CHINA. 



103 



23d of August. The Czar expressed, and the 

 envoy reciprocated, a desire for the peaceful 

 issue of the mission. Almost coincidently with 

 this event, the " Agence Russe " called attention 

 to the conciliatory spirit which had been shown 

 by the two Governments, and mentioned that 

 the Government at Peking had lately settled in 

 a satisfactory manner several matters in China 

 in which Russian subjects were interested ; the 

 Russian charge d'affaires in Peking telegraphed 

 that unfinished matters (other than the affair of 

 Kulja) had been satisfactorily decided ; and an 

 express statement was published that Chung 

 How had been set at liberty in consequence of 

 the representations of the Marquis Tseng. The 

 new negotiations on the Kulja question were 

 begun at St. Petersburg on the 2d of September, 

 it having been decided that the Russian Minis- 

 ter at Peking, M. Biitzow, should be charged 

 only with the details and the ratification of the 

 results of the negotiations. The Marquis Tseng 

 informed the Russian Government that China 

 desired to substitute for the Treaty of Livadia 

 a convention ceding the whole of the Ili terri- 

 tory. The Russian Government, while it did 

 not refuse to revise the conditions of the treaty, 

 demanded a rectification of the frontier, in 

 order to put an end to the elements of disorder 

 and stop the flight of Chinese subjects into 

 Russian territory, and also required the posses- 

 sion of a convenient part of the territory of 

 Ivulja for the purpose, it was stated, of establish- 

 ing there a colony of Dungenes, whom it would 

 be dishonorable to abandon to Chinese ven- 

 geance. A few days later M. Biitzow was re- 

 called to St. Petersburg for the purpose of con- 

 ferring with the Marquis Tseng respecting the 

 best means of removing the difficulties between 

 the two countries ; or, as was afterward more 

 definitely stated, because the Marquis Tsgng 

 had received permission from his Government 

 to make further concessions, practically accept- 

 ing the Russian terms as the basis of negotia- 

 tions. This fact effectually disposed of the 

 rumors that war was again imminent, and made 

 it evident that the Chinese Government had 

 become more conciliatory rather than more 

 warlike. 



. A formal statement of the stipulations desired 

 by Russia was presented in answer to the com- 

 munications of the Chinese, in which a demand 

 was added to the conditions previously men- 

 tioned for a reimbursement of the expenses of 

 the squadron which had been sent to the Pa- 

 cific Ocean. 



The Chinese Government has demanded of 

 the Portuguese possession of the island of Ma- 

 cao, founding its claim on the ground that the 

 Portuguese have never acquired title to the 

 territory by treaty, conquest, or any other rec- 

 ognized means. The Viceroy of Canton visit- 

 ed Macao unexpectedly during the spring, with 

 great state, and was received with honors. In 

 an interview with the Governor of the colony, 

 he called attention to the fact that, although 

 the Portuguese had had intercourse with China 



longer than any other European nation, there 

 was yet no treaty between the two powers, 

 and was pleased to say that there would be no 

 difficulty whatever in arranging a treaty which 

 should put the Portuguese on the same footing 

 as other nations, " not forgetting that acquired 

 rights should be respected. 1 ' He departed after 

 having staid about three hours in the town, 

 politely thanking the Governor for his cour- 

 teous reception. Having returned home, he 

 at once communicated to his Government that 

 in pursuance of instructions he had visited the 

 city, and had taken possession of it without re- 

 sistance ; that the Governor had come on board 

 his vessel to render obedience and promised to 

 pay tribute in the future ; and that he (the Vice- 

 roy), through mere compassion, had permitted 

 the Governor to go his way in peace, and had al- 

 lowed the Portuguese to reside in the territory. 

 The Portuguese Governor, in ignorance of the 

 construction that the Viceroy had put upon 

 the interview, informed his Government that 

 nothing but advantage could accrue to his coun- 

 try from the visit. Macao was first occupied 

 by a band of Portuguese adventurers in 1557, 

 permission having been granted them by the 

 Chinese authorities in return for services they 

 had rendered in expelling a pirate who had 

 taken up his quarters there. About twenty- 

 five years afterward, when the Portuguese had 

 erected valuable and permanent buildings, the 

 Chinese demanded a ground-rent for the ter- 

 ritory. It was paid till 1849, when the Portu- 

 guese Governor refused to acknowledge the 

 sovereignty of China, and expelled its officers. 

 The Chinese have steadily refused to recognize 

 the right of the Portuguese to jurisdiction, and 

 declined, in 1862, to ratify a treaty in which 

 the sovereignty of Portugal over Macao was 

 implied in a clause providing for the appoint- 

 ment of a Chinese consul there. The Portu- 

 guese journals stated late in April that the 

 Chinese were blockading Macao, and that their 

 cruisers had captured seventeen vessels bound 

 for that port ; also that the Portuguese Govern- 

 ment had ordered a corvette to proceed from 

 Mozambique to the Chinese coast. The Presi- 

 dent of the Portuguese Council of Ministers 

 stated in the Upper House of the Cortes, in 

 answer to a question, that Macao was in a po- 

 sition that would enable it to resist, most ad- 

 vantageously, any aggression. 



Complications arose during the summer with 

 Spain, which were occasioned by the inter- 

 ference of the Chinese Government with the 

 emigration of coolies to Cuba. Spain demand- 

 ed an apology and compensation for the inter- 

 ference, and threatened to occupy ports in 

 Formosa and to blockade the Chinese coast, if 

 they were not granted. The Chinese Govern- 

 ment insisted that the attempted exportation 

 of coolies was contrary to the treaty, and in 

 violation of integrity and humanity. Spain 

 had the moral support, it was said, of Portu- 

 gal, whose representatives were sore over the 

 Chinese claim to Macao, and of the Peruvian 



