Ware Ministers are waiting for instructions, the Chinese, having learnt wisdom from the experience of former contests, are acting. From all sides reinforcements are being poured into Peking and Tientsin; every available spot in the arsenals is occupied by a man, and every machine is pressed to the utmost of its capacity. If this be not war, it has a curious resemblance to it. Meanwhile, the foreign ministers are being amused. with one story after another; the guilty will certainly be punished, the missionaries it has been proved were innocent of the charges against them, &c. While every activity prevails in massing men, b: ing up high officials and forwarding munitions of war, the main point, that not one man has been punished or incommoded for the part he took in the massacre, seems tolavebeon entirely forgotten. Lack of power to do this can certainly not now be pleaded; troops from all sides have been collected, and even the redoubtable General Li is close to the spot. Instead, however, of making arrangements to capture the guilty, there is no doubt this preparation is intended against foreigners and foreign jowers. To crush the entire oily of tientsin, to destroy its walls, raze ils houses, and blot out ils name for ever from the pages of Chinese story, would not require one tithe of the troops now known to be in ils neighbourhood; yet not one thought of employing them for the purpose of punishment seems -to have entered into the minds of one of the Chinese engaged. In Shanghai, we know that every munition of war is being eagerly bought up; powder, guns pistols and rifles, all are now largely purchased; the Arsenal is engaged turning out small arms as fast as the machines can be driven; two vessels, one an imitation, it is said, of H. M. Barvosea, are on the stocks, being harried on with all possible despatch. Ev: movement in fact shows that the Chinese are arming themselves to the fullest possible extent, for a struggle with ourselves. As we said above, if this be not war it bears the closest semblance to it, and we therefore ask how it is that, all this while, forgetful of consequences to ourselves, we are supplying the needful sinews. Have the Chinese observed so fuithfally the laws of nations that, even in our own defence, we cannot pnt a stop to these measures? Was the massacre of Tientsin and the refusal to punish ils perpetrators so very: slight.
breach of international courtesy, that we allow its instigators to come into our houses and make use of our own fires to forge weapons against us? Had such an event by possibility happened in Europe, and similar delay been shown in making reparation, would not our fleets have at least blockaded the offending city? In fact, did not every day during which the Tientsin mandarins were allowed to be at liberty, place the Government at war, not only with the more innnediately offended power, but with all humanity? The massacre at Tientsin, and the continned impunity of the murderers is, in fact, judged by of that law of nations which the Chinese have made such exertions to have applied to themselves, tantamount to a declar ration of war against mankind.
Judged from this point of view, we repeat that the inactivity of the foreign representatives is difficult to understand. We pay into the foreign Customs a sum of upwards of fifty thousand taels a week, every cash of which is employed in the manufacture or pnrehaso- of maniments to shelter from just punish" ment a band of miscreants; our ships are made uso of to carry arms and provisions to enable the Chinese to prolong the contest; yet the ports of China are almost' denuded of foreign men-of-war, while those that remain are forced to look on at these preparations proceeding under their eyes. Stenmer after steamer brings the nauseating news from Tien(sin; report afler report is sent in for Imperial approval; yet of this main point, the expiation of the crime committed ai now confessed with the greates chalance, we find no notice. The missionaries, it was known to us, say the reports, were innocent, the charges were baseless; but meanwhile the perpetrators of the hideous deed of the 21 one escape all sus blame an the matter. The time has surely arrived that the representatives of the European powers should take common action in so serious a matter, No one country would care to he looked on as the defender of the murderers of women and unarmed men; yet the fear of responsibility seems to bind down the body of officials, Were each to act as he would if placed alone, we have no doubt Uhat a unanimous decision would he arrived at, to interdict all further preparations till Uke perpetrators of the massnere have been brought to justice.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.