Boxer wedding--Special god of the Boxers--Boxer altars--Incriminating
documents in the Viceroy’s yamên--Sacred edict issued by the Lord
of Wealth and Happiness--A divine prescription--The real leader of
the Boxers--His descent--The active leader of the Boxers and his
influence over the fanatics--Political and religious movement.
Following the Buddhist fashion, Boxers became married to their
religion; in fact a Boxer, once initiated, occupied much the same
position as a novice in a Buddhist monastery.
[Illustration: 關啼]
The special god of the Ih-hwo-Ch’uan society was the Buddhist god of
war, the red-faced guardian of the west, _Kwai-fu-tze_ or _Kwan-ti_,
to be carefully distinguished from the second god of war, with a black
countenance. The image of Kwai-fu-tze could be seen in all its glory
on all the Boxer altars, in their assembly-halls (_Loo_), in the
residences of the principal leaders, and in Boxer camps. In Pekin the
Manchus had erected Boxer altars in various places, and the Empress
herself, when the Boxer movement was authorised and approved by her,
ordered Boxer altars (which were nothing else but Buddhist) to be
erected in her private apartment, as well as in other parts of the
Imperial Palace.
A curious thing in the Boxer movement was that, although inflammatory
placards and bills had been posted in Manchuria and Southern and
Western China, comparatively few of these placards appeared in Tientsin
city itself. Perhaps they were not needed, the majority of the
population having joined the movement.
Documents, as we shall see, were found in the Viceroy’s Yamên, and
showed too well how the Government provided these hordes with arms,
ammunition, food, generous pensions to the wounded in battle, and ample
rewards to the families of those that died in the field or in defending
the city.
[Illustration: 方靈祖吕
第九十四籤
願心宜急繳
牡蠣各一錢
知母貝母炒
煎服即時好
A PRAYER ON YELLOW PAPER]
Here is, nevertheless, the translation of a placard, 200,000 copies of
which are said to have been distributed in Tientsin native city on June
4.
SACRED EDICT.
ISSUED BY THE LORD OF WEALTH AND HAPPINESS.
“The Catholic and Protestant religions being insolent to the gods
and extinguishing sanctity, rendering no obedience to Buddhism and
enraging both Heaven and earth, the rain-clouds no longer visit us;
but 8,000,000 spirit soldiers will descend from heaven and sweep the
Empire clean of all foreigners. Then will the gentle showers once
more water our lands, and when the tread of soldiers and the clash
of steel are heard, heralding woes to all our people, then the
Buddhists’ Patriotic League of Boxers will be able to protect the
Empire and bring peace to all its people.
[Sidenote: A DIVINE PRESCRIPTION]
[Illustration: GODS IN A BUDDHIST TEMPLE]
“Hasten, then, to spread this doctrine far and wide; for, if you gain
one adherent to the faith, your own person will be absolved from all
future misfortunes. If you gain five adherents to the faith, your
whole family will be absolved from all evils; and if you gain ten
adherents to the faith, your whole village will be absolved from
all calamities. Those who gain no adherents to the cause shall be
decapitated, for, until all foreigners have been exterminated, the
rain can never visit us. Those who have been so unfortunate as to
have drunk water from wells poisoned by foreigners should at once
make use of the following divine prescription, the ingredients of
which are to be decocted and swallowed, when the poisoned patient
will recover:
Dried black plums half an ounce.
Solanum dulcamara half an ounce.
Liquorice root half an ounce.”
Everybody knows that the real leader of the Boxers was Prince Tuan, the
Heir-Apparent’s father, Minister and General in Command of the Pekin
Field Force. According to some accounts, he actually sat for some time
on the Imperial throne. The Chinese assert that he is not a member of
the Imperial family at all. He is said to be the son of Prince Tun, the
fifth son of the Emperor Tao-Kuang and uncle of the Emperor Kwang Hsu,
but it is well known in Pekin that he is a mere morganatic son, his
mother being a nurse in the Tun’s family, and not of Imperial blood.
It was nevertheless agreed with Prince Tun’s wife that the baby (now
Prince Tuan) should be adopted as her son, and he thus became a member
of the Imperial family. He is a Manchu, and an unscrupulous intriguer
of the very first order.
[Illustration: A BOXER STANDARD CAPTURED BY PATHANS IN TIENTSIN]
The most active leader, after Prince Tuan, was a man of great
influence, energy, and ability, a native Buddhist of Shensi, by name
Li-Lai-Chung. His lieutenants and agents were the Buddhist monks, the
Lamas, a lazy class of parasites, criminals who, by hiding under the
cloak of religion, escaped from the claws of justice, and who were the
riff-raff of the country.
[Sidenote: THE PRINCIPAL AGITATORS]
The principal agitators undoubtedly came from the north, but all alike
met with protection and support, financial and otherwise, from the
corrupt class of officials all over the Empire.
It was thus that this religious and political movement for the
extermination of foreigners and their influence assumed such alarming
proportions. No doubt when that nest of immorality and disgraceful
corruption, the Buddhist monks, have been wiped out, not only in China,
but in all Asia, Western civilisation will have no difficulty in
penetrating to the remotest nooks of that immense continent, and peace
will be for ever assured.