with him went one English dragoon, named Phipps, and one Sikh sowar carrying a flag of truce on his spear-point. We must leave them for the moment to follow the movements of the others. To Mr. Loch was intrusted the task of communicating with Sir Hope Grant; while the remainder of the party were to remain stationary, in order to show the Chinese that they did not suspect anything, and that they were full of confidence. Mr. Loch, accompanied by two Sikhs, rode at a hard canter away from the Chinese lines. He passed through one body of Tartar cavalry without opposition, and reached the advanced guard of the English force in safety.

To tell his news was but the work of a minute. It confirmed the suspicions which General Grant had begun to feel at the movements of some bodies of cavalry on the flank of his line of march. Mr. Loch had performed his share of the arrangement. He had warned Sir Hope Grant. But to the chivalrous mind duty is but half-performed if aid is withheld from those engaged in fulfilling theirs. What he had done had proved unexpectedly easy; it remained for him to assist those whose share was more arduous and perilous. So Mr. Loch rode back to the Chinese lines, Captain Brabazon insisting on following him, again accompanied by two Sikhs but not the same who had ridden with him before.

Sir Hope Grant had given him the assurance that unless absolutely forced to engage he would postpone the action for two hours. This small party of four men rode without hesitation, and at a rapid pace, through the skirmishers of the Chinese army. The rapidity of their movements disconcerted the Chinese, who allowed them to pass without opposition and almost without notice. They rode through the Streets of Chan-chia-wan without meeting with any molestation, although they were crowded with the mustering men of the imperial army.

They gained Tungchow without let or hinderance, after having passed through probably not less than 30,000 men about to do battle with the long hated and now feared foreigners. It may have been, as suggested, that they owed their safety to a belief that they were the bearers of their army's surrender! Arrived at Tungchow, Mr. Loch found the Sikh escort at the temple outside the gates unaware of any danger--all the Englishmen being absent in the town, where they were shopping--and a letter left by Mr. Parkes warning them on return to prepare for instant flight, and saying that he was off in search of Prince Tsai. In that search he was at last successful. He found the high commissioner, he asked the meaning of the change that had taken place, and was told in curt and defiant tones that "there could be no peace, there must be war."

The last chance of averting hostilities was thus shown to be in vain. Prince Tsai indorsed the action of Sankolinsin. Mr. Parkes had only the personal satisfaction of knowing that he had done everything he could to prove that the English did not wish to press their military superiority over an antagonist whose knowledge of war was slight and out of date. He had done this at the greatest personal peril. It only remained to secure his own safety and that of his companions. By this time the whole party of Englishmen had re-assembled in the temple; and Mr. Loch, anxious for Mr. Parkes, had gone into the city and met him galloping away from the yamen of the commissioner. There was no longer reason for delay. Not an Englishman had yet been touched, but between this small band and safety lay the road back through the ranks of Sankolinsin's warriors.

From Tungchow to the advanced post of Sir Hope Grant's army was a ten mile ride; and most of the two hours' grace had already expired. Could it be done? By this time most of the Chinese troops had reached Chan-chia-wan, where they had been drawn up in battle array among the maize-fields and in the nullahs as already described. From Tungchow to that place the country was almost deserted; and the fugitives proceeded unmolested along the road till they reached that town. The streets were crowded partly with armed citizens and peasants, but chiefly with panic-stricken householders; and by this time the horses were blown, and some of them almost exhausted. Through this crowd the seven Englishmen and twenty Sikhs walked their horses, and met not the least opposition. They reached the eastern side without insult or injury, passed through the gates, and descending the declivity found themselves in the rear of the whole Chinese army. The dangers through which they had passed were as nothing compared with those they had now to encounter. A shell burst in the air at this moment, followed by the discharge of the batteries on both sides. The battle had begun. The promised two hours had expired. The fugitives were some ten minutes too late.

The position of this small band in the midst of an Asiatic army actually engaged in mortal combat with their kinsmen may be better imagined than described. They were riding down the road which passed through the center of the Chinese position, and the banks on each side of them were lined with matchlock-men, among whom the shells of the English guns were already bursting. Parties of cavalry were not wanting here, but out in the plain where the Tartar horsemen swarmed in thousands the greatest danger of all awaited them. Their movements were slow, painfully slow, and the progress was delayed by the necessity of waiting for those who were the worst mounted; but they were "all in the same boat, and, like Englishmen, would sink or swim together." In the accumulation of difficulties that stared them in the face not the least seemed to be that they were advancing in the teeth of their own countrymen's fire, which was growing fiercer every minute.

In this critical moment men turned to Mr. Parkes, and Captain Barbazon expressed the belief of those present in a cool brave man in arduous extremity when he cried out, "I vote Parkes decides what is to be done." To follow the main road seemed to be certain destruction and death without the power of resisting; for even assuming that some of them could have cut their way through the Tartar cavalry, and escaped from the English shell, they could hardly have avoided being shot down by the long lines of matchlock-men who were ready to fire on them the instant they saw their backs. There was only one possible avenue of escape, and that was to gain the right flank of the army, and endeavor to make their way by a detour round to the English lines. Assuredly this was not a very promising mode of escape, but it seemed to have the greatest chances of success. But when the Chinese, who had up to this regarded their movements without interfering, saw this change in their course, they at once took measures to stop it. A military mandarin said if they persisted in their attempt they would be treated as enemies and fired upon; but that he was willing to respect their flag of truce, and that if they would accompany him to the general's presence he would obtain a safe conduct for them. The offer was accepted, partly no doubt because it could not be refused, but still also on its own merits.

Safe conducts during the heat of battle, even with civilized European peoples, are, however, not such easy things either to grant or to carry out. Mr. Parkes accepted his offer, therefore, and he, Mr. Loch, and the Sikh trooper Nalsing, bearing a flag of truce, rode off with the mandarin in search of the general, while the five other Europeans and the Sikh escort remained on the road awaiting their return. They proceeded to the left, where it was understood that Sankolinsin commanded in person. They met with some adventures even on this short journey. Coming suddenly upon a large body of infantry, they were almost pulled from their horses, and would have been killed but for the mandarin rushing between them and shouting to the men "not to fire."

A short distance beyond this they halted, when the approach of Sankolinsin was announced by loud shouts of his name from the soldiery. Mr. Parkes at once addressed him, saying that they had come under a flag of truce, and that they wished to regain their army. The Chinese commander replied to his remarks on the usages of war in true Tartar fashion--with laughter and abuse. The soldiers pressed round the unfortunate Englishmen and placed their matchlocks against their bodies. Escape was hopeless, and death seemed inevitable. But insult was more the object of the Mongol general than their death. They were dragged before him and forced to press the ground with their heads at the feet of Sankolinsin. They were subjected to numerous other indignities, and at last, when it became evident that the battle was going against the Chinese, they were placed in one of the country carts and sent off to Pekin. While Mr. Parkes and Mr. Loch were thus ill-used, their comrades waiting on the road had fared no better.

Shortly after their departure the Chinese soldiers began to hustle and jeer at the Englishmen and their native escort. As the firing increased and some of the Chinese were hit they grew more violent. When the news was received of what had happened to Mr. Parkes, and of how Sankolinsin had laughed to scorn their claim to protection, the soldiers could no longer be restrained. The Englishmen and the natives were dragged from their horses, cruelly bound, and hurried to the rear, whence they followed at no great distance their companions in misfortune. While the greater portion of these events had been in progress, Colonel Walker, Mr. Thompson, and the men of the King's Dragoon Guards, had been steadily pacing up and down on the embankment as arranged, in order to show the Chinese that they suspected no treachery and had no fears. They continued doing this until a French officer joined them; but on his getting into a dispute with some of the Chinese about his mule, he drew his pistol and fired at them.

He was immediately killed. There was then no longer the least hope of restraining the Chinese, so the whole of the party spurred their horses and escaped to the English army under a heavy but ineffectual fire from matchlocks and gingalls. Their flight was the signal for the commencement of the battle, although at that very moment, had they only known it, the chief party of Englishmen had gained the road east of Chan-chia-wan, and, if the battle had only been delayed a quarter of an hour, they might all have escaped.

But the two hours of grace were up, and Sir Hope Grant saw no further use in delay. General Montauban was still more impatient, and the men were eager to engage. They had to win their camping-ground that night, and the day was already far advanced. The French occupied the right wing, that is the position opposite the spot where we have seen Sankolinsin commanding in person, and a squadron of Fane's Horse had been lent them to supply their want of cavalry. The battle began with the fire of their batteries, which galled the Chinese so much that the Tartar cavalry were ordered up to charge the guns, and right gallantly they did so. A battery was almost in their hands, its officers had to use their revolvers, when the Sikhs and a few French dragoons, led by Colonel Foley, the English commissioner with the French force, gallantly charged them in turn, and compelled them to withdraw.

Neither side derived much advantage from this portion of the contest, but the repulse of the Tartar cavalry enabled the French guns to renew their fire with great effect on the line of Chinese infantry. While the French were thus engaged on the right, the English troops had begun a vigorous attack on both the center and their left. The Chinese appeared in such dense masses, and maintained so vigorous, but fortunately so ill- directed, a fire, that the English force made but little progress at either point. The action might have been indefinitely prolonged and left undecided, had not Sir Hope Grant suddenly resolved to re-enforce his left with a portion of his center, and to assail the enemy's right vigorously. This latter part of the battle began with a charge of some squadrons of Probyn's Horse against the bodies of mounted Tartars moving in the plain, whom they, with their gallant leader at their head, routed in the sight of the two armies.

This overthrow of their chosen fighting-men greatly discouraged the rest of the Chinese soldiers, and when the infantry advanced with the Sikhs in front they slowly began to give ground. But even then there were none of the usual symptoms of a decisive victory. The French were so exhausted by their efforts that they had been compelled to halt, and General Montauban was obliged to curb his natural impetuosity, and to admit that he could take no part in the final attack on Chan-chia- wan. Sir Hope Grant, however, pressed on and occupied the town. He did not call in his men until they had seized without resistance a large camp about one mile west of the town, where they captured several guns. Thus ended the battle of Chan-chia-wan with the defeat and retreat of the strong army which Sankolinsin had raised in order to drive the barbarians into the sea.

Although the battle was won, Sir Hope Grant, measuring the resistance with the eye of an experienced soldier, came to the conclusion that his force was not sufficiently strong to overawe so obstinate a foe; and accordingly ordered Sir Robert Napier to join him with as many troops as he could spare from the Tientsin garrison. Having thus provided for the arrival of re-enforcements at an early date, he was willing to resume his onward march for Tungchow, where it was hoped some tidings would be obtained of the missing officers and men. Two days intervened before any decisive move was made, but Mr. Wade was sent under a flag of truce into Tungchow to collect information. But he failed to learn anything more about Mr. Parkes than that he had quitted the town in safety after his final interview with Prince Tsai.

Lord Elgin now hastened up from Hosiwu to join the military headquarters, and on September 21, the French having been joined by another brigade, offensive operations were recommenced. The delay had encouraged the Chinese to make another stand, and they had collected in considerable force for the defense of the Palikao bridge, which affords the means of crossing the Peiho west of Tungchow. Here again the battle commenced with a cavalry charge which, despite an accident that might have had more serious results, was completely successful. This achievement was followed up by the attack on several fortified positions which were not defended with any great amount of resolution, and while these matters were in progress on the side where the English were engaged, the French had carried the bridge with its twenty-five guns in position in very gallant style. The capture of this bridge and the dispersion of the troops, including the Imperial Guard, which had been intrusted with its defense, completed the discomfiture of the Chinese. Pekin itself lay almost at the mercy of the invader, and, unless diplomacy could succeed better than arms, nothing would prevent the hated foreigners violating its privacy not merely with their presence, but in the most unpalatable guise of armed victors.

The day after the battle at the Palikao bridge came a letter from Prince Kung the emperor's next brother, stating that Prince Tsai and his colleagues had not managed matters satisfactorily, and that he had been appointed with plenipotentiary powers for the discussion and decision of the peace question. But the prince went on to request a temporary suspension of hostilities--a demand with which no general or embassador could have complied so long as officers were detained who had been seized in violation of the usages of war. Lord Elgin replied in the clearest terms that there could be no negotiations for peace until these prisoners were restored, and that if they were not sent back in safety the consequences would be most serious for the Chinese government.

But even at this supreme moment of doubt and danger, the subtlety of Chinese diplomacy would have free play. Prince Kung was young in years and experience, but his finesse would have done credit to a gray-haired statesman. Unfortunately for him, the question had got beyond the stage for discussion: the English embassador had stated the one condition on which negotiations would be renewed, and until that had been complied with there was no need to give ear to the threats, promises and entreaties even of Prince Kung. As the prince gave no sign of yielding this point during the week's delay in bringing up the second division from Tientsin, Lord Elgin requested Sir Hope Grant to resume his march on Pekin, from which the advanced guard of the allied forces was distant little more than ten miles. The cavalry had reconnoitered almost up to the gates, and had returned with the report that the walls were strong and in good condition.

The danger to a small army of attempting to occupy a great city of the size and population of Pekin is almost obvious; and, moreover, the consistent policy of the English authorities had been to cause the Chinese people as little injury and suffering as possible. Should an attack on the city become unavoidable, it was decided that the point attacked should be the Tartar quarter, including the palace, which occupied the northern half of the city. By this time it had become known that Parkes and Loch were living, that they were confined in the Kaou Meaou Temple, near the Tehshun Gate, and that latterly they had been fairly well treated.

In execution of the plan of attack that had been agreed upon, the allied forces marched round Pekin to the northwest corner of the walls, having as their object the Summer Palace of the emperor at Yuen Min Yuen, not quite four miles distant from the city.

On the approach of the foreign army, Hienfung fled in terror from his palace, and sought shelter at Jehol, the hunting residence of the emperors beyond the Wall. His flight was most precipitate; and the treasures of the Summer Palace were left at the mercy of the Western spoilers. The French soldiers had made the most of the start they had obtained, and left comparatively little for their English comrades, who, moreover, were restrained by the bonds of a stricter discipline. But the amount of prize property that remained was still considerable, and, by agreement between the two generals, it was divided in equal shares between the armies. The capture and occupation of the Summer Palace completed the European triumph, and obliged Prince Kung to promptly acquiesce in Lord Elgin's demand for the immediate surrender of the prisoners, if he wished to avoid the far greater calamity of a foreign occupation of the Tartar quarter of Pekin and the appropriation of its vaster collection of treasures.

On October 6 Mr. Parkes wrote from his place of confinement that the French and English detained were to be returned on the 8th of the month, and that the imperial commanders had been ordered at the same time to retire for a considerable distance from Pekin. These promises were carried out. Prince Kung was at last resolved to make all the concessions requisite to insure the speedy conclusion of peace. The restoration of these captives removed what was thought to be the one obstacle to Lord Elgin's discussing the terms on which the invading force would retire and to the respective governments resuming diplomatic relations. It was fortunate for China that the exact fate of the other prisoners was unknown, and that Lord Elgin felt able, in consequence of the more friendly proceedings of Prince Kung, to overlook the earlier treatment of those now returned to him, for the narrative of Mr. Parkes and his fellow prisoners was one that tended to heighten the feeling of indignation at the original breach of faith.

To say that they were barbarously ill-used is to employ a phrase conveying a very inadequate idea of the numerous indignities and the cruel personal treatment to which they were subjected. Under these great trials neither of these intrepid Englishmen wavered in their refusal to furnish any information or to make any concession compromising their country. Mr. Loch's part was in one sense the more easy, as his ignorance of the language prevented his replying, but in bodily suffering he had to pay a proportionately greater penalty.

The incidents of their imprisonment afford the most creditable testimony to the superiority which the pride of race as well as "the equal mind in arduous circumstance" gives weak humanity over physical suffering. They are never likely to pass out of the public memory; and those who remember the daring and the chivalry which had inspired Mr. Parkes and Mr. Loch on the day when Prince Tsai's treachery and Sankolinsin's mastery were revealed, will not be disposed to consider it exaggerated praise to say that, for an adventure so honorably conceived and so nobly carried out, where the risk was never reckoned and where the penalty was so patiently borne, the pages of history may be searched almost in vain for an event that, in the dramatic elements of courage and suffering, presents such a complete and consistent record of human gallantry and devotion as the capture and subsequent captivity of these English gentlemen and their Sikh companion.

The further conditions as preliminary to the ratification of the Treaty of Tientsin were gradually, if reluctantly, complied with. On October 13 the northeast gate was handed over to the allied troops, but not before Sir Hope Grant had threatened to open fire on the walls. At the same time Prince Kung returned eight sowars of Fane's Horse and one Frenchman, all the survivors, besides those already surrendered, of the small band which had ridden from Tungchow nearly a month before. The Chinese prince stated in explanation that "a certain number were missing after the fight, or have died of their wounds or of sickness." But the narrative of the Sikhs was decisive as to the fate of the five Englishmen and their own comrades. They had been brutally bound with ropes which, although drawn as tight as human force could draw them, were tightened still more by cold water being poured upon the bands, and they had been maltreated in every form by a cruel enemy, and provided only with food of the most loathsome kind.

Some of the prisoners were placed in cages. Lieutenant Anderson, a gallant young officer for whom future renown had been predicted, became delirious and died on the ninth day of his confinement. Mr. De Normann died a week later. What fate befell Captain Barbazon and his French companion, the Abbe de Luc, is uncertain, but the evidence on the subject inclines us to accept as accurate the statement that the Chinese commander in the fight at Palikao, enraged at his defeat, caused them to be executed on the bridge. The soldier Phipps endured for a longer time than Mr. Bowlby the taunts and ill-usage of their jailers, but they at last shared the same fate, dying from the effects of their ill-treatment. The bodies of all the Englishmen, with the exception of Captain Barbazon, were restored, and of most of the Sikhs also. The Chinese officials were more barbarous in their cruelty than even the worst scum among their malefactors; for the prisoners in the jails, far from adding to the tortures of the unfortunate Europeans, did everything in their power to mitigate their sufferings, alleviate their pains, and supply their wants.

The details of these cruel deeds raised a feeling of great horror in men's minds, and, although the desire to arrange the question of peace without delay was uppermost with Lord Elgin, still it was felt that some grave step was necessary to express the abhorrence with which England regarded this cruel and senseless outrage, and to bring home to the Chinese people and government the fact that Englishmen could not be murdered with impunity. Lord Elgin refused to hold any further intercourse with the Chinese government until this great crime had been purged by some signal punishment. Sir Hope Grant and he had little difficulty in arriving at the decision that the best mode of expiation was to destroy the Summer Palace.

The French commander refused to participate in the act which carried a permanent lesson of political necessity to the heart of the Pekin government, and which did more than any other incident of the campaign to show Hienfung that the hour had gone by for trifling. On October 18 the threat was carried into execution. The Summer Palace was destroyed by fire, and the sum of $500,000 was demanded and obtained from the Chinese as some compensation for the families of the murdered men. The palace of Yuen Min Yuen had been the scene of some of the worst sufferings of the English prisoners. From its apartments the high mandarins and the immediate courtiers of the emperor had gloated over and enjoyed the spectacle of their foreign prisoners' agony. The whole of Pekin witnessed in return the destruction wrought to the sovereign's abode by the indignant English, and the clouds of smoke hung for days like a vast black pall over the city.

That act of severe but just vengeance consummated, the negotiations for the ratification of the treaty were resumed. The Hall of Ceremonies was selected as the place in which the ratifying act should be performed, while, as some punishment for the hostile part he had played, the palace of Prince Tsai was appropriated as the temporary official residence of Lord Elgin and Baron Gros. The formal act of ratification was performed in this building on October 24. Lord Elgin proceeded in a chair of state, accompanied by his suite, and also by Sir Hope Grant with an escort of 100 officers and 500 troops, through the streets from the Anting Gate to the Hall of Ceremonies. Prince Kung, attended by a large body of civil and military mandarins, was there in readiness to produce the imperial edict authorizing him to attach the emperor's seal to the treaty, and to accept the responsibility for his country of conforming with its terms and carrying out its stipulations.

Some further delay was caused by the necessity of waiting until the edict should be received from the emperor at Jehol authorizing the publication of the treaty, not the least important point in connection with its conclusion if the millions of China were to understand and perform what their rulers had promised for them. That closing act was successfully achieved, and more rapidly than had been expected. The Pekinese beheld English troops and officers in residence in their midst for the first time, and when the army was withdrawn and the plenipotentiary, Lord Elgin, transferred to his brother, Mr. Frederick Bruce, the charge of affairs in China as Resident Minister, the ice had been broken in the relations between the officials of the two countries, and the greatest, if not the last, barrier of Chinese exclusiveness had been removed.

The last of the allied troops turned their backs upon Pekin on November 9, and the greater portion of the expedition departed for India and Europe just before the cold weather set in. A few days later the rivers were frozen and navigation had become impossible, which showed how narrow was the margin left for the completion of the operations of war.

The object which the more far-seeing of the English residents had from the first hour of difficulty stated to be necessary for satisfactory relations--direct intercourse with the Pekin government--was thus obtained after a keen and bitter struggle of thirty years. Although vanquished, the Chinese may be said to have come out of this war with an increased military reputation. The war closed with a treaty enforcing all the concessions made by its predecessor.

The right to station an embassador in Pekin signified that the greatest barrier of all had been broken down; the old school of politicians were put completely out of court, and a young and intelligent prince, closely connected with the emperor, assumed the personal charge of the foreign relations of the country. As one who had seen with his own eyes the misfortunes of his countrymen, Prince Kung was the more disposed to adhere to what he had promised to perform. Under his direction the ratified Treaty of Tientsin became a bond of union instead of an element of discord between the cabinets of London and Pekin; and a termination was put, by an arrangement carried at the point of the sword, to the constant friction and recrimination which had been the prevailing characteristics of the intercourse for a whole generation. The Chinese had been subjected to a long and bitter lesson. They had at last learned the virtue of submitting to necessity; but although they have profited to some extent both in peace and war by their experience, it requires some assurance to declare that they have even now accepted the inevitable.

That remains the problem of the future; but in 1860 Prince Kung came to the sensible conclusion that for that period, and until China had recovered from her internal confusion, there was nothing to be gained and much to be lost by protracted resistance to the peoples of the West. Whatever could be retained by tact and finesse were to form part of the natural rights of China; but the privileges only to be asserted in face of Armstrong guns and rifles were to be abandoned with as good a grace as the injured feeling of a nation can ever display.
  -- D.C. Boulger.

No idea when/if I'll have a chance to post another entry this week, but I'll slap one up on the weekend. Until then.

News, news, news...[childish singsong voice]:
Hey Silvio! Gimme back my 1500 Euros. Oh, nothing else changes much, you'ed still whore your dead grandmother for another five minutes of power and I'm still waving my private parts at you. Only now, it's as cheap as you!

BrownLeatherJacket says; There never was much of an Islamist "terrorist network" anyway - certainly nothing to compare with the extensive co-operation between the extreme left-wing "urban guerrilla" groups of the developed world (Germany's Baader-Meinhof Gang, Italy's Red Brigades, the Japanese Red Army, etc.) and the various Palestinian groups of secular nationalist radicals in the 1970-1985 period. Even in al Qaeda's heyday, before the US invasion of Afghanistan effectively beheaded it in 2001, there were only a few hundred core members. According to US intelligence estimates, between 30,000 and 70,000 volunteers passed through al Qaeda's training camps in Afghanistan in 1996-2001, but their long-term impact on the world has been astonishingly small. The average annual number of Islamist terrorist attacks in Arab and other Muslim countries has been no greater in the past five years than in the previous ten or twenty. For most of the people who went to Afghanistan in those years, it was a rite of passage or an exotic form of ideological tourism, not the start of a lifelong career as a terrorist.

Yet the headline news from all, including the BBC, is new al-Qaeda headliner for Iraq. ... Abu Hamza al-Muhajir to succeed Zarqawi...

Git'mo PR flap and attendant back peddling.

Thicky's Playland hitting 1200% inflation.

Dictator-boy Musharraf selected before the selection.

Stand-Up-Man's organ reports on cool new research. RV Jones predicted this one would work in the forties. Altho never pursued by him. Pre Laser IR and Maser applications were the best he could get funds and interest in at the time. Interesting that the coupled-oscillator effect research solved one of the more difficult hurdles. Not a few of us having read the papers in the 80's speculated down that/this path. Good work guys!

Olympic Roll: Five buns stuck on a plate in a double row. Shown to the voters, but never served. Take Lindsay Hoyle, the Labour MP for Chorley. Lancashire, he said yesterday, ought to have a role to play in the Olympics, most notably - we were astonished to learn - the town of Chorley, which had hosted bicycle events for the Commonwealth Games. Would the minister find the resources to build an Olympic village in Chorley? Possibly he was being ironic. But I'll bet he never admits it. At least not in Chorley. Actually an Olympic village in Chorley would be outside the usual experience of the world's top athletes. Food would come from the local chippy, with "mushy peas" as the vegetarian option. The sponsor would provide limitless quantities of Tizer the Appetizer. Flat caps are rarely seen in the north now, but there would be stewards in pork pie hats, with beige trousers, mustard yellow cardigans and suede shoes. A steady, soaking rain would cover the village at all times. Philip Dunne, the Tory MP for Ludlow, wants plenty of Olympic action in Shropshire. The village of Much Wenlock, he claimed, was "the home of the modern Olympiad." At first I assumed that this too was one of those demented suggestions MPs make about their constituencies, such as "my voters make the finest graphite refills for revolving pencils anywhere in the world," or, "more attested miracles have taken place in my constituency than at Lourdes." But it turns out to be more or less true. Back in the 19th century, every year William Penny Brooks organised the Muck Wenlock Olympian Society games. Baron de Coubertin, who started the modern Olympics in Athens in 1896, had been inspired by a visit six years before to Much Wenlock where he watched the games (including quoit throwing) and was delighted by the spectacular opening ceremony, in which scores - well, dozens - of local people marched from the centre of the village to the games field.

Featured Item :Fellow LEGO enthusiast Rev B.P. Smith continues to yank the populist chain. Excellent modeling and photography.

Free And Not Dead Press: In the past month, attacks on journalists by the Israeli military during the demonstrations against the annexation barrier in Bil'in have escalated. Many of the photographers and reporters covering the demonstrations have been injured and hospitalized. According to the Bil'in villagers, Israeli soldiers have been told to "aim for the camera". Wireless Servo-Tripod and a remote data recorder. Yeah, you'll need a few extra camera bodies. But that's better than the replacement bodies you'll need without decentralising the task.

Press Briefing Softball Highlights: June 9th Sean McCormack steps up to the plate, and they're off.
QUESTION: Can you tell us any more about what prompted a Warden Message out of Beijing today, threats against U.S. missions in China?

MR. MCCORMACK: A little bit more. I don't think I can offer too many more details. Any time an embassy has information that it thinks the American citizens, American public, needs to know in terms of threats against Americans or U.S. interests, then we put out a Warden Message. We think that that's prudent. We think that that's good government in terms of informing the American people with -- arming them with information.

It doesn't talk about people canceling travel or leaving, but it really counsels increased awareness in certain places, I think in Beijing, Guangzhou and Shanghai. So right now the Embassy is looking further into the threat that was -- my understanding it was a generalized threat against American interests but especially in those three cities. Beyond that, I don't have any information.

QUESTION: You don't know whether it was phoned in or a message sent, nothing?

MR. MCCORMACK: I don't have that information.
Note the lack of the usual 'I'll check into that for you' on this [Strike!] one.

QUESTION: A change. One member of Congress is now calling for Mark Malloch Brown to be fired because of his comments earlier this week.

MR. MCCORMACK: Right.

QUESTION: Do you have a view on that?

MR. MCCORMACK: I've said what I'm going to say on the matter. I think we came out -- both Ambassador Bolton and I came out with pretty strong statements about what he said.

QUESTION: But I don't think -- well, you didn't address whether you could continue to do business with him.

MR. MCCORMACK: Again -- I've said what I'm going to say about his speech.

QUESTION: And more generally, what -- how do you expect this debate on the budget to end at the end of the month? Because we know that there is a problem with the budget at the end of June, but you -- we don't know what is your proposal.

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, our proposal is to -- well, I think we have laid out our proposal. Ambassador Bolton has talked about the fixes that we would like -- that we, as well as many other significant donors to the UN, dues-payers to the UN, would like to see. Most essentially, we would like to see Secretary General Annan's reform plan implemented, which includes management reforms, which includes budget reforms. We think that in an effort to make the UN more effective, more streamlined, more responsive to member states' concerns, that you should implement these reforms. They're important.

And also, as stewards of the U.S. taxpayer's dollar, we think that it's good government to do these things and frankly, we have a lot of company in this regard. I think that over -- the group of countries that want to see these budget and management reforms enacted constitute over 80 percent of the UN's budget. Certainly, all states should have a say in how the UN is run. The General Assembly plays a role in that, but we certainly think that those countries that are the most significant participants, according to a number of different criteria I went through yesterday, that the extent of the U.S. involvement with the UN should have some say in how the UN arranges itself, how it's structured, and how it works.

And we have seen, over the course of the past couple of years, some cases where it hasn't worked. And we think that enacting reforms will help ensure that those kinds of things don't occur in the future. So we think it is very important and I think there is going to be probably in the coming weeks a very healthy debate on this issue. But we have been -- Secretary Rice, President Bush has been very clear on the importance of enacting these reforms and it's not only us. You talk to European nations, you talk to Japan as well as other countries around the world, you talk to some countries in the Non-Align Movement, they have an interest in seeing these reforms. So I expect that there's going to be a pretty healthy debate in the coming weeks.

QUESTION: Yeah, but you -- a lot of countries support the reforms, but U.S. is the only one threatening to cut the funding at the end of the month. So if there is no agreement, what are you going to do?

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, let's -- we'll deal with that, you know, we'll deal with that if we reach the point where there isn't an agreement, right now. What we're doing right now is we're going to focus on trying to get these reforms enacted. That's where our focus is going to be. And if we get to that point where, unfortunately, if reforms aren't enacted, then we'll deal with it.
Two errors, a strike and a game warning for the BlackSox pitcher. Two and three.

QUESTION: The Islamist militia are moving into other areas outside of Mogadishu, just north of Mogadishu. They're making advances.

MR. MCCORMACK: Right.

QUESTION: And also they have been speaking to -- they started talks with the Transitional Government. I just wondered have you made any advances towards the Islamists to discuss with them how to stabilize the region? I understand that there's some discussion on policy towards Somalia and how you can proceed possibly in a more coherent way.

MR. MCCORMACK: More coherent way.

QUESTION: Mm-hmm.

MR. MCCORMACK: That's an interesting choice of words.

QUESTION: It is isn't it?

MR. MCCORMACK: Right.

QUESTION: So I just wondered what your views were on that.

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, in terms of the situation on the ground, again we've talked about this before. I don't have perfect visibility into the exact situation on the ground. I understand in general that what you have described is in fact true; that there were advances outside of Mogadishu. And in terms of contacts between the Transitional Federal Institutions and the Islamic Courts, I don't have good -- a good picture into that right now. We have not -- we talked, I think yesterday or the day before about the fact that there was -- I think it was the day before -- about this open letter. We have not yet responded to it. I've said that we are reserving judgment at this point.

In terms of other activities that we are taking, there is one bit of news I do have for you. We are going to be -- we are calling for the convening of a Somalia contact group. The Somalia contact group the week of June 12th, next week, up in New York City. And the goal of this group is to promote concerted action and coordination to support the Somalia Transitional Federal Institutions. So we're going to be working with other interested states, international organizations on this matter and talking about how we might coordinate our efforts in a concerted way to support those Transitional Federal Institutions.

QUESTION: And who is part of this group?

MR. MCCORMACK: Right now, I would -- I don't have a list of countries for you right now. We're still in the process of gathering up who's going to be in there. But I think -- in general speaking, certainly will be us. Assistant Secretary Jendayi Frazer will be up there. European countries and African countries as well and --

QUESTION: Would that be European as in the EU and the AU? Are you doing it by bloc or by individual country?

MR. MCCORMACK: The individual countries, but certainly if there are interested organizations that want to participate, I think that certainly we're open to that participation.

QUESTION: Let me just be clear. You're starting this thing, not --

MR. MCCORMACK: Right.

QUESTION: You're not --

MR. MCCORMACK: Yes. We're calling for --

QUESTION: -- inaugurating it.

MR. MCCORMACK: -- convening it. Yes, inaugurating it, yes.

QUESTION: And is it -- describe its UN --

MR. MCCORMACK: Component?

QUESTION: Component, yeah.

MR. MCCORMACK: I'll let the UN speak for themselves. But I would expect the UN would want to participate in this.

QUESTION: But it -- I assume because you're holding it in New York it had some UN component.

MR. MCCORMACK: Yes. I don't have the address where they're going to hold their meeting. But I would expect there will be a significant UN component to this as well.

QUESTION: I mean, whose -- under whose auspices is this thing being convened?

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, we're convening it. The U.S. Government is convening it.

QUESTION: In concert with the UN? I mean, how -- I want to describe it correctly.

MR. MCCORMACK: I would say the U.S. is convening it. There's going to be participation from other countries and international organizations. I think the right verb is participation.

QUESTION: So what will be -- where will it be, in the UN or in the embassy --

MR. MCCORMACK: I don't have the meeting room where they're going to be. It will be up in New York, though.

QUESTION: So would this be like the Quartet with the same sort of goal that the Quartet has in terms of, you know, pushing for the Middle East process?

MR. MCCORMACK: I'm not going to try to --

QUESTION: Would you be wanting to -- would this contract group be, sort of, pushing, you know, whatever process forward and maybe -- I don't know, what is it going to do?

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, I think I outlined it for you, Anne. It's to promote concerted action and coordination to support the Transitional Federal Institutions. I'm not going to try to draw any comparisons with the Quartet or any particular group. This is (inaudible) generous, so it is unto itself. And this will be the first meeting of it, so it will be an opportunity within those parameters of coordinating efforts that might exist -- that exist and future efforts that might exist in helping the TFI.

QUESTION: So would this mean that you want to lend support to the transitional government that was formed and that was, you know, pulled together after two years or so of talks in Kenya --

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, that has been our position, to support the Transitional Federal Institutions.

QUESTION: Are you inviting any Somali groups such as representatives from, say, the Islamists or the other bunch?

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, at this point, I don't think that we intend to invite them, but we'll keep you up to date on that. I don't -- like I said, we don't have the full invite list yet.

QUESTION: Will there be any money involved? Are you trying to also have it as a pledging conference of any kind?

MR. MCCORMACK: Details to follow.

QUESTION: Are they basically going to meet and figure out what they can do, basically?

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, there are a number of --

QUESTION: Talk about --

MR. MCCORMACK: Well, there are a couple things. One, there are a lot of different countries that have an interest in Somalia. There are a number of different countries that have programs related to Somalia. So this is an opportunity for them to talk about what they are doing individually, how you might coordinate, how you might through coordination make individual programs more effective, how you might look at doing things jointly.

QUESTION: Is this going to meet on a regular basis or is this going to be --

MR. MCCORMACK: I think periodically.

QUESTION: Okay. Do you have any more details that you can give on that? For example, are you going to invite NGOs to come? Because they have a pretty good handle on what's going on. The humanitarian situation is deteriorating --

MR. MCCORMACK: I'm tapped out on details on this one, Sue.

QUESTION: There is just not enough.

(Laughter.)

MR. MCCORMACK: Okay.
But surely enough for a third strike and an end to this entry.

*YAITJ: Manual Mode :

Texttoon:
Fumetti : Stock photo of Howard Dean speaking at the First YearlyKos convention. Overlayed speech bubble has him reciting the final lines of "The bookshop sketch"[MP:LATHB] Caption on a solid bar below say; "Dr. Dean explains how to deal with the modern American voters."