Prince Tschun arrived in Potsdam on September 3 and was lodged in one of
the royal palaces. Yesterday morning, in carriages provided by the royal
stables, but without any escort, he proceeded to the “New Palace,”
where, accompanied by the new Chinese minister as interpreter, he was
received by the Emperor, who was surrounded by several German princes,
Baron von Richthofen, the Imperial secretary of state for foreign
affairs, and various high court, civil, and military officials.
On leaving the palace Prince Tschun was greeted with the military honors
usually shown to an Imperial prince, and a military escort accompanied
him to his residence. It is understood that, expiation having now been
made, he will be shown the usual courtesies as long as he remains the
guest of the Emperor—for a day or two.
The new Chinese minister has not yet been received as such, and
diplomatic relations have not yet been fully resumed, no audience having
been granted the departing minister to present his letters of
recall.
I have deemed it advisable to make this report, in view of the fact that
the sending of this “expiatory mission” was the result of the
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combined action of the several
foreign representatives in Pekin, and because of the attention which has
been given to it by the press generally and of the irresponsible reports
which have been made with regard to the manner in which Prince Tschun
was to have been received, and the reasons for his not having come
through from Basle to Berlin about the 26th ultimo.
[Inclosure.]
[Clipping from the European edition of the New
York Herald, Paris, September 5,
1901, containing a free translation of the letter
from the Emperor of China, Prince Tschun’s speech, and the
German Emperor’s reply.]
Berlin, Wednesday.—The letter from the Emperor
of China, handed to the Emperor William by Prince Tschun, is to the
following effect:
“The Great Emperor of the Chinese Empire to His Majesty the Great
German Emperor, greeting.
“Ever since the Empires have been mutually represented by permanent
legations we have stood in uninterrupted friendly relationship
toward one another. These relations became still closer when Prince
Henry of Prussia came to Pekin, for on that occasion we had the
privilege of receiving the Prince frequently and of being able to
hold intercourse with him in an intimate manner. Unfortunately, in
the fifth month of last year, the Boxers rebelliously penetrated
into Pekin and the soldiers joined them.
“The result was the murder of Your Majesty’s minister, Baron von
Ketteler, a man who, so long as he occupied his post in Pekin, paid
careful attention to the interests of our countries and to whom we
were bound to pay our special acknowledgments. We regret most deeply
that Baron von Ketteler met so terrible an end among us. The fact
that we were not in a position to take due protective measures was
painful to our feeling of responsibility. It was our feeling of
responsibility which prompted us to erect a monument on the spot as
a sign that the crime should not remain unexpiated.
“Further, we have sent to Germany with this letter, the Imperial
Prince Tschun Tsai-fong, at the head of a special mission. Prince
Tschun, who is our own brother, will assure Your Majesty how deeply
the events of the past year have grieved us and how deeply the
feeling of penitence and shame still animate us. Your Majesty sent
your troops from a far distance to put down the Boxer rebellion and
restore peace and the welfare of our nation. We have, therefore,
commanded Prince Tschun to express personally to Your Majesty our
thanks for your efforts in promoting peace.
“We cherish the hope that Your Majesty’s indignation has given place
to the old feelings of friendship. That the relations between our
Empires may be of an even more extensive, intimate, and beneficial
character than hitherto is our firm assurance.”
Prince Tschun, in delivering the letter, spoke in the following
terms:
“By order of the Great Emperor, my most gracious lord and master, I
have the honor to deliver His Majesty’s letter into Your Majesty’s
Imperial hands. After the rebellious movement in China in the past
year, the Imperial court felt spontaneously no less than on the
demand of the powers the obligation of expressing, by a special
mission, its sincere regret at these events, and especially in the
case of which Your Majesty’s excellent minister, Baron von Ketteler,
fell a victim.
“In order to place the sincerity of this regret beyond all doubt His
Majesty the Emperor designated a very near blood relation for the
mission. I am in a position to assure Your Majesty that the Emperor,
my most gracious master, stood aloof from these complications, which
brought the great misfortune upon China and loss and care upon
Germany, in the fullest sense of the words. Nevertheless, in
accordance with customs existing for thousands of years, the Emperor
of China has taken the blame for it upon his own sacred person. I
have, therefore, the task of expressing to Your Majesty the most
cordial feelings of the Emperor, my illustrious master, toward Your
Majesty. In handing to you this letter, I am also charged to be the
interpreter of this feeling of the Great Emperor of China toward Her
Majesty the Empress, and the whole of the Imperial family, and to
express the wish that Your Majesty’s house may flourish and enjoy
health, happiness, and blessings in the fullest measure. His Majesty
the Emperor of China hopes that the events of the past year were
only a passing shadow, and that after the clouds have dispersed, the
brightness
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of peace
between the two nations of Germany and China may teach them mutually
ever to understand and value one another better. This is also my
most sincere wish.”
the emperor’s reply.
The Emperor then addressed the following reply to Prince Tschun:
“This is not a joyous or festive occasion, or the fulfillment of a
simple act of courtesy, which has brought your imperial highness to
me, but a deeply melancholy and very serious event. My minister at
the court of the Emperor of China, Baron von Ketteler, has been
slain in the capital of China by the murderous weapon of an Imperial
Chinese soldier, lifted against him by superior command, an
unheard-of crime, which is branded by international law and the
usage of all nations alike. From the mouth of your imperial highness
I have just received the expression of the deep regret of the
Emperor of China.
“Concerning this event I readily believe that your imperial highness’
imperial brother personally stood aloof from the crime and the
subsequent acts of violence against the inviolable legations and
peaceful foreigners. All the greater is the guilt which falls upon
his adviser and his government. These must not delude themselves
into believing that by an expiatory mission alone they will have
made atonement and obtained pardon for their guilt. This can only be
done by their future attitude in conformity with the prescriptions
of international law and the usages of civilized nations. If the
Emperor of China conducts the government of his great Empire
henceforth strictly in the spirit of these prescriptions, then will
his hope be fulfilled that the sad results of the complications of
the past year will be overcome, and that between Germany and China,
as formerly, lasting peaceful and friendly relations will again
prevail and conduce to the benefit of two nations and the whole of
human civilization. In the sincere and earnest wish that this may be
so, I bid your imperial highness welcome.”
