July 16th:—The fighting slackened today. The Tsungli Yamen again sent a note to the effect that as the Ministers declined to come to the Tsungli Yamen, the Government by increasing the number of regular troops would bring to order the "volunteer troops." However, the foreign guards must refrain from opening fire upon them, for that would provoke their hostility. Henceforth everything should be conducted in accordance with international usages.
July 17th:—The British Minister on behalf of the " Corps Diplomatique" replied that the guards opened fire for self-defence, but if the Chinese would not approach the Legations threateningly, the guards might be ordered not to open fire.
It was very quiet to-day, and the enemy, as if they thought the fighting was over, approached in twos or threes our line of defence, unarmed, and calmly fanning themselves. Our volunteers beckoned to them and invited them within the breastworks. They were questioned at our headquarters, and though what they said was generally vague and irrelevant, on one point they were consistent, namely, they seemed to believe that the warfare was over. To-day a French volunteer was made prisoner by the enemy, but was afterward sent back by the Tsungli Yamen under escort—quite a phenomenal thing for the Chinese to do. A Chinese who visited the French quarters is said to have stated that General Nieh had. suffered a terrible disaster near Tientsin, and had committed suicide.
July.18th:—A messenger carrying secret) messages from General Fukushima and others arrived this afternoon. The messages said among other things that the entry into Peking by the Allies would probably be effected by the end of the month. The intelligence was received with unbounded joy, and the care-worn faces of the _goards appeared to look bright nfterwar Some regular soldiers and _coolies Drought for sale eggs, vegetables, melons, etc., outside thie eastern breastworks of the outpost. The defenders of the place vied with each other in buying, and the front of the breastwworks looked as if it were a market place. Meanwhile an order came from the British Minister, role commander of the defence, ordering that nobody not on the Provision Committee should make any purchases. In the afternoon a messenger of the Tsungli Yamen arrived to inform the Ministers that the remains of Baron von Ketteler were properly kept in a-coffin, but that the corpse of our Chancellor Sugiyama. coitid not be discovered. This evening lightning flashed in the south-western horizon, an@ it must have been flashes of this kind that we had previously taken for the search-light of the relief expedition.
July 19th:—Exactly one month has elapsed since the commencement of armed hostilities between the allied guards and the Chinese, and though a truce has been agreed to between the Tsungli Yamen and the Legations, we have, in our utter dis belief in Chinese faith, decided to devote ourselves during the temporary cessation of Sighting to. the work of streigtbening our defences. Day and night we have employed ourselves in raising the height of the breastworks and deepening the trench, and at last the defences of our position in the outpost have become considerably strengthened. To-day a communication has been received from the Tsungli Yamen requesting the withdrawal of the American and German guards from their position on the walls of the city. The request has been rejected.
July 2 the cessation of hostilities, communications between those inside the besieged quarter and those outside have been somewhat restored, and Imperial edicts issued during ist month have been received. To mention some of these edicts, one says that Nich Tsze-cheng having been killed in the battle his name had been struck off the list of those who are to be punished; another, that Li Hung-chang had been appointed Viceroy of Chihli; the third, that the Boxers, being people, have been appointed as volunteers for the defence of the country the fourth, that China will hold herself responsible for the damages suffered by foreigners since the opening of hostilities but not as regards those that had taken place previous to that event; the fifth, that the Christian converts, being. sons and daughters of the Empire, would be pardoned for their crime so soon ax they had sworn that they henceforth renounce their religion; ete., ete.
Blood poisoning having set in in the wounds of Mr. Narabara, our Legation Seretary, his condition has become very critical.
(Against the date of July 2 the correspondent gives the resumes of the edicts, repeating what hax been stated above for some unaccountable reason, and on that account we omit here altogether the statement he makes under the date in question.)
Ju An eventless day. At night rain came down n torrents aad the darkness was impenetrable. Some one wa ed within the sentry line and loudly b to be put on the road.
Tuly 2rd:—There is church called Pehtang within the Tun gate. It is in the charge of the well-known missionary Bishop Favier. When the foreign guards had entered Peking in last May, the French and Italian troops had been detailed to guard the church. But since the opening of hostilities it has been surrounded by the Chinese and it has been cut off from all communications with the foreign quarter. On many occasions the sound of artillery fire was heard in the direction of the church, the same being the ight. There are said to be over 600 native converts beside the missionaries in the church.
July 24:—Considerable commotion has been noticed among the besiegers since daybreak and some have ventured to declare that the relief expedition being near, the Chinese must be preparing to retreat. On the other howerer, one of the Chinese troops in the force of Tung Fu-hsiang, who has been acting as our sp; brought a report according to which' the strength of the enemy surrounding the Kiaominhiang has been greatly augmented. We have in consequence increased our vigil and are keeping a sharp lookout for the enemy, Secretary Narabara has succumbed to his wounds to-lay. He was great authority on China, and his death is especially re-grottable at this juncture.
The noise of a vigorous musketry fire heard last evening in the direction of the Pehtang, has been ascertained to have been made by 1,500 Boxers who had tacked the church, The spy cama in again with a report that the foreign force had occupied Yangtsun on the 17th and had signally defeated Tung Fu-hsiang's army on the 19th.
The enemy has lately moved his posts forward and only a wall now separates them from ours, so that the intervening: distance has been reduced to less than 20 metres at the nearest point; and they occasionally invite us to a complimentary exchange of stone: d broken brid The casualties up to date among the he-leaguered allies are reported to be as follows Wounded, Killel, exwualtion, Tapanese Ww 18 British 6 Amer can. 10 7
Russian 9 4
10
10 7
Austrian... 4 4
Total...
The day has been bright and hot since the morning, with not a rustle of breezes A native peddler came in front of the eastern wall of Prince Sub's palace and we were all treated to some egzx and green vegetables, which tasted as if they were possessed of heavenly sweetness.—It ix rumoured that the Chinese Government has again sent to-day to the Ministers a communication demanding their departure, but I do not know whetiler the rumout is well founded or not.
T managed to compose a line of verse to-night. It runs as follows Ho the new moon, thrice have I seen thee, since on the sentry-go I have been put.
July 2Weh:—That spy put in his appearance again and has reported that 30,000 allied troops hal emnayed the in battle at a poi int three miles to yeat 10 am, on the 24th, and had driven tae latter to Matung. Shit up here and cur off from all comtinications ax we are, we expect to he month at the information in qu We could not ascertain what the celebration was for, hut we heard to-day great many fire crackers going off in the enemy's camp. The comings and goings of the cnviny tthe east of the Prince's residence have almost cowel—owing, it is said, to the fact that the severed heads of some of the comers and goers have been exposed on the ground that their possessors had Ity of sending provisions ti us.
'A great noise of drums, gongs and bugles was heard in the enemy's camp in the middle of the night.
July 27:—The spy reports that the Chinese intend to check the progress of the allied forces by mustering the Wawei army at Changkiawan and the trained army Tungchou; and that in the event of re-these places, the Empress Dow-the Emperor are to retire escorted by Tung Fu-hsiang's army, the preparations of horses and ear-nages for_the journey being already completed. Furt-er, that forced enlistment of coolies and the training of them in the use of musketry are energetically going on outside the front gute of the Imperial palace; while numbers of them are being sent out to Tungchon, ete.
To-day in the name of the Empress Dow: ager, several waggon loads of eggplants, four and fegan (Benincasa hispida) have arrived at the Britich Legation,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.