12th August. An Open Letter from Tseng Taotai.
All: our local native contempora: published. yesterday morning ano from., Taotai. Teng Shao-ching, the Chairman, of the Committee on the American Boycott here... The.gist of the lotter.wos..that ho had - been secretly, warned by several friends that certain persons were. taking measures to. " spoil him" at all costs, regardless of expense or method,, either by moving the high officials of the provincial Governments to interfere, or by coercing the Imperial Government with threats,.or by the engagement - of, some assassin or, assassins to quietly remove the author of the letter from the land of the living. Again, other friends have further worried" him: that -his:- secret enemies are working on. the; fears of the Consular. Body.. by. declaring,: that this union and. bringing" together, of. the Chi nation, unless crushed with:.the strong hand, will certsinly; work: harm;.to the foturesinteresta of Foreign, Po in China;, and: foreigners, may. well: to any thought of living from henceforth in peace in this country." Thos warnings were.received by, Tstng' Taotai on the Sth instant. On the following day two persons, hitherto unknown to Mr. Ts ug, called on him, and upon being asked to state the object of their visit gave him practically the same warning, adding besides in graphic terms the plan by which it wis proposed "to put Mr. Tseng out of the way." It must, however, be known, in justice to himself, remarks the author of this open letter, that he was net: present at the mass meeting of the 10th instant, nor wax he the author of the declaration made that day by Mr. Ma. Siang-peli—which there. has been a disposition to saddle him with—in which it was proposed to refuse taking up all contracts for goods that hed not been notified f-r shipment to China at the United States Castoms by a certain date. Phe true fact of the ease, his unknown visitors declared, was that, the astonishing resolution, as published in the news-part of as scheme of Tséng's secret enemies to victimised and to bring discredit on the national movement in the eyes of the world, Mr. Mx Sisng-peh was somehow persuaded to make the declaration as 3 motion before the meeting, and he unthinkingly fell into. the trap, that had been jolically prepared. In. view wf Mr. Tseng was exhorted by wu visitors to keep away for the from Shanghai ea a8 to avoid, being mate a certain victim by his enemies, OF course, us patriot and a gentleman, Mr. Peng refused point blank to entertain oven a thought of such an idea, and declares that ho is ready to moot with calm and fortitude any fate that may, be destined for him as the author and leader of the boycott. He then tells readers the way how he headed tho} movement, which was follows As early as the 10th of May Inst there, was a meeting of merchants. and gentry in the Chinese Chamber of Commerce to consider the method of protesting against ions of the proposed ion Treaty, and during the discussion which ensued it was resolved that the most effective way was to stop 18 goods of American manufacture. This resolution being enthusiastically accepted, without a single dissentient, the next step to be considered was as to) the wording of the circular telegram which was t" be dispatched to the Chambers of Commerce, merchant associations, and prominent guilds. of the various, treaty, ports and principal inland citi of the Empire, notifying them of. the decision arrived at by the members of the Chinese. Chamber "of in. the future for the exempt classes, hourers, and -handicraftsmen entering the United States, and. asking the ce-operation of their fellow-merchants and gentry throughout the! Empire. Then came the crucial test of the stamina of th present. Hit Excellency Yang, Chief Representative. of the Shangpu in Kiangeu, who was at! the meeting, told those present that th Proper and the best.way to obtain credence of the bona fides of the proposed national movement, was that the. tole, the signatures of some Many of those pro-assment,: apparently, because none was.willing to have his name} heading. the telegrams... Thereupon: Mr. Tsang stood-up and declared. his willing: ness to: hoad the signatures. of the others, and.assunie the: responsibility, "if no.one else-in. the room cared: to do: s0,:88: the) proposed movement was one for the: good, atid benefit.of.the public, and.as public men it was the duty of every one present to do what he could for the: tadvantage and welfare of such] public.&." When I made this declaration," says the wiiter the open letter, "my words were received with s great clapping of hands and shouts of approval from' those present,' and this was bow I came to head", this grand national' movement, for which Iam ready to stake my life if need The letter finally closes with a sta that if is enemies wish todo hit any" bodily harm he will tell them exactly at what hours and where he may be found each day by them, viz Before -10 a.10., lat his own residence; after that hour and until noon, at the Huashing Company's offices, when he returns home. for tiffin between 2 and 3 p.m., he goes eud to make calls on his friends; at 4 p.m., he goes to the Silk Guild, and at B p.m, he:
at the ChinesoChamber of Commerce. lath August.
The American Boycott:
A Sungkiang dispatch states that the: on the American boycott which, with one most important exception, were almost: word for word like the Proclama-jon of the Chief Commissioner of the Wuhu Bureau of Commerce which. we translated and published in this column. on Friday morning Jast. In other wor the Sungkiang proclaim Waiwupu was made to. d Minister Liang Oh'éng at Washington had: stated that the United States Govern. ment had consented to reconsider the proposed treaty. This most important sentence, which by the way, is the: one thing ded by moderate and thonghtfal inese to suspend the "boycott, was thor omitted from the Wahu proclama. \tion, or by some chance was not copied down by our correspondent in that port. Dispatches received yesterday from other cities and ports lead us to belive that the next few days' similar pro.
jons will be issued. throughout the-com ry by the officials, which if for nothing elec, will have the effect of allay-ug the growing: excitement in the various. provinces caused by the inauguration of: the boycott.
Mr. Wang Kai-kah,, former Vice - Commissioner: to. the' St. Louis Exposition, according to a Yokohama. letter, is now in Japan, having been appointed Commercial Aitaché, representing the Shangpu in that country.
Viceroy Tsen Ch'un-hsuan, of Canton, aconding to a report in: Mandarin circles, has received one ye leave' of absence from Peking, to enable his Excellency to go aprond to ork health and the services of European meidicn) experts. ELE. Li Ching-hel, Governor of Kuangsi provines, it is further reported, will bo: nppointed "Viceroy, ad interim, of the Two: Kuang provinces.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.