Signs of Unrest
Ominous clouds appeared on the political horizon during 1899，and there was a general feeling of unrest throughout China. Therewere frequent reports of the growth of an anti-foreign spirit and ofpersecution of Christian converts. Rebellions broke out in differentparts of the country and secret societies manifested considerableactivity.
Shanghai was visited by Kangyi， Assistant Grand Secretaryand President of Ministry of War， who had been appointed Highcommissioner for the purpose of investigating affairs in kiangsu andof raising an increased revenue for the Imperial Exchequer. The foreignpress facetiously termed him the “Lord High Extortioner.” He wasextremely anti-foreign and exercised a dangerous influence.
Rise of the Boxers
At this time， a secret society， known as the “Boxers，” becameprominent in Western Shantung. In Chinese， the name might bewritten in two ways. In one way， it meant “The Association of Justiceand Harmony，“ and in another way， ”The Fists of Patriotic Union.“As the society made boxing and gymnastics its ostensible purpose，it obtained the name of “Boxers” and adopted as its motto “Preservethe Dynasty， exterminate the Foreigners.“ Its members passed throughvarious stages of secret initiation， and believed that those who reachedthe highest stage became invulnerable to wounds by sword， spear， orbullet. They became active in raids against Mission premises， and inthe persecution of Christians， and as the provincial and local officialssympathized with their aims， little was d one to check them.
Murder of Rev. S. M. BrookeOn October 31st， 1899， the Rev. S. M. Brooke， a missionary ofthe Church of England， while returning from Taianfu to his stationat Pingyin， was murdered by a band of the Great Sword Society atMaokiapu， fifty miles southwest of Tsinanfu. Although the Case wastaken up by the British Government， and the culprits were brought tojustice， the anti-foreign agitation continued. The decree put forth atthat time by the Empress Dowager was unsatisfactory to the foreignPowers， and was considered by the “Boxers” and “Great Sword Society”
as favourable to their enterprise.
Protest Against Abdication of EmperorIt was known that the Empress Dowager had already decided onthe policy of driving the foreigners into the sea， and that she lookedupon the Boxers as valuable allies in carrying out her plans. In order tomaintain her power， she planned to force the Emperor， Kwang Hsu，to abdicate， and to place a child named Puchên on the throne. Manyof the officials of the Empire protested， and memorials opposing theproposal were sent to Peking. One was telegraphed from Shanghaion January 26th， 1900， signed by Kin Lien-shan， Manager of theImperial Telegraph Service， and 1，230 others， assuring the Emperorof the senders‘ loyalty and begging him not to abdicate. The EmpressDowager， furious at the attempted frustration of her designs， orderedthe arrest of Kin Lien-shan， who was able to escape only by fleeing toMacao.
Siege of the LegationsAlthough warnings were given of a terrible storm about to burstin North China and throughout the country， yet for the most partthe foreign Ministers in Peking were incredulous， and relied on thepromises of the Chinese Government to quell the disturbances.
As the Boxers drew nearer to Peking and outrages werecommitteed in the neighbourhood of the Capital， the Diplomatic Bodyat last became conscious of the peril， and Legation Guards were sent upfrom Tientsin.
This is not history of China， but of Shanghai， and so we must passover a detailed account of the memorable stage of the Peking Legations，and must confine ourselves to a consideration of how Shanghai wasaffected by the cataclysm.
The Defence of ShanghaiAs the residents of Shanghai became aware of the dangeroussituation in the North， it was realized that the conflagration mightspread throughout the whole of China and that an anti-foreignuprising might break out in the Settlements. Shanghai was unprepared，as it depended for its defence almost entirely on the volunteer corpsand the police force. It was not pleasant for those who understood theChinese language to hear groups of servants and coolies speaking aboutthe day of reckoning for the foreigners， and of the general massacreabout to take place.
When Admiral E. H. Seymour of the British Navy visitedShanghai， after the failure of his attempt to reach Peking with a smallrelief force， the defence of Shanghai was seriously taken in hand. Itwas decided to make the line of defence on Defence Creek， and it wasarranged to give rockets and flags to foreigners dwelling in the suburbsso that they could signal if their premises were attacked. Mounted Sikhpolicemen were detailed to patrol the outlying districts at night and togive warning of approaching danger， and an appeal for troops was sentto the governments in England and America.