to go to war; not for glory but for home; not against a taunting
neighbour, but against a "ruthless invader." Her unwisdom did not
consist in her being ready to go to war, but in allowing herself
to be allied to, and depend upon, the superstitious rabble of
Boxers, and to believe that her "hundreds of millions" of
undisciplined "inhabitants" could withstand the thousands or tens
of thousands of well-drilled, well-led, intelligent soldiers from
the West.

That she was ready to go to war rather than weakly yield to the
demands for territory from the European powers is further
evidenced by the following edict issued by the Tsungli Yamen to
the viceroys and governors:

"This yamen has received the special commands of her Imperial
Majesty the Empress Dowager, and his Imperial Majesty the
Emperor, to grant you full power and liberty to resist by force
of arms all aggressions upon your several jurisdictions,
proclaiming a state of war, if necessary, without first asking
instructions from Peking; for this loss of time may be fatal to
your security, and enable the enemy to make good his footing
against your forces."

In order to strengthen her position she appointed two
commissioners whom she sent to Japan in the hope of forming a
secret defensive alliance with that nation against the White
Peril from the West. For once, however, she made a mistake in the
selection of her men, for these commissioners, unlike what we
usually find the yellow man, revealed too much of the important
mission on which they were bent, and were recalled in disgrace,