A minute account of the first audience granted by the Emperor of China to the Foreign Ministers accredited to the Court of Peking.
(Translated from the ' Norddeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung.")
On the 28rd of February 1873, the young Emperor of China took the reins of yernment and for the first time held s in person over his vast dominion. Cent nent on this event, the representatives at "eking of Russia, Germany, the United States, Great Britain and France addressed acirenlar despatch to Prince Kung, bearing date 24th February, and soliciting the favor of a personal audience with His Majesty, for the purpose of offering the congratulations of their respective Sovereigns and Rulers on the occasion of His Majest; ascending the throne of his forefath It must be borne in mind that, durin years? negociations, this occasion had been unanimously pointed out by one and all of the Chinese statesmen as the only eligible moment when consideration might be given, in one way or the other, to the importunate desire of the foreign barbarians to unveil the sancity of the Son of Heaven, and to unhallow soil than which none more sacred is to be found throughout the globe.
Prince Kung's answer was studiously evasive and replete with prevarications and now there followed w host of discus sions, both verbal and written, some of which were highly uncomfortable. At times the tenor of Chinese dispatches would seem to imply that a favorable result was all but secured, only however to let the next communication be worded so as to thoroughly disabuse us of this impression and even after an Imperial mandate, dated 14th June, had admitted the practicability
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.