Page:Eminent Chinese Of The Ch’ing Period - Hummel - 1943 - Vol. 2.pdf/346

 forgeries, written, as in the case of Ching-shan's diary (see under ), to gloss over the part that important personages played in covertly sponsoring the Boxers].

The execution of these men was regarded throughout the Empire as an act of signal injustice; and at the peace negotiations in Peking, early in 1901, the foreign envoys demanded that some restitution be made. Following this pressure the Court, then at Sian, issued a decree, dated February 13, 1901, restoring posthumously to all five men their former ranks. A year later Yüan Ch'ang's eldest son, Yüan Yün-su 袁允橚, was given the rank of an assistant department director of a Board. In the spring of 1902 Yüan Ch'ang's body was taken by his sons to Hangchow where interment was made at a beautiful site near West Lake. In 1909 Yüan was further honored by being given the posthumous name, Chung-chieh 忠節; and on the petition of the gentry of Chekiang a shrine was erected in Hangchow to perpetuate his memory, together with that of Hsü Yung-i and Hsü Ching-ch'êng—all natives of Chekiang. The following year another shrine was erected to Yüan's memory in Wuhu where he had rendered distinguished service.

Yüan Ch'ang was not only a great patriot and a brilliant statesman, but also a poet and a writer of elegant prose. Most of his writings are incorporated in a collectanea, entitled 漸西村舍叢刻 Chien-hsi-ts'un-shê ts'ung-k'o, which contains more than fifty items printed between the years 1890–98—thirteen being his own compositions, the remainder having been edited by him. In the compendium are three collections of his poems with the following titles: Chien-hsi-ts'un-jên ch'u-chi (人初集), 13 chüan; 安般簃詩集 An-pan-i shih-chi, 10 chüan; and 于湖小集 Yü-hu hsiao-chi, 6 chüan. There exist two more collections of his poems, entitled 水昍樓集 Shui-hsüan-lou chi, 2 chüan, and 朝隱卮言 Ch'ao-yin chih-yen, 2 chüan, printed in 1909 under the collective title Yüan Chung-chieh kung i-shih pu-k'o (公遺詩補刻). His poems were highly praised by his senior contemporary,. His memorials and other official papers are scattered in various collections, and apparently have not yet been assembled. A partial collection of his letters to famous contemporaries, such as, was published in 1940 in facsimile (photolithographically) by his third son, Yüan Jung-sou 袁營叜 , under the title Yüan Chung-chieh kung shou-cha (手札). His pen names were numerous—the most well-known being Chien-hsi ts'un-jên and Fang-kuo tun-sou 芳郭鈍叟. His residence in his native place he designated Chien-hsi ts'un-shê; and the one in Peking he called, among other names, An-pan-i—both designations appearing in the titles of his collected verse.

Not a few descendants of Yüan Ch'ang have achieved distinction in educational and industrial pursuits. The above-mentioned Yüan Jung-sou served as a member of the first Republican Parliament, and as a Counselor in the Ministry of Education. One of his granddaughters is the wife of the present director of the National Library of Peiping, Yüan T'ung-li 袁同禮.

[1/24/14a; 1/472/2a; 2/63/28b; 5/17/22a; Hsü Ching-ch'êng, Hsü Wên-su kung wai chi; Chung-kuo chin san-pai nien shih tzŭ-liao, first series (see under ), p. 558–65; Chin-shih jên-wu chih (see under ); Li Tz'ŭ-ming, Yüeh-man t'ang jih-chi, passim; Duyvendak, J. J. L., "Ching-shan's Diary, a Mystification", in T'oung Pao, vol. 33 (1937), pp. 268–94; Wên-hsien ts'ung-pien (see bibl. under ), no. 5, (telegrams of 1900–01, p. 6); Kêng-tzŭ hsin-hai chung-lieh hsiang tsan (see bibl. under ); Ch'ing-chi wai-chiao shih-liao (see under ), chüan 143; Hui-shih t'ung-nien ch'ih-lu (see bibl. under ) of 1876; U. S. Foreign Relations for 1901, appendix, pp. 75–82].

2em

 YÜAN Chi-hsien 袁繼咸, 1598–1646, Aug. 7, Ming loyalist, was a native of I-ch'un, Kiangsi. After becoming a chin-shih in 1625, he served as an emissary (行人) in the Office for the Transmission of Imperial Messages. In 1630 he was made a censor, and four years later became commissioner of education in Shansi where he was accused (1636) of bribery (see under ) by an adherent of. When he was taken to Peking and imprisoned in the winter of 1636 the students of Shansi, of whom was the most active, petitioned the emperor on Yüan's behalf. As a result Yüan was set free in the following year (1637) and was appointed counselor to the financial commissioner of Hu-kuang (湖廣參議). After quelling several local uprisings, he was made (1640) governor of Hupeh, stationed at Yün-yang. Owing to his failure to defend Hsiang-yang, Hupeh, against, he was degraded and exiled to 948