The Marriage Ceremony Was Deferred On
More Than One Plea Until After The Emperor Had Reached His Sixteenth
Birthday, But In October, 1872, There Was Thought To Be No Longer Any
Excuse For Postponement, And It Was Celebrated With Great Splendor On The
16th Of That Month.
The arrangements were made in strict accordance with
the precedent of the Emperor Kanghi's marriage in 1674, that ruler having
also married when in occupation of the throne, and before he had attained
his majority.
It was stated that the ceremonial was imposing, that the
incidental expenses were enormous, and that the people were very favorably
impressed by the demeanor of their young sovereign. Four months after the
celebration of his marriage the formal act of conferring upon Tungche the
personal control of his dominions was performed. In a special decree
issued from the Board of Rites the emperor said that he had received "the
commands of their majesties the two empresses to assume the
superintendence of business." This edict was directed to the Foreign
Ministers, who in return presented a collective request to be received in
audience. Prince Kung was requested "to take his Imperial Majesty's orders
with reference to their reception." The question being thus brought to a
crucial point, it was not unnatural that the Chinese ministers should make
the most vigorous resistance they could to those details which seemed to
and did encroach upon the prerogative of the emperor as he had been
accustomed to exercise it. For, in the first place, they were no longer
free agents, and Tungche had himself to be considered in any arrangement
for the reception of foreign envoys. The discussion of the question
assumed a controversial character, in which stress was laid on the one
side upon the necessity of the kotow even in a modified form, while on the
other it was pointed out that the least concession was as objectionable as
the greatest, and that China would benefit by the complete settlement of
the question. It says a great deal for the fairness and moderation of
Prince Kung and the ministers with him that, although they knew that the
foreign governments were not prepared to make the Audience Question one of
war, or even of the suspension of diplomatic relations, they determined to
settle the matter in the way most distasteful to themselves and most
agreeable to foreigners. On June 29, 1873, Tungche received in audience
the ministers of the principal powers at Pekin, and thus gave completeness
to the many rights and concessions obtained from his father and
grandfather by the treaties of Tientsin and Nankin. The privilege thus
secured caused lively gratification in the minds of all foreign residents,
to whom it signified the great surrender of the inherent right to
superiority claimed by the Chinese emperors, and we have recently seen
that it has been accepted as a precedent.
The sudden death of Tseng Kwofan in the summer of 1873 removed
unquestionably the foremost public man in China. After the fall of Nankin
he had occupied the highest posts in the empire, both at that city and in
the metropolis. He was not merely powerful from his own position, but from
his having placed his friends and dependents in many of the principal
offices throughout the empire. At first prejudiced against foreigners, he
had gradually brought himself to recognize that some advantage might be
derived from their knowledge. But the change came at too late a period to
admit of his conferring any distinct benefit on his country from the more
liberal policy he felt disposed to pursue with regard to the training of
Chinese youths in the science and learning of the West. It was said that
had he been personally ambitious he might have succeeded in displacing the
Tartar regime. But such a thought never assumed any practical shape in his
mind, and to the end of his days Tseng Kwofan was satisfied to remain the
steadfast supporter and adherent of the Manchus. In this respect ho has
been closely imitated by his most distinguished lieutenant, Li Hung Chang,
who succeeded to some of his dignities and much of his power.
Another of Tseng's proteges, Tso Tsung Tang, had been raised from the
viceroyalty of Chekiang and Fuhkien to that of Shensi and Kansuh. The
promotion was of the more doubtful value, seeing that both those provinces
were in the actual possession of the rebels; but Tso threw himself into
the task of reconquering them with remarkable energy, and within two years
of his arrival he was able to report that he had cleared the province of
Shensi of all insurgents. He then devoted his attention to the
pacification of Kansuh; and after many desultory engagements proceeded to
lay siege to the town of Souchow, where the Mohammedans had massed their
strength. At the end of the year 1872 the imperial army was drawn up in
front of this place, but Tso does not seem to have considered himself
strong enough to deliver an attack, and confined his operations to
preventing the introduction of supplies and fresh troops into the town.
Even in this he was only partially successful, as a considerable body of
men made their way in, in January, 1873. In the following month he
succeeded in capturing, by a night attack, a temple outside the walls,
upon which the Mohammedans placed considerable value. The siege continued
during the whole of the summer, and it was not until the month of October
that the garrison was reduced to such extremities as to surrender. The
chiefs were hacked to pieces, and about four thousand men perished by the
sword. The women, children, and old men were spared, and the spoil of the
place was handed over to the soldiery. It was Tso's distinctive merit
that, far from being carried away by these successes, he neglected no
military precaution, and devoted his main efforts to the reorganization of
the province. In that operation he may be left employed for the brief
remainder of Tungche's reign; but it may be said that in 1874 the campaign
against Kashgaria had been fully decided upon.
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