It Was Not Till The End Of The Year That The Commission To
Ascertain The Fate Of Mr. Margary Began Its Active Work On The Spot.
The
result was unexpectedly disappointing.
The mandarins supported one
another. The responsibility was thrown on several minor officials, and on
the border-tribes or savages. Several of the latter were seized, and their
lives were offered as atonement for an offense they had not committed. The
furthest act of concession which the Chinese commissioner gave was to
temporarily suspend Tsen Yuying the Futai for remissness; but even this
measure was never enforced with rigor. The English officers soon found
that it was impossible to obtain any proper reparation on the spot.
Sir Thomas Wade, who was knighted during the negotiations, refused to
accept the lives of the men offered, whose complicity in the offense was
known to be none at all, while its real instigators escaped without any
punishment. When the new year, 1876, opened, the question was still
unsettled, and it was clear that no solution could be discovered on the
spot. Sir Thomas Wade again called upon the Chinese in the most emphatic
language allowed by diplomacy to conform with the spirit and letter of
their engagements, and he informed the Tsungli Yamen that unless they
proffered full redress for Mr. Margary's murder it would be impossible to
continue diplomatic relations. To show that this was no meaningless
expression, Sir Thomas Wade left Pekin, while a strong re-enforcement to
the English fleet demonstrated that the government was resolved to support
its representative. In consequence of these steps, Li Hung Chang was, in
August, 1876, or more than eighteen months after the outrage, intrusted
with full powers for the arrangement, of the difficulty; and the small
seaport of Chefoo was fixed upon as the scene for the forthcoming
negotiations. Even then the Chinese sought to secure a sentimental
advantage by requesting that Sir Thomas Wade would change the scene of
discussion to Tientsin, or at least that he would consent to pay Li Hung
Chang a visit there. This final effort to conceal the fact that the
English demanded redress as an equal and not as a suppliant having been
baffled, there was no further attempt at delay. The Chefoo Convention was
signed in that town, to which the viceroy proceeded from Tientsin. Li Hung
Chang entertained the foreign ministers at a great banquet; and the final
arrangements were hurried forward for the departure to Europe of the
Chinese embassador, whose dispatch had been decided upon in the previous
year. When the secret history of this transaction is revealed it will be
seen how sincere were Li Hung Chang's wishes for a pacific result, and how
much his advice contributed to this end.
The most important passage in the Chefoo Convention was unquestionably
that commanding the different viceroys and governors to respect, and
afford every protection to, all foreigners provided with the necessary
passport from the Tsungli Yamen, and warning them that they would be held
responsible in the event of any such travelers meeting with injury or
maltreatment.
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