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Cornell University Library
pS 759.L99

in China: Th
wn, edn i aT
WITH GORDON IN CHINA.
 
 
 

THOMAS LYSTER Lieut. R.E.
WITH GORDON
IN CHINA

LETTERS

FROM

THOMAS LYSTER,

LIEUTENANT ROYAL ENGINEERS

WITH PORTRAIT

EDITED BY E. A. LYSTER

London
T. FISHER UNWIN
PATERNOSTER SQUARE
1891
q&
Sy

Waren
ato
4

Vat
PANNA SS OP LMU
PREFACE.

—+—

WHEN collecting my brother’s letters for the
use of his younger kinsmen who were growing
up to manhood, and who would, I trusted, profit
by the example of his earnest life, I was led to
think that they might prove of more general
interest.

At the time when the greater number of
them were written my brother was serving
with General Gordon, and to the close of a
too brief life enjoyed his friendship and esteem.
He was, indeed, ‘praised by one who is
praised by all the world.” I had hoped to
have included some of the many letters General
Gordon wrote to him, but as they contain
allusions to some who are still living, it seemed
better to Miss Gordon that I should only give
the substance in so far as they affected my
6 PREFACE.

brother’s life. I have added such narrative
as serves to explain the occasions on which
the various letters were written. Should they
appear unstudied in thought and diction, I
would ask readers to remember that they were
often written in the hurried intervals of active
service, or when the writer was wearied after
days of fatiguing toil. I hope, however, that
they will be found to reflect a life of steadfast
purpose, and unflinching devotion to duty.
Short though that life was, it cannot fail of
true success if any others are encouraged by it
in the path of honour :—

“ So others shall
Take patience, labour, to their heart and hand,
From his hand and his heart and his brave cheer.”

E. A. L
CHAI,

Il.
IIL.

IV.

Vi.
Vil.
Vill.

IX.

XI.

XI.

CONTENTS.

WOOLWICH

GIBRALTAR

PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG
SHANGHAI

SHANGHAI (continued)
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA 5 . .
RETURN TO SHANGHAI
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA
HONG-KONG .
HONG-KONG (continued)

KOWLOON

GENERAL GORDON’S MEMORANDUM RESPECTING

LIEUT. LYSTER’S SERVICES
APPENDIX: LETTER FROM CAPTAIN D. Mc. S. SMITH,

°

OF THE ZLFIN_. . . . .

PAGE

31

60

81
100
137
161
186
200
219
234
254

286

289
WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

—+o+ ——

CHAPTER I.
1840-57.
WOOLWICH.

“It is true that every life which has been lived conveys to the
world some message which should not be lost.”

Tuomas Lyster, fifth son of William Lyster,
J.P., of the County Kilkenny, was born on the
5th of July, 1840. He was sent when only
seven to join his brothers at a Preparatory
School in the neighbouring Queen’s County.
In 1852, the boys were moved to Kilkenny
College, then under the head-mastership of the
Rev. John Browne, LL.D., and one of the most
flourishing schools in Ireland, when not a few
were to be found there.
10 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

From his earliest years Tom showed a strik-
ing originality of character, the traits that after-
wards distinguished him being very strongly
marked in his boyhood. One of these was an
absolute truthfulness, which made him shrink
from even the slightest approach to an exagge-
ration. Full of energy and determination he
yet possessed a singularly tender, affectionate
nature. His love and reverence for his mother
were boundless ; she was for him to the end
of his life “the best and dearest woman in the
world;” while to his sisters he was ever the
kindest and most thoughtful of brothers. His
deep attachment to his home and family only
increased as he was more completely separated
from them. Though he was active and high-
spirited, there was a vein of deep seriousness
in his character, and at an age when few boys
look beyond the passing hour, he had begun to
take an earnest view of life and its responsi-
bilities. As an instance of this trait, when
he reached the age of fourteen, he asked his
father to decide on the profession he wished
him to follow, as he was anxious to begin at
once to work with a definite object in view.
It being then settled that he should study
WOOLWICH. II

for Woolwich, he set before him from the first
the prize of a commission in the Engineers,
and all his energies were directed to this end.

At this time the Royal Military Academy
had not been opened to public competition,
and it was difficult to obtain a nomination for
a candidate who was not closely connected
with either branch of the service. The appli-
cant in this case was not without some claims
to a favourable consideration on this ground,
as some members of his family had served with
honour in the army ;! but objections were urged
on the score of his age. A chance vacancy.
however turning up, he was suddenly called
on to present himself for examination. He
passed very creditably, gaining fifth place
amongst thirty successful candidates, and
entered Woolwich on August 8, 1855, being
then just fifteen years old.

When leaving home he resolved to write
once every week, and he kept strictly to this

Two of his grand-uncles (brothers) died in the service : Capt.
Charles M’Clean, of the Bombay Artillery, and Lieut. George
M’Clean, 18th Regiment (Royal Irish), who, at the age of twenty-
four, went down with one hundred and twenty officers and men
in the Prince of Wales off the coast of Blackrock, near Dublin,

in 1807.
12 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

rule, though he could seldom spare more than
a few minutes at a time for correspondence.
He writes a few days after his arrival :—

R. M. AcapDEMy, WooLwICcH.

My DEAR MoTHER,—I would have written yester-
day, but had not time as it was my first day here.

We get up every morning between six and seven
o’clock. We are then paraded, and go into study
until eight, when we get breakfast. We begin to
work shortly after, staying in till 12.30. We dine
at a quarter to one, and then study from 2 p.m. till
4.30. We work again in the evening for two hours.
We have a parade before every meal for about five
.minutes, and if there is a speck seen on a fellow’s
uniform he is put under arrest.

There are four cadets in each room. I have a
very nice room and the senior cadet is an Irishman—
K. H. He and I are very good friends.

In a letter to his sister he gives a description
of the uniform then worn by the cadets :—

R. M. ACADEMY.

I have got most of my uniform now. It consists
of a big blue cloak with red collar, and is very like
the old coachman’s coat at home. ‘Then there is
what they call a “ coatee’””—such a thing! I think
mine was made specially to keep me from eating a
good dinner—it is so tight! The trousers and cap
WOOLWICH. 13

are not bad; but as for the shako—— _ If you got
a beer-barrel and encircled it with your much-loved
and ever-to-be-remembered bearskin jacket, and
stuck Topsy’s [his sister’s pony] tail on the top,
then you would have something like our shako!
No matter, the uniform is to be changed next April—
a long look-out.

R. M. Acapemy, Thursday Evening.

I am beginning to like the shop, as it is called,
better every day. I shall get on very well now as I
have got used to it.

There were two fellows expelled on the 15th for
bullying one of my batch. They applied to Lord
Panmure, and he has allowed them back again, as
he found their former conduct was very good, but
they were reduced from corporals. Lord Panmure
and Mr. Maunsell came here on Tuesday, we were
all paraded before him, and then marched into the
dining-hall, where Lord Panmure made a long speech
about those fellows who were expelled. It was his
first visit to the Academy. . . . The corporal of my
room got a large hamper to-day from home. It
contained ham, cake, chicken, plums, peaches, and
a dozen pots of jam. It is the custom here that
whatever a fellow gets he divides with his room ;
and he givesas little as possible to any one else. .
You must not think I am getting too fond of the
good things of this world; but eating, sleeping, and
saying our prayers, are the only comforts we have

here.
14 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To HIS MOTHER.

R. M. AcapEemy, September2o, 1855.

... I am getting on very steadily at my studies
and find them much easier than I expected. I
thought, before I came here, my mind would
never be at- rest until I had passed; and now I feel
I shall never rest until I get out of Woolwich. It
is a long time since I had a vacation entirely to
myself, and I do not intend to have one until I get
away from this place. As Ihave not told you how
study is carried on here, I shall just give you a short
account of it. There are four Academies, and every
cadet has to enter in the fourth, pass up to the first,
then he goes down to the Arsenal, and spends about
six months there before he gets his commission,
either in the Engineers or Artillery, according to
his merit. There were four fellows in the fourth
Academy besides our batch, which makes altogether
thirty-eight. I stand sixteenth in the Academy.
There are generally four classes in mathematics,
and I was put into the. third when I. came, but
thinking myself worthy of the first, I worked hard,
and was rewarded by getting into it. So you see
Iam not going down the hill. .lf I were as sure of
everything else as of my mathematics, I should feel
certain of being among the first five or six at the
next examination. I shall do my best, and you
need not be afraid that I shall disgrace myself.
There is another batch coming up in November;
one hundred and four are to be examined, and thirty
WOOLIWICH. 15

of the best chosen. They are clearing off all the
nominations now, and going to carry on examinations
for admission in a different way.

R. M. Acapemy, May, 1856.

There was a terrible explosion at the Arsenal
yesterday. Six men were killed and fifteen wounded.
I fancied I heard thunder when the explosion
occurred. ‘Two houses were blown up, and all the
windows for a long distance shattered. They were
driving rockets, and one man used a steel instead
of a brass hammer, which caused the rocket to
explode.

If we go to London we shall be marched to Hyde
Park and back again, when the review is over, so
I shan’t have time to go to the general’s.... I
had a letter from P. yesterday ; the honour he got
was a very good one.

I am sorry J. has given up everything for the
chance of a commission.

R. M. AcaDemy, August 21, 1856.

My peAR MoTHER,—I arrived safely last night.
. . . IT have been made head of my room, which is
equivalent to lance-corporal.

An awful change has taken place here since
General L. resigned. Colonel —— has mixed up
the barrack in every way—not by seniority as it
used to be. I have got a fellow, who has been at
the ‘‘ shop ” two years longer, in my room. We are
16 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

not allowed anything at tea. The lights must be
put out at g o’clock, and a lot more which I can’t
tell you.

There have been seven fellows dismissed since
last time, and five are to be examined to-morrow.
They must either go down to the Arsenal, or be sent
to the right about... .

The fellows seem to be getting more sensible ;
they say they will work. If they don’t, they will
be very quickly got rid of. About a dozen fellows
were warned to-day that if they did not look sharp,
their career as cadets would be very short.

I began this letter in the morning, and had not
time to finish it. Those fellows I told you about in
my last letter are not to be sent away after all.
They are only put back from the second into the
third Academy, and one got solitary confinement for
twenty-four hours.

I should not mind staying here for the vacation
if I could find out any good place where I could
study French, Fortification, and Mathematics.

R. M. AcapEmy, October tst.

There have been awful rows here lately about
bullying. One cadet has been expelled, three rusti-
cated, and about a dozen punished in a less degree.
You may have seen something about it in the Times
or Globe newspapers. Indeed they are very strict
here now. It was proposed by Lord Panmure to
send us all away for two years to grow, and his
WOOLWICH. 17

proposal was very near being carried into effect. I
am sure if all the fellows were my size, that need
not be done. The authorities say we are too wild
and do not understand military discipline, &c.

Our course in Fortifications and Mathematics has
been made much longer, and a lot of other subjects
brought in, which makes it about four times as
difficult to get through as it was a year ago.... I
have not decided yet where I shall spend the vaca-
tion, but, wherever it may be, I shall work very hard.

I am making a case of humming-birds, for you.
I hope you will be pleased with it. I am also
making a model of a six-inch mortar; it is very
tedious to make, as it has to be turned out of a piece
of brass, filed down, and various other things done
before it will be completed. I began a box for E.,
but have not had time to finish it yet, as I can only
spend an hour at a time in the workshop. I hear
rumours of a war, which I am ashamed to say I
should not be sorry for, as in the present state of
affairs getting on in the service seems to be all
luck.

I fear under the new arrangement it will be im-
possible for me to get into the Engineers; but no
matter! better men than I am have been dis-
appointed before now.

To Hts SISTER E.
October rgth.
There is a fair going on at a place called
Charlton, about a mile from here. We are not
2
18 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

allowed to go there. It was to Charlton fair that
all the cadets went on “French leave” in C. F.’s
time. They took the legs off the stools, fell in in
four divisions, marched off and cleared the fair,
doing damage to the tune of £200, and came back
to barracks at about nine o’clock. That was in the
good old times !

To His MOTHER.

R. M. Acapemy, November 16, 1856.

As usual I shall excuse you for not writing, as I
know you have not got time. I made a rule to
write to you every week, whether I heard from you
or not, and I cannot break it.

The examination is drawing very near now, and
there is one subject which I am very anxious about,
and that is my French. The French master tells
me that the only way for me to improve in it, is to
go to Paris for the vacation. . . . The Governor has
advised those cadets who have not been in’ France
to go there, in order to improve their French, I beg
of you not to consider this an idle whim of mine—a
desire to see the world, or spend money. I have
been thinking over it all this half-year; besides I
find I cannot read at home. I find my mind con-
tinually wandering to something else, and I cannot
help it.

Having obtained his father’s permission to
WOOLWICH. 19

spend the Christmas vacation in France, he
writes :—

I am indeed grateful to you and father for the
confidence you place in me. It won’t be abused if
I can help it. Iam going over with a cadet whose
people are staying in Paris. He has written to his
father to look out for decent lodgings for me.

He stayed for a week at the Hétel de Lille et
d’Albion, and then went to board with a family
in the Rue Taitbout. He writes, when he had
been there a few days, to his mother :—

RvueE Taitsout, December 30, 1856.

You see I have changed from the hotel to here.
... The family consists of Monsieur and Madame
B., Mademoiselle something (Madame’s sister), and
a little boy aged seven. Monsieur B. is a professor
of the French language; he gives me a lesson every
day. . . . I sit with Madame and her sister every
evening till bedtime, chatting. I could not under-
stand a word when first I came, but am beginning
to comprehend a little now. None of them speak
English. The charge is two hundred and fifty francs
a month, including candles, fire, &c. The H.’s have
been very kind to me. I spent Christmas with Mrs.
M., Mrs. H.’s daughter. Mr. M. was a captain in
20 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

the Guards. I have made some other friends
besides. . . . I met a very nice old gentleman at the
hotel; he and I used to walk a good deal together.
I thought at first he was a clergyman, as he wore
a white tie, but he told me one day that he was
painting a portrait of the Empress for our Queen ;
and I found out he was Sir William Ross, painter
to her Majesty. When I was leaving the hotel, he
showed me the picture, though it was not quite
finished ; he also showed me one of the Queen.

Paris, January goth.

I spend my time very happily here. The B.’s
have a soirée once a week, which is a very cheap
mode of entertainment, the refreshments consisting
of weak (very weak indeed) tea and cake! The B.’s
say I am improving in my French, but that may be
a French compliment! I read to madame every
evening; she says I am ‘‘tvés aimable,” but I don’t
believe it, so many have told me the contrary.

I suppose you read an account in the papers of
the murder of the Archbishop on Saturday? His
body can be seen at his house, but I don’t think I
shall have time to go... .

Friday.

I am wishing very much to hear one of Musard’s
concerts. I think I shall go on Saturday evening,
as you will be listening to Catherine Hayes at the
WOOLWICH. 21

same time. I hope you and father will. enjoy
yourselves. I shall be thinking of you all the time.
It is very strange I dream about home nearly every
night, and never about Woolwich. .. .

I don’t care in the least for Madame B., although
she says she likes me. She tells me she dislikes the
other ‘‘ monsieur”’; he is not ‘‘aimable”’ nor “comme
al faut,” &c. I think her dislike is caused by his
large appetite; this has ruined his character in her
eyes. She says ‘‘he treats the house too much like
an hotel’”’—and that kind of thing.

I believe we are to have something fine on mardi
prochain, as it will be the little boy’s birthday. No
one came last ‘‘at home” day, the evening being
very wet. I did not intend joining the party, but
when the hour of expectation passed and no one
arrived, Monsieur B. came into my room and invited
me to join them in the salon, as there was a good
fire there—a rare luxury in France. So I went and
found madame, her sister, and the little boy there.
As we were talking, I said, “‘I supposed she was
sorry her guests had disappointed her.” She opened
her eyes wide at my remark, and said, “‘On the
contrary, she was very glad,” while mademoiselle
laughed outright as she expressed her intense satis-
faction at the non-arrival of the company. It seemed
very strange to me, and I thought how differently you
would feel, if you had invited friends and they had
disappointed you. The Parisians have not much
heart... . They seem to have no religion here ;
they never go to chapel, and madame plays the
22 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

piano nearly all Sunday. It is no wonder that the
English are so superior to the French. They (the
French) know nothing of home-life. For instance,
Monsieur B. (who, besides being a professor, has a
situation on the railway) has only two free evenings
in the week, Tuesday and Saturday. He is obliged
to spend Tuesday at home, as it is a ‘‘ guest night,”
but on Saturday he always goes to a bal masqué,
concert, circus, or walks about the boulevards. I
think he might spend one evening with his family.
But, indeed, it is more their fault than his; if they
made home more attractive, I am sure he would.
... I am afraid I have criticised the French
character rather severely, but is for want of some
news to tell you. . . . I have not changed the notes
you sent yet. I intend making a calculation of the
money I shall need, and with what is over will buy
gloves for you all. I am afraid you will think mea
barbarian when I go home. I often wish I could

meet some one like you, but that would be very
difficult.

When passing through London on his way
from Paris, the young cadet called on his
cousin, General Robinson. It may not be out
of place here to give an extract from a letter of
the latter to his young kinsman’s mother,
describing the favourable opinion he had
formed of her son :—
WOOLWICH. 23

54, UPPER BERKELEY STREET,
February 4, 1857.

Your fine, handsome son called to-day. From
the little I have seen of him I should fancy him to
be a very steady, sensible young fellow, one who
perfectly understands the nature of his position, and
seems determined by every effort on his part to
obtain the great prize of a commission in the
Engineers. This I conceive to be the most desirable
appointment in the army, and Tom is resolved by
the closest application to gain it, and I have every
confidence in his success.

On his return to Woolwich, Tom writes :—

I have every reason to be satisfied with my trip to
Paris. I lived as savingly as I could. I often think
of you all, and wish to be with you again. The
worst of it is that, when I go home, J never like to
leave it. But it is much better to work now and
enjoy oneself afterwards. It will require very hard
work to get down to the Arsenal next time. I like the
“shop” better now than ever. I am now what they
call an old cadet. . . . General Robinson is very
kind to me; he says he will be glad to help me in
any way he can. He knows our Governor very well.
He told me he had a medal and seven clasps for the
Peninsular War. I suppose you know he was twice
wounded severely during the war.

You must excuse this letter with your wonted
24 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

indulgence. My pen, like a broken-down horse, is
tripping up every moment.

To HIs SISTER E.

R. M. AcaDemy, February 8, 1857.

Iam greatly pleased with my trip to Paris. I find
my French much easier now, and it gives me confi-
dence to have travelled a little) Madame B. seemed
sorry when I was leaving. She filled my pockets
with chocolate to amuse myself with on the journey.
Mademoiselle asked me to “ think of her sometimes.”
I am a corporal now, and hope to get another good-
conduct mark for the last half-year. We had a
muster yesterday before Colonel Wilford; he made
a speech and presented one of our number witha
gold-medal for extraordinary cleverness. There were
several ladies present to witness the performance.

To Huis MoTHER.

Iam working very hard now. I get up at five in
the morning, and I intend to get up at four as soon
as I can get some means to waken me. The ser-
vants are not here at that hour. I was thinking of
getting an alarum. We are to have the same
examinations as those provisional fellows who got
in by public competition, which is hardly fair, as
they are all very old, and some of them B.A.’s, &c.,
of Trinity College, Dublin. It will be awfully hard
for me to get high up amongst those fellows.
WOOLWICH. 25

However, let us hope for the best. If hard work
can do any good, I shall succeed. We went out for
a tremendous march on Saturday (you will see an
account of it in the Times). We skirmished on the
way, and did all kinds of manceuvres. We have an
awful lot of drill now. .

May 17th.

The examinations come off on the 1st of June, and
continue for a fortnight. It is a shame, changing
them so suddenly, but the people here don’t care for
any one. As for getting the Engineers, I cannot say
whether I shall succeed or not. As you and father
are anxious, I hope I shall; but for my part I have
not much choice, as Colonel Wilford said the other
day, ‘‘I cannot advise you which to choose, as a
great many things connected with both have to be
considered, but both corps are equally honourable.”
It is very difficult for me to get a choice, as I have
much cleverer fellows against me, all of whom wish
for Engineers. I only beg of you not to be dis-
appointed if I fail, since the greatest ambition I have
is to please you and my father. You may be sure
that if I can get the Engineers by my own exertion,
and without taking any unfair advantage of my
brother cadets, I shall do so. But I would not try
staying back six months for all the Engineers that
ever were made.

The result of the examination for the prac-
26 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

tical class showed that he had gained third
place among those cadets who had gone through
the same course of study with him, but as he
was classed with those who had entered by
public competition the preceding year, he came
out eleventh of the total number. This was a
bitter disappointment. The first ten only being
allowed a choice, he feared his chance of a
commission in the Engineers was very slight.
However, he did not lose heart; he writes at
once, asking his father to draw up a statement
of the facts, and send it to Lord Panmure,
adding :—

I shall not be disappointed if the application does
not succeed. If I get the Artillery I intend to read
a certain time every day. This will give me an
advantage over those who don’t read, which is the
case with almost all subalterns. ...

The Indian Mutiny had broken out in the
May of this year, 1857, and Delhi was in the
hands of the rebels. The news of the atroci-
ties perpetrated by the Sepoys had reached
England, thrilling all hearts with horror, and
inspiring all martial spirits with a fierce desire
to avenge their countrymen, and the helpless
WOOLWICH. 27

women and children who had been the victims
of such barbarous cruelties.

In answer toa letter from his mother, Tom
writes, on September 14, 1857 :—

You say you hope I shan’t have my commission
until the war is over. Well, since the fact will be
as consolatory to you as it is the reverse to me, I
must tell you that I have no chance of getting to
India. A great number of officers are trying to go
there. And don’t you really think it would be
better to die with your sword stuck in the gizzard of
a Sepoy beast who had massacred some poor lady
and her child, than die of slow fever in Hong-Kong,
the Barbadoes, or on the West Coast of Africa?...
I hear there are bad accounts from India. It is
strange I never can get a fellow to believe that the’
chances are against his returning. He always hopes
for the best. . .

A very sad occurrence has just taken place here.
An E. I. Company Engineer officer came a short
time ago, and worked night, noon, and morning, in
order that he might get out to India before the war
was over. He got into bad health in consequence, and
when he had nearly finished, went home for a few days,
got ill and died. He was a nice, quiet fellow, and
very religious. I met a cousin of his at the General’s.
I think it is much better to read steadily for six or
seven hours a day than injure one’s self towards
the end by working twelve or fourteen. We are
28 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

only required to work five hours a day in our rooms,
but it is quite enough, as a fellow has to stand
most of the time stooping over a drawing-board.

A few days later he writes in high spirits,
announcing that his application for a commission
in the Royal Engineers had been granted—

Lonpon, Thursday.

Almost weary with waiting and suspense, I pro-
ceeded to the Ordnance Office to-day (determining
it would be for the last time), amid the rain and
wind. I had my new hat blown off, and my French
umbrella turned inside out. After battling against in-
numerable difficulties, what disappointment awaited
me, do you think? Ishan’t keep you in suspense;
but did I not always say that there was no use in
applying, that it would only get me into fresh rows,
sent away altogether perhaps? Well, to come to
the point, Lord Panmure, as I suppose you know,
has retired, and my application went before him on
Saturday. (What wretches they were to keep it so
long!) When I asked about it the fellow did not
give me time to finish my question, but said (well, I
shan’t chaff you any more, mother dear: I suppose
you know I have been doing so all} the time)—he
said, “I am happy to tell you that your application
has been 'granted.’”’ Hurrah! The official notice
will be out in a day or two. I was thinking of
WOOLWICH. 29

going home this evening for a week, but the expense
would be too great for such a short time.

P S.—Do forgive me for keeping you in suspense
solong. I suppose you thought something dreadful
was coming.

On ‘October 1,°1857, he was gazetted to the
Royal Engineers. He was then just seventeen,
but looked much older, as he had reached his
full height, nearly six feet, and was unusually
manly in bearing and manners for his years.
Placed in an independent position at an age
when many are still schoolboys, he realized
fully its responsibilities ; and from this time his
character deepened in seriousness. He took
the highest view of his profession, and devoted
himself with ardour to his duties. He always
maintained that a soldier’s calling was one of
the noblest, there being no room in it for sor-
did aims or motives. He had deep religious
feelings, and, though reserved in expressing
them, he was never ashamed to show his colours.
when the necessity arose, and all his actions
were guided by a simple, earnest trust in God.
He had no taste for what is called “ gaiety,”
but he thoroughly enjoyed all manly sports and
30 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

pleasant, social intercourse. Like Kingsley,
he looked on the world as God’s, not the
devil’s world; while from “the evil” he ever
strove to keep himself free.

His chief reason for wishing to get into the
Engineers was that he might be able to begin
at once to live on his pay. Being one of a
large family, he determined to take no allowance
from his father, and though, at first he found it
very hard to get on without one, he kept
strictly to his resolution.

He joined at Chatham on the 13th of
January, 1858, but only remained there for
some months, as he was moved to the Curragh
in the following August. This was a most
welcome change to him for many reasons, the
chief one being that he was within a few hours’
journey of home. Then as he had many
friends in the neighbourhood, a day’s shooting
or fishing was always attainable in the season ;
and it being a less expensive station, he was
able to keep a horse and enjoy an occasional
run with the hounds—his favourite amusement.
He remained at the Curragh until the autumn
of 1860, when he was ordered to Gibraltar.
CHAPTER II.
1860-62.

GIBRALTAR,

“Tl avait des gotits sérieux et simples. I] aimait le travail,
les longues promenades, les grands espaces, les chevaux et les
livres. I] adorait son village et tous les vieux témoins de son
enfance qui lui parlaient d’autrefois. . . .,—Lupbovic Ha.étvy,
L’ Abbé Constantin.

GIBRALTAR, November 26, 1860.

My DEAREST MOTHER,—I arrived here at Io a.m.
yesterday, quite safely... .

We left Southampton on Tuesday at 3 p.m.
‘There were about one hundred and fifty passengers
on board. We all dined at four. They gave us
an excellent dinner: soup, fish, &c.

The first night was calm and most enjoyable, but
on Wednesday the wind got up, and the sea was very
rough indeed, and there were very few passengers at
breakfast. I remained on deck all day and got a
tremendous wetting. The next two days were wet
32 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

and windy, but Saturday was a beautiful day, and
the passengers turned out like butterflies. Lots of
people I had not seen during the whole voyage came
on deck. There were a number of ladies on board.

There were three officers who were in Lucknow
during the terrible siege. One was married, and his
wife was with him, and tended the wounded men;
she is very pretty and quite young. There was one
fellow I knew on board, an Artillery officer, who
was going to Australia to buy horses to send to New
Zealand. ...

We arrived at Gibraltar, as I said, at 10 a.m.
The sea was very rough, and I found the greatest
difficulty in getting on shore, as we had to come
about three-quarters of a mile in boats in order to
land. The whole thing was very badly managed.
. . . When I landed I was besieged by a lot of
“scorpions” (the natives are called so), who laid hold
of my luggage and tried to make off with it; how-
ever, I got three as porters, a mule and cart, and
had my traps brought to the Engineer quarters. The
beggars wanted to charge me any amount, but I
would not listen to them, and walked quietly away
without paying anything, as they would not be satis-
fied with what I offered them. They came after
lunch, saying they would take whatever I gave. It
was very pleasant meeting such a lot of Engineer
fellows. I took a long walk about the fortifications.
this morning. It is beautiful weather here now.
There had not been rain for six months until quite
lately. There are no wells here. All the rain-water
GIBRALTAR. 33

is caught in tanks: you may imagine what a drought
there was while there was norain. Wehave a little
orange-grove behind the mess-house; it looks so
Strange to see oranges growing all round. The
temperature is like summer weather at home... .
I am very lucky in being posted to a division where
I shall get forage allowance; three of the others do
not draw it. Iam looking out for a horse... .

I expect leave to see you in a couple of years,
when, please God, I shall find you all well: it does
not seem far from home here. ... I think I can
save a little money when I get into the way of the
place. . . . The town is under strict military régime.
The duty is pleasant, being strictly military
engineering—not the kind of work we had at the
Curragh. ...

December 23, 1860.

... I was anxiously looking out for the mail
which brought your letter. You can’t imagine how
we appreciate a letter or news from home out here.
From the time the mail steamer is signalled till the
arrival of the corporal with the letters we are ina
state of suspense, and as for the unfortunate in-
dividual who is disappointed, he is in a bad humour
for the rest of the day. I am glad you are all
well, and wish you a happy Christmas. Six of our
fellows are asked to dine with the Colonel on that
day....

I was at a ball at the Governor’s on Thursday

3
34. WITH GORDON IN‘CHINA.

and danced with some Spanish ladies. I do not
admire them much; they do not at all equal the
English ladies in appearance. .. .

-Michael? is going on capitally; he is making
considerable progress in writing and arithmetic. I
am the envy of a good many fellows who did not
bring out servants with them from home. When
you are writing next, ask his father if he would like
to enclose a letter to him; he is very anxious to hear
from home. I took a long walk of about twenty-five
miles. the other day, and passed through a town
called San Roque, where they have bull-fights every
summer. The roads are wretchedly bad, being
impassable to vehicles. Everything is carried on
the backs of horses, mules, or donkeys. . . . I don’t
think provisions are dearer here than at home. The
pork is very good, as the pigs are chiefly fed on acorns
and the fruit of the cork trees. There are no
English civilians here except the officials and a few
visitors. We do not mix as much with the other
regiments as we did at the Curragh, there are so
many of us here. No Spaniards are allowed in
without a “ permit,” nor are they permitted to walk
about the streets after midnight. They must feel
rather small, being kept in such order in their own
country by foreigners. I have not very much work
to do, but am never idle. There is a splendid library
here—a" grand place to apend a wet dayin....

ee * ah
* A young man whom he had taken out from home in his
service.
GIBRALTAR. 35

He writes on January 3rd to his sister
E. :—

I wish you all a happy New Year. I hope you
had a pleasanter day than I had. . . . I must tell
you how I spent Christmas. I went to church in
the morning, and dined with five brother officers at
the Colonel’s in the afternoon. .. .

I have become quite reconciled to Gibraltar.
The greatest luxury here is the glorious weather ;
now it is just like the finest summer weather
at home, cool, bracing mornings, hot days, and
mild, balmy evenings. I am about to commence
photography again, and shall have intelligent
sappers to perform the work you, P., and B. did
so patiently and effectually for me at home.
I have not made the acquaintance of any ladies
since, except two at the Governor’s ball, which I
think I told you about. I did not enjoy it very
much, and only danced five or six times. I tried a
waltz with a lady about four feet high, and could
not get on at all; the floor was like glass, and that
combined with the height of my partner bothered
me completely. I have not gone on a shooting
excursion yet, not being possessed of a horse. I
intend buying one as soon as I can manage it, and
then shall be able to tell you what the country is
like. The bands play in the Almeda every day.
There we see the Spanish ladies drive and prome-
nade. They do not wear bonnets, only a black veil

over their heads... .
36 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

I am going to be sent to Europa, about two miles
away, with a company for a month or so soon. . . .

To HIs SISTER B.

BLeak House, Europa, Fanuary 16, 1861.

I am staying at Europa still. I find it much
healthier than the town; it is in fact quite a different
climate. There is a fine sea-breeze, and with the
exception of the place being damp I find it comfor-
table. People here do not go out in the summer, so
I expect to read “‘a power” then. I have not been
to any dances since; they are the only amusements
here, as I do not play billiards. I have got a little
Turkish horse, about as large as E.’s pony. I must
send you a photograph of him. . .

I look forward very sadly to a dreary five years.
which I fear I am doomed tospend here. These are
strange times; the New Year has not chased away
the gloom which hangs over the Continent. How-
ever, come what may, Gibraltar is safe. One has
no idea of the strength of this place till he sees it.
Weare strengthening the fortifications every year....

I have an ancient concertina on which I murder
‘‘Home, Sweet Home,” ‘‘The Last Rose of Summer,”
and a few other simple tunes. There is no music
procurable here for the said concertina. When you
go to the shops to get anything they happen not to.
have, they always say they are getting it out. My
music has been coming out ever since I came here.
GIBRALTAR. 37

To His SISTER E.

GIBRALTAR, February 3, 1861.

The troop-transport ship Himalaya has just come
in from Malta; she is to take the 2nd Company of
R. E.’s home, so we shall have to move back to
town. ...

I have just lost a splendid spaniel that followed
me out here the other day. When the Himalaya
was coming in, I came on the parapet to have a look
at her. The dog came with me, and while looking
over, either got giddy ora fit, and tumbled over a
perpendicular height of 125 feet into the sea; The
poor beast was killed almost at once—his body is
half-way across to Africa by this time. This season
of the year is called the Carnival here. There are
a great many subscription balls going on almost
every night—some are bals-masqués. I have not
been to any of them. The Spanish ladies go to
the most respectable of them, but the English ladies .
do not gotoany....

A Spaniard stabbed his sweetheart here a few
days ago, and then tried to stab himself. He is
dangerously wounded. He was jealous, and meeting
her in the street in the middle of the day, he put an
end to her existence. She was only seventeen.
This is a warning to young ladies not to flirt when
they are engaged, or provoke the temper of their
lovers. Spaniards are very treacherous, and ex-
ceedingly ready with their knives; they are, how-
38 WITH ‘GORDON IN CHINA.

ever, afraid of the Britishers, and keep clear of
them.

The other day a garda costa took possession of a
British vessel in British waters. When she was
examined two bales of tobacco were found which by
some mistake were not entered in the list of the
cargo. ‘The Spaniards brought her over to Algeciras
and sold her. The English are awfully angry about
it. The Spaniards would not have dared to have
done it in the daylight, as it is contrary to the treaty
to meddle with a British vessel in British waters.
The batteries would have fired on them and sunk
them in a twinkling; they have done so on a few
occasions.

You see they have amalgamated the Indian
Artillery and Engineers with ours, which will
involve our going to India. They are making great
preparations for war in France. There is nothing
but war and rumours of war all over the Continent.

To HIS BROTHER P.

GIBRALTAR, February 3rd.

How I envy you the good shooting you had at
home at Christmas! A fellow left here last week to
shoot in Spain. He rode about forty miles into the
country, and will remain away a fortnight; he
expects to get lots of duck and snipe. I have got a
pony, for which I paid the large sum of six pounds!
The Engineer mess here is very expensive, and runs
away with a fellow’s pay. We have only eight
GIBRALTAR. 39

members, and keep up as large an establishment as
a line mess. I intend to try to put a stop to it when
Igo back to town. Things are just as cheap. here
as at home, but fellows won’t believe it. I have only
been to a few balls since I came, as I don’t care for
them much. The Spanish women are not nearly as
handsome as they are supposed at home to be. They
have all dark eyes, with no expression, and have
awfully thick ankles and large feet. A fellow does
not appreciate his own countrywomen till he comes
abroad. |

We have visitors constantly ; Kavanagh of Borris
was here in his yacht a few weeks ago, and Sir
Robert Peel is here now... .

There is a good racket-court and billiard-room,
but I don’t belong to either. Shot? is all right, but is
getting wild for want of work. I fancy a dog loses
his nose here. The fox-hounds cannot live in Gib-
raltar in summer: they have to be sent home.

To HIS MOTHER.

February 18th.

I don’t like Gibraltar a bit better than at first. I
have scarcely any work to do, and I spend the
greater part of my time reading inthe library. This
is a good station for a line fellow who has money,
and also for Engineers who are seniors; but as I am
the junior subaltern but one, I don’t see any pros-
pect of an appointment or increase in my pay. The

t A retriever he had taken out from home.
40 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

men who stand the climate best are those who take
most exercise and drink least. I am rapidly becom-
ing a teetotaler for two reasons. The first is, I can’t
afford to drink wine ; the second, I am beginning not
to care for it. Iamso glad you are all well. You
can’t imagine the interest one takes in everything
relating to home when one is far away from it.
Some fellows, when they get letters, dance about in
the most frantic manner, and read them over and
over again.

One of the peculiarities of Gibraltar is the number
of suicides which are committed in the summer.
There is an easterly wind called “ Levantine,” which
causes a great depression of spirits. It is cold.and
damp, yet at the same time dries up everything and
taints meat in twenty-four hours.

March 2oth.

The weather is getting very warm, though still
quite cool in the shade. I get up at 5.30 every
morning. I do not like it much, but will keep it up
through the summer. I often take a ride into Spain,
which is about the best amusement to be had here.

We have made a:change in our mess. We were
being robbed outrageously by the cook, so I deter-
‘mined to make a stand, and persuaded some fellows
to agree with me. We then called meetings, and
after any amount of speeching we abolished the
catering system. Every one is now glad of the
change, but it seems strange they did not think of it
GIBRALTAR. 41

before. Some fellows’ mess-bills amounted to £25
a month.

GIBRALTAR, March 25, 1861.

My DEAR B.,— . . . Youcannot imagine how glad
I am always to hear from you, and it is much
pleasanter when the letters come by the mail than
otherwise, as in the former case I am on the look-out
for them. . . . This place is particularly slow just
now, as far as balls and parties are concerned, but
the weather—oh! the weather is truly delicious: a
hot sun all day, cool in the shade, and most beautiful
sunsets. If only one could bring this weather to
England!— you cannot imagine how lovely it is
with the trees in full bloom. I went out shooting
on Monday last, and stayed till Wednesday, but had
no sport. We were after large game, boars, deer,
wolves, &c. The place we went to is called Cork
Wood. It is a most beautiful place, just like a
demesne, only much larger (100 square miles). I
enjoyed the trip very much, and felt the better of it
for days afterwards. I intend to go over to Africa
some time or other; it is rather dangerous going
there now, as the Moors are on bad terms with the
Christians, and the savages think very little of
murder. One of our fellows was out boar-shooting
the other day, and was charged by a boar which he
had wounded; the dogs, however, came to his
rescue before he was hurt. He only got a slight
scratch fortunately. There were some ladies looking
on... . Another time a tremendous animal charged
42 WITH .GORDON IN CHINA.

the ladies, but was luckily shot by Drummond Hay,
the consul at Tangiers, when within about five yards.
of the ladies. . . . We are to have an increase in the
corps at last ; it has been promised a longtime. Iam.
afraid I shall not be a captain after all by the time I
go home. We have a new officer, who has just come
out, Captain Fitzroy Somerset. I am very glad he
has come. The place is improving wonderfully, and,
when we have reorganized our mess, will, I think,
be quite endurable. I do not see anything of the
Spanish ladies now that the balls are over. I must:
say I do not admire them in the least. I fancy those
one meets here are not like the real Spanish ladies ;
their faces seem to me to be all alike—dark eyes, with.
no expression. They all wear black dresses, and veils.
over their heads. Of the different species of men
who inhabit this place, I like the Moors the best;.
they are fine-looking fellows, and dress very grace-
fully with turbans, embroidered jackets, and loose:
trousers like the Zouaves; they are scrupulously
clean, and keep quite to themselves. The “ scor-
pion ” (a sort of mongrel born here) I dislike most,.
with the exception of a few Jews. There are a great.
many different classes of the latter. . . . You may be:
sure I often think of you all, and more especially on
Sundays. It is a curious thing that on that day
one misses home most. It was not so bad at.
the Curragh, as I spent most of my Sundays with
J. H., P., or Mrs. W.; but at Chatham and here it
is different, and. I am particularly lonely on that day..
I. know very few people here. .. . The wife of the:
GIBRALTAR. 43

commanding officer of. Artillery is my best lady
friend ; she patronizes me for the sake of her son,
who was in my room for two half-years in Woolwich.

To HIS SISTER E.
GIBRALTAR, April 16th.

There has been nothing new since I wrote last,
with the exception of races, but as I believe you have
never been to any, an account of them would not
interest you. I had a long walk into the country on
Sunday. It certainly looks beautiful now. There
are any amount of pretty wild flowers, shrubs, large
trees, &c., also ravines, and all sorts of queer places.
We have plenty of boating and sea-bathing. ... I
was invited to a picnic to-day, but was too busy to go.
We always ride to picnics, as it is not possible to go
in vehicles. The country in some places resembles
that about home, but there are no walls, and when
you get some distance into Spain, the country is
thickly wooded, and you have to ford rivers, cross in
ferries, and do all sorts of curious things. . . . Shot is
going on well, but groans a good deal from the heat.

We see a great many folk here on their way to
India, Australia, New Zealand, and other places.

I am happy enough here now with the distant
prospect of going home on leave.

Dont forget to tell me about the horses when you
write.

; April 25th.

..I am over head and-.ears in work, taking photo-
44 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

graphs and training horses. I have volunteered to
break in the most savage animals in garrison by the
“ Rarey’’ method. I have sold my pony, and bought
a horse that defied the efforts of two officers and a
Spanish trainer to tame him. I have only had him
two days, and have brought him round. . . . Weare
expecting the Empress of Austria here daily.

GIBRALTAR, May 12, 1861.

My vpEAR E.,— ... The weather has been
gloomy for the last three or four weeks, but you
would call it fine at home. ... A gang of robbers
have come to this vicinity, and lodged themselves in
the Cork Wood. They have committed several
robberies lately, and it was reported the other day
that they had murdered three persons. About a
week ago a gentleman from Gibraltar was riding
there with his wife, when they were attacked by two
men, one armed with a long knife (which the
Spaniards always carry), the other with a club.
The lady had a light whip, and her husband a heavy
hunting-crop with a hammer at the end of it. The
gentleman’s horse reared and threw him, when the
robbers instantly set upon him. He, however, got up
and knocked one of his assailants down: his wife
then came to his assistance and belaboured both
men about the ears with her whip, until at last they
were beaten off. The gentleman was stabbed in
five places, but luckily none of the wounds were
mortal. The robbers have not yet attacked the
GIBRALTAR. 45

military, although we have parties in the wood
every day; when they do, I think they will be likely
to catch some Tartars!

We had the Empress of Austria here the other
day: she is young, pretty, and has a very good
figure. She came in her Majesty’s yacht, Victoria
and Albert, and only remained a few hours. I have
been doing some photographs lately. There is a
Government machine coming out, and we are to be
allowed a good sum every year for chemicals. I
intend taking views in Spain shortly, copies of
which I will duly forward you. We had the Duke
of Oporto here yesterday. In fact we are constantly
having visits from swells whose curiosity excites
them to see the Rock. . . . Ihave been successful in
training a horse—a most intractable animal—by the
Rarey system. ... I have not commenced to study
Spanish yet, but will soon do so.

Have you any idea of going to the Exhibition of
1862? You will be glad to hear that the design
which has been adopted for the Exhibition was made
by a Royal Engineer. It was open to competition,
and all the eminent architects in London tried for it.
There was no interest or favouritism in the matter,
as they were rather against Fowke, on account of
his being an Engineer officer.

To unis MOTHER.
GIBRALTAR.

. .. I was just going out to a review in honour
46. WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

of the Queen’s birthday, when I was presented with
your very welcome letter. I had time to read it.
before we commenced operations. The day was
extremely hot, and the greater part of the time we
were up to our ankles in hot sand which would roast.
an egg in a few minutes. The affair passed off
well, the sappers as usual taking the shine out of
the other troops by their good marching.

The weather is warm, but I do not mind it much;
I bathe twice a day, and enjoy it thoroughly. I go
to the market every morning to buy things for the
mess. I shall give you the price of a few things to
show they are not dear: lamb, 4d. a lb.; beef, 6d.;
eggs, gd. a dozen; a basket of vegetables, 6d.;
plums, apricots, figs, cherries, &c., 1d. a lb.; a large
melon, 4d.; muscatel grapes when they are in
season, 2d.a lb. Wine is very cheap; you can get
the common wine of the country for 8d. a bottle,
and drinkable sherry for Is. 6d.

I enclose a few photographs. I am hard at work
taking photographs of batteries and maps; these
would not interest you, and I am not allowed to

give any.... We have not had any cases of
cholera yet. A good many of the troops have been
suffering from ‘‘rock fever”: this is easily cured

by change of air; the lucky ones get leave and go
home.

The amusements here now are cricket, boating,
swimming, reading, and listening to the band in the
evenings ; I go in for the three last.
GIBRALTAR. 47

September 22nd.

We have had the sanitary commissioners out here
for some time. One is an Engineer officer, the
other a doctor. Poor Lord Herbert was one when
he was alive... . We have dined at four o’clock
all through the summer. . . . One of our captains
returned on Thursday from a month’s leave in
England; he gives a frightful account of the
weather there. It is six months since we had any
rain—nothing but sunshine. You may well call
Gibraltar the Rock now; everything is dried up and
the place covered with dust. Indeed Gibraltar is
made for heat; the Rock, rising perpendicularly
above the town, shuts out all the air and absorbs
the heat, which it gives out during the night, so
that the only really cool time is early in the
morning. People {say this is the hottest summer
they have felt for years. The thermometer was 90°
in the shade to-day.

To THE SAME.

GIBRALTAR, October 1, 1861.

We have had a little rain here lately, which has
made the climate rather cool and pleasant... .
The Duke of Beaufort is coming out to.spend the
winter, and to hunt with our hounds. It is reported.
that the Duke of Cambridge is also coming. All:
the people who have been away during the summer.
are now returning. The -races take place in ten
48 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

days. . . . We are to have races and games for the
men, and a rifle match this month. This is a
frightful place for subscriptions ; everything is kept
up by the officers—races, bands, balls, charities, &c.
For instance, I shall have given by the time I am
a year here, £4 to races, £6 to hounds, not to speak
of destitute Garibaldians, starving subjects in India,
&c. We also have to subscribe to the Soldiers’
Home, a very good institution, where the soldiers
can spend their evenings. The Government doesn’t
allow the doctors to give the men in hospital any
luxuries, so we subscribe to get them such things as
arrowroot, jelly, &c. There was a corporal in my '
company bad with fever lately; I went to see him,
and they told me he got dry bread and tea, which
the poor fellow couldn’t swallow. I sent him some
arrowroot, and another fellow sent jelly. The next
time we went there we heard the man was dead. I
think he would have recovered if he could have got
change of air, as he was convalescent for a time and
then got a relapse.

To HIs SISTER E.

October 3, 1861.

The weather here has changed—rain, rain, rain
continually. It has taken away the intense heat,
and one feels energetic again. I have changed my
quarters. I now live with another fellow in a kind
of cottage orné, if you can imagine such a thing in
Gibraltar. We have a complete little establish-
GIBRALTAR. 49

ment: house with. four rooms, verandah of trellis-
work with vine-trees in front, a tiny garden on
which I am going to exercise some ingenuity, two
kitchens, stables, hen-houses, &c.—all on a very
diminutive scale—also a pump, which is, however,
no addition to our establishment, there being no
water to pump up. .. . Lady C. and her daughters
have returned from England, so the winter festivities
will soon commence, and we shall have good music
in the cathedral. Miss C. plays the organ there;
she is a very good musician. I find it very difficult
to think of anything to say that would interest you.
As you do not know any of the people here, you
would not care to hear the gossip of the place, such
as ‘Jones has got a new horse; Brown is in love
with Miss Robinson; Smith had a row with
Smythe.” Neither would it interest you to know
that meat has risen to 6d. per lb., or that grapes
are nearly out, and oranges will soon be in; or that
“Bombardier,” ‘‘ Volunteer,’ ‘‘ Schinderhannes,”’
‘Van Arteveldt,” and ‘‘ The Baron ” are favourites
for the races. This is the latest news in Gib.
Another married captain has come out here.
We are going to try to induce the married officers
to dine once a month at the mess with their wives ;
this would be a boon to the bachelors, and taking
a business view of the matter, an advantage to the
mess, as ladies would be paid for as: guests (men),
when we all Know they would not eat as much.
(How horrid to speculate thus!) . . . The Spaniards
are a.very indolent people; they are a long way:
4
50 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

behind other European nations. The country is
just like what England must have been about the
year 1600. The travelling is on horseback, there
being no roads a carriage could traverse except near
the towns. The poor animals carry enormous loads,
on the top of which sits the lazy Spaniard smoking.
They all carry guns and knives; it is dangerous to
travel through the country unarmed. The Govern-
ment is a military despotism, and the people are
very much afraid of the soldiers, who are a hardy,
underfed race. You meet them everywhere. The
Spaniards are very abstemious as regards spirituous
liquors, but they think nothing of stabbing each
other. . . . Gibraltar is considered a kind of Paradise
by the Spaniards, whereas in England it would be
looked on as a dirty town.

I think I see the signal up for the mail, so must
conclude very abruptly.

To His SISTER E.
October 19th.

Isend you and B. the long-promised Bernouses,
a cushion and sleeve-links to mother, a bracelet to
Em., and slippers and tobacco to father. I would
send more of the latter, but am afraid the fellow
who is taking it might have to pay a great deal of
duty on it. ... You can’t imagine what a pleasure
itis to me tq get a letter from home; it makes me
happy for the whole day; all troubles are forgotten,
and it sets me thinking of you all, and of our
GIBRALTAR. 5f

meeting in a short time. Here I know no one
except brother-officers. . . . However, it is a satis-
faction to feel that I am going on all right as far as
my duties are concerned, and that I have done
nothing rash—which comprises running into debt,
killing or maiming some one, or falling in love—
since I came here. Our mess is in a very
satisfactory condition now; we each take the
catering for a month in turn, and it just costs
about half what it did when I first came. The
fellows would not believe we could ever succeed in
reducing the expense. At the first meeting when I
proposed a reduction, one fellow said, ‘‘We must
have a gentleman’s dinner.” I asked him ‘“ what
that was?” He said, “Soup and fish.” We had
it as a joke against him afterwards that his
definition of a gentleman was “one who ate soup
and fish at dinner.”’ I got two fellows to join me,
and we registered a solemn vow that we would
veduce the expense, and we so tired out the others by
calling meetings that they agreed to let me take
the catering for a month. Each one now vies with
the other in making his month the cheapest. We
have some hunting here, but not so good as at
home. I have a little horse that carries me very
well... . Iam going to be fiercely economical, so
that I may have something to spend when I go

home:
52 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To wis SISTER B.

November 27th.

_ Ayyear yesterday since I arrived here. Time passes
more quickly here than at home, it is so mono-
tonous. The winter parties have commenced, but I
shave not been to any. I was asked to one at the
Governor’s a few evenings ago. He has always been
very civil to our fellows. I often go out hunting.
The sport is better this year than it ever has been
before, on account of the Duke of Beaufort being
here. He brought out some hounds with him, which
are the best in England. We often come across wild
deer when out hunting. Most of the ladies hunt
here; there is no difficulty about it, as there are no
fences. The wife of one of our captains got the brush
the other day.

A man in my company got drunk on Sunday, and
was carried into the guard-room; he died unex-
pectedly in two hours afterwards from the effects of
the liquor he had taken—bad wine and gin. The
poor fellow had not much warning; he was buried
to-day. Several of the non-commissioned officers
had to be reduced lately for being drunk. It is very
sad, as it has always been the best company here.
One corporal who was at the Curragh with me, and
was always very steady, got a regular mania for
liquor; he had saved £100; he also has been re-
duced to the ranks.
GIBRALTAR. 53

\

To wis MoTHER. .

December 19th.

... I was very sorry to hear that Prince Albert was
dead. .. . I heard on the morning of the 16th that
he had died the day before. The Queen will feel
his loss immensely, and the country also. ...I am
very comfortable in my new quarters. We are
doing up the garden, &c. Michael and I have come
te the conclusion that the best of being abroad
is the {prospect of going home again—there is no
doubt about it.

To HIs SISTER E.

GIBRALTAR, December 20th.

I have now seen enough of Gibraltar. If there is
not a row with the Americans, I am afraid I shan’t
be a captain for fifteen years—pleasant ! I would give
anything to go to Canada. ... I have given up
hunting, as I found I could not get leave often
enough ; we have a good deal to do here now, there
are so few of us. I often take a good long walk,
especially on Sundays. I am thinking of going on
a walking tour into Spain with another fellow. ...
My garden is in a flourishing condition; I expect to
have lots of pears and grapes next year. I intend to
get some poultry, and then we shall_have fresh eggs.
You see how domestic we are. ... I don’t think
you ought to trouble about —— being badly spoken of
\

54 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

by those people. For my part I should feel much
more complimented by the censure than by the
praise of a fool, and vice versd. I am sure —— is of
the same mind. |

His first letter of the New Year is addressed
to his mother :—

GIBRALTAR, January 3, 1862.

A number of us dined with our colonel on Christmas
Day, and managed to enjoy ourselves very much,
I had a capital day with the hounds on Tuesday.
We crossed a river, and had to swim for it. Some
of the horses broke loose, and a few fellows dis-
appeared altogether under the water. We are a
good deal indebted to the Duke of Beaufort for
bringing his hounds out here.

We are all in deep mourning for Prince Albert.
No gaieties or entertainments going on. There is
still some excitement over the American business.
Nine or ten men-of-war are here ready to cross the
Atlantic; some have gone already. Should war
be declared, they will probably send some troops
from here. I am afraid I have no chance of going.

We had a shipwreck here on the beach, quite
close to the Rock, at 3 a.m. on Sunday. The crew
got into the rigging, and were taken off by a man-of-
war boat. The poor fellows were eight hours in the
rigging. We had a man drowned by falling into the
water when he was drunk the other evening. This
GIBRALTAR. 55

makes three men, in as many months, who met with
sudden deaths through drunkenness. It is very sad!
I never saw anything like the state the garrison was
in at Christmas. The men were allowed to get
drunk with impunity, and they certainly took advan-
tage of their liberty. It was really a most disgrace-
ful state of things. It is a shame that men should
be allowed to make beasts of themselves. I am
quite sick of garrisons for that reason. Sunday or
any other holiday is looked forward to asa day to
get drunk.

I am glad you like the photographs, and shall
send you more when the weather improves.

To HIS SISTER E.

Fanuary 11, 1862.

. « Intense excitement has prevailed here of late
respecting the American difficulty. Some regiments
expected to be sent from here if there was a row.
I believe, according to the latest intelligence, the
affair is all settled now. Some Engineer fellows would
have gone from this, but my chance would have
been very small. The weather has been cold enough
for the last fortnight to enjoy a fire in the evenings.
There is nothing going on now, but we have enough
work to keep us busy, which causes the time to pass
quickly. They are talking of making alterations in
the Engineers. I should not be sorry, as any
change must be an improvement. We want a little
56 WITH .GORDON IN CHINA.

re-organization ; nothing in that line has been done
since we were established.

a Peoaae he v went for a-short tour-with
two cousins, who were travelling in Spain.
He writes on March 2nd, when he had returned
from his trip : =

I suppose you have heard before this that I have
been to Malaga with J and C. R.—that is the reason
I_have not written sooner. ... I liked Malaga
pretty well; there. was very little to do there, except
riding and boating. There were no nice walks to
take—a great drawback to the place in my mind.

I went to Granada for one day to.see the Alhambra.
The country is very fertile and well-cultivated, but
it would’ have looked much better if the trees had
been .in.leaf. It would be difficult for me to describe
the beauty-of the Alhambra,.so I shall not attempt
it; besides, I am sure you have read descriptions of
it already, and have a good idea of its magnificence.
The climate of Granada is cooler than it is here,-and
the people much handsomer than the inhabitants of
this part of Spain. I sawa good many light-com-
plexioned Spaniards. while I was away. I think
there is a wonderful similarity of character, appear-
ance, &c., between the Spanish and Irish peasantry.
I often meet old women with the countenance,
dress, voice, and-everything except the language of
an..old Irish woman..
GIBRALTAR. ‘57

I was very sorry to hear of C.’s accident. The
hunting here is not nearly so dangerous, as there is
no jumping. There are ravines which the ,horses
tun up and down. One day lately the horse of a
sister-in-law of one of our captains, in going up a
ravine, fell back and rolled with his rider down to the
bottom, The lady was luckily not hurt. There is
to be a grand fancy dress ball at the Governor’s on
the 4th inst. As you may imagine, I am not going!

We have the Southern war steamer Sumter here
still. The Tuscarora is at Algeciras, waiting for her.
A number of our fellows went on board the Sumter,
and were most hospitably treated. The officers of
the ship are by all accounts very fine fellows.

To HIS BROTHER C.

GIBRALTAR, March 19, 1862. ©

I was very sorry to hear of the bad fall you
had. ... The hounds are here still. I have not
been out much lately. I don’t care much about the
hunting here; any cockney can keep in. Oh-for a
day with the Kilkennies or Kildares! I hope to get
leave next September. Do, like a good fellow, have
plenty of partridges and a good dog... .

The Sumter is here still. The Tuscarora and
another Federal steamer at the other side of the bay
are watching her. I am afraid the Sumter will not
be able to escape them. However, she has had her
fling, as she has destroyed over twenty northern
vessels since she came out.
58 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

The races came off to-day. Of course an Irish
horse ridden by an Irishman won the principal
race! ...

I have very good quarters here, but in a rather
bad locality. ... This is a frightfully immoral place,
as is the whole of Spain. I must say I don’t see
anything to admire in the Spanish character. They
{the Spaniards) are cursed with an inordinate love

_of “filthy lucre.” Every one is open to bribery.
Money will do everything in this country, and the
people will do anything for it—except work. Spain
is, indeed, what one might call a God-forsaken
country.

I made some acquaintances at Malaga. It seems
rather sad to have to part from people one knows
with the great probability of never meeting
again. ...

His next letter brought the unwelcome news
to his friends that he had received sudden
orders to proceed to China.

GIBRALTAR, March 28, 1862.

My DEAREST MoTHER,—I have just received a
very unexpected ‘‘route’’—namely, to China, the
land of chop-sticks and pig-tails. I was to have
started immediately, but the Governor has kindly
‘given me leave to go home; and then I shall apply
for a few months’ leave, which I hope to be able to
get. I should not at all have relished the idea of
GIBRALTAR. 59

going if I were not allowed to see you all first, but
now do not mind it in the least. Don’t be alarmed
about the climate. I hear that it is not at all so
bad as people at home imagine. I am busy dis-
posing of some of my effects and making hasty
preparations, as three days ago I had not the
faintest notion of the change. In a week from this
I expect to be on my way to ‘* Home, sweet
Home!” ... I am in capital health, as you will
soon see. There have been a great many deaths
here lately. I believe this is the most unhealthy
time of the year here... .

With best love and a lively prospect of soon
meeting you all,

Believe me, ever your affectionate son,
T. LysTer.
CHAPTER III.
1862.

PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. —

°

‘In vain may tropic climes display
Their glittering shores—their gorgeous shells ;
Though bright birds wing their dazzling way, .
And glorious flowers adorn the dells,
Though nature there prolific pours —
The treasures of her magic ‘hand,
The eye, but not the heart, adores—
The heart still beats for native land.”—LovER,
Havine obtained two months’ leave of ab-
sence, he came home in the middle of April.
Fully aware of the risks he would run in China
from the unhealthiness of the climate, his father
was most anxious to try to effect an exchange
for him. But he would not hear of it. He
said that when he entered the service he made
up his mind to go wherever he was ordered.
He was so brave and cheerful to the last, and
spoke so hopefully of a happy meeting in a few

short years, his friends felt no fear of the future ;
‘PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 61

‘and, as they parted from him, they little thought
that it was for the dast ¢ime.

On the 2oth of June he sailed from South-
ampton. He writes on that date :—

ON BOARD THE Ceylon, AT SOUTHAMPTON.

I embarked to-day, as you may see. I like the
ship very much. She is beautifully clean, and not at
all crowded, there being only twenty-four first-class.
passengers. Nearly every one has a cabin to him-
self. There is a young fellow in the Bengal
Engineers with me. Everything looks bright, and
we have every prospect of a pleasant voyage. ...

I met several friends in London, home on leave
from Gibraltar. The Exhibition is a great suc-
SESS d:4

We expect to arrive at Suez about the 4th of July,.
and in Ceylon about the 2and....

He continued to write home constantly
during the voyage.

ON BOARD S.S. Ceylon, Fune 23, 1862.

We have now got out of the Bay of Biscay—the
terror of sea-sick travellers—and shall soon be
abreast of Lisbon. We expect to arrive at Gibraltar:
either to-morrow evening or early next morning.
Some of the passengers have suffered a good deal
from sea-sickness, but I have not been inconvenienced.
-62 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

-at all. There are only twenty-five first-class pas-
sengers, and some of those get out at Gibraltar, and
others at Malta, so that we shall have very few
‘going on to Alexandria. We expect to pick up a lot
of passengers there, who are going by Marseilles. I
hope I shall have time when I arrive in Egypt to
see the Pyramids. ... They feed us most sump-
tuously on board. . .. There are very good baths,
which I enjoy very much. We have a very fair
band on board, which plays every morning and
evening. The bandmaster is a first-rate one; he
plays the violin beautifully. We had service yester-
day in the Grand Saloon. The Doctor read prayers.
‘There is nothing so enjoyable as a sea voyage if one
had only some friends with him. .. .

I spent a very pleasant evening at Mrs. Moore’s
in London before I left. I often wish I could make
some return to people who have been so disin-
terestedly kind to me. I have met very good and
kind English people, but I must say I think our
country-people are the most warm-hearted... . I
expect to get on very well in China. I shall give up
horses and shooting, except for a short time each
year. These are the only extravagances I have ever
indulged in. It is time for me to begin to try to get
on in my profession. When I come home I shall be
looking out for something good. I hope then to see
you all well and the boys prospering. I should not
like J. or any of them to go abroad (except for
health’s sake), if they can get on at home. The
sband is playing while I write, and most of the people
PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 63

are sitting on deck listening to it, or reading. The
day is most lovely. I only wish some of you were
with me to enjoy the glorious weather. The ship is
not rolling a bit, and the sea looks beautiful. . ..

There is only one other passenger going to Hong-
Kong. He is a sailor, and has been out there
before. His boat was sunk by the Chinese in the
attack on the Taku Forts. He gives a good account
of the country. The people, he says, are very civil,
but liars and treacherous. ...

ON BOARD S.S. Ceylon, Fune 27, 1862.

We arrived at Gibraltar at 4.30 a.m. on the 25th
having made avery good passage from Southampton
of four and a half days. I went on shore and saw |
several of my friends. I found most of them in
bed. It seemed to me like a second home—the Rock,
and all the people were so familiar. I felt the town
very close and stuffy after the sea air. A good many
fellows are suffering from fever: one of my friends is
very bad with jaundice. We left Gibraltar at 9 a.m.
so we had not much time there. Ten of our pas-
sengers got out, and we did not take inany. We are
now off the coast of Africa, about five miles distant
between Algiers and Tunis. The coast is very hilly,
but the land looks fertile and is in some places culti-
vated. We shall soon pass Tunis, and get to Malta
about the 24th (Sunday). There has scarcely been
a breath of wind for the last five days, the thermo-
meter has risen 20° since we left England; it is now
49° in the shade. We do not feel it at all hot on ac-
64 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

count of the freshness of the air, and the decks are.
covered with awnings. Weamuse ourselves reading,
talking, playing ship quoits, eating and sleeping.
The cookery is splendid, and you can have whatever
you like to order. We are warned of dinner by
a bugle, which sounds “ The Roast Beef of Old
England;’ for tea they play “ Polly put the Kettle
on.”

This voyage will scarcely pay the company, there
are so few passengers ;. but I suppose they get a good
deal for the mails. There are only now about fifteen
first-class passengers, and there is accommodation
for at least one hundred and fifty. I shall anxiously
look out for a letter at Alexandria. I expect to
arrive at Hong-Kong about the 8th of August. I am
exactly a week at sea to-day, and it seems to me
more than a month since I left home.

28th.

The Captain says we shall certainly arrive at
Malta to-morrow (Sunday) morning. I wish it was
any other day, that we might doa little shopping and
see something, as we remain there nearly twelve
hours: however it will be pleasant going to church
on dry land again. The sea is almost as calm asa
mill-pond, and the weather beautiful. This morning
I was roused by a tremendous shower of rain which
made a great noise on the deck; it has since cleared
up. As we are going at the rate of 150 miles a day
we soon leave all bad weather behind. We have not
yet seen any sea-monsters : the evening before we:
PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 65

arrived at Gibraltar we saw several shoals of large
fishes called Bonitos disporting themselves in the
water. We expect to see a lot of flying fish in the
Arabian Sea.

Fuly 1, 1862.

We expect to arrive at Alexandria early on Thurs-
day morning: we then disembark from this steamer,
take the railway to Cairo, where we remain two days
to wait for the Marseilles steamer. The Ceylon
returns immediately, so I shall post this letter on
board, and write again from Aden, where we halt for
some hours. When the passengers from Marseilles
arrive at Cairo, we all proceed by rail to Suez,
and there embark on board the Nemesis, a screw-
steamer. I am to occupy a berth in the same
cabin with a fellow who has come out with me.
From what I hear of the Nemesis I fear we shall
have a hot time of it through the Red Sea;
her portholes are so near the water that we
shan’t be able to keep them open even in calm
weather, and shall have to sleep on deck; which
would be pleasant enough if you were not roused up
at 4 a.m. by the sailors who wash down the deck, and
sprinkle you with salt water if you are not very
sharp in getting out of their way. . . . We arrived in
Malta at 9 a.m.on Sunday morning. I immediately
went on shore and saw all my old friends who were
very kind. I went to St. John’s Church which is
better worth seeing than anything else in the place.
It was built in the time of the Knights of Malta;

5
66 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

there are beautiful paintings in it—one in particular,
by Michael Angelo. The floor is inlaid with precious
stones representing sieges, &c. ‘There are a pair of
silver gates about ten feet high. There were a pair
of golden ones exactly similar which the French stole
when they took possession of the place; the silver
escaped by being painted black. I went to see the
Catacombs in a Capuchin monastery. The monks
embalm their dead, bury them for ove year, then dig
them up and put them standing in a niche in the
wall. You could scarcely distinguish the features of
the monks, and those who had been there for sixty
or seventy years seemed in as good a state of pre-
servation as those who had been up for only one
year.

Malta struck me as being much healthier than
Gibraltar—the fellows there looked so much better.
Some of the houses are palaces built by the Knights
of St. John. House rent is marvellously cheap as
there is lots of space and the labour of building is
nil; the stone is so soft that it can be cut witha
hatchet. I went to look for some filigree work to
send home, but found the shops closed; they were
open in the morning, when some of the fellows bought
beautiful brooches and bracelets. However, I can
get them when I am coming home! Everything
seems to be cheaper than at Gibraltar. We (five in
number) got a drive of nearly a mile ina “ go-cart” .
for sixpence ; it is a machine very like a common
dray on springs, you sit behind or in front with your
legs dangling and your elbows in danger of being
PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 67

knocked by the spokes of the wheel: the driver
runs alongside of you. . . . Although it was Sunday
there were races going on about six miles from the
town—a native informed me they would be splendid
vaces as eight mules and six ponies were to run !

The fortifications are wonderfully strong, being,
for the most part, cut out of the rock, and some of
the ditches are seventy feet deep. It is an advan-
tage having the stone so soft, as no splinters would
fly from it if the place was besieged; quite as much
damage is done by the splinters from masonry as
from shot. . . . I think Malta would be a far better
station than Gibraltar, only there is no country to
get to, which makes all the difference. There is a
great similarity between the natives of both places.
The ladies, however, do not wear the mantilla, but a
black silk hood attached to their dress... .

I have grown so used to the ship now that I shall
be very sorry to leave it. You have no idea how
pleasant a trip of this sort is; there is an absence
of all restraint, and you are constantly looking for-
ward to some novelty or other. Our longest time
(eight days) without seeing land will be from Aden
to Ceylon through the Arabian Sea. However we
expect to make up for it by seeing flying fish and
other kinds of sea novelties. —

The nights are very hot now, especially when we
cannot open the scuttles : several of the fellows com-
plain of not being able to sleep. I have slept like
a top every night, and get up quite fresh in the
Morning. The days pass much quicker now than at
68 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

first, still, it seems a long time to look forward to
the 8th of August when I am due in Hong-Kong.
One can hardly help thinking that the constant going
during that time at the rate of ten miles an hour
must bring one round the world. England is a won-
derful country! The farther one goes away from her
the more one realizes her greatness. The mere fact
of being an Englishman makes one feel proud! At
the same time, when one sees what is going on in
the world—more than he ever thought or heard of—
it makes him feel very small indeed! I shall have a
great deal to tell you in my next letter as I shall
have seen the Pyramids, crossed part of the Desert,

and the Nile several times, and have taken a rale
Turkish bath !

On BOARD S.S. Nemesis.

Fuly 8, 1862.

My DEAREST MoOTHER,—We arrived at Alexandria
early on Thursday, and left immediately by rail for
Cairo. The railway carriages are similar to those
at home—engines, &c., are made in England. We
travelled very slowly, never going faster than twenty
miles an hour. The country we passed through is.
very richly cultivated: it affords three crops in the
year. The land is irrigated by the overflowing of
the Nile, which takes place once a year. A good
many villages were destroyed by it last year. We
saw palm trees, wheat just springing up, and stubble
fields : also lots of eagles and some prettily plumaged.
PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 69

birds, camels, horses and donkeys innumerable. . . .
We were a nice party of five; one of our number
was the only unmarried lady amongst the passen-
gers. We arrived at Cairo at 4 p.m. and put up at
Shepherd’s Hotel. In the afternoon we started to see
the Grand Mosque, which is really beautiful : we also
saw the Pasha’s palace and the bed in which the
Prince of Wales slept the other day: the bedstead
is of silver. The rooms were splendidly furnished in
the English style. The palace seemed to be open
to the public: there were only two dirty Arabs in
charge of it. I shall not enter into the history of the
places we visited; but just tell you what we saw and
did.

We got up next morning at 2.30 a.m. and set off
on donkeys for the Pyramids. Each animal was
followed by an Arab boy with a stick. We went at
a gallop nearly all the way (twenty-two miles). We
had to cross the Nile in a boat. We arrived at the
Pyramids about 5 a.m. where we were immediately
set upon by a number of Arabs who would insist on
acting as guides. Finding it impossible to get rid of
them, each fellow took two to help him to ascend to
the top, a height of 470 feet. We had a magnificent
view of the Desert on one side and the rich valley
of the Nile on the other. Some of the guides
practised a system of extortion on nervous individuals
when they got them to the top, hinting that if they’
did not pay liberally they would be likely not to reach
terra firma in safety. It was lucky for my fellows
they did not try that game with me.
70 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

_ We had great fun going back, as some of the
donkeys fell, and their riders were thrown off. After
a good sleep I went and had a real Turkish bath.
There are sixty-five establishments of the kind in
Cairo. I enjoyed my bath immensely and felt so
refreshed by it.

I did not go to see any other places ; it is danger-
ous to walk about at night without a lanthorn. The
majority of the people speak English, and a good
many French; they dress like the Moors, but the
lower classes only wear a night-dress with a belt.
The women wear trousers and have their faces
covered with crape: they ride with two stirrups like
men: they seem to be very fond of their children
and always carry them sitting astride on one shoulder.
The children suffer greatly from ophthalmia; they are
extremely dirty, as their parents believe that it
attracts the evil eye if they wash them. There are
lots of camels which only cost from £10 to £20, while
the price of a small donkey is £5.

We left Cairo on Saturday morning, and took the
railway to Suez—a distance of sixty miles through
the great Sahara desert—a sea of sand track-
less and treeless. One sees nothing except the
skeletons of camels picked clean by vultures. We
arrived in Suez in five hours, having stopped one
hour on the way to take in water. We saw the
“ mirage’ in the Desert—a phantasmal appearance
of water in the distance.

When we arrived at Suez we found we could not
embark till 6 p.m., so went to the hotel, had a bath
PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 71

and dinner. At the hotel we met the homeward-
bound passengers in great spirits, but some of them
looking very ill indeed. We sailed at seven on
Saturday evening. The passengers from Marseilles
who left England on the 26th ult., joined us here.
There is a Legation from Prussia to Shanghai
amongst them—a Prussian prince, a very nice young
fellow is at the head of it; he is just like an English-
man. The crew of this steamer consists of English,
Lascars, Chinese, and Africans. The Lascars are the
most miserable specimens of humanity I have ever
seen: it only costs 24d. a day to feed them. The
niggers seems to be the best of the blacks. The
Chinese are most repulsive-looking rascals. We
have a glimpse of land now and then on either side.
We passed Mount Horeb and Sinai, and also the
place where they say the Israelites crossed the Red
Sea. The weather is very warm. Most of the pas-
sengers sleep on deck, the nights are so hot. I have
a very cool cabin, so manage to lie down in my berth
every night.
Fuly gth.

The weather is warmer, if possible; last night was
the hottest we have experienced yet; most of the
men slept on deck; one of them got moon-struck,
and is very ill. We shall all be delighted to get out
of the Red Sea. The thermometer does not go
lower than 87° at night.
72 ' WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To Huis SISTER E.

S.S. Nemesis, Fuly 18, 1862.

Here we are all right, two days’ journey from Point
de Galle. The voyage has been so monotonous ever
since we left Aden, there is scarcely anything worth
relating.

We arrived at Aden at 7 a.m. A man in the
Bengal Engineers and I were just contemplating
going on shore when a fellow he knew who is
quartered there came off and asked us to breakfast
with him. We of course accepted the invitation,
got into a boat, and were pulled on shore by some
half-naked niggers. We then got into a buggy and
drove up to the “‘ Cantonments,” where the regiment
is quartered. The town is the most miserable-
looking hole I ever saw—very much in the style
of the Rock, only much larger. The English are
not allowed into the country, as there would be a
likelihood of their being murdered by the Arabs.
The inhabitants are of various nationalities—Arabs,
Hindoos, Africans from Barbary, and Parsees, who
are the most respectable. shopkeepers in the place.
Water is extremely scarce, as it only rains once in
two or three years; the water is then collected in
tanks. There is a large distilling apparatus, and
one is obliged to use salt water to wash in. There
was nothing worth seeing except the tanks, and the
sun was so hot we could not bear it for more than a
few minutes at a time. To add to our discomfort
PASSAGE TO HONG-KONG. 73

there was a stong wind blowing, which filled our
eyes, mouths, and noses with dust. We got on
board again at twelve o’clock. Aden is very useful
to the English as a coaling station; it is fortified,
but not to a large extent.

We were all glad to get out to sea again, and we
soon found a pleasant change in the temperature; it
became much cooler, and has continued so since.
We expect to remain for a day or two at Ceylon. I
shall have to change there into another steamer,
which I am thankful to say goes direct to Hong-
Kong. I am sick of changing from one ship to
another. When you write be sure to tell me
everything you can think of. You have no idea
what little things will interest one ten thousand
miles away from home. It seems to me ages since
I left you all; I have seen so many different
countries and people since. The more you see of
other nations the more you are struck with the
superiority, both mental and physical, of our race.
I forgot to tell you that we saw lots of flying fish
since we left Aden; they are from three to nine
inches long; they can only fly a distance of twenty
yards or so. Some of them flew on board at night,
and these were caught and cooked for the ladies;
they are considered to be great delicacies. We also
saw a number of porpoises; they swim as fast as
we are steaming, about ten miles an hour. I long
to get to Hong-Kong. I am so tired of the sea
voyage. I begin already to look forward to the time
of coming home—three years!
74 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

I have nothing more to say except to remind you
to write and tell me all the news you can think of.

To us MoTHER.

ON BOARD THE Colombia, Fuly 24, 1862.

I shall have a busy time I daresay when I arrive
in China, so am writing my letters now, and shall put
in a postscript to say I have arrived and send them
off at once. . . . I went on shore at Ceylon, and saw a
friend of mine in the Engineers, and Dr. Roe. Ceylon
is a beautiful island; it is a perpetual spring there.
There are always a number of passengers at Galle
waiting for steamers to Bombay, Calcutta, Australia,
and China. I changed from the Nemesis (which went
on to Calcutta) into this steamer, and parted from
all my old travelling companions except one. I
have felt very lonely ever since. There are several
passengers from Marseilles on boar but they are
all foreigners.

At Ceylon it is difficult to distinguish the native
men and women. Both dress alike, and wear their
hair long, combed back and tied behind. They seem
to be a good-tempered, contented people. This
steamer is very large, and has lots of accommodation;
I have a cabin to myself. We arrive at Penang
about the 27th, Singapore a couple of days later, and
Hong-Kong about the 6th or 7th August.”

August 8, 1862.
Here I am located in Hong-Kong, where I arrived
HONG-KONG. 75.

yesterday. We got to Penang at 4 p.m. on the 27th
of July; I went on shore at 6 o'clock the next
morning and walked some miles into the country.
The vegetation is beautiful and of great variety.
We got some of the most delicious fruit I ever
tasted there ; it is called ‘“‘ mangostein.”” I thought.
it would be impossible to see a nicer place than
Penang until I saw Singapore, where we arrived
two days later. It is only about two degrees from
the equator, and the temperature is nearly the same
all the year round; it is quite a paradise. There
are a good many Europeans in Singapore, but the
largest part of the population consists of Chinamen;
they only remain about five years, and, as soon as
they have made some money, go home. ‘The
Chinese coolies who load and unload the ships are
the strongest men I ever saw; they are more like
beasts of burthen than human beings. The country
round Singapore is infested with tigers. They say
there are annually about four hundred Chinamen
devoured by these animals.

Hona-Kona, August 9, 1862.

When I arrived here the day before yesterday the
Colonel was away at a Portuguese settlement called
Macao, where he went for change of air. He
returned unexpectedly yesterday. I called to see
him, and he told me I have to go up to Shanghai,
about eight hundred miles north from here. It is
occupied by English troops who are stationed here
76 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

to protect the inhabitants from the rebels who are
very numerous in that part of the country; they are
called ‘‘ Taipings.” When they approach too near
to Shanghai, we send an expedition to drive them
away. The other day they got the best of it, and
we were obliged to evacuate all the places we got
possession of. The general sent a requisition for
12,000 troops to India. Some people are of opinion
that there will be an expedition sent against them
when the cold weather comes, but I do not think so,
as the Home Government does not approve of it. I
start from here for Shanghai in about a fortnight.
From the little I have seen of Hong-Kong I like
it very much. The general appearance of the place
resembles Gibraltar, but it is much greener; the
houses are very lofty and well built, unlike those at
Gibraltar. The poorer classes of the Chinese here
live principally in boats. We are very strict with
them. No Chinaman is allowed to walk about after
9 p.m. without a pass. The streets are patrolled by
Sepoys who act as police. We have a good many
Sepoy soldiers here who hate the Chinese most
cordially. From what I have seen of the Chinese
I feel inclined to like them, but I shall not say much
about them yet, lest I should have to alter my
opinion. There are a great many rich merchants
in Hong-Kong; when they make some money, they
go home, generally to die. Things are much cheaper
than I expected. The Artillery and Engineers mess
together here. We have one colonel, one captain,.
and two lieutenants of Engineers here now. We:
HONG-KONG. * 7

only pay six shillings a day for everything (wine
excepted); our wine comes direct from Spain, and
costs about the same, or perhaps less, than it does.
at home. Our pay is better than I expected; the
colonel gets £2,000 a year: I have about £500 a
year, and I expect to be able to save something
from that. I believe things are more expensive in
Shanghai. We dine in the most luxurious style;
each fellow has two servants, and we have always
a punkah going while we are at meals. Every one
seems to be well paid here. Bank clerks get
salaries of £700 to £1,500 a year, and merchants’
clerks are equally well paid and have capital
messes. We all wear light clothes; they are very
cheap. The Chinese manufacture crépe silk of
which the things are made; they seem to be a most
ingenious and industrious people. I don’t wonder
at their hating the English ; we have always treated
them badly.

P.S.—I forgot to say that there has been another
attack made on the British Embassy at Yeddo. We
have sent one officer, twenty-five men, and twelve
cavalry from Shanghai to protect the Embassy.

To us SISTER B.

Hone Kone, August 18, 1862.

I suppose you have received my letter saying I
was to go to Shanghai. I expect to start to-morrow
or the next day. . . . The heat has been excessive
78 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

‘since I came—not only is the sun intensely hot, but
there is a damp, oppressive, smothering atmosphere
—one can only sit still and gasp for breath. The
nights are frightfully hot, without a breath of air.
We sleep in the thinnest of garments opposite open
‘doors, with every window open from the floor to the
ceiling, and yet there seems to be no air. You have
sometimes felt a stillness and closeness in the atmo-
‘sphere before a thunderstorm: we perpetually have
that here, and there is lots of thunder and lightning.
People say Shanghai is hotter than Hong-Kong—
one can scarcely imagine that possible! . . . We all
wear white trousers, silk coats, and pith helmets.
The Line wear clothes made of Kaki—stuff like
brown holland; the Artillery wear blue flannel.
The authorities are not at all particular as to dress
here. We wear our hair cropped close. There are
very few ladies here now, as most of them go home
for the summer: they cannot stand the heat of this
place. I believe in winter it is quite gay. The
people are very social and hospitable... . The
merchants are very rich; one went home the other
day with £120,000 a year; but they generally die
soon after they go home—a long residence in this
climate weakens the constitution so much.

I went to a Chinese “ sing-song”’ the other even-
ing—a sort of rejoicing. They build a large shed, |
and collect a great many figures from the joss-
houses (places of worship), and from private in-
dividuals, and exhibit them; they have also all
kinds of ingenious toys, &c. The place is beautifully
HONG-KONG. 79

lighted up, and they have music (oh, sach music !)
and theatricals going on. Some of our fellows
amused themselves by tying the tails of the China-
men together. I am afraid we bully them a good
deal. If you are walking about and a Chinaman
comes in your way, it is customary to knock his
hat off, or dig him in the ribs with an umbrella.
I thought it a shame, and remonstrated with the
fellow who was with me to-day for treating a poor
beggar of a Chinaman in this way; but he assured
me that if you make way for them they swagger
and come in your way purposely. The French
soldiers treat them even more roughly than we do.
The Chinese are the most wonderful copyists in the
world, but they say they cannot draw from nature,
as they know nothing whatever of perspective.
They are capital tailors, carpenters, &c., and are
a most industrious people. The men are very
strong; they carry everything on a bamboo cane
across their shoulders. If you want to be carried
to any place you take a chair, and are borne by
two sturdy coolies to your destination. There are
40,000 Chinamen here, and 10,000 Europeans. We
have a large force of police, Lascars, who hate the
Chinese, and are hated by them. The women are
very small, with the tiniest of hands and feet, and
the ugliest of faces; they wear a kind of blue or
black smock frock and: trousers. They are very
unequally distributed, as a Chinaman buys his wife,
or wives; consequently the rich often have more
than their share, and the poor sometimes have none.
80 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

One wonders how a father could sell his child, but
a child would sell her father if she got the chance.
There is very little love amongst them. They are
a treacherous race, and think it rather a sharp thing
to tell a lie.... I have a good little servant lent me
by another fellow; he wants to go up to Shanghai
with me, but his master will not give him up... .
Everybody here gets good pay. I am certain of
being able to save something to spend when I go
home. I think the best way to get on here is to
live moderately, and take plenty of exercise. Some
men drink an enormous amount, and never walk.
I believe the winter here is delightful—quite cool
and bracing. August and September are the most
unhealthy months in the year: the people are com-
pletely worn out then, and are liable to get sick-
nesses. The place has made a considerable advance
in ten years. The revenue in 1850 was £23,526.
In 1860 it was £94,182.

The population in 1850 was 33,000; in 1860,
95,000. There is not much work for us here now,
but there may be at some future time.

There are a number of pleasant walks about the
island, which is twenty-six miles round. A good
many people have horses and carriages. The horses
are of all descriptions—English, Australian, Arab
barbs, and Chinese ponies.
CHAPTER IV.
1862.
SHANGHAI,

“Friendship only truly exists where men harmonize in their
views of things human and Divine.”

In August, 1862, General Gordon, then a
captain in the Royal Engineers, was stationed
at Shanghai. He had been sent there from
Tientsin some months before, and was engaged
in surveying the country round Shanghai, and
in conducting active operations against the
Taiping insurgents when they approached too
near the town. The services of another
Engineer officer being considered necessary
to carry on the work, Lieutenant Lyster was
chosen for this duty. He thus became _in-
timately associated with General Gordon, and

it is not surprising that a warm friendship:
6
82 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

should grow up between natures similar in
many respects. The admiration and attach-
ment felt for his superior by the younger
soldier is manifest every time he mentions the
name of the former in the letters he writes
home at this period. And that the esteem
was mutual is clear from the heart-felt words
in which, three years later, General Gordon
expresses his appreciation of the high qualities
of his “friend and comrade,” and his grief at
losing him.

' On the roth of August, Lieutenant Lyster
left Hong-Kong for Shanghai. He began
about this time to keep a small diary, in which
he jotted down brief notes of his daily occupa-
tions and any important events occurring round
him. Some of these entries are in pencil, and
so faint that it is very ‘difficult to decipher the
Chinese names of places, &c.

August 19th.—Embarked at 2 p.m.; left at 2.15.
Weather fine and cool.

21st.—Thermometer 87°. Passed Columbian. Read
Field- Exercise book.

22nd. —Day cool and pleasant; breeze ahead,
Anchored near mouth of river Tsung-tse Kiang at
sunset. Phosphoric light beautiful.
SHANGHAI. 83

23vd.—Got into the river at 10 a.m. Anchored
near the bar (which cannot be crossed except at
high tide) at 3 p.m.
. 24th, Sunday.—Arrived at Shanghai at Ir a.m.
Went to Astor House, and then to Gordon, R.E.,,
who gave me a room. Lunched at Commissariat
mess. Saw Prince Wittgenstein there. Rode out
to Fah-wa. Saw the rebels in the distance burning
villages. Four hundred Punjaubees sent to re-
inforce the outpost.

25th.—Rode round works with Gordon. Called
on Colonel Thomas at Brigade Office.

26th.—An expedition ordered out against the
Ching-Mows. Started at I p.m. with about thirty
sappers under Gordon up the Souchow Creek. One
company of 31st Regiment, consisting of two
officers, assistant surgeon, and seven men, accom-
panied us. We had four boats. Orders to proceed
about one-and-a-half miles above Stone Bridge.
When we came to another bridge we were to take
and occupy it, so as to prevent the Ching-Mows
from crossing when attacked by troops who were in
different parties on our left. We went up the
creek about four miles, but did not cross the bridge.
We there halted one hour, when we heard firing to
our left, about two miles off. We thought it was
the Imperialist troops attacking the rebels, and did
not move up. Saw the rebels in large numbers
about two miles off on the right bank of the creek,
in a village. Returned about 5 p.m. Heard after-
wards that the troops had engaged the rebels, and
84 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

killed a few—taking one prisoner. We got one
prisoner also.

27th.—Rode round works. Visited men in bar-
racks. The barracks are decidedly bad. Asked
Gordon to have palliasses washed.

On August 28th he writes :—
SHANGHAI.

My DEAREST MoTHER,—I arrived here all right on
the 25th inst., after a pleasant passage from Hong-
Kong. ... If I had been here a week sooner I
should have been sent 7oo miles further north, to
Tientsin, to look after some important work there; but
as it was urgent, another fellow has been sent. There
is another Engineer officer here, Captain Gordon ; he
is a first-rate fellow, and a very good officer. He
and I live together. I was very lucky in getting
such good quarters, and, as the house has been given
to Gordon by some civilians (he has done so much
for the settlement), there is nothing to pay.

This is an immense place. There is a Chinese
town surrounded by a large ditch and high wall, and
then there are the European settlements. We had.
no troops here a short time ago, but the Taipings.
came down in such numbers, the authorities were
obliged to send a military force to protect the
inhabitants.

I suppose you know all about the Taipings. They
number about 100,000, and are nothing but a band
of marauders. They come down on a village, rob
it, slay all the inhabitants they can lay hold of, and.
SHANGHAI. 85

then burn the place. We could see the smoke from
the burning villages as soon as we got into the
harbour on Sunday. When I got on shore I heard
that the rebels were close to an advanced post of two
companies of the 31st Regiment, stationed at Fah-wa,
about five miles from here. They sent out a rein-
forcement of one hundred men in case the post
should be attacked. I borrowed a horse and went
with them. I never saw, or could have imagined,
such a sight as I saw on the way. The road was
covered with unfortunate creatures, who had been
driven out of their homes by the Taipings. The
poor women were in a most fearful state; there were
numbers of them lying by the side of the road, some
dead, and others dying from starvation and ex-
haustion. I was horrified then, but have become
used to it now, as it is an every-day occurrence. I
scarcely ever go into the country without seeing some
poor people dead or dying.

When I got out tothe post the rebels had retreated
about four miles, and were amusing themselves
burning villages in their usual style.

On the morning of the 27th, as the rebels were
coming quite close to the town, another expedition
went out to meet them. Gordon and I went with
twenty-five sappers up a creek, in the hope of gaining
possession of a bridge six miles off, in order to cut
off their retreat. The remainder of the troops went
by a different route to try to take them by surprise,
but the expedition was a failure, as it is impossible
to get near the rebels unless you surround them.
86 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

They talk of another expedition, but I think we
shall not do anything until General Staveley, who is
in Japan, comes back; then I hope we shall go at
them in earnest, and take Nankin, their stronghold.

I have plenty to do here, which is a blessing, and
I am very comfortable. Gordon and I mess together.
Everything is very dear in Shanghai, but it is the
most money-making place under the sun. I shall
be obliged to keep a horse, as the works which I visit
are two miles distant, and it is killing work walking
in the sun. The troops here are very sickly. One
regiment has lost seventy men in less than as many
days. They get good food and a pint of porter
daily; but the men buy bad liquor themselves, and
drink it. There is a French regiment here, and I
think they are even worse than our men.

I was introduced to General Ward, the American,
who is an officer in the service of the Chinese
Government ; in fact, he has been made a mandarin;
he is a quiet-looking little man, with very bright
eyes, but is a regular fire-eater; he has saved £60,000.
He is married to a Chinese.

There is a surplus population here now of 70,000
villagers, driven in by the Taipings, which makes
provisions very dear.

September 3rd.

I have been out since, reconnoitring with Gordon.
The rebels have moved off about ten miles from here,
so we shan’t be troubled with them till the crops are
ripe. This is the dirtiest place you can imagine,
SHANGHAI. 87:

My duty often brings me through the Chinese part.
of the town, and you can have no conception of the
awful stenches there. I often—indeed almost every
day—come across a corpse. in a state of decom-
position. The Chinese do not bury their dead ; they
put them in coffins, and leave them by the roadside.
Some of the coffins are full of chinks—so you can
imagine! The population numbers about 300,000 ;
they swarm like flies; twenty or thirty live in a
small house.

Gordon read service to the men on Sunday morn-
ing, the chaplain being ill, Our church was the
shade of an old house, the men under arms, and all
standing. We buried a poor fellow in the evening ;
Gordon read a portion of the service. Seven men out
of sixty have died within the last three months. I
have just come from the hospital, where there are
eleven of our men out of forty-eight. I expect one
will be dead before evening. It is deplorable to see
so many poor fellows going. The officers all look
much better than the men, but that is easily
accounted for, as they are better fed, clothed and
lodged.

An officer arrived the other day with a young wife
and her sister; he could not get a place to lay his
head in for love or money. His own regiment could
not help him, as there are two or three officers in
every room, so the colonel sent him to Gordon, who
is the best fellow in the world. He (Gordon) went
to a shopkeeper’s wife, and begged accommodation
for the fellow for a few days, until he could get a
88 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

passage north, where they send all the married
officers, as it is much cooler than here. .He cannot
get a passage for less than £90, so he will remain
here until a Government.ship goes. The shopkeeper
won’t give him room any longer, so Gordon is going
to put him and the two ladies into his own quarters,
as he is going away for a few days. Gordon is
such a good-hearted fellow that every one in any
difficulty comes to him.

If there was no chance of fighting with the rebels
I would get sent away from here, but as long as
there is the hope of a row I shall remain.

To HIS BROTHER P.

SHANGHAI, August 29, 1862.

I suppose you know already that I was only eleven
days in Hong-Kong when I was ordered up here.
This place is about 700 miles from Hong-Kong. I
had a very pleasant voyage; we were in sight of
land all the time. The coast of China is very moun-
tainous until you get near here, when it becomes
quite flat for miles round. We landed on Sunday.
‘When I came on shore I heard that the rebels were
‘in the vicinity—indeed I could see the burning
villages (their work) all round. A party of forty
men was sent out to an advanced post called Fah-wa,
where two companies were stationed, to support
them in case the rebels attacked them; but there
was nothing done. I borrowed a horse and went out
with the doctor. The country is intersected by
SHANGHAI. 89

creeks, over which there are small stone bridges,
where any roads exist, and it is impossible to cross
the country elsewhere without portable bridges. On
the 26th (Tuesday) the rebels had the cheek to come
closer ; so an expedition, consisting of all the troops
in garrison, was sent out against them. Captain
Gordon, R.E., and I went by a different route from
the other troops, in order to try to cut them off by
taking possession of the bridge, but they had crossed
the bridge before we reached it. The troops fired
some shots at them, but I believe only two or three
were hit. We got two prisoners ; one was taken by
our party ; he was up to his neck in water (like the
old boy in the Pomptine Marshes). When General
Staveley returns from Japan, we shall have lots to
do, I think. Colonel Thomas, who is in command at
present, does not like to go at them in earnest on
his own responsibility. They are very numerous,
and fight better than the Imperial troops.

Iam going out to make a survey of.a proposed
road near the place they.were in the other day; I
don’t know whether we shall see them or not.

Gordon is my captain here; he is an extremely
nice fellow, and a very good Engineer. As I write he
has just come in to say that the rebels are in great
numbers in the place we are going to. They have
entrenched a village, and made a bridge (near the
one we intend to occupy), so that they can spread
over the country all round, and carry on their
marauding depredations. He wants Colonel Thomas
to send one hundred men to destroy the bridge.
90 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

There is a surplus population of 70,000 here now,
caused by the destruction of the neighbouring vil-
lages by the rebels. Whenever I walk out towards
our lines I see thousands of Chinamen driven in,
while lying by the roadside there are some dead and
dying. I was horrified by these sights at first, but
have become used to them now.

LETTER CONTINUED.

September ist.

Gordon and I went out on a reconnoissance with
fifty men, but found the rebels had gone about six
miles farther off, so if they leave us alone we shall
leave them alone—for the present.

One of our men died on Saturday. We buried
him yesterday in the most summary manner:
Gordon reading the Burial Service. There are
eleven men in hospital, and the remainder look
more like ghosts than men.

It is only four days from here to Japan. I expect
to spend a little time there when I can get leave. I
hear it is a beautiful country. I hope also to visit
Taku and Tientsin before I leave China.

There is a nice pointer dog here belonging to
General Staveley. I think I shall get hold of him
when the general leaves, as he has promised him to
Gordon, who says he will give him to me when he
is going away.
SHANGHAI. gr

DiaRY CONTINUED.

August 29, 1862.—Day very wet. Prince Witt-
genstein came. Promised him a map of the place.

30th.—Went on an expedition with Gordon to
reconnoitre. Had a guard of six Sappers and fifty
Punjaubees. Went first to road near “ Bubbling
Well,” then took road to bridge on Souchow Creek,
which rebels made: found it gone, and discovered
that the rebels had moved their camp six miles off:
came home by Fah-wa.

31st, Sunday.—Gordon read service to the men
under arms, and standing in shade of house, chap-
lain being ill. We buried a Sapper in the afternoon
at 6.30. Gordon read portion of Burial Service
and consigned the body to the earth. No firing.
Eleven men in hospital.

September 3vd.—Visited hospital and works. Rode
towards Bubbling Well and over ground between it
and Souchow with Gordon. Saw three dead bodies.

6th.—Made a trace of Shanghai and environs for
Wittgenstein. Gordon went to Sung-Kiang. Went
to Bubbling Well and laid out road to Rebels’ Bridge.

7th, Sunday.—Read prayers to men at g a.m.
Gordon returned. Very poorly.

gth.—A touch of dysentery. Got some medicine
from McCarthy, and remained in all day.

It is plain from the entries referring to his
health that he had begun already to suffer from
92 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

the effects of the climate. But in his unselfish
desire that those he loved should be spared
anxiety and distress on his account, he rarely
mentions his illnesses in his letters, or if he does,
it isin such a light way that his family had no
notion of the frequency and seriousness of the
attacks with which he was seized from the time
of his arrival in China.

SHANGHAI, September 10, 1862.

MY DEAREST MOTHER,—The weather here is a
contrast to what you describe at home. It is so hot,
the rays of the sun penetrate through everything—
our umbrellas and thick hats; or solos topee, as they
are called here. We sometimes have rain, and then
we shiver, but in a few hours the sun comes out and
causes the atmosphere to become a vapour bath, and
then we groan.

I have had a little employment laying out roads
since I came, and when the weather becomes bear-
able I shall have lots of surveying to do. We all
earnestly hope to have a “ go” at the Taipings when
the general comes back from Japan. They have
not come very near us since we made the last expedi-
tion against them ; but when the crops are ripe we
expect they will come to steal them. _

Shanghai is a wonderful place: sixteen years ago
it was only a small Chinese town; now it has quite
SHANGHAL. 93

the appearance of a large commercial city. There
are no less than 246 ships in the harbour at present:
Ports are being opened in the interior, and in a few.
years our trade in China will have increased enor-
mously. . . . Japan is another country I want you to
take an interest in, as I expect soon to get leave to
go there. The climate is beautiful, I hear, and the
scenery magnificent. There is a book on Japan by
Capt. Sherard Osborn which you must get and read,
as I want you to be interested in the country, and
what I shall be able to tell you about it when I shall
have been there. . .

The young officer who brought out the two. un-
fortunate ladies here succeeded at last in getting a
passage to the north at a reduced rate, through the
influence of Captain Gordon. . . . I wonder what his
poor wife thinks of China! I see by the English
papers just arrived that there is a report that our
troops were defeated by the rebels. Of course they
have got hold of the wrong end of the story. We
had a garrison at a place called Kahding; it was
surrounded by rebels, and we sent some men to
relieve it. Just when the garrison was relieved a
report got out that Shanghai was attacked, so all the
troops came back here post haste to defend the place
instead of waiting to polish off the rebels. It was a
false alarm-—all the invention of a Hong-Kong mer-
chant, who sent a telegram to say there was a disas-
trous retreat of our troops. Of course he made a
speculation on the strength of his lie /

I generally begin these letters a week before the:
94 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

mail leaves, and write from time to time, so am
afraid I often repeat myself; you must excuse that.
. . . If we have no fighting with the rebels, I shall
try to get up north to Tientsin, which is a much
healthier and cheaper place to live in than this.

You must not be uneasy about me. I was not
very well for a few days, but am now all right again.
I expect to take lots of long walks when the weather
gets cooler. I believe I have not told you about the
Baby Tower: it is a building just outside Shanghai.
When a baby dies it is thrown in, and when the place
is full they are all burned. They say that some chil-
dren are thrown in alive! At any rate there is no one
to inquire after them, as they are left altogether to
their mothers to do as they please with them. In
general, I believe, Chinawomen are as fond of their
children as other women; indeed, I saw it, when
they were running away from the rebels, they (men
and women) carried the children in baskets at the
end of bamboo sticks, being obliged thereby to leave
their household goods behind them—a wonderful
sacrifice for the Chinese.

LETTER CONTINUED.

September 17, 1862.

General Staveley has come back, and we are
preparing for winter; he has made Shanghai head-
quarters instead of Hong-Kong. Nothing has been
decided yet with regard to operations against the
rebels. We had an awful thunderstorm the other
SHANGHALT, 95

night — lightning so continuous that one could
almost read by it, and thunder like the noise of
cannons going off under one’s window. The weather
has become cooler since then. The winter is very
severe here; we are providing sheep-skin coats
for the men, and woollen underclothing. Every one
is in better spirits since the change. I was out
walking nearly all day, yesterday, and to-day. I had
an offer to-day of a trip to the tea-country; but as
it is in possession of the Taipings I shall not go at
present. Fellows who have just come from Japan
give a most flourishing account of it. There are
barons there with their strong houses and retainers
like England ‘‘in the brave days of old.” You have no
idea of the enormous prices here. I had to pay 28s.
for a bedroom candlestick, and 6s. for a shilling’s-
worth of note-paper the other day. Some of the
fellows here are put up by merchants whom they
know. I wish I had a friend of that kind! How-
ever, one fellow gives Gordon and me a house rent-
free. They all seem willing to spend money on
making the soldiers comfortable, and I must say they
are very liberal.

Diary CONTINUED.

September 12th.—Went round barracks to arrange
about canteen. Three men died of cholera.

‘13th.—Very poorly during the night. Saw Dr.
McCarthy: remained in, slept and read nearly all
day.

-14th.—Went to American Church at II a.m.,
96 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

and again in the evening. General Staveley re-
turned from Japan.

15th.—Day very cool and pleasant. Went to
Watergate and barracks, and to Ningpoo Joss in
the evening. Sapper Cunnagh buried to-day.

22nd.—Took over barracks and hospitals from
Gordon, who has gone to live at Stand House.

23rd.—Ward killed... ..

24th.—Saw Lee-ching, and ordered him to com-
mence the winter fitments to the quarters. Visited
New Road with Gordon.

25th.—Lee-ching came in the morning. Gave him
sketch of bamboo huts.

29th, Monday.—Rode out to Roads at 8 a.m.
Mail from England came in. News from Japan
that one Englishman has been killed and one
wounded. Visited all the works.

October 1st, Wednesday. — Employed repairing
barracks, &c. Rode to Fah-wa in the afternoon.

To wis SISTER E.

SHANGHAI, October 2, 1862.

Nothing new here, except that we
are to remain for the winter. We have not
killed any Taipings since, although they have
managed to kill General Ward. I saw him a.
short time ago, and was to have gone on an.
expedition with him. I liked the old fellow very .
much. The weather has become pleasantly cool.
SHANGHAI. 97

I am either on foot or on horseback the whole day
looking after work, and am in capital health and
as lively as a sandboy. You will see in the papers
that an Englishman has been murdered in Japan
by the followers of a Daimio. Japan is something
like what England was under the Normans: there
are a great many independent princes who have
retainers, and are very jealous of foreigners, although
the reigning Prince is favourable to them. We are
obliged to have a guard of European troops to pro-
tect our Legation at Yeddo; it is so bad that they
’ have to sleep with sentries in front of the house and
a revolver at hand. In going through the streets you
must keep a revolver in your hand, and if you meet
an armed man (who is sure to be a retainer of some
Daimio) you beckon to him to move away a sword’s
length from you. If a man makes a motion of
drawing his sword you shoot him instanter. They
think the English are cowards, as when they mur-
dered a couple of English sentries some time ago,
we only demanded money instead of ‘‘a life for a
life.’ That policy may suit China, but not Japan.
The Japanese are far superior to the Chinese in
every way, and if we come to blows we shall have
some tough work cut out forus.... The officers
here are getting up theatricals. The civilians pay
for the fitting up of the theatre. They are the most
liberal set of people I ever met, always ready with
money for everything; but then they are made
of it. There are to be races here soon. I expect
they will be very good, as no expense is spared in

7
98 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

getting out thoroughbred horses from England and
Arabs from India. I have a capital little chestnut
pony called Kitty; she was taken from the Taipings
by our troops. I only paid £10 for her. There
are very few ladies here, and they look very delicate;
they cannot stand the climate at all. I have not
made any acquaintances except among the military,
My duty brings me a good deal among the Chinese:
they are a slippery lot, and difficult to deal with,
but I can’t say I dislike them. They have been
accustomed to bad treatment from the Europeans
who came out here, as in every colony there are
many bad specimens of our countrymen to be found,
rough and not always straightforward. Of course
there are many exceptions. . . . I never look forward
to the time we shall all meet again, as it is too far
away: it will be time enough to begin thinking
about our meeting in a year or two. I shall be an
old boy, and near the top of the list of lieutenants.
If I were a captain now I should get £70 a month

I have begun to study Chinese. The dialect here
is different from the Hong-Kong. In the North
they speak the true Pekin, Court, or Mandarin
language, as it iscalled. My candle is nearly out, so
I must turn in. Good-night, dear Nell, wishing you
a good breakfast and myself pleasant dreams, which,
by the bye, I always have, even when I dream of
exterminating the Taipings and Japanese assassins.

October 5th.—Nothing new here since I began
this. The races will soon come off. It is the most
SHANGHAT, 99

‘ridiculous thing you can imagine to see the fellows
who ride out here. They go along with legs and
arms flying about as if they didn’t belong to them.
We call the shopkeepers here ‘“‘ Wincklers”—I don’t
know why. They have a volunteer corps and
some mounted men, called “Shanghai Rangers.”

Diary CONTINUED.

October 7th.—Made a reconnoissance on American
side.

8th.—Prince Wittgenstein came to live in Gordon’s
quarters.

toth.—Rode to within half a mile of Naitzean on
a reconnoissance. Did not see any rebels. Made
my report to Gordon.

15th.—Rumours of an expedition to Kahding this
week to take the place.

18th.—Rode towards Naitzean with Gordon to
reconnoitre road.
CHAPTER V.
1862.

SHANGHAI (continued).

“Who is the happy Warrior? Who is he
That every man in arms should wish to be?
—It is the generous Spirit, who, when brought
Among the tasks of real life, hath wrought %
Upon the plan that pleased his boyish thought :
Whose high endeavours are an inward light
That makes the path before him always bright :
* * * x *
Who, doomed to go in company with Pain,
And Fear, and Bloodshed, miserable train !
Turns his necessity to glorious gain.”
WORDSWORTH, The Happy Warrior.

THE contemplated expedition to take Kahding
from the rebels was quickly decided on. On the
date of the last extract from his diary, October:
18th, Lieutenant Lyster writes from Shanghai :—

We start on Wednesday to take a town called.
Kahding; it has been taken before by us, and-_
SHANGHAI. Ior

retaken by the rebels from the Imperialist troops
who were put in by us to garrison it. I cannot
say whether the rebels will make much, or any
resistance. I expect the less they make the better
for themselves. Meanwhile I am occupied making
myself acquainted with the country. Captain
Gordon and I have got an interpreter between us,
and we make excursions into the country. I take
good care not to venture too near the rebels by
myself, as it is objectionable to have one’s head cut
off. I cannot say if the mail will leave before we
return. I shall leave this to be posted, and if I
come back in time I shall open it to say I am all
right. On Tuesday, 21st, we make our final arrange-
ments to start early the next morning. I will finish
this on that day, so good-bye for the present.

Tuesday 21st, 5 a.m.

I have been called up unexpectedly, as our men
start a day before the others, and I have to take a
look at the road. I shall not be back again, so must
hurriedly conclude. I got up, shaved, dressed,
packed up my bed, &c., and shall be on horseback,
all in the space of forty minutes. Best love to all.
. . + The mail leaves the day we attack Kahding.

Diary CONTINUED.

October 19th, Sunday.—Started at 7 a.m. to make
out road from Fah-wa to Naitzean. Rode with
Lambert and interpreter; returned by1 p.m. Called
at Burgevine’s.
102 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

Proposed to Gordon to march the troops by
Bubbling Well and Wi-man-du.

20th, Monday.—Making preparations for expedition
to Kahding. Got seven Sampan boats and loaded
them with the following things :—

No. 1. Twelve bamboo ladders.

No. 2. Scaling ladders, 12 12” length, 2 6” length.

No. 3. Superstructure for four boat-bridges.

No. 4. Contained tools.

No. 5. Three pair of Artillery bridges, 20’.

No. 6. Contained two large trestles for Artillery
bridges.

No. 7. Ammunition.
. The boats started from Glasse’s post at Io a.m.
I left same time with a party of two R.E. corporals,
one European, and one N. Indian coolie orderly, and
sixteen coolies, a bamboo ladder, six picks and shovels
to repair the bridges. Made good two bridges, and
halted about two miles from Naitzean till the boats
came up; joined the boats, and arrived in Naitzean
at 3 a.m. on Wednesday.

2and, Wednesday.—Started from Naitzean at 6
a.m. towards Shanghai, and repaired two bridges,
which made the road complete from Shanghai to
Naitzean. Rode out to the front on Burgevine’s
horse, and returned about 3 p.m. The troops halted
this night at Naitzean.

23rd, Thursday.—Rode to the front on Gordon’s
pony, and took a look at Kahding, about 1,000 yards
distant. Recommended Burgevine to put his guns
on the left of the main creek. Burgevine opened
SHANGHAI. 103

fire with two howitzers, but was stopped by the
admiral.

At night went up with the boats to 600 yards of
the place, and put them into a creek to the right of
main creek, making bridges and everything ready.
Guns were got into position, and the troops to cover
them. The ladder and assault party told off, and
everything got ready to open fire the following
morning.

24th, Friday.—Opened fire at daylight. Firing
lasted for nearly two hours.

In the following letter he gives an account
of the storming of Kahding and his experiences
on entering the town :—

SHANGHAI, October 25, 1862.

My DEAREST MoTHER,—I write you a line to say
that I have just returned from Kahding, and am all
‘right, wind and limb.

I left here on Tuesday, 22nd of October, to repair
bridges, &c., along the route the troops would take
the following day. I arrived in Naitzean, a town
half way between Shanghai and Kahding, at 3 a.m.
(Naitzean was for some time in the possession of
the rebels, and is now in ruins).

I started on Wednesday morning at five o’clock, and
prepared the remainder of the bridges. On Tuesday,
23rd inst., the troops moved from Naitzean to a
village about a mile from Kahding. We then got
104- WITH GORDON JIN CHINA.

our boats with the scaling ladders and bridges up
to within 200 yards of the wall. The rebels fired a
good deal that day ; they wounded an officer of the
31st Regiment and some Chinese soldiers.

On Thursday night we got the guns into position ;
there were about twenty-seven guns, including
French and Ward’s Chinese troops. We returned’
no shots on Thursday, but on Friday morning we
opened fire from all the batteries at daylight. It
was a grand sight to see the shells breaking down
the wall and look-out places. I, with a naval
officer, had charge of the boats in which were the
ladders and bridges. When the cannonading had
gone on for about an hour and a half, we got the
boats up a creek which ran towards the wall,
dividing to the right and left of it. We went down
about 250 yards to the right, to where we thought
there was a good place to make the bridge. We
formed the bridge in a very short space of time, and
then the storming party, got across, and had no
trouble in getting into the town, there being only
a palisading to clear away. The rebels fired only
two or three shots at us as we brought up the boats.
I got two men to hand me rifles, and the moment I
saw a fellow looking over, or through the wall, in
order to fire, I let fly at him. You must not think
it boasting if I say I was well up to the front; but
these Taipings are such a despicable lot, there is no
credit in beating them. They made no resistance
after we got in; we might shoot them like dogs.
When I got over’ the wall I found a lot of them
SHANGHAI. 105

within a few yards of me; I sent a shot amongst
them, and told them to “ wilo,” which means “ hook
it.’ They all took to their heels, and I bolted after
them as hard as I could go, but I had to wait in the
middle of the place till a soldier of the 67th and two
of Ward’s officers came up. We then went on
together and took about twenty prisoners. We were
very near being cut off and surrounded, but we
hooked behind a house and waited till the main
body came up. I saved as many poor wretches as
I could. Ward’s men wanted to shoot them right
and left, but I objected. I was obliged to hit a
couple of fellows; one had a spear, and, as I wanted
to pass him to get to another—a swell in a green
jacket (the mandarins wear green), who was running
like fury—I was obliged to pepper him in the hams
before he dropped the weapon. I am happy to say I
did not kill one of them, and tried to save a good
many. I told them to ‘hook it,’ as I knew the
Chinese troops which were coming after us would
kill them without mercy. I pitied the poor women
toddling away on their little feet. A soldier near me
fired into a crowd of men, women, and children, and
killed a nicely-dressed woman. I would not let him
fire again, except at single individuals.

When I got to the other side of the town I found
a great number jumping over the wall and swimming
across the creek; many of them had their legs
broken, and some women were drowning. The
beasts never help each other. I met the Chinese
troops coming in as I went out, looting the place all.
106 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

over. I did not go into a house to get anything,
and the only memento I possess of the place is a pony,
whose owner I put to flight. I got pony, saddle,
sword, and pipe complete. He is a very fine pony;
I rode him into Shanghai to-day. I might have
taken five or six ponies, and no end of donkeys, but
I only wanted one. The French, as usual, took
everything they could get. People at home think
looting wrong, but, though I did not loot myself, I
do not consider it wrong with these people. They
run away, leaving everything they possess; they are
rebels; and why should not we have their goods as
well as the French or Chinese? I saw some of
them even take off their clothes in order to swim the
creek and get quickly away.
' The mail closes at once—so good-bye.

LETTER TO HIS MOTHER.

SHANGHAI, November 4, 1862.

I wrote my last letter in a hurry, as I had only
just returned from Kahding, and the mail closed in
an hour.

I was delighted to hear you were all well at
home, and that there was a prospect of a good
harvest. . . . Ihave been very busy since I returned
from the expedition. We had very hard work. I
had to be up nearly all night, and when I slept, it
was in a boat, with my clothes on; but I enjoyed
the whole thing very much. It is not yet known
whether we shall have any more. The rebels have’
SHANGHAI. 107

returned to the country, and Kahding is garrisoned
by. 5,000 Imperial troops; but they are sure to run
away the first time they are attacked. We took
Kahding once before, and the rebels retook it from
the Imperialists. The troops are healthy now, the
weather being just like the English climate at
present. The merchants here are very hospitable, but
I have not been out much,as I am too busy. ... At
the attack the other day I had charge of the bridges ;
we went up under fire, and made a bridge 50 feet
wide in about two minutes. There were five sailors
wounded in the boats. I had six men; one of them
was grazed with a rifle bullet. I have a sketch of
the place which I will send when I am writing next.
Another Engineer officer is coming up from Hong-
Kong. The general thinks he has work for three
or four more... .

I shall be delighted to get the photographs. I
have a good one of you which I often take a look
at in my peaceful hours. I have a real live prince
living with me—Prince Frederick of Wittgenstein.
He came out in the steamer with me to see the
place, and as he could not get lodgings I have put
him up. The ex-lunatic W. is staying here. I met
him at dinner the other night. Some people say he
is an impostor, but I don’t see the joke of passing
oneself off for a fool! . . . If a man only works here,
and has health, he is sure to get on; but the climate
is so bad one must have a very good constitution
to stand it, and in many cases the strongest men
are struck down.
108 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

Diary CONTINUED.

November 6th.—Got leave to employ men of 31st
Regiment in the works. Changed into Gordon’s
room. Bad with cold.

oth, Sunday. — Went to American Church.
Walked to Fah-wa with Christian.

12th.—Attended meeting of the committee for the
garrison sports, &c. Appointed secretary.

15th.—Started with the General, Gordon, and Cap-
tain Josling. Rode to Naitzean. Visited Fontai.
Went on to Wan-du, and found it in the hands
of the Imperial troops. Returned to Naitzean
and remained all night.

16th. — Surveyed at Naitzean. Visited the
stockades.

17th.—The force under Colonel Hough returned
to Shanghai, as the rebels were defeated by the
Imperialists.

LETTER TO HIS SISTER E.

SHANGHAI, November 22, 1862.

I have just received a sudden order to proceed to
Sung-Kiang, a place thirty miles from here,to survey.
. .. [have no assistance in packing, asmyservantsare
stupid, and one has to take a good many things—
“erub” included. We have got another officer from
Hong-Kong, and are over head and ears in work.
We commenced repairing storehouses and joss-
SHANGHAI. 109

houses to make them habitable for the troops on the
27th September last. They are now completed, and
will cost £10,000, which sum the Chinese Govern-
ment pays. You may imagine the trouble to get
the work done with bad workmen, and no one to
superintend. I am glad it is over. We are now
occupied in surveying, and are making roads right
up to the rebels. We will drive them before us by
the force of superior civilization.

Sung-Kiang is occupied by General Burgevine’s
forces. He (Burgevine) is Ward’s successor, and
he seems to be rather a nice fellow. There are some
English officers at Sung-Kiang drilling the men for
Ward. C.is one of them. You ask me to tell you
how I like the Chinese ladies. Well, I have not
spoken to a lady of any description since I came,
except the night I dined out, about two months ago.

The weather here now is beautifulvery cold, but
healthy. I am in splendid health—never better in
my life. I have no opportunity of sending you home
curios or Kumpshaws, but when I get one, won't
forget you. The ivory carving here is beautiful ;
cabinets exquisite, and jewellery that ladies would
delight in. . . . Iam anxiously looking out for the
album I wrote for, and expect to find it well filled
with photographs. I have no time for photography
here. I have a horse and a pony, which I can some-
times give plenty of work to. I only wish you or B.
were here to ride them. I lead a curious life, as in
the morning I don’t know where I shall get my
lunch or dinner, and orders come very suddenly.
110 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

The mail leaves to-morrow, so I shall not have time
to write to you from Sung-Kiang.

To nis MOTHER.

SunG-Kiana, December 2, 1862.

You see I have changed my quarters. I have
come down here temporarily to survey the country,
This place is about thirty miles from Shanghai, up
the Whampoariver. It isa walled Chinese town, and
does not belong to us; it has a garrison of Ward’s
drilled Chinese, about 2,000 men. The country
round is now quite clear of rebels, so I am safe in
my excursions. There are a few Europeans here—
Ward’s officers and some of our soldiers—who were
sent down from Shanghai to drill the Chinese. I
was not very comfortable when I came at first, as I
had to put up in a Chinese house without any glass
in the windows, and the weather being frightfully
cold, I was nearly frozen. However, I am now
much better off, as I live in Burgevine’s house.

Burgevine is Ward’s successor ; he is a Southern
American. He is very well paid by the Chinese,
getting £4,000 a year and a Kumpshaw (present) for
every city he takes. Sung-Kiang is the headquarters
of his force. It was once a very nice city, the prin-
‘cipal one in the province, and where the Chinese
literary degrees were conferred, but the rebels took it
and demolished the greater number of the fine
buildings. It has been now, for about two years, in
SHANGHAI, III

possession of Ward’s force, and was besieged last
spring by about 40,000 rebels, who surrounded it
on all sides, but did not succeed in taking it.

The country round is beautiful, and I have never
seen anywhere anything to equal it in fertility. I
dined on Saturday last with the Sung-Kiang Fou, a
swell mandarin of the province. We began dinner
at 2p.m. They say the Chinese cookery beats the
French: I quite think so. We had an innumerable
quantity of dishes; the viands were served cut up
in small bowls, and we helped ourselves with chop-
sticks. I could not manage the chop-sticks, and had
to use a fork, which we wisely sent on before. At
first they served up about twenty dishes of cold
fowl, brawn, fruit, eggs—six years old (these are
kept buried until required)—and vegetables. I did
not expect any more, and foolishly helped myself
rather plentifully, but to my surprise a fresh relay
came in of birds’-nest soup, and then a number of
other dishes, getting more substantial every course.
It is the custom here to keep on offering fresh dishes
to the guests as long as they partake of them. The
Chinese host is quite proud if he can keep you
going for twelve hours without exhausting his re-
sources. We could not drink their liquor, so sent
our own champagne. We sat two hours at dinner.
I could not do any work for the remainder of the
day, and had the nightmare after I went to bed!

I do not get any extra pay here, as I am in the
Queen’s service, but the English officers who are
drilling the Chinese get £1,200 a year for it,
112 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

Burgevine told me he wanted to organize an En-
gineer corps, but I did not offer my services. I don’t
know that I should be allowed to do so, or that he
would have me, but I think he would. Gordon
advised me some time ago to offer, and said he would
manage it for me, but it is not yet settled on what
footing we should be, and since then we have got a
frightful amount of work to do. I expect before long
there will be a grand operation against the rebels.
Burgevine wants to take Nankin, their stronghold,
but I think, if he attempts it with only his own force,
he will be beaten. I hope we shall be allowed to
help him. . .

I have now experienced a little of a Chinese
winter, and find it very pleasant; the cold is such a
relief after the hot weather. I sleep in flannels and
between blankets to avoid the damp, so you see how
careful Iam. One gets quite fat in the winter here.
If you could see me now, you would not regret my
coming to China. I have seen so many remarkable
things since I came, that when I write I can scarcely
recall single ones to my memory. When I go back
I shall have any amount of stories to tell you. We
are getting a tremendous hold of the Chinese,
drilling their men, taking their customs, and govern-.
ing their cities, and none of them seem to object,
except the mandarins, who of course do not like:
being put out of power. Ward’s force is officered
by Europeans; a good many are Irishmen, but they:
are a very bad lot. Burgevine would be glad to get rid
of them. Burgevine was educated at West Point.
SHANGHAI. 113

Military School; his brother is adjutant-general in
the Southern army. I don’t know what brought him
here ; he is married to a Chinese woman. He was
very badly wounded last spring—shot through the
body. Medical men say his escape was a miracle.
Poor old Ward is buried here in Chinese fashion—
his coffin over-ground. This place was his head-
quarters. He came out to China as mate of a
ship, outlawed from America,and has died worth
a million and a half. He was often wounded, and
people had the idea he could not be shot.

It is now late, and I must be up at daylight, so
will say good-bye, with best love to all.

* * * * *

There is a Chinese proverb which says that a
man to be particularly lucky should be born at
Canton, married at Souchow, and live at Sung-
Kiang.

The first place is celebrated for clever men, the
second for beautiful(!) women (can one fancy a
beautiful Chinawoman?), and the last for fine
scenery.

DIARY CONTINUED.

Wednesday, December toth.—Sent letter to Gordon.
Got Sui-fang back. Went to Litu-wei by West
Creek. Got a note from Gordon and Maud.

11th—Day very wet. Sent tracings of work to
Gordon.

12th.—Went towards Nas pagoda and fixed it;

8
114 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

returned along Whampoa bank to the Litu-wei Creek.
Got back at 8-30 p.m.

14th.—Day very fine and frosty. Surveyed some
creeks about Litu-wei.

Monday.—Day very wet. Started for Sing-poo,
but obliged to return.

16th.— Revising work and drawing.

To HIS BROTHER P.

December 20, 1862.

I was staying in a Chinese city a week ago, and
inside the wall (four miles in circumference) there
were ‘pheasants, wild duck, and snipe! It is the
grandest shooting country I know. You can get to
any place in boats, and make yourself quite com-
fortable, shoot all day, and sleep in the boat at
night. The merchants here do not shoot much, as
they are not sportsmen, and are only keen on the
dollar !

Just now we are driving the rebels outside the
bounds, namely, thirty miles round Shanghai.
There is talk of taking Nankin from the rebels.
The English troops will not be allowed to go against
it, but some English officers may be allowed to
direct the operations. If so, the place will probably
be taken; if not, there is not much chance of it, as
the drilled Chinese are officered by civilians, sailors,
and private solders discharged from our service, not
one of whom could direct any operations. I will do
my best to go. It would be a grand thing if I were
SHANGHAI, 115

the only English officer, and we succeeded. But I
think it is very likely that Captain Gordon, R.E.,
will go. If he does, they have the best man in
China to show them the way.

To nis MoTHER.

SHANGHAI, December 27, 1862.

I received your long letter when I came back from
Sung-Kiang. I am going out again to-morrow to
survey another part of the country. This time I
shall have some troops with me. I return in about
eight days, and go out again in another direction for
ten or twelve days more.

The weather now is very cold—a great deal of
frost. It is colder than I ever felt it at home. The
thermometer goes down to 20° at night. It will be
no joke roughing it in tents. I am not going to
Nankin, as the general will not allow any of the
officers to take part in the operations. I don’t think
they will come off for some time, as they are not
quite ready yet. Do not be anxious if you don’t
receive letters from me as punctually as heretofore,
as I may be away in the country when the mail
leaves, and have no opportunity of sending a letter.

I spent a very mild Christmas Day.. Had my
breakfast with one regiment and dined with another.
I thought of you at home, and only wished I could
drop in among you all. The men spent their Christ-
mas in the usual way that soldiers do abroad: by
getting drunk, and making beasts of themselves
116 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

eating too much. It was the same at Gibraltar.
I have never had the luck to be quartered out of a
large garrison, and I am afraid never shall. Our
operations against the rebels are over for some time,
at least. We have cleared the country for the
specified distante round Shanghai (thirty miles).
_I am still employed surveying it. There was nothing
known of it before, not even the existence of large
towns. The rebels can return at any time, as the
towns are only garrisoned by Imperial troops; but I
expect when they find we do not interfere with them
as long as they keep clear of the thirty miles radius,
they will have sense enough not to come closer. . . .
I sold one of my nags the other day. I have only
one now, which is quite enough for me in the cold
weather. This is the one I borrowed (!) from the
rebel at Kahding! He is a capital pony. I rode
him over thirty miles yesterday.

There is a Government photographic apparatus in
Hong-Kong. Gordon has applied to have it sent up
here, so I may have an opportunity of taking a few
photographs. They are very dear to buy here—two
dollars for the commonest kind. When I go to
Japan I think I shall take the camera with me, as
there are beautiful views to be got there. It would
also be a good opportunity to get a look at the
fortifications.

Next month will be the coldest of the year. All
the Chinamen wear five or six coats, the outer one
being sheepskin, or some kind of fur. One can
scarcely imagine that a few months ago it was
SHANGHAI. 17

roasting hot, and now it is freezing cold. It is this
that wears out the men’s constitution, and there is
only one thing that will keep one in health, and that
is, plenty of work—the more the better. I was
never so well, except when I was at the Curragh, as
I was at Sung-Kiang, where I had to stand any
amount of draughts, and sleep in a boat now and
then.

A great number of the men here get what they
call the “ shakes.” It is fever and ague. A fellow
will be quite well in the morning, and before the day
is over may be attacked quite suddenly with this
malady. It, however, does not last very long.

I expect we shall build barracks here soon, as it
is an immense expense fitting up the storehouses
and hiring them, &c. It cost £12,500 to buy stores
and fit the houses, &c., up for the troops, and I
should be afraid to say how much it costs a month
for the hire of some of the buildings. I expect the
Chinese will be obliged to pay it all up. At present
they refuse to give any more; but it would be very
hard on the English Government to have to pay for
the troops which protect a lot of Chinese, and any
amount of Americans, Germans, &c. The French
have troops here to protect themselves.

It is a curious thing here that all the clerks in the
Chinese Custom House are English! The Chinese
cannot trust their own officials. In some transac-
tions they are quite honest, but a bad custom pre-
vails amongst all mandarins and officials. It is
called “squeezing,” and means extorting sums of
118 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

money. The Government squeezes the governor
of a province, he squeezes the mandarins under
him, and they in their turn squeeze the rich
merchants. The rich men here never have nice
houses, as they are afraid to show their wealth.
They, however, spend large sums in feasting—the
only way they have of getting rid of their money.
The governors of provinces do not receive any
regulated pay, but are allowed to make an income
by taxing those under them. China is too large a
country to be governed by one head.

I hope you all spent a happy Christmas, and that
I was the only absent one. This is the third Christ-
mas I have been away from home; two more, and
then we may meet! I am afraid to think of all I
shall see and pass through during the coming year.
As for you, I trust it will find you all well and

happy.

é

The beginning of the year 1863 was passed
by the young Engineer in making surveys of
the surrounding country. From the entries in
his diary for the month of January we see that
he was again attacked by the malady from
which he suffered at intervals from the time of
his arrival in China.

Fanuary, 2, 1863, Friday.—Started at 9 a.m., riding
to Taitsan. Walked from Taitsan to Loti and back
SHANGHAI. 119

to Sungpahong, where 360 Beloochees under Colonel
Hough cantoned for the night.

3rd.-—Started at 9 a.m., riding to Loti. Surveyed
from Loti to Sungpahong.

5th, Monday.—Marched from Loti to Ladong (five
miles), and rode out to Ludochow with seven gunners.
Had a skirmish with the rebels.

6th.— Went from Ladong to Ludochow. Saw
rebels, but did nothing... .

5th.— Marched from: Loti to Sandong and to
Powshan, surveying. Slept in joss-house.

roth, Saturday.—Returned to Shanghai.

13th.—Got the order to start with the expedition
on Thursday. ...

Expedition postponed till Friday.

16th, Friday.—Started at 12 for Nimpong. The
gunboat Havoc towing the boats. Arrived at Nim-
pong at about II p.m.

17th.—Surveyed from Nimpong, 63 miles. Felt
worse with an attack of dysentery.

1gth.—Stopped all night in a small creek near
Nimpong. In the morning could not make way,
as wind and tide were unfavourable.. Got on shore
and walked back twelve miles.

20th.—Saw Gulland and got some medicine from
him.

21st.—On sick list.

24th.—Expedition returned, except Gordon and
Daniells. ...

24th.—Came off sick list.

29th.—Gordon and Daniells returned.

31st.—Changed quarters to Hare-hound Street.
120 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

On February 4th he writes to his sister :-—

I believe I am somewhat in your debt. I have
been knocking about so much lately, I did not know
exactly how my letter account stood. . . . I suppose
you are quite tired of hearing about the rebels, so I
shall not say anything about them. I have changed
my quarters, and am very comfortable here. The
rents here are enormous. For instance, this house
has accommodation for eight officers, and we pay
£100 a month for it. ...

We have got up a theatre, and a performance will

soon come off.
February 8th.

Nothing has happened since I began this. There
is an expedition going out to take a city called
Taitsan from the rebels. I believe no English troops
are going—only Ward’s men. I am going out
surveying to-morrow or next day, and expect to
remain away a week or ten days. I shall be by
myself, which is very melancholy. It is horribly
lonely when you are in a wild country, and have no
one to speak to. It does not matter during the day
when you are busy, but at night—just imagine
coming in wet and miserable, and finding nothing
for dinner except a piece of cold beef and bread, and
then turning in to sleep until daylight, with not a
soul near you except your servant. There has been
perpetual frost for the last three days, and I expect
we are in for lots of snow. I never felt it so cold
at home as I do here at night.
SHANGHAI. 121

There have been several balls here lately, but I
have only been to one. They all have a superfluity
of gentlemen, and no unmarried ladies, which is not
inviting! ...

DIARY CONTINUED.

February 9, 1863.—A review of the troops by
General Staveley. Finished the schedule and sent
it in.

toth.—Doing a copy of plan of Shanghai. Called
on Alabaster about an interpreter.

r1th.—Making arrangements to start for Kahding.
Got two boats from the Consulate.

12th.—Got an interpreter from Gordon. Dined at
Artillery mess, and started at g p.m. for Woosung.
Slept between Shanghai and Woosung.

13th.— Arrived at Woosung at I p.m. Slept
between Woosung and Kahding.

14th.—Started for Kahding at 6 a.m. Arrived at
1pm. Left at 3.30. Arrived at Wei-Kong-tsu at
7 p.m., and at Taitsan at I p.m.

15th, Sunday.—-Holland defeated.

16th, Monday. Rode from Shanghai to Wei- Kong,
and reported to General by sending Corporal Loftus
from Kahding. Sat up all night at Loti, waiting for
boats.

17th.—Started at daylight. Rode from Loti to
Woosung, and then to Shanghai.

18th.—Rode from Shanghai to Kahding. Met
General and troops. Sent home horse and walked
from Kahding to Wei-Kong-tzu, and slept there.
122 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

19th, Thursday—Rode from Wei-Kong with general
and escort towards Taitsan, and then to Lodong and
Ludochow. Surveyed with Gordon. Met boats at
Naitzean, and sent them back.

20th, Friday—Returned to Shanghai with Thomp-
son.

2ist, Saturday.—Artillery escort and Gordon came
back ; aiso Maud. Gordon appointed to Sung-Kiang.

On February 22nd he writes to his mother :—

SHANGHAI.

I did not write last mail, as I was rather pressed
for time. I think it is the only mail I have missed
since I left home. You will see by the papers that
the steamer Colombo was wrecked and the mail not
recovered : she carried some letters for you.

The weather here now is glorious—cold nights and
very hot days....

The Chinese New Year is being celebrated at
present ; they kecp it for five days, during which
time they indulge in any amount of eating. They
are very careful in squaring their accounts before
the beginning of the year. A man who cannot pay
his debts to his neighbours at this time is considered
a defaulter. The Chinese are a very business-like
people, but are not so straightforward, quick, and
independent in action as Englishmen.

I have just returned from an expedition. I wit-
nessed a singular defeat of Ward’s drilled Chinese
by the rebels the other day. The force, under an
SHANGHAI. 123

English officer, Captain Holland, Royal Marines,
went to take a place called Taitsan. It is outside
the district we are protecting, therefore we had
nothing to do with it, as we have a kind of treaty
with the rebels, that if they do not come within
thirty miles of Shanghai, we will not attack them.
I was sent up by the general to survey Taitsan
(when taken) and the country round, and arrived
while Captain Holland was besieging the town.
Through bad management in the Engineer depart-
ment Holland’s force was repulsed, and had to retire
in haste, losing two guns. This is a great blow for
the drilled Chinese, as they were never beaten in
Ward’s time. I don’t know what will become of
Holland, as he was only in temporary command, but
I expect he will have to give it up.

Captain Gordon, R.E., has been promoted to major.
He is trying to get the command of this force, and I
think will succeed; if so, I should like to take service
under him if I am allowed. I would not like to
serve under a man of so junior a rank unless he
belonged to my own corps... .

The general marched out the troops after Holland’s
repulse, and I went with them, so for the last few
days I have had a very rough time of it. I thank
God I am in good health, and hope, by being careful,
to continue so.

I am going out again next week on another
surveying expedition, which will, I believe, be the
last. . . . I was not allowed to assist Holland in any
way. ... However, I looked after some wounded men.
124 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

There were about sixteen officers and 150 men
killed and wounded, a great many for a small
affair.

The health of the troops now is everything that
could be desired... .

I can imagine the garden at home looking very
pretty this spring. I don’t see any flowers or roots
here worth sending you ; but there may be some up
North; I shall look out for them when I go there....

I have got your photograph copied and painted in
oils by a Chinaman. I had to tell him the colour of
your hair, eyes, and complexion: he has hit them off
wonderfully. I stood behind him till he made them
all right.

Diary CONTINUED.

February 24th—Left Shanghai for Minhong. Sur-
veyed part of road, twelve miles.

26th.—Boats started from Luchin to Wondu. Got
stuck twelve miles from Wondu. Walked to Wondu:
arrived at 8 p.m. and dined with mandarin. .

27th.—Surveyed from Lade to Wondu.

28th.—Rode from Naitzean, six miles up to Molo.
Met Maud and boats at Fontu at 2 p.m.

March 1st.—Went out shooting before breakfast
and brought in two pheasants. Surveyed to one
mile from rebel stockade.

and.—Surveying Kahding. Day very hot.

4th.—Completed survey. Rode into Shanghai.

About this time he received orders from
SHANGHAI. 125

headquarters to take over the duties of Major
Gordon at Shanghai on the appointment of the
latter to the command of the Chinese contin-
gent.

March 17th.—Went out with Gordon and talked
over the Chinese contingent.!

18th.—Took over maps and plans from Gordon.

23rd.—Gordon appointed to Ward’s force. I take
charge of the company.

25th.—Gordon left for Sung-Kiang.

To Huis MoTHER.
SHANGHAI, March 8, 1863.

I look on it as the greatest blessing having so
many near relatives to love and esteem. It is a
great incentive to do what is right. I don’t think I
should care much what became of me if I had no
home to look forward to. . . . I should so much like
when I go back to find everything the same as it was
when I was with you last spring, but we have no
control over such things. I often look back on the
short leaves spent at home. They are the bright
spots of my life... .

I must now tell you that we have finished the big
map we were making. It is an immense thing. .. .
The general is delighted with it, and every one says the

* This entry refers to‘the project he was considering of taking
service with Major Gordon in the Chinese force.
126 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

Engineers deserve a great deal of credit. My share
was small, but Gordon worked day and night. The
way in which we worked was this: we got an
escort of troops, some boats, and ten or twelve days’
provisions, and made a tour round the country, sur-
veying as we went on. When we came home we
“plotted” the work (put it on the map), got our clothes
washed and repaired, and started again. I enjoyed
these expeditions immensely. I only returned from
the last one a few days ago. We (two of us) hada
boat each, and four sappers with us. The boats are
flat-bottomed and covered with bamboo matting, in-
side which we slept: they are very comfortable, as
they have boards to put your bed on, and the matting
keeps out the rain. We used to get up at daylight,
dress, and get our breakfast of hot tea, or cocoa, and
bread and meat; then start for some other town ten
or fifteen miles away, I going in one direction sur-
veying, and the other officer in another; the sappers
taking care of the boats. About dusk we generally
arrived at our destination, hoping to find the boats
and a substantial dinner waiting for us. However,
we have often been disappointed, and left without
either all night. If the place happened to be inhabited,
‘we would find out the mandarin and tell our story (I
had generally an interpreter with me): he would prob-
ably regale us with tea and a few sugar-plums, when
we were simply starving! and allow us to sit up all
night ina coldroom to wait until the boats came (there
are no fires or fireplaces in Chinese houses). Ihave
been benighted several times—once by myself in a
SHANGHAI. 127

town where there were only a few inhabitants. I
went into an empty house, got a fellow to make tea
and boil some rice, for which I paid a dollar. A
number of the villagers brought in a table, chairs,
and lights; they sat up with me all night, playing
dominoes and drinking tea, while I sat at the fire. I
had ridden nearly forty miles that day, and had to
ride twenty-four the next day to get some breakfast.
The last time I was benighted—only a few days
ago—lI started at daylight to ride thirty-six miles to
a place from which I was to begin surveying for
twelve miles. It was arranged that another officer
would meet me with my boat. It was seven o’clock
when I arrived at the appointed place, and there were
no boats to be seen, so I went to the mandarin,
who most provokingly gave me tea and some sweets,
when I could have eaten a horse! I had just made
up my mind for a long fast when I heard the fellow’s
voice outside ; but alas! he had not brought my boat;
he had sent it on with the men, and they had lost
their way. However, I ate his provisions and slept
in his boat, long boots and all! The next day I got
my boat all right, and we had a very pleasant trip.
We have a little excitement sometimes in these
expeditions, when we get close to the rebels. Ina
suspicious place I always put the boats in a stvategical
position (that is, in a spot where we could land
quickly and take to our legs across country), and set
a man to keep watch all night. I would just as soon
be caught napping by a pack of hungry wolves as by
the rebels. The other day I had to survey quite
128 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

close to them. I had great difficulty in getting the
interpreter to go with me. When we arrived I gave
him my pony to hold, but getting afraid that if a
rebel showed himself a mile off this fellow would
ride off and let my pony go, I went to a mandarin
in the neighbourhood, and got him with four soldiers
to go in front, and told the interpreter that he would
be the first victim if he let my pony go. This put
the poor fellow in an awful fright. When I got to the
village the soldiers told me that twenty rebels had
been there that morning, and that they had an en-
trenchment a quarter of a mile off; but I did not
believe either statement. The Chinese mandarins
and men are the most unprincipled, mean, boasting,
cowardly brutes on this earth. They can only be
got to do anything by two means: one is fear, and the
other is payment. There is no such thing as love
or honour; a man will sell his father, a father his.
child, even to a foreigner. The Tartars are a much
finer race, but there are none here, as they cannot
stand the climate.

The rebels have been very successful lately: they
beat Ward’s force, killing several hundred. I was
looking on as I was surveying the country. The
failure was entirely through bad generalship in the
commanding officer, who was a Royal Marine. If a
cadet from Woolwich had the direction he would
have done better. General Holland had no idea.
beyond brute force. He actually told me, when I
was at Sung-Kiang, and had an argument with him
about the last French and Austrian campaign, that
SHANGHAI. a 129

he did not believe in tactics! My idea is, that with
a small number of drilled Chinese against a large
number of rebels, you should take every advantage
of superior knowledge. I was not allowed by the
general to take any part in the action. When
General Holland told me he was going to retreat, I
asked him not to do so, and showed him what to do;
but he said he could not depend on his men to remain
an hour longer with him, that they would all desert,
—which may have been true. So he retired to Sung-
Kiang, losing two guns. He, throughout all the
operations, did not take the least advantage of tactics.
General Ward, who was not a professional soldier,
would have acted better.

The French Chinese Contingent Force were well
beaten the other day. The general (a captain in the
French army) was killed, also a lieutenant of the
R.N. There will be a row about this, as Captain
Dew, R.N., went there with two of his officers and
some men to help the Chinese, which he had no
right to do, as the place is outside the country we are
protecting. His lieutenant (Tinling, a very nice
fellow) was shot in the head. Captain Dew will, I
think, be responsible for bringing him there.

I must now tell you that Captain Gordon has been
promoted to a brevet-majority, and has been appointed
from Pekin to command the Chinese contingent. He
has asked me to join him, and of course I have con-
sented. I don’t yet know if I shall be allowed to do
so, but I expect I shall. You may think me rather
inconsistent in joining the Chinese, disliking and

9
130 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

despising them as I do. But I have many reasons
for doing so. Firstly, I shall have to remain in
China two years longer, and I don’t want to be idle
during that time; besides, I shall get plenty of ex-
perience in the field with the Chinese force. Secondly,
I shall hold a high position and get better pay.
Thirdly, Major Gordon is just the man I would go
anywhere with. I am not sure that I should join if
they were under any other officer. The only objection
I have to Shanghaiis the climate. I could get service
in a contingent in the North, but then I should not
be with Gordon. If Iam not allowed to goI shall
still be ina good position, being the senior officer here
for some time at least.

I expect to go up to Tientsin and Pekin. Gordon
is kindly sending me on duty. I will make a trip of
it at the same time. Every fellow who has been
North says it is by far the best part of China. We
are sending over two men-of-war from here to Japan.
I am afraid the disturbance there will bring on a war
with us: if so, I would throw the Chinese over-
‘board. ...

I hope the fine weather will soon be in: it is now
alternately hot and cold, wet and dry. I am in
splendid health, thank God, I may send you a photo-
graph soon, but it is not necessary%o reassure you.
I am as fat as when I was at the Curragh. .. .

The following letter to his sister is written
on the same date :-—
SHANGHAT. 131

March 8, 1863.

Do not imagine that amongst my many occupa-
tions and wanderings I ever forget any of you. We
often say, when sitting over a fire by moonlight in a
ruined Chinese village, committing any amount of
old Chinese furniture to the flames, ‘‘ I wonder what
our friends at home would say if they saw us now.” I
am constantly wishing I could sketch well, I would be
able to send you any amount of funny pictures. One
thing amuses me intensely and that is the amazement
of the Chinamen at the phenomenon of an English-
man performing his toilet, especially when they see
you immerse yourself in cold water, a numerous shiver-
ing crowd stand round, gazing open-mouthed and
giving forth ejaculations of “ Eu jah!” which means,
I suppose, ‘‘O dear!” They themselves never feel
cold water during the winter and the greater number
of them do not even take off their clothes for months.
There is no cloth in China, so they wear many gar-
ments of cotton. I have seen a man with five or six
coats on and some of them padded. The women
and children are complete bundles; the latter can
scarcely move and they are all filthy. I was very
much amused the other day at a Chinaman under
rather serious circumstances. A bullet struck him
and he dropped down in a sitting posture: there
was a hole in his coat so he peeled it off; then came
another coat with a hole in it, he tore that off; but
still the hole appeared in an under-garment. Well,
I could not tell you how many coats he took off,
still finding the bullet hole. When nearing the end of
132 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

his search, his countenance assumed a most anxious :
and doleful expression. At last he came to his
yellow skin, which he found to his satisfaction,
whole—the bullet having just grazed his ribs. The
peeling off the garments and the hole still appearing,
reminded me forcibly of J., when he used to fire his
little cannon at an old book, and then triumphantly
turn over page after page to show you how many it
had penetrated. The recollection of this made me
burst out laughing.

I saw many fellows have what you would call
miraculous escapes. One shot through the ear.
Another hit by a bullet which struck the ornament
on the front of his cap, and being turned by it only
grazed his skull. Another fellow had his front teeth
knocked out, and several were shot through their
clothes. One feels a bit nervous at first, but soon
gets used to it; and after a very short time one does
not mind it much. The Emperor of China wants
to give us a medal for fighting the rebels, but I don’t
think the Queen will authorize it... .

I am very busy just now, as we are getting up
races and games for the soldiers. I shall be glad
when they are over. They had garrison theatricals
here lately, but I did not patronize them. . .. You
can scarcely imagine me instructing a lot of fellows
with pig-tails as to the correct mode of circumvent-
ing and annihilating their fellow-countrymen! Such
will be my work if I go into the Chinese service.
SHANGHAL. 133

To His SISTER E,

SHANGHAI, March 21, 1863.

... The rebels are not troubling: us now, but may
begin to do so at any time; they usually choose the
hot weather for their raids. The survey is completed,
and a copy goes home by this mail. Major Gordon
was kind enough to mention me specially. . . . We
are all in good health, I am thankful to say, the only
prevalent illness being neuralgia. The Chinese are
suffering however from other ailments, as they are
beginning now to feel the effect of leaving their skins
unpolluted by water during the winter. My little
rebel, who is invaluable to me, has been annoyed
with a common Chinese disease. I have obliged
him to apply soap and water to his hide twice a day
on pain of being licked: he now takes to it quite
‘‘natural like,” and carries himself in to me regularly
for inspection. I don’t know what to do with myself
just now as there is a respite of work. I should have
gone to Japan or Pekin, but Major Gordon is leaving,
and I must remain pro tem. I have taken advantage
of an officer’s going to Japan to invest in curios to the
amount of {15 or £20. So you see I have not quite
forgotten you. I told him to buy things suitable for
ladies, with a number of knicknacks, &c. also many
tobacco pouches for the boys: so, have your minds
duly prepared for something stupendous. I trust I
shall soon have an opportunity of.sending the things
to you. :

This place is becoming more important every day;
134 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

one wonders more is not thought of it in England,
when one sees the brief descriptions of the country,
&c., in the papers, and the large space occupied with
frivolous matters. I was highly entertained with an
interesting paragraph in a Kilkenny paper relating
how a gentleman had lost a gold watch !

You will be horrified to hear thatI shall not be a
captain for five years more. I was looking over the
list to-day and was grieved to findit so. I am not
ambitious, but 27 is very old for a subaltern! .. .

If I get through China and go home, I have laid
out my plans for the future. I would give a great
deal, dear E., to go home for one week and see you all
again. The farther we are from home the more we
think of it, and all our thoughts and aspirations
focus to the one point, namely, the time when we
shall arrive in old England, or Ireland, as the case
may be. :

Be sure you tell me all about the horses when you
are writing next. I hope you and B. have plenty of
riding. ... I have a very nice pony now, but do
not ride him much except on expeditions. Major
Gordon gave him to me on the condition that I
should give him back if he wants him. I have
also been promised a very nice pointer, belonging to
the General, who will not take him home. I spent
St. Patrick’s evening with young Handy, who is a
very nice fellow. I procured a bit of shamrock in
honour of the day.

I hear there has been some distress amongst the
poor farmers in Ireland. When will they become
SHANGHAI. 135

comfortable? Here, if a man works for six months,
he can feed himself for twelve. It was almost the
same in Spain; yet at home they work hard for
twelve and starve. It is very hard.

Many of the civilians are going home before the
advent of summer. I think last summer startled
them, as about one-tenth of the Europeans died ;
but the greatest loss was amongst their protectors.

Major Gordon goes to Sung-Kiang in a few days,
then I shall be head swell here, unless I am allowed
to go with him, which I am anxious to do. Imagine
my having descended to be an Instructor to the
Celestials in the science and art of war (very little
of the former I am afraid!). But such are the ups
and downs of the world.

Diary CONTINUED.

March 28th—Gordon came down here. Put six
bamboo ladders and four artillery bridges on board
the Hyson for him.

April 1st.—Making preparations for Gordon’s ex-
pedition to Fushan. Got a Madras platform and
five hundred baskets of sand-bags.

3rd, Good Friday.—Church in the morning. No
men employed on works.

6th.—Day very wet. Received bullet-moulds from
Sung-Kiang. Settled about rifle match.

gth, Thursday.— Gordon returned after taking
Fushan.
136 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

13th.—Went with Gentia to joss-house for
Gordon. :

14th, Tuesday.—Put things on board the Hyson for
Gordon.

15th.—Hyson went to Sung-Kiang.

16th.—Hyson returned.
CHAPTER VI.
1863.
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA.

‘* He who, though thus endued as with a sense
And faculty for storm and turbulence,
Is yet a Soul whose master-bias leans
To home-felt pleasures and to gentle scenes ;
Sweet images ! which wheresoe’er he be,
Are at his heart; and such fidelity
It is his darling passion to approve ;
More brave for this, that he hath much to love!”
WORDSWORTH (Zhe Happy Warrior).

On April 6th, he writes :—

We are all most anxious about Major Gordon,
who has made his first campaign with the disciplined
Chinese. He has gone to take a place called
Fushan, which the Imperialists attacked, but failed
at three times. I trust he will get through it all
right ; he is so regardless of danger it makes one
uneasy.

I am by myself now, but expect there will soon be
a captain sent, as this is rather too important a post
138 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

for a subaltern. The housing of the troops and
officers here now costs over £2,000 per month. I
wonder what the Government will say when they
have to pay up! In addition to that, Gordon and I
have spent over £14,000 since I came here in re-
pairing joss-houses, &c.

Major Gordon’s request that Lieutenant
Lyster should be allowed to join the Chinese
force was not complied with, as his services
were required at Shanghai. In writing to his
brother, on the 19th of April, he says :—

I have offered to serve under Gordon, but at
present I am obliged to remain here to take charge
until Brine, first captain, who is over in Japan,
returns. I need hardly say it will be very dangerous
work, as one is obliged to go into the cities before
the Chinese; they are great cowards and will never
go forward unless well led.

To unis MoTHER.

SHANGHAI, April 19, 1863.

I need not tell you what a comfort it is to me to
get any letter from home, but you cannot possibly
know what that feeling is until you are at a long
distance, and a long time separated from those you-
love. I was very sorry to hear. that my father was
not well... . I think I have inherited his objection
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 139

to going on the sick list; but it is necessary some-
tIMES: & « x

General Brown has arrived here to take over the
command from General Staveley. I am sorry the
latter is leaving, he has been very kind to me... .
The fleet has gone to Japan to demand reparation
for the murders committed. Major Gordon is.
preparing to give the rebels another treat. The
Chinamen here, whom you seem to have a great
abhorrence of, are a very harmless lot, not nearly
so treacherous as the Canton men; still, I do not
intend to put myself in the power of any of them
if Ican help it. The rebels say they will decapitate
any Europeans they catch; they cut off the head
of a wounded European at Taitsan in a twinkling.

I am sending you a paper giving an account of a
concert here, and some of Gordon’s performances.
The former is rather a flare-up account, but I can
vouch for the modesty of the latter, as I gave the
facts to the editor myself.

A good many of the settlers are going home this
spring; some for good, and some only for the
season. They are lucky to be able to do so, and
they live here in a style of luxury far different from
the poor soldier. .

He writes on the same date to _ his
sister B. :—

Tell me how the shaded walk in the garden is
getting on? There are no flowers here worth
140 WITH GORDON IN CHINA. -

collecting ; the few one meets have no scent. Cascade
must be looking very nice now. You Femember this
time last year I was there.

The leaves I spent at home are the green ‘gpote in
my life. Vacations from school were not so good,
as we always felt that the Jast day was coming’
swiftly round, and I was not old enough to fully.
appreciate the blessings of home. . . . The weather
now is beautiful for walking, I am on my legs all
day except when doing a little drawing. I am
going to Sung-Kiang with the new General to-
morrow and return in the evening. It is now late
and I must go to bed, but will add more to this
before I send it, so chin-chin !

April 22nd.

The General has just settled that all the European
troops go to Hong-Kong, and I may have to
go.

The ultimatum is to be handed to the Japanese
on the 26th. If there is any trouble with them, it
may cause the detention of the troops. Major
Gordon, I believe, is not to be left in command of
the Ward force after all, as Sir Fred. Bruce wants
to re-instate General Burgevine, so I will not join
them. However, everything is in a most unsettled
state at present.

Both generals leave to-day, and in another month
Shanghai will be occupied only by Indian troops,
and a regiment of French.
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 14t

Diary CONTINUED.

April 28th—Went to joss-house, which is being
converted to a powder-magazine for Gordon.

30th.—Expedition under Murray started at 7.30:
a.m.; arrived at Naitzean at II.30 a.m.

May tst.—Rode from Naitzean to Kahding. Met
boats there.

and, Saturday.—Taitsan taken at 4 p.m., after a
severe struggle. Gordon lost 1 officer killed, 7
wounded; 40 men killed, 103 wounded.

3rd.—Went up to Taitsan.

4th.—Surveyed road from Wontzefow to Cheming-.
dong and into Waiquaidong.

5th.—Arrived at Taitsan at 5 a.m.; had breakfast
and surveyed city wall. Got back to boat at Ir p.m.
Day very hot; laid up with headache.

‘6th.—Surveyed road from Waiquaidong to south.
gate, Taitsan, and from south gate to west gate.

ath—Went from Waiquaidong with a message..
Saw Wood; got back at 8 p.m.

8th. Returned from Waiquaidong to Shanghai.
Shot three brace of snipe before breakfast.

gth.—Force returned under Murray.

15th, Friday.—Gordon came back to Shanghai
from Sung-Kiang.

tgth, Tuesday.—Gordon returned to Sung-Kiang..
Day very hot. News from Japan, and application
for troops.
- g0th.—Sent ladders, bridges, and platforms to-
Wheelorts. Sent Brine’s letter on board Race-.

Horse.
142 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

LETTER TO HIS MOTHER.

SHANGHAI, May 20, 1863.

I did not write to you by the last mail (the only
one I have missed since I came to China) as I was
ordered suddenly up the country on an expedition.
I did not know anything of it until the evening before
I started. ...

There is no news here except what comes from
Japan, which is very warlike. The Admiral, who
is over there to exact reparation for the murders
committed, has sent to the General here a pressing
demand for troops. I don’t think the General can
spare him any; however, we shall know his answer
in a few days.

The weather here is beginning to get warm—
yesterday was the first really hot day. I am not so
much afraid of the climate as at first. They
say the first summer is always the worst for
Europeans. ...

.A captain of the 31st, who was a great friend of
mine, died a few days ago; his name was Adams.
. . . He died of typhus fever. He introduced me to
some nice people before he got ill.

Major Gordon is going on splendidly ; he is now
a great favourite with the Chinese. He has had
two very stiff engagements with the rebels, and was
successful in both. The country round is pretty
clear of them now, and Shanghai is quite safe. I
have not been able to join him regularly as they
-won't let me leave Shanghai. I have command of
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 143

a company here and am the senior Engineer officer.
The Chinese authorities offered Major Gordon a lot
of money for the places he took. This is customary,
but he refused, and said “‘ the services of an English
officer could not be bought with money!” He is
doing a good deal for the honour of the English
name in China. I hope he may get through all
right. He is so fearless of danger—one cannot help
feeling anxious for his safety. All my men are in
good health now, but I hope they won’t leave the poor
fellows here for the summer, as they have had too
much of China. Their total strength now is
seventy-four; they were over one hundred strong
when they came out here... .

May 22nd.—I expect to be-going out on another
expedition soon. I should like better than anything
to be sent to Japan, the climate is so good. We
shan’t be able to do much work in the summer so
the rebels will have a respite... .

There is no place like home after all. I would
not care to return now, but will be delighted when
my term of service in China is at an end. There
will be a year of it over by the time you get
this. ...

LETTER TO HIS BROTHER P.

SHANGHAI, May 22, 1863.

I would write to you oftener if I had any news
to tell you, for although there are many changes
144 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

taking place here it would probably interest you little
to hear of them... .

Gordon has had command of the Ward force for
nearly two months, and during that time he has
done splendid service for the Chinese Government.
He has been half the time in the field. He took
a place called Taitsan from the rebels the other
day; they made a most determined resistance.
Gordon said that in his experience in the Crimea
he never saw anything like it. The assaulting.
party were repulsed at first, and they fought for
three-quarters of an hour on the breach before
they could get in. The rebels had several English-
men, Frenchmen, and_natives of India to help them.
One Englishman, a deserter from H.M. 31st Regi-
ment was wounded, two Frenchmen were killed, and
one American.

Gordon lost—one officer killed, seven wounded
(some mortally), twenty Chinese killed and one
hundred and three wounded. He only had two
thousand five hundred men there.

I was out with the English troops, who were four
and a half miles from the place, so that if Gordon
were beaten he could fall back on them. I went up
to Taitsan the day after it was taken and surveyed
the place. Gordon went on to another town called
Quinsan, fifteen miles further on, but found he was
not strong enough to take it, so returned to Sung-
Kiang. He is going out again in a few days; I
may, perhaps, accompany him this time. I have
volunteered to join him, but will not be allowed to
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA. 145

do so for the present, as I am now in command of
the R.E.’s here, and have charge of a company of
Sappers. . . . I should not think of entering the
Chinese service under any other officer here except
Gordon. My pay now is £50 a month, which is
good, but I have many expenses.. I should not
leave China now if I got the chance, as I am
determined to stay for my allotted period of service,
but I shall be delighted when it is over. This
climate is awful—now the days are very hot and
close; there is a heavy fog and a stillness pervading
the atmosphere. . . . You can easily imagine what
the climate is when I tell you that Shanghai is built
on a mud bank, and for thirty miles round the
country is as flat as the paper I am writing on,
intersected by myriads of creeks, densely populated,
and with most fearful stenches prevailing every-
where. The Chinese leave their dead above ground
in coffins. I have seen one hundred coffins in a
heap, and you have to hold your nose when passing
them. I do not go out much. ... The society
here is unsatisfactory. You are constantly asked
out and splendidly entertained ; but if you ceased to
exist no one would trouble themselves in the least.
. .. I have not been to any balls lately, nor do I
see a prospect of any except those given by the
Taipings!...

There is a slight chance of our being sent to
Japan to arrange some difference between the
natives and resident merchants. A question has
arisen as to the legality of the indiscriminate

Io
146. ITH GORDON IN CHINA.

slaughter of the latter by the former. It has not
been settled yet, and there is a likelihood of there
being more noise about it than is generally calculated
on. Don’t be uneasy if you don’t hear from me
regularly, as I expect to be leading a somewhat
erratic sort of existence soon. .

Diary CONTINUED.

May 23rd.—Went down to Sung-Kiang with
Lloyd.

25th.—Left Sung-Kiang at Io a.m. Walked -and
went partly by boat; arrived at Sunkow at 3 p.m.

27th.—Arrived at Quinsan at Io a.m.

28th, Thursday.— Gordon went out and attacked
the rebels in an entrenched position. Defeated
them by turned flank. Clayton, ggth, wounded,
and seven men of European bodyguard knocked
over near E. gate.

2gth.—Went. round to W. gate in Hyson. with
Gordon, Li-Hung-Chang, and Ching. Went up
eight miles towards Souchow and opened fire on
rebels and sank some boats. Skirmished up to
four hundred yards of stockades, and returned .to
Quinsan.

30th.—Left at 10 a.m. for Shanghai; arrived at
Kahding I p.m.; Loti, 6.30; Woosung, 12.15 ; Shang-
hai, 6 am. Gave Clayton over to Markham.

Fune ist, Monday—News came of Quinsan being
taken with very slight loss.
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA. 147
On June 5th he writes to his mother :—

When your letter arrived I was up the country
with Major Gordon at the attack of a rebel town
called Quinsan. You will see by the papers that he
met with great success; he has taken three im-
portant places from the rebels during the short time
he has had command of the Chinese force.

I have been trying to join it, but have not been
able to get leave, owing to the paucity of Engineer
officers here; however, I give Gordon all the
assistance in my power, and generally manage to
get out when there is anything going on.

The news from Japan is peaceable. I expect to
go over there soon, as the General told me yester-
day he would send me to report on the defences,
&e.

I send you a few presents by this mail, and enclose
a description of them... .

I could send you any amount of Chang-mows
(rebels), but I don’t think you would care to get
them! They make capital servants when trained..
My little boy is the best servant I ever had, and I
have become so fond of him I can’t bear the idea
of his leaving me; however, I have promised to try
to find out his father and mother for him when
Nankin is taken. His father ran away when the
rebels came and left this poor little chap to his fate ;
he is now very fond of the English, and thinks there
are no people like them. Major Gordon is now a
‘very high Mandarin. I shall be made one too if I
148, WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

join him; imagine me a Mandarin with the power
of life and death in my hands. If there is a war
with Japan I will not join the Chinese force, as our
Colonel has promised that I shall be one of the
first to go there if there is any fighting... .

I am sending amongst the things a shoe of silver
taken out of the Emperor’s palace at Pekin.
Gordon gave it to me; it is a coin amongst the
Chinese. . . . By the time this reaches you I shall
be a year in + Chinas two more, and, a God, we
shall meet again.

To HIS BROTHER P.

SHANGHAI, Fune 17, 1863.

Major Gordon has just taken Quinsan and is now
near Souchow. I was with him on the expedition
against Quinsan. There was another amateur
there also, Captain Clayton, g9th Regiment; he
unfortunately got shot through the body, and is now
lying dangerously ill.

I am sorry I could not join Gordon from the
beginning ; however, I have not been idle and have
given him all the assistance I could. I am the
senior Engineer here now, and am in charge of a
company, but I would gladly give it up for Gordon’s .
force. I send you an account of the taking of
Quinsan which I sent to the papers. I wrote it in
a great hurry. . . . No English officers are allowed
to fight against the rebels outside the thirty miles’
boundary, except those in the service of the Chinese.
SHANGHAL ‘YOKOHAMA. ‘149

Government. ... If I join Gordon he will give
me his bodyguard to make into Sappers. The rebels
have Europeans on their side armed with Enfield
rifles, and I can tell you, my dear fellow, it is very
different work fighting with Chinamen against
Chinamen from fighting with Europeans against
Chinamen. You have no idea how cheeky the
Taipings get; they gave the drilled Chinese a
licking at Taitsan, and were very near giving them
another when Gordon attacked it. He said he
never saw such stiff fighting even in the Crimea;
for twenty minutes there were two crowds waving
to and fro—the stormers and defenders of the town.

Quinsan was taken by a manceuvre with very little
loss... .

He writes on the same date to his sister,
and having described the contents of a case of
Japanese things he is sending home, he goes
on :—

I wish I could send you all presents as I like you,
then the boxes would be gold instead of only tortodse-
shell and lacquer. I also send a large rebel flag
taken at Taitsan, and given me by Gordon. I had
many other rebel trophies, but have given them
away. When I am going home myself, which, please
God, will be in two short years, I shall bring you
something worth having.

I got a present of a very nice little rebel boy the
150 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

-other day; he is very small, but is a good-looking lad;
he goes by the name of Pekin. My other boy is the
most intelligent, honest little fellow you can imagine.
I must have him photographed before he leaves me.

I was sorry indeed to hear of Mr. Mease’s? death.
He was a very good man and is now rewarded, I
feel sure. It was sad that he should be taken
just when he got promotion. People here grumble
very much at the climate, but I don’t think it is so
bad as they imagine. Thank God, I have a good
constitution, which pulls me through a good deal.
When one has every luxury and is not obliged to
expose himself to the sun, there is little to fear;
but, when one has to soldier, it is different. The
weather up to this has not been at all trying,
there has been a good deal of rain and dense fogs
that damp everything in your room, turn your
boots mouldy in a night, and rust keys, &c. If
‘you can picture a very thick fog, the air perfectly,
oppressively, still; any number of muddy creeks ;
and your ears deafened by a perpetual croaking of
frogs—then you have some idea of what China is
like.

I have a Japanese bantam cock that keeps con-
tinually crowing, and two hens that cackle a great
deal ; but don’t lay eggs, at least I have never seen
them. The General gave them. to me. If the hens
don’t behave better, I am afraid, I shall have to
decapitate them and eat them—when the General goes

* Curate for many years of the parish in which the L.’s
lived, and one of the best and kindest of men.
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA. S181

to Hong-Kong! I have also two terriers, one of
which is a terror to Chinamen.

Fuly 4, 1863.

My DEAREST MoTHER,—I have not time to write
much as the mail here has already closed. I am
going to send this down by the General, who will
post it in Hong-Kong in time for the mail.

I am, thank God, in very good health. The
weather since the rst of July has been most trying.
On that day the poor Engineers were heavily visited;
three of the men got cholera and two died—one on:
the 1st, the other on the 2nd inst. There was not
a case of illness before the rst of July; and now two
are dead and six are in hospital. I have done all
I could for them, and have changed them into fresh
quarters. The poor fellows are in a great fright.
I trust the worst of this scourge is over: I believe
it only lasts a short time.

The weather is boiling hot; I am dripping with
the exertion of writing, although it is six o’clock,
p-m.

Now I must tell you that I expect to start for
Japan on Wednesday. The Japanese have paid
up some of the indemnity, but they are still cla-
mouring for troops to protect the foreigners. The
French are sending some from here. The General
is sending me to report, and I am to return imme-
diately. I am delighted at ‘the idea of going, not
only because I shall get away from Shanghai for
a time, but I am being employed’ on an important
‘152 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

service... . I got a long letter from L. last mail,
which reminded me that my birthday would be to-
morrow. I will think of you all.

‘I must now conclude, in great haste, so good-bye,
‘dear Mother, and God bless you.

Diary CONTINUED.

Fuly 4th.—The weather awfully hot. Got intima-
tion from General that I was to go to Japan. No
more cholera since Thursday. Thermometer 95°.

- -toth—Left Shanghai on board Centaur with
‘Hogg and Wood for Nagasaki.

‘Weather very ‘fine.

13th.—Arrived at Nagasaki at 11 a.m. Went on
shore with H. and W.: walked up the hill and
came on board at 6 p.m.

14th.—Left Nagasaki at 4 p.m. Thermometer 85°.

20th.—Arrived at Yokohama atga.m....

21st.—Made a copy of map of Yokohama. Rode
round the heights with Price 67th Regt.

22nd.—Walked out at 6 a.m. Copied map of
Yokohama in ink. Walked in afternoon to French
Post and sketched it in.

‘23rd.-—Called on Admiral, and on Dent and Co.
about houses.

24th—Reducing plan of Yokohama. Got esti-
mate of price of huts. French Admiral returned.
They spiked five guns, destroyed some powder,
shot, and shell, burned gun carriages; having
landed 300 men.
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA. 153

27th.—Rode with escort to Kanasoeda.

28th.—Completing sketch and report.

29th.— Left Yokohama at 4 p.m.

August 3rd.—Arrived at Shanghai at 2 p.m. In-
formed of Burgevine affair.

a
On the above date he writes to his mother:—

SHANGHAI.

Many thanks for your long letter dated June 1st,
and for the cholera prescription: indeed, I am very
sorry to say, the latter is sadly needed here now.

I arrived from Japan to-day. I was sent there
‘by the General to make a military report. I feel
very proud of the confidence placed in me by the
General, as it was a mission of some importance.

It would take a long time for me to explain to
you the state of affairs in Japan. However I shall
try to do so as briefly as possible.

Japan is like what England was in the twelfth
and thirteeth centuries. The country is over-run with
Daimios —a class resembling our barons of old.
‘These Daimios own large territories, have an im-
mense number of armed retainers, and are only
nominally in subjection to the Government. The
Government consists of the Mzkado, the hereditary
ruler. Heisa kind of spiritual Emperor and does
not take any active part in the administration, but
every law, &c., has to be confirmed by him. He
is in fact a kind of House of Lords. The second
man in the Empire is the Tycoon. He represents
154 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

the executive branch of the Government, and man-
ages all the affairs of the state and army, a kind of
House of Commons. Well, when we made atreaty,
-we made it with the Tycoon, thinking he was the
responsible individual. The Mikado is hostile to
foreigners, many of the Daimios are so also; and
all these attacks have been made by their retainers ;
but the Tycoon has ever remained faithful to us,
protecting and warning us.

Poor Mr. Richardson was murdered by the men
‘of the Prince of Satsuma (a Daimio), some time
ago. Our fleet, assisted by the French, presented
‘the demands of the English to the Japanese Govern-
ment, viz., to pay a‘sum of money to the friends of
those who were murdered, to give up the murderers
of Richardson, and that the Prince of Satsuma
‘should pay us the sum of £25,000. The Japanese
Government have acceded to the first and second
demand, though they say they cannot give up the
murderers, nor can they make Satsuma pay as he
is too strong; but they give us leave to do it. It
is expected every day that the fleet will go down
to Satsuma’s place from Yokohama to make the
demand. Meanwhile another Daimio has been
firing indiscriminately on Dutch, French, and Ameri-
can ships which have to pass a narrow channel in
the inland sea. The Dutch and Americans attacked
these batteries, but were driven off; the French,
hhowever, destroyed one. All the Europeans on
shore are in'an anxious state, as they have no pro-
tection except from Japanese guards (Tycoon’s men).
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA. 155

: They fear the Tycoon may suddenly change his mind,
‘or that his guards may get disaffected, or be attacked
.by some powerful Daimio. At Yokohama the Euro-
peans have about four hundred troops—principally
French —these keep guard every night as the
Japanese would be most likely to make the attack
there. I was sent to Yokohama to find out how
many troops they wanted to defend the place, and
what defences were needed. I was very busy while
.away, and had no opportunity of writing to you. I
have not space to tell you of the customs and
-manners of the people, but will do so another time.

I dined at the English Minister’s there—about
forty swells sat down—two admirals, Ministers of
France, Prussia, the Netherlands, &c. . . . I made
the acquaintance of Macdonald, who brought over
.the Japanese Ambassadors.

I found when I got back to Shanghai that the
cholera had made great ravages during my absence.
Two officers and the poor lady I spoke of before
have died of it. Dysentery also is very bad just
now; it has carried off one of my men. I am
indeed sorry to give you such bad news, but I have
no other. I have been told that 25,000 Chinamen
‘died here last month.

But I have still worse news to tell you. General
Burgevine, who was dismissed some time ago by the
Chinese, has raised a force and joined the rebels:
last night he took a steamer belonging to the
Chinese Government. It is known on good authority
that some of Major Gordon’s officers are treacherous
156 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

and intend joining him, if they have not done so
already. News has come in to-night that Quinsan
with all the garrison (Major Gordon’s army) has
been given to the rebels, and that.there are 20,000
well-armed rebels in Souchow drilled and officered
by Europeans ready to march. There is no doubt
that Burgevine aims at taking Shanghai. We are
in a woful state here: a regiment and a half, and
one battery (6 Armstrong guns) just gone home.
The French have only left fifty men here, of whom,
I hear, thirty-five have died of cholera. We have
one Indian regiment—a detachment of twenty-two—
also an Indian regiment, one battery of Artillery,
and my company of Royal Engineers, altogether
from 1,000 to 1,200 men to oppose 50,000, which I
believe can be brought down. It is really an
anxious time. I wish we were over this month.
I don’t know whether Burgevine would burn the
foreign settlement or confine himself to the Chinese
town.

It is now twelve o’clock, and I must now bid you
good-bye. Give my best love toall....

P.S.—Don’t be alarmed at the news I have
written about Burgevine, as if he does come here,
I trust I shall get through everything with good
fortune. At present I am thankful to say I am in
capital health.

A few days afterwards he was ordered on
an expedition up the country.

August 8th, Saturday.—Started at Io p.m. in
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 157

charge of thirty-six boats to meet troops who leave
at 2 a.m. to-morrow at Kahding.

gth.—Arrived within one mile of Loti—boats.
aground.

-roth.— Worked with two hundred Coolies from
daylight until 3 a.m. Got all boats through except
Fontai’s rice-boats. Took five Europeans prisoners.
Swelled foot.

r1th.—Got rice-boat through. Dawson came with
orders to bring on prisoners. Arrived at Weikong
at 6 p.m. :

13th.—Troops moved on to Taitsan. Foot very
swollen.

14th. Remained at Taitsan, where we found
Gordon’s siege guns.

15th.—Rode to Quinsan with Mercer, twelve
miles.

17th. — Left Taitsan at daylight with boats.
Stopped at Weikong till 2 p.m. Arrived at Kahding
at 6 p.m.

18th.—Started at daylight for Shanghai. Got all
boats through Loti by 3.30 p.m.

tgth.—Arrived at Shanghai at 5 a.m. Found
weather much cooler... .

21st—Laid out road from Stone Bridge towards
Kahding. .. .

24th.—Generals Robert and Savory arrived. News.
from Japan of Admiral Kuhn’s engagement. Death
of Captain Josling.

On the 20th he had written to his sister
158 - WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

giving a description of the presents—Japanese
bronzes, carved fans, jewellery, &c.—he was
sending home by the mail of that date. He
also stated that he was in good health—his
trip to Japan having done him a great deal of
good. We learn, however, from his diary, that
some days later he was seized with a feverish
attack, from which he was still suffering when
he wrote the following letter. With the loving
thoughtfulness so characteristic of him, he
avoids any mention of this illness to his
mother.

SHANGHAI, September 2, 1863.

I have nothing new to tell you. We are still in
the same unsettled state we were when I wrote
last. One day it is arranged that all the European
troops are to go to Hong-Kong, the next day that
they are to remain here—something new having
turned up in the meantime. General Brown and
his staff are here still; he gave me my choice of
going to Hong-Kong,.or remaining here; I have
chosen the latter.

The weather has been blazing hot for the last
week—a great contrast to Hong-Kong, which has
been very cool, and healthier than Aldershot for the
last two years. This shows the advantage of good:
drainage, cleanliness, &c.

All sorts of reports are abroad with regard to
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 159

what Burgevine is doing. Sherard Osborn is ex-
pected every day; if he joins with Gordon, they will
soon put down the rebellion. Gordon is. getting
ready for an expedition. I expect it will be directed
against Souchow. If itis taken the force here will
be reduced. If not we shall remain until—I don’t
know when. I have a fair share of out-door work
now, and the sun is so hot, it sometimes knocks one
up. There are a great many fellows ill now. The
other day, cut of six Engineer officers in China,
only two were doing duty—three being sick and
one on leave. Some fellows knock under very soon,
and fancy they can’t get well unless they leave
Shanghai. I think that is a mistake. One should
never imagine himself ill. I have enjoyed very
good health, thank God, since I came to China.
In fact, since I first went to Woolwich, I have
only been once on the sick list, and that against
my will, for a week.

There are very few people here now. Almost all
the ladies are away, and probably every one of them
would be, only for the unsettled state of Japan... .
Two ladies died this year from the climate. They
were in very bad quarters in the Chinese city. One
lady actually got cholera from the impure air caused
by the dead bodies left unburied in the place. The
Chinamen have had the plague. It is a black spot
which comes under the arm, and soon proves fatal.
One doctor told me he saw forty dead Chinamen
in one morning alongside the public road. I never
go out on the road without seeing some.
160 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

- This is a dismal letter, but I have nothing
pleasant to tell you. Perhaps it will interest. you
to hear that I have given up smoking. I am afraid
I shall be tempted to begin again, under C.’s
auspices, when I go home.
CHAPTER VII.
1863.
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA.

“We live in deeds, not years; in thoughts, not breaths ;

In feelings, not in figures on a dial.
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives

Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best.”
P. J. BAILEY.

In the middle of September, 1863, Lieutenant
Lyster was sent up to the Taku Forts by the
General; he writes on the 16th to his sister

E. :—

SHANGHAI.

I am going to Taku to-morrow on duty. I am
delighted to go, as I have not been well here lately,
and I think the trip will make me all right. This is
a curious climate; although it is now cool and
pleasant, there is a great deal of sickness, principally
dysentery.

When you speak of the pleasant party you have
at home, the fine weather, and the pretty garden, I

It
162 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

feel desperately sad amid the stenches and mud of
this place. The General has been most kind to me;
he is sending me to Taku at my own request.

About this time one of his brothers, who was
thinking of emigrating, had written to ask him
if it would be possible to get employment
either in the Chinese force or in a Government
office at Shanghai. He says, referring to this
subject, in a letter to his mother :—

I have not time to answer B.’s letter this mail,
but tell.him I would. mast strongly recommend him
not to go to Australia, or to come here. I should
not like to see a brother in Gordon’s force except as
second in command. There are no sinecures or
Government appointments here. . .. Do prevail on him
to give up the idea of emigrating. I shall be glad to
relinquish to him all claim to any portion I may
expect in the future if he consents to remain at
home. You may think. this Quixotic nonsense, but
I pledge you my honour, I would rather do it than
see him go abroad except to a certain appointment. ...

The next time I write I shall be able to tell you
about the north of China. Have you read ‘‘ Travels
in the Mantchu Territory” by George Fleming? He
was a great friend of mine.

Write and tell me what you would like me to send
you home. I amricher than I ever was before. If
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA. 163

“you were poor I could send you more than enough to
“support you. . .

He embarked on the 17th of September on
‘board the Manzlla for Taku, but the boiler
springing a leak during the night, the steamer
had to put back for a few days. The next day
‘he was obliged to go on the sick list with an
attack of dysentery, but was so far recovered
on the 22nd as to be able to start in the
Manilla when she again left Shanghai for
Taku.

In the three following letters he gives an
account of his travels in the north of China :—

South Fort, Taku,
October 10, 1863.

My DEAREST MOTHER,—When I last wrote to you
I was on the eve of leaving Shanghai for this place.
We had a very pleasant passage and extremely fine
weather all the time. We arrived at Chefoo on the
fourth day; it is a beautiful port, just like England,
hilly, and well-cultivated, producing grain, peas,
beans, &c. It was indeed a refreshing sight to the
eyes after the mud of Shanghai. There are very few
foreigners at Chefoo ; we were hospitably received by
the Consul. I should very much like to be stationed
there; the climate is splendid, and there is any
164 -WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

rt

“amount of game in the country round; hares,
pheasants, and wild duck abound. They can be
had in the market for almost nothing.

Trade is not nearly so extensive there as at
Shanghai; the exports are chiefly silk, oil, and
grain. Provisions are extremely cheap. Eight
“fowls can be purchased for a dollar; beef and
mutton in proportion.

The Taku Forts are situated at the mouth of the
river Peiho in the Gulf of Pe-chi-li. The Peiho is
navigable up to Tientsin, which is thirty-six miles
‘from Peiho, but seventy by the river—it is so
‘winding. Tientsin is the Port of Pekin, which is
eighty miles from it. There were originally five
forts at Taku, but only two remain—one on the
north, the other on the south side of the river. The
‘French occupy the north side and we the south.
This is the fort which Admiral Hope attacked, but
unsuccessfully. The country, as far as the eye can
reach, is a mud flat, without vegetation of any kind.
There is a village two miles distant in which the
houses are all built of mud. Mud, mud everywhere.
There are 150 men in this fort; they live in mud
huts of the most primitive kind, with windows of
calico papered over in winter. These huts look very
ugly and uncomfortable, but they are not unpleasant
to live in.

The troops here enjoy capital health; it is a
delicious: climate compared to that of Shanghai.
The weather now resembles an English summer.
At the end of next month the whole place will be
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA, 165:

ice-bound. The river freezes so that you can skate:
up to Tientsin. The thermometer goes down to 10°
below zero. The troops wear coats lined with fur,.
and they say that the winter season is the best part
of the year.

I went up to Tientsin the other day with two
other fellows. We travelled in carts drawn by two
mules, the driver sitting on the shafts at one side,
and we on the other. I shall never forget the jolting
I got—my bones ache to this day! The carts some-
times turned over, and then we had to jump off ina
twinkling. There are no roads, only a mere track,
and we took:eleven hours to get’ to Tientsin, a
distance of thirty-six miles. You may be sure we
didn’t return in one of these vehicles. We travelled
in a much pleasanter and more comfortable way—by
boat. We stayed at a Chinese inn; but of course
we had to bring our own beds, knives, and forks, &c.
We breakfasted and dined with the Consul, who is
a very nice fellow; he was wounded by rebels some
time ago.

Tientsin is a much cleaner town than Shanghai;
the streets broader, and the shops better. There
are any amount of skins and furs for sale; you can
buy tiger, fox, sable—in fact, any kind there.
Jewellery is very cheap; silver rings, &c., are sold
by weight, and you pay scarcely anything for the
workmanship. We stayed there two days. The
General, who has been up to Pekin, is expected here
to-day ; he is going down to Shanghai in the steamer
with me. If he allows me, I shall remain behind, as
166 WITH GORDON IN CHINA. :

I want to see Pekin and the ‘“ Great Wall.” I shall
wait till I have seen him to finish this letter, and let
you know the result.

P.S.—The General has just come and given me,
leave to go to Pekin.

To THE SAME.

Taku Fort, November to, 1863.

I arrived here a week ago from a tour to Pekin,
and thence to the ‘‘Great Wall;”’ in fact, I travelled
out of China,.and put my foot into Mantchuria. I
enjoyed this trip very much, although we had to
rough it a little. We rode on ponies, carrying our
beds and provisions in Chinese carts; we rode on an
average thirty-six miles a day. The ponies are most
wonderful little animals for endurance, and require
no looking after whatever. You can buy them much
cheaper here than in Shanghai; I paid £7 for mine
at Tientsin, and up at the “Great Wall” you can get
one for £2. Sheep and cattle are also very cheap
there; the former can be purchased for one dollar
each, and a fat bullock for four or five dollars. The
beef is not so good as English beef, but the mutton
is capital. Our bread was baked flour and water.
We used to have tremendous appetites, eating about
3 Ibs. of mutton each per diem.

The country north of Pekin for the first sixty miles
is a well-cultivated plain; there are no roads, merely
cart-tracks through the fields (exactly like the cart-
tracks on a headland of a field at home). We
travelled in a north-east direction, and as we went
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA. 167

on the country became more hilly, with patches of
cultivated land and grass. The inhabitants are
poor as far as money is concerned, but they are very
well clad, and apparently well fed also. There is
nothing like the poverty one sees in the south and
west of Ireland.

There are inns along the road, but they are not
comfortable for Europeans to lodge in. They are all
alike—a courtyard with sheds on either side for the
mules and ponies, the kitchen and landlord’s dwelling
at one end, and travellers’ quarters at the other.
The rooms are small and half filled by a brick bed,
hollow inside, called a kong. In cold weather they
put a fire inside, so that they sleep on a sort of oven.
We did not try this, but other travellers who have
done so say that the heat is intolerable.

The people earn their livelihood by réaring cattle
and sheep—they keep enormous herds of them, and
also of ponies—and cultivating small patches of
ground. In the winter season they all wear
clothing made of skins, and, as provisions are very
cheap, they are never in want of food. It will give
you an idea of the cheapness of living there when I
tell you that we three paid at the inns for a dinner,
or breakfast of bread and meat for ourselves and two
servants, corn and straw for three ponies, and a
night’s accommodation for all—the sum of one dollar !
Sometimes we had fowls and eggs in addition.

We arrived at Hoo-pe-ku, the extreme point of
our journey, on October 23rd. It is a large town
most beautifully situated in a valley through which
168, WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

a river runs. We stayed there a day and a half, and,
had most splendid walks up the hills. The weather
was glorious—cool and bracing, with bright sunshine.

The ‘‘ Great Wall’ is over 2,000 years old, and is
an immense work. The base is formed of enormous
blocks of conglomerate stone and granite; the top is
of brick and mortar. These bricks are of a better
description than those now made at Shanghai. So
much for progress in China!

The height of the wall is eighteen feet. It is
twelve feet thick at the base, and from six to eight
feet at the top, flanked by towers; but it is not of
uniform size, being larger in some places and smaller
in others. It is built on the top of inaccessible
mountains, and at the passes its thickness is doubled
or even trebled.

I saw our Minister, Sir Frederick Bruce, at Pekin.
He is a splendid-looking man. He was very civil to
me, and we had a long talk, principally about politics.
He does not like the Chinese; he says their hatred
to foreigners is as great as ever; he also dislikes
English officers taking service under them. Major
Gordon is still at Souchow; he wants to get the
assistance of Sherard Osborn before he attacks it.
Sherard Osborn is still at Pekin trying to arrange
his affairs with the Emperor. The Emperor wants
to put him under the command of the Governors of
Provinces, but Sherard Osborn and Mr. Lay will not
agree to this.

The Chinese system of government is very curious.
I am only beginning to understand it now. The
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA. 169.

present Emperor is a child; his mother is his
guardian, but his uncle, the Prince of Kung, is the
Regent. The provinces have each a governor
(chosen by the Emperor), who is responsible for
everything in his province, and no one can interfere
with him except the Emperor, who can cut off his
head, but cannot compel him to follow any particular
line of action. For instance, Prince Kung wanted
to have Burgevine reinstated in command of the
Ward force, but the Governor or Fontai at Shanghai
refused to do so. The Prince may have. his head
off, but can do nothing else.

The taxes of each province are paid to its governor,
who keeps up his own army, and is quite indifferent
as to what happens in other provinces; so that, if
the rebels find one too hot for them, they can move
into another.

The policy of Prince Kung seems to be to have as

little as possible to do with foreigners; he also tries
to pit one foreign nation against another. This
latter policy Sir Frederick Bruce tries to counteract
by consulting with the cther ministers (French and
American) when he is about to promulgate any order,
&c. All the Chinese merchants who come in contact
with us of course are friendly with us, but the
Mandarins are hostile:
_ Iam, thank God, in good health again. I had
dysentery before I left Shanghai, and some attacks
of fever and ague since. I am beginning to think |
China not such a very healthy place, and to believe
in my own mortality.
170 ‘WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

ON BoaRD H.M.S. Manilla, November 24, 1863.

We have been at sea ten days already, and expect
to get to Shanghai to-morrow. We should have been
there long ago, but the weather was very bad, and
we had to wait. We have had a splendid passage ;
it is growing warmer every day; the first few days
were frightfully cold. Thermometer 30°; now it is
up to 60°,

To HIS BROTHER P.

Taxu Fort, November 10, 1863.

I have been absent from Shanghai for nearly two
months. I came up here partly on sick leave and
partly on duty, intending to remain only ten days, but
I met the General, who was on his way from Pekin,
and he kindly offered me leave to go up north. I
went with two other fellows to Pekin, and from there
on to the “ Great Wall,” and Mantchuria.

Pekin is avery large city: it is enclosed by an
immense wall twenty miles round. It has a great
many palaces and temples, but the other buildings are
mean Chinese houses. I rode out to the palace of
Ewen-ming-ewen, which, before it was destroyed by
us, must have been a beautiful building: it is about
ten miles from Pekin. I met Sir Frederick Bruce
and some of the members of the Legation at Pekin.
The former had just returned from a shooting ex-
pedition into Mongolia. There is very good shooting
to be had there—deer and birds of many kinds... .

I am anxious to get back to Shanghai to have
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA. 171

some shooting and to escape the cold here, which is
not pleasant as I have only light clothes with me.
The huts are even more airy than those at the
Curragh....

Gordon is still before Souchow; he is waiting for
help from Sherard Osborn before he atacks Burgevine.
A good many of his followers who had joined the
Taipings have come back to Shanghai and been par-
doned. The rebels did not treat them well... .

I envy you when you tell me of the pleasant times
you had at home. I wish I could drop in, if only for
one evening. ...

Since I came to China I have seen no society I
may say—it has been all rough work. Taku is the
wildest place you can imagine. The forts are con-
structed of mud: the huts in which we live are mud

—an Irish mud cabin would be luxurious compared
to them.

On PassaGE TO SHANGHAI, November 23.

We expect to arrive at Shanghai to-morrow.

The latest news is, that the whole of Sherard
Osborn’s force is going home again. The Chinese
Government wanted to place a Chinese admiral over
him, and to put him under the orders of the Fontai
at Shanghai, which he objected to—so all his ships
are returning.

The Chinese have paid them up to the end of
September next. Gordon has given up the command
of Ward’s force, so now the rebels will be again in the
ascendant.
172 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To HIs SISTER B.

On PassaGE To SHANGHAI, November 24, 1863.

Major Gordon has resigned command of the drilled’
Chinese. This Sir F. Bruce asked him todo. Sir
Frederick is not inclined to give the Chinese Govern-.
ment any more assistance, as he thinks they do not
appreciate it. Captain Sherard Osborn’s splendid
naval force is going home again, as he could not
come to terms with the Chinese; so I expect that the
end of the rebellion is as far off as ever, and we shall
have toremainat Shanghai to protect its inhabitants.

Pekin is a very dirty place: the city consists of
either palaces or very mean houses. There is the
Imperial Palace, the Temple of Heaven, and the
Temple of Agriculture. The Emperor lives in the
former, and no foreigner has ever been allowed into it.
I have seen the two latter. The Temple of Heaven
isa splendid building, but senseless. The Temple of
the Earth is outside the city. I saw the palace of
Ewen-ming-ewen which we destroyed ; it is ten miles
from Pekin and the most beautiful of all; it has not
been restored in any way. There was an immense
amount of property destroyed besides what was
looted. I never saw a demolition so complete—it
does credit to the British soldier!

Pekin is divided into two cities—the Tartar and
the Chinese. The wall, whichis about twenty miles
round, is about 4o feet thick and from 38 to 40 feet
high ; in some places it is 60 feet thick, but it is not
all stone, only faced and the inside is earth. There
LAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA, 173

seems to be very little trade. in Pekin, and the
Chinese there are poor and badly clad. The streets
of Shanghai are much finer, and the people infinitely
wealthier.

I long to be at home when you talk of your
excursions and parties. No matter how much of the
world they have seen, all come to the same con-
clusion, namely, that home is the best place of all.
A common and favourite toast out here is ‘‘ England,
Home, and Beauty.” In two or three years (D.V.)
I shall be back with you again.

Canton is the best town in China to make
purchases in for ladies. When you are writing,
tell me what you do like and what you don’t, so
that it may be a guide to me when I am buying
for you.

To HIS BROTHER C.

' SHANGHAI, December 7, 1863.

_ The latest news in Shanghai is of the taking of
Souchow by Major Gordon’s force. This town was
the greatest stronghold of the Taipings, and is the
strategical key to Shanghai. It was taken without
much loss, as the rebel chiefs had a dissension
amongst themselves; they beheaded their king and
then handed over the town. It would have soon
fallen under any circumstances, as Major Gordon
had it invested on all sides. Every one here is
delighted at his success. He is a splendid fellow;
his conduct since he took the command has been
474 “WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

most magnanimous, and cannot: fail to show the
natives what an honourable English officer is. He
refused all rewards and extra pay, and in a
pecuniary point of view he has not at all benefited
by his command. :

I have had a very interesting ne to the north
of China, and have seen places that few Englishmen
have ever visited. If the Government sends any
troops to Japan, my Colonel has promised me that
I shall be the first Engineer to go over. I don’t
think we shall have a war at present, the Japanese
Government having in every respect acceded to our
demands. I have plenty of work here, as the
General wishes that the country should be surveyed
as fast as the rebels are driven out.

To HIs MoTHER.

SHANGHAI, December 20, 1863.

There are many events occurring here, most of
which you see mentioned in the papers, of course.
You will have heard before this that Major Gordon
has taken Souchow, and only for the treachery of
the Fontai, who murdered the kings of Souchow
after they had surrendered, he would by this time
have taken Nankin and put an end to the Taiping
rebellion, which has lasted over ten years. The
Ching Wang, or King of Nankin, is, we hear,
willing to come over to the Imperialists, but dare
not do so, and now that the Fontai has behaved
so treacherously to the kings of Souchow, there is
TAKU FORTS. YOKOHAMA, ‘175

no chance of Nankin coming over. At present
Major Gordon has refused to fight for the Fontai,
and has separated from him. It is a mistake about
General Brown’s refusing Gordon ammunition. He
went as far as he could go in the way of helping
him, for he lent him officers and sent men out to
support him. It was this that caused Burgevine’s
party to surrender.

People at home have little idea of all that is
going on here and all the difficulties to be met
with.

My company leaves to-morrow for Hong Kong,
and move on from there to England. I might have
gone with them, but want to see the end of affairs
here. If there was not plenty of work here the
place would be unbearable. It is now very cold,
but healthy. We are working hard to improve the
quarters of the soldiers before next summer. I
shall soon be going out to look for an island for
a sanatorium.

I hope you will all have a very happy Christmas.
I expect to have a pleasant one also, as I am going
up to spend it at Quinsan with Major Gordon, whom
I have not seen for a long time.

He left Shanghai on the 22nd of December,
but did not reach Quinsan until Christmas Day.
He notes in his diary :—

December 25th, Christmas Day.—Arrived at Quin-
san. Review of Artillery. Dined with Gordon.
176 “ WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

He returned a few days later to Shanghai.
‘On the 6th of January, 1864, he writes to his
brother :—

I had a very pleasant Christmas up at Quinsan
with Gordon. We had splendid shooting; with
some other fellows we bagged fifty brace of
pheasants and teal; I got six and a half brace
of pheasants and one teal one day.

I have bought a boat, and will have more shooting
if possible. At present I am under orders to go
to Souchow to survey when another officer, Major
Edwards, comes up.

There is not much news here. Gordon, since he
has taken Souchow, has been holding command of
the disciplined Chinese at Quinsan, but has refused
allegiance to the Chinese authorities. When
Souchow surrendered, the kings and inhabitants
were promised their lives by the Fontai through
Gordon. The Fontai broke his word, and since
then Gordon has held command of the force, but
won’t acknowledge the Fontai. Meanwhile the
whole matter has been referred to Pekin, where
of course it will be decided in the Fontai’s favour.
Then comes the rub—will Gordon give up the
command? and if so, what will become of the
force? They will never disband quietly; they are
too strong for that. They will either continue
under the Chinese with a new commander, or join
the rebels. If they decide on the former, they will
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA, 177

in a short time have a rupture on account of
payment, &c., and may set up on their own account.
It is impossible to foresee what may occur in China
this year. The present Government is very weak
and cannot last long. If Gordon liked, he could
dethrone the Emperor and start a new dynasty, if
foreign powers did not interfere.

A few days later he received sudden orders
to proceed to Japan on temporary duty. He
left Shanghai on the 16th of January in the
Vulcan, and arrived at Yokohama on the 22nd.
He writes -——

YOKOHAMA, February 1, 1864.

My DEAREST MOoTHER,—I am very busy now and
have scarcely time to write you anything, but as in
duty bound I must send you a letter every mail.
I have been here a week, and like the place very
much ; the climate is charming—dry, frosty weather.
There are troops of all nations here: French, Dutch,
Prussians, and others. There are thirteen English
men-of-war, one Prussian, and one Dutch, in the
harbour. I went up to Yeddo last week ; we were
the first foreigners there for six months, except the
Prussian minister, who went there the other day to
have the treaty signed. We walked about with a
strong guard of Japanese and sailors.

I like the Japanese; they are superior to the
Chinese in every way. They have several steamers,

I2
178: WITH GORDON.IN CHINA.

which they work without a single European. They
want to buy a man-of-war from us.
..There have been no assassinations here lately;
the. last was of a French officer who used to ride
dut by himself; he was met by three men about
three miles from here, who cut him to pieces with
their swords. They are very cowardly and
treacherous in their attacks on foreigners.
The country about Yeddo is most beautiful. I
wish I could describe it to you. I am getting some
photographs of the place to send you. I was in the
British Legation where the sentries were assassi-
nated, and saw the marks of the sword-cuts in the
passages. Sir Rutherford Alcock is expected daily.
We do not know what will be done till he arrives.

I shall return to Shanghai in about a month, if
nothing occurs to keep me here.
: Burgevine is here recruiting his health

t
To HIS SISTER B.

Yoxouama, February 10, 1864.

I have now more time to spare than I have had
for a long time, owing to the Japanese New Year.
The holidays commenced yesterday, and will last for
two or three days longer. During this festival the
Japanese give themselves up altogether to amuse-
ment, and it is almost impossible to get any of them
to work. The women and children dress in their
best. clothes, and amuse themselves by playing
SHANGHAI. YOKOHAMA. 179

battledore and shuttlecock, and flying kites. The
men indulge in eating and drinking. That they
carry the latter to excess is evidenced by the
staggering gait of every second man one meets in
the streets. The two-sworded gentlemen are inclined
to be quarrelsome in their cups, so we are careful
to avoid them. Indeed, a good many of them go
about without their swords at this season, to avoid
the danger of falling on them. At all other times
they adhere most religiously to their weapons. I
like the Japanese very much for many reasons,
They are more energetic and less conceited than the
Chinese. They are also much more refined in their
habits, and they readily adopt any European im-
provement, which gives them a great advantage over
their neighbours.

I have made some trips into the country round
here. It is the most beautiful I have .ever seen,
Hills and rich valleys well-wooded, and the latter
cultivated like gardens. The hills are in some
places planted, in others left to nature.

I went for a ride of twelve miles the other day to
a village called Kanasawa, and then walked from
there six miles to Kamakura and Dyboots. It was
a most delightful trip. We started early in the
morning, when it was very cold and the roads hard
with frost; but it soon got so warm that we were
obliged, when walking, to take off our coats,
Kamakura was the ancient capital of Japan: it is
now a small village, but most beautiful. It being
the New Year, every house was decorated, having
180 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

a bamboo-tree and pine in front, and an orange,
lobster, and piece of charcoal over the door. I
believe these represent fruit, fish, and fire. The
Japanese are Buddhists. They live on fruit, fish,
and vegetables, never eating meat. There were a
great number of temples, but they are not as fine as
the Chinese. There are no fine buildings in Japan,
owing to the prevalence of earthquakes, which occur
every month in the year. At Dyboots we saw an
immense copper image, about forty feet high and
thirty round the base. I believe it was a repre-
sentation of Buddha. The thumb measured two
feet round.

I saw the place where a French officer was killed
some months ago. There seems to be a mystery
about his death. He was out riding unarmed and
alone, and it is reported that he met three men, who
said, “Ohio?” (“How do you do?”) He returned their
salutation, and when they passed him they at once
attacked him from behind with their swords, cutting
his body to pieces.

The country all round is full of camellia and other
beautiful shrubs. I have been to several nurseries.
The Japanese are splendid gardeners, and take the
greatest care of their plants. They are very fond of
dwarf trees. You see little apple, pear, and cherry-
trees in flower-pots, laden with blossoms, and
miniature pines and many other tiny trees, the
names of which I do not know. I only wish I could
bring some to Cascade. I feel quite sorry I am not
going home direct from here. If I were, I could
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 181

o

enrich you all with a collection of rare shrubs and
curios... .

I don’t expect to go back to China for a month.
I shall hate it after Japan. The weather here now
is glorious—a slight frost at night, and dry, sunshiny
days. I have been buying a few cabinets, &c.,
which I wish I had a chance of sending you. I am
afraid to talk about bringing you things home, it is
so long to look forward to! The two things I try
never to think about are—my going home, and my
promotion. There are very few ladies here. Yoko-
hama is not nearly so large as Shanghai, and living
here is like vegetating in the country. Oh, Shang-
hai, I am beginning to hate thee! It is no wonder,
“as I was never ill till I went there. The small-pox
is prevalent here; some naval men and our soldiers
are laid up with it, but it is hoped it will soon die.
out. We have a good many soldiers here now,
English, French, Prussian, and Dutch. There are
only a small number of each nationality, merely to
act as guards to their respective Legations. If you
are interested in Japan, read “ Fortune’s Visits to
Japan and China.” I have been over nearly the
same ground, and cannot give you an account like
his; he will tell you all about the flowers. I am
going to make a small memorandum of the resources
of the country, which will be useful if we have to
fight the Japanese.

I have my little Taiping boy still; he has grown
fat and strong in my service; he is as good as ever,
and is universally admired. . . . General Burgevine
182 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

is here. I dined with him lately; he has been very
ill.

When you write tell me every scrap of news; I
have not heard from home for ages. I expect they
have kept my letters in China... .

A few days later he writes to his mother :—

Yoxouama, February 13, 1864.

I am enjoying this trip to Japan so much. I am
rather uncomfortably lodged, but the weather is so
fine and the country so beautiful, hat is a minor
evil.

I went for a long ride yesterday along the Tokaido,
or great high road; we went to the limits of the
boundary line, outside which foreigners are not
allowed to pass, about twelve miles, and returned
by a different route. The Tokaido is a finer road
than any you have at home, and as there are no!
wheeled vehicles it is easily kept in repair. The
country through which we rode was hilly, the
valleys richly cultivated, and villages bordering the.
Tokaido all the way. The country houses are
thatched; they look like pretty English cottages.
This being New Year all the houses were decorated’
with pines, bamboos, &c. You can imagine how
picturesque the villages looked, with every house
ornamented in this fashion.

We did not meet any riotous people, though many
of them were evidently under the influence of saki.
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 183

We passed the spot where Mr. Richardson was
killed. This place is very quiet now, with the
exception of some rows amongst the natives; they
frequently kill each other. I am happy to say our
men behave well; and although a: great number of
sailors are allowed on shore, there has been no row
yet between them and the inhabitants.

You would be delighted with the Japanese gardens ;
the gardeners here are splendid, and take the greatest
pains to rear and train shrubs. There are numbers
of camellias growing wild in the country—white and
red—also beautiful pines, junipers, azaleas, laurels,
camphor trees, taxus, and many other kinds of
ornamental trees. What struck.me most were the
dwarf trees: you see tiny camellia, pear, and apple
trees growing in flower-pots, perfect little trees,
covered with blossoms, and numbers of little orange
trees bearing fruit... . One can get any amount
of pretty birds here, canaries, love-birds, golden
pheasants, and such bantams! I should like to
take a ship-load of things home. I have now got
more cabinets, boxes, &c., than I can well carry,
and whenever I go into the Japanese town am sorely
tempted to buy more.

When out riding yesterday we saw numbers of
wild geese, duck, teal, and pigeons feeding close to
the road, and not in the least afraid of us. If the
British subaltern once got amongst them with
his gun he would soon strike terror into them! It
seems hard that the peace and harmony of this
beautiful country should be disturbed by foreigners.
184 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

I don’t wonder at the Japanese finding it difficult
to fraternize with us.

You can get most English fruits and vegetables
here as well as tropical fruits. Everything seems
to thrive in this wonderful country.

I would much prefer remaining here to going back
to China, but can hardly expect such luck unless
something turns up. I think this is the best foreign
station in the world, for after all the great thing
to be desired is a good climate; and undoubtedly
China is the worst in the world—the extremes of
heat and cold are so great, and they are particularly
trying when one is obliged to expose himself to them,
as the poor soldier must do... .

To THE SAME.

YOKOHAMA (undated).

You see I am still in Japan, but, I am sorry to
say, only owing to chance; the steamer Vulcan
being delayed on account of small-pox having
broken out on board. I have already received
orders to hasten back to Shanghai, and immediately
on my return I am going up to Major Gordon on a
surveying expedition.

Sir Rutherford Alcock is daily expected here;
Captain Wray, R.E., is coming with him to be
employed here, so any chance I had of remaining is,
alas! flown. However, I can’t grumble, and I feel
very thankful to the General for sending me over
twice. ...
SHANGHAI YOKOHAMA. 185

I was delighted to hear that you were all well.
Good news from home is the best medicine out here.
You may be sure we never forget you: the invari-
able toast is ‘‘ Absent Friends,” with the addition
sometimes of ‘‘ Sweethearts and Wives;” these
cannot offend any nationality. Of course, our good
Queen is always the first toast at our messes.

I was glad to know that you were all pleased with
the few presents I sent last. ‘Tastes are so varied, I
had great doubts in choosing some of the things.
. .. [have sent thirty different kinds of flower seeds;
I could only learn their Japanese names, and conse-
quently many of them may be common. Iam now
getting the flower of each painted, and will send
them when finished; they are to be planted in
spring. I wish you would tell me what kind of
things you would like, as I don’t like to send presents
indiscriminately lest you should think me extrava-
gant.... 1 am now beginning to think of going
home!
CHAPTER VIII.
1864.
RETURN TO SHANGHAI,

“The spirit culls
Unfaded amaranth, when wild it strays
Through the old garden-ground of boyish days.”
KEATS.

On BOARD H.M.S. Vulcan,

March 18, 1864.

My DEAREST MoTHER,—You see I have left
Yokohama at last, and am now on my way to
Shanghai. It is a little rough to-day, as you may
see by my writing. ... I think I told you they
had sent a Captain of Royal Engineers out from
England to take the command at Yokohama, so
there is no chance of my going over again, unless
there are extended operations. This is rather sad !

Yesterday we saw the last of Fusigama, the
beautiful mountain. It is over 14,000 feet high,
and rises up to the heavens. You can see the
snow-capped top above the clouds long after you
lose sight of the adjoining land. The Japanese
RETURN TO SHANGHAI. 187

are wild about it; they have it represented in
nearly all their pictures, and make pilgrimages to:
it. Sir Rutherford Alcock’s party are, I think, the
only Europeans who have been there—at any rate
for a great number of years. I felt very sorry at
leaving Japan for many reasons; the climate is so
good, and the country round Yokohama is so
beautiful. It is a very enjoyable place too. There
is a capital club called ‘‘ The United Service Club,”
to which all the Naval, Military, and Diplomatic
Service men belong; it has been established only six
months, and is wonderfully successful. For living
at it, one is only charged thirty dollars a month,
while at Shanghai one has to pay sixty dollars, and
the living is not so good. Then, by a curious
system of exchange, I received in Japan £12 per
mensem more than:in: China, which was not to
be despised. The Japanese are not so straight-
forward in their dealings with foreigners as the
Chinese are, but they may improve in this way
when they know us better. The Japanese Govern-
ment do not allow a single thing to come into the
settlement without first going through their hands;
so trade is greatly cramped at present. They say
they only allowed foreigners into the country as an
experiment, and as it has failed they want us to
leave. This is all very well, but it comes too late.
Yokohama is hemmed in by Japanese Government
guards; you cannot leave the settlement without
passing three or four guards. The town is situated
in a valley shaped like a horse-shoe, with the heel
188 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

on the sea; the shoe part is a range of hills from
eighty to ninety feet high. The back of the settle-
ment is an impassable swamp which runs back to
the toe of the shoe—so that the only outlets are
over and by the base of the hills, which are strictly
guarded.

This ship—the Vulcan—is going home direct.
There was great cheering when we left Yokohama.
It sounded like mockery to me; however, I hope
my turn to rejoice will come yet. I have had a
deal of knocking about since I came to China.
What with one month in Sung Kiang, several weeks
up the country, two months in Taku and Pekin,
and three months in Japan, I have managed to
escape from Shanghai pretty well... .

It would be delightful to find you all at home
just the same as when I left. . . . The green spots
in my life are the leaves spent at home since I
entered the service. The school vacations were
very pleasant, but not so good as the others.

The sea is beginning to roll heavily, and the
water is coming into my cabin, so it is extremely
difficult to write; I shall finish this when I get
to Shanghai. To-morrow we pass through Van.
Diemen’s Straits—look at it on the map and think
of me!

March 24th.

We have had very rough weather, but now I am
safe at Shanghai. . . . The Colonel says I can
go down to Hong-Kong when I finish a survey of
the country about Souchow. This I mean to do
RETURN TO SHANGHAI. 189:

very soon. Major Gordon is hundreds of miles up
the country now. . . .” I send you a photograph—
“The Landing of the British Troops in Japan.”
The tall individual with the long nose, marching at
the head of the troops, is me !

To His BroTHER P.

On BoARD H.M.S. Vulcan,

March 19, 1864.

I have only just remembered that two days ago
was St. Patrick’s Day, which will give you some
idea of the state of degeneration we come to here!
. . . It seems to me seven years since I saw you
last, I have been knocking about so much from one
place to another. I often envy you fellows who.
live at home at ease; I have now learned enough
to know that there is no place like it, however good.
China is a dirty hole for a soldier, and I am getting
quite tired of it, since there is so little to do there.
in the way of fighting. ...

You will have heard, ere this, the state of our
relations with Japan. The Prince of Satsuma paid
up the money, and apologized. The Prince of
Nagato has closed the Inland Sea, and fired on
the French, American, and Dutch ships. We have
not sent a ship through the sea since it was closed.
Sir R. Alcock, I believe, is going down with the
fleet, when the six hundred Marines who are coming
have arrived. If the fleet succeed, it will be all well.
190 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

and good; if they don’t, they may order over a lot
of us. I think there will be a general rupture with
Japan sooner or later. The Japanese are busy
casting guns and making batteries in every con-
ceivable place, and as soon as they are ready will
try to get rid of us. The state of Japan now is
exactly like what England was in the twelfth and
thirteenth centuries. There are only two classes,
the Daimios and their retainers, and the trading
class; merchants and peasants are all one class,
being unprivileged — the privilege being to go
about armed. These two-sworded men are very
bumptious; it would do them a deal of good to
get a lesson. I have no doubt that it would be
‘easy to bring about a revolt ; the unprivileged class
is greatly bullied and ground down, and if trade was
developed, and the merchants became rich and
numerous, they would no doubt in time assert their
rights. This will not come in my time.

_ When I return to Shanghai, I go up to Gordon at
Souchow to survey. I am getting tired of Shanghai,
and have applied to go to Hong-Kong. There were
‘plenty of troops, and something going on when I
‘went there first, but it is different now. I cannot
say if I shall be allowed home when my three years
-expire—everything is so uncertain here. . . .

To HIs SISTER E.

I am indeed grieved to hear of the deaths of so
‘many friends. I shall miss them very much when
RETURN TO SHANGHAI. i9L

I go home. Poor Mr. Mease more than any.
When I think of you and of past times, he is
always associated with those memories... .

I have little of interest to tell you... . We have
a new Consul—Sir Harry Parkes; he is, I think,
the man for Shanghai. -My Colonel is up here from
Hong-Kong; he says I may go down there, if the
General does not object to my leaving Shanghai.
When it comes to the point, I shall feel some regret
at parting from my acquaintances here. I know a
great many of the people, and like some very much
indeed. You will think it strange that I have got
only one lady-friend, and she is going home next
May. She is a Mrs. Thorburn. They (the Thor-
burns) have been most kind to me. I have known
them for a year, and spend almost every Sunday
with them’ when I am here. Mrs. Cunningham,
an American lady I had a great esteem for, has
gone home with her family. If ever I go to
America I must see them. Mr. Cunningham was
the most eminent merchant here.

The Volunteers here got up amateur theatricals
last night; they were the best I have ever seen.
Major Gordon is still fighting rebels; he was
wounded the other day, but fortunately it is not
a bad wound. I hope he will get through it all
safely; he is too good to be expended for China-
men. He is a splendid fellow, and is my beau idéal
of a soldier. . . . I should not wonder if most of
the troops were moved from here, as the rebels are
driven so far back they are not wanted, You re-
192 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

member the house-wife you made for me—my
little Chinese boy lost it. I was sorry for it, and
threatened the boy to mulct him in his pay if he
didn’t produce it, but it was no use. He said,
**Some one have makey heilong it”? (which means
steal it), when he was sewing on a button. I don’t
care to buy another, as it would not take the place
of the lost one. I hate to lose anything that is
given tome. ... I get up early (six o’clock) every
morning to see the horses training. This neces-
sitates going to bed in good time. My old pony is
lame, but will soon be himself again. He belonged
to Major Gordon, and was the best in Shanghai.
I hope you go in for riding as much as ever...»
It is now very late, and I must go to bed, and finish
another time. So good-night....

‘

To unis MoTHER.

SHANGHAI, April 6, 1864.

The weather is beginning to get very unpleasant
now—wet, foggy, and warm. The grass is growing
up rankly (it springs up in a week), and there is a
heavy, damp weight in the air. The frogs are
beginning to croak, and now and then you hear the
buzz of crickets and mosquitoes. The old ‘dismal
swamp” feeling is coming back again. I shall
never forget last summer—the stillness and murki-
ness of the atmosphere, the croaking of frogs, the
stinging of mosquitoes, the noise of bats whirling
through the rooms, big beetles flying about, and
_ RETURN TO SHANGHAI. 193

the stench of dead Chinamen poisoning the air. Oh,
it was horrible! Our Colonel has told me that. I
may go to Hong-Kong, but. that. the General will
have to be consulted first. I don’t think he will
offer any objection, and.then, mother dear, I shall
be six hundred miles nearer home! This, I think,
is the only advantage Hong-Kong has over pee
(Japan has made me a grumbler). . ,
April 8th.

We heard to- day from Major Gordon; ‘he is
still laid up with his wound, but he sent some of
his officers out the other-day.. They followed the
rebels too far, and got wounded by them; they
then fled in dismay, the rebels becoming in turn
the pursuers. Seven officers were killed or wounded,
and I believe some were taken prisoners. We have
not had the detailed account yet.. ;

Major Gordon says the rebels are in myriads, and
are going about in all directions devastating .the
country. They are .very poor, and live by
plunder. They commit frightful: atrocities on the
unfortunate villagers; numbers of children were
seen with their throats cut ;, and’ Major Gordon says
he saw a woman with her hands tied behind her
back, her breast cut off, and her body ripped up.
The people are starving—actually eating grass,
Civil war is the worst: ‘of all. How thankful we
should: be that we have been, so long spared from
it in England through our good government ! ,

A am very glad now “that: I had nothing to, do

13
7194 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

with the Chinese force. I don’t think I could have
remained in it long, though if I once joined I should
feel bound to stick to it.

I believe Major Gordon is to be made a Brevet
Lieut.-Colonel by next mail. He deserves all that,
and far more. He is the finest specimen of.a soldier
that I have ever seen. I only hope that he will get
safe out of this affair.

My little rebel is a big boy now; he is noted for
his intelligence and good temper. He has had
better offers of pay than I give him, but declines
to leave me. I intend taking his photograph if I

can borrow a camera, and shall send you a copy.

SHANGHAI, April atst.

I am obliged to write very stupid letters, this
place is so dull; but I must write every mail, as I
know, dear mother,-how uneasy you would be if you
did not hear from me. You are always anxious to
hear news of myself, but I cannot tell you anything
better than that I am well, and getting on all right
with everybody. I have been knocked up slightly,
but am now, thank God, quite well again. The
weather is very nice, and we have very few men
sick at present. We have about 1,300 men here now.
I think the number will be reduced by this time
next year, owing to the progress made by Colonel
Gordon’s force, as they will not be required here.
Sir Frederick Bruce, our Minister at Pekin, is going
home in spring. It is likely that Sir Harry Parkes,
who is consul here, will succeed him. I like the
RETURN TO SHANGHAI. 195

latter very much indeed; he is a very young man,
“extremely clear-headed and business-like, and has
‘great energy, which is just the thing for China. ...

You are very good for sending me so many papers.
I like reading the proceedings of the Archeological
Society in Kilkenny, and often wonder if they would
care for anything I could give them. I have a
fragment of the Great Wall which I would be
delighted to give; you might ask Mr. Graves about
Its 2

My DEAR E——,—Touching the postage stamps,
I will send you any number of them. The Chinese
have no post-offices, therefore no stamps. They
send their letters by couriers, and when they want
them to travel fast they stamp them with the figure
of a horse galloping, which, by the by, would do
little good if the courier was not well paid. I will
show you a specimen of this when (D.V.) I go
home—a letter written by one of the rebel kings.

I have little to tell you about Shanghai. Colonel
Gordon is still fighting his way to Nankin. I send
you a paper in which you will see that Gordon’s
force has had very tough fighting; he has not got
more than eighty officers altogether. I expect he
will be made a Colonel and C.B. when the fighting is
over. He isa splendid fellow, and it would be a sin
if anything were to happen to him in the Imperial
service ; he is thrown away on such rascals....

I am constantly wishing for the time to come when
my transportation will cease. Shanghai is a tire-
“196 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

some place; most of my friends are gone, or going ;
-E feel an old inhabitant already... .. Do you
remember this time two years? Shall we ever
chave a return of those days? I hope so. Let us
‘live in hope... ...

sig A

_ -To wis MoTHER.

. SHanGual, May 19, 1864.

We had two days’ amusement here this week in
the shape of garrison games and races, which came
off very successfully. The races were open to the
volunteers, to the English and to the Indian troops.
The first-named distinguished themselves very much,
winning four prizes in the short races, but in the
Jong races and feats of strength, such as throwing
weights, &c., the Englishmen came to the front.
“” Colonel Gordon has taken a place called Chanchu,
which is the last stronghold of the Taiping rebels in
this. province; they still hold Nankin. I cannot
tell if he will still remain in command of his force,
or what will eventually become of it. I don’t think
it will be disbanded altogether.. There was great
Slaughter at Chanchu, but let us not talk about
ibe es 5
The troops in Shanghai are very comfortably
located for the summer, and I trust there will not
be so much illness ‘as there has been hitherto. The
town is. not. now so much crowded with Chinese,:
More men have been ordered. over to Japan. I am
going up .the country two days to. make a sketch:
RETURN.TO SHANGHAI. 197.

I expect to be away some time,.and. you may not
receive my letters punctually ; if so, you need. not
be alarmed. You must make somebody write to me
by every mail, as I feel anxious about you when: I
don’t receive a letter... .

In another year I shall be thinking of - going
home (D.V.) and seeing you all. It does not seem:
.very long since this time two years, when I was with
you and enjoying myself so much. ....

On May 22nd he started on ie important
survey, to undertake which he had been
ordered back from Japan. The following
notes from his diary give a slight sketch of
this expedition :— a

May ‘22nd.—Left Shanghai at 8 p.m.. : ie

23rd.—Arrived at Sungkiangku at 7.a.m., and at.
Quinsan at 9 p.m. Shot one pheasant and one hare.
Ther..80° in boat.

24th.—Went to top. of Quinsan hill with: Story:
and took angles. Dined with Gordon.

25th.—Left N. gate, Quinsan, at II a.m., fraversed.
creek towards Chanzu until .6.30: p.m: :

26th. — Started from Nu- ea at 4.45 a.m.,
arrived at Chanzu. at g.30 a.m.; left Chanzu at. 2
p-m. Day cloudy and stormy.

27th.—Sketched in creek from Chanzu to within
two miles. of Fushan. Country well cultivated.
Arrived at Fushan at 7.30 a.m..; took angles, and
198 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

got back to Chanzu by 12 o'clock. Went on top of
Muirhead hill.

28th.—Morning too hazy to make any observa-
tions. Left Chanzu for Souchow at 8 a.m.

29th.—Stopped for Saturday night at Lekin, shout
six miles from Souchow. This morning very wet
and stormy; could not get on until 2 o’clock. Higtane
in work. Arrived at Souchow at 3 p.m.

30th.— Went to Chanway Palace and shell factory
with Macartney; took angles from pagoda, and
started for Woosieh at 6 p.m. Arrived at Souchow
at zo p.m. Weather very pleasant.

31st. — Left Souchow at 6.40, and arrived at.
Woosieh about 4 p.m. Went into city and to top
of hill. Country badly cultivated. Many dead
bodies and beggars about.

Fune ist, Wednesday.—Left Woosieh at 7.30, and
arrived at Chanchow at 6 p.m. Passed heaps of
dead bodies. Day very hot. Surveyed part of
creek to South gate.

and. — Surveyed Chanchow with Blundell, and
intended starting for Leyang, Yesing, Kintang, but
met a Mandarin, who told us the people were eating
one another there. Started from North gate for
Kongzin about 4 p.m....

3rd.—Started at 8 a.m., and passed through a very
pretty country. Stopped about five miles from:
Kongzin. Day cloudy and pleasant.

4th.—Arrived at Kongzin at 8 a.m. Surveyed
city and started for Chanzu. Country very pretty.
Halted at 6.30 p.m.
RETURN TO SHANGHAI. 199

5th.— Day fine and a little cloudy. Worked on till
6 p.m. towards Chanzu. Country passed through
very pretty, but badly cultivated and thinly inhabited.
Saw some oats growing.

6th.—Started at 7 a.m., passed through large
creeks; got out of boat four miles from Chanzu
and came by road at foot of hill through gardens.
Weather fine and not warm. Arrived at Chanzu
at 4 p.m. Went up hill, but found it too misty for
observations.

7th.—Started early for Taitsan ; got over six miles
and obliged to halt all day on account of the rain.
Got touch of fever. Very wet all night.

8th.—Started at 8 a.m. Weather wet all the way.
Halted about eight miles from Taitsan.

gth.—Arrived at Taitsan at 11 o'clock; walked
from Taitsan to Quinsan. Found all Gordon’s force’
gone—no one there except Thompson. Dined with
Thompson, and started for Shanghai at 10 p.m.

toth.—Arrived at Sungkiangku at II a.m.;. got.
out of boat at Fahoo and walked to Shanghai.
Heard cholera had broken out.
ce

CHAPTER 1x,
“1864,
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA.

“His heart had attracted to it-all that was noble and graceful
in the trade of arms, rejecting all that was repulsive and. fero-
cious.” —CARLYLE.

‘On his return to Shanghai from the surveying
expedition on which he had been three weeks
employed, he found Colonel Gordon there.
The latter was preparing to start for Nankin
to visit the commander of the Imperialist
troops then employed in besieging the city,
and he invited his friend to accompany him :—

Fune 11th, Saturday.—Making preparations to start
for Chekiang and Nankin with Gordon. Dined with
Sir Harry Parkes. Went on board the Kiang-Loong
at II p.m.

13th.—Started at daylight ; weather fine and cool.
Arrived at Chekiang at 11 o'clock. Dined with
Smith. Slept on board hulk.
CHEKIANG—YOKOHAMA: 201

- 14th, Tuesday.—Went to breakfast to Silver Isle,
and .walked to top of it. Scenery beautiful. Got
two boats moved, to hulk. Elfin arrived about, back
6 o’clock-; obliged to wait for her to coal. Weather
very cool ; thermometer 70% ,

. 15th.—-Moved in the night fron ‘hulk to shore,
morning -being wet. Gordon and I went for a walk
to top of hill and city. Dined with Patterson. Went
_. back to Elfin at 19 p.m. Bi Fees a

The following letter is written on the same
date, June 15th :—

CHEKIANG. -
_ My DEAREST MoTHER,—I did not. write by the
last mail, as I had to go up.the country, and. had
no opportunity of sending a letter down. I have
been travelling about constantly, only stopping at
night. I had any amount of walking, and the
weather was fortunately not too hot for exercise ;
so you may imagine what good it did me. I felt
quite like myself again. Iwas at Souchow and
Chanchow. I shall tell you about them another
time. The only drawback to my enjoyment of the
trip was the number of the dead bodies lying about
and the hundreds of poor, starving people one met.
‘The dead were rebels who were killed, and left to rot
unburied. Jam sure I passed from 300 to 400 in one
day. The people are poor, as the country had only
just been taken from the rebels, and they don’t
202 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

allow the country people to till their fields. They
were actually eating each other farther up; so
I was very glad not to be obliged to go there. I got
back to Shanghai on the evening of the rath, and
Colonel Gordon, who was. there, told me he was
going to Nankin, and asked me to go with him. We
started on the 13th, and here we are now on the way
thither.:

While I was away from Shanghai, cholera broke
out there rather badly. Several Europeans and two
naval officers died of it. You cannot conceive what
a difference there is between the climate of this
place and Shanghai. Chekiang is a treaty port on
the Yangtze, about forty-five miles below Nankin.
There is very little trade here now; there are only
about ten foreigners, and they live on board boats—
the rebels have been always in such proximity to the
place, and once they attacked it. ...

When I write again I shall (D.V.) be able to tell
you something of Nankin. I hope you will get this
letter all right. It would cause me much uneasiness.
if I thought you were anxious. We are now sailing
across the Yangtze, and start to-morrow in a steamer
belonging to the Chinese Government for Nankin... .

Diary CONTINUED.

Fune 17th—We left steamer at 9 p.m., and rode
off to Tseng-kwo-fan’s brother’s camp. Well re-
ceived. Rode afterwards to the tomb of the Ching
Dynasty.
CHEKIANG— YOKOHAMA. 203

' 18th.—Tseng-kwo-fan’s brother came on board
Elphin to chin-chin. Left in Confucius at 4 p.m.;
arrived to where Pluto was aground at 6 p.m. Could
not tow her off. .

19th.—Got off the Pluto and started for Shanghai
at6a.m. Arrived at Chekiang at g.30.

A few days after his return to Shanghai he
got orders to proceed again to Japan, where he
arrived on the 2nd of July. He writes to his
mother by the next mail :—

YoxouaMa, Fuly 11, 1864.

It is a pleasure to be able to write from the
salubrious climate of Japan once more. I don’t
think I could have lived more than another year
at Shanghai. It has been a wretchedly unhealthy
place of late. ...

I wrote you a letter from Chekiang on the way to
Nankin, which I hope you received. I went with
Colonel Gordon. We had a very pleasant trip up
to Nankin. There were 70,000 Imperialists round
the place, and Colonel Gordon was received with
great honours. I expect the town will soon fall.
The Imperialists have been besieging it for eleven
years. . Just fancy!

We are likely to have something to do here.
The Inland Sea has been closed to all foreign
ships for a year. The French, American, and
Dutch have been fired on by the Prince of Nagato,
204 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

whose territories border on the straits of Limonosaki,
a very narrow strait, where the tide runs some five
to seven miles an hour. He has got his batteries,
in very strong positions. We have, taken -up the
gauntlet, and written to the Tycoon’s Government
to inform them that, if they will not compel Prince
Nagato to open the sea, we shall be obliged to
interfere, which means doing it’ ourselves. They
have got twenty days to give an answer. We
suppose they will leave it to us, and we are prepared
to go down and fight him. We have here now’
twelve men-of-war, one infantry regiment, and 500:
Marines. The Dutch have some 500 Marines also.
I don’t know whether the French will co-operate or
not; they have but a small force here. We may
have to remain there some time, so don’t be anxious
if I don’t write as punctually as usual. I have got
very nice quarters in a wooden cottage with three.
other officers. You have no idea, how pretty it is.
The -approach is covered with trellis work over
which many kinds of flowers and shrubs are trained.
At the back there is a kitchen-garden and stable.
We are about two hundred yards from the sea, and
a quarter of a mile from the country. I like my
commanding officer here very much; he is an
experienced officer, and. one can learn a good deal
from him. I am beginning to study. Japanese. .

The zoth Regiment, which has just. arrived, will
be stationed on a hill in wooden huts lately put by
the Japanese Government at their own expense.
They have built these huts in an: incredibly .short
CHEKIANG—YOKOHAMA. 205.

space of time; all we have to do is to furnish them
with plans and to visit the work every day; it is
superintended by Japanese officers (Yaconins). There
is one officer for each special part of the work, viz.,
building officer, officer over carpenters, officer for
road-making, &c. The Japanese are a most syste-
matic people, and much superior in every way to the
Chinese... .

We have a good many visitors here from Shanghai
—several. ladies amongst the number; they are de-
lighted with the place. It is not quite so hot here
as at Gibraltar. The thermometer was 88° in my
room to-day, and is now 82°, which is pretty warm.
We get rain now and then, which cools the atmo-
sphere. The only fruits in season now are plums,
peaches, and small melons. None of these are as
good as the fruit at home. We get many kinds of
fish here, and very good beef, but no mutton.

This is a wonderful country for collecting moths,.
beetles, ferns, &c.; many fellows make fine collec-
tions of these things. . . . I wish you would let me.
know if there is-anything you would like, and I shall
be only too glad to send it.

The following extracts are from a letter to.
his brother P., written on the same date as the
preceding one:

?

"YT tried very hard to get stationed here, and have
at: last succeeded. You cannot fancy what a great.
206 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

difference there is between this climate and China.
‘Their is another Engineer officer here, Major Wray,
a capital officer; it is a pleasure being under him.
My pay is better here than in China, but I expect it
will be reduced. I am quite prepared for it, and
won't grumble, as £54 per mensem is rather too
much for a subaltern in a good climate and cheap
country.

I was glad indeed to leave Shanghai; the climate
was beginning to affect me in many ways. This is
a fearful place for mosquitoes; they are eating me
as I write ; they can bite through stockings or white
trousers, and make sitting on a cane-bottomed chair
unpleasant !

The 2nd battalion of the 2oth Regiment arrived
yesterday from Hong Kong; they are to land in
a few days. I don’t recollect if you met them at
the Curragh ; they were there for a short time with
me; they are a very good regiment. We now have
I,300 men on shore and twelve ships. I think this
Japan affair may last longer than we expect; it
may lead to a general war; but, as this is a
country we know so little about, it is impossible to
form an opinion on the subject. ‘If we move to the
Inland Sea, it will be in about twenty days’ time.

I would rather be stationed here than in any other
foreign place in the world, so I must consider myself
.at last a lucky dog!

His chief reason for wishing to go to Japan
‘was the superiority of its climate over that of
. CHEKIANG—YOKOHAMA. 207

China, which led him to expect that he would
enjoy better health there ; but his hopes in this
respect were not fulfilled :—

To His MOTHER.

YOKOHAMA, August 12, 1864,

I received your long letter dated June rst, a few
days since. I was delighted to hear from you. You
must write to me as often as you can. If you only
knew how much a letter from you raises my spirits
and how happy it makes me, I am sure you would.

I have been very ill for the last few days, and am
now out of bed for the first time. I had another
bad attack of that painful disease, so little known
at home, but so well known in the East—dysentery.
I have, thank God, got over it, and am now nearly
quite well. I had it twice in China, but neither
time so badly as this. People here have been very
kind indeed: the clergyman’s wife (whom I have
never seen) sent me some jellies; and the Minister’s
people (the Alcocks) give me everything I want.

It is expected here that there are ‘‘ crowns to be
broke” soon. Two men-of-war went to the Inland
Sea and were fired on. Moreover the Japanese
refuse to open it. There is a council of war held
here to-day. The officer who was in command
here, Major Wray, has been attached to the Admiral,
and I have been made Commanding R. E. in Japan.
I don’t think this will last long, as they will scarcely
208 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

leave so young an officer in so important a command
for any time. It gives.me a great deal of respon-
sibility and hard work, and. I can. get nothing for it,

being a subaltern. . . . However, I will do my best to
do right, and will love for the time when I can go home
and spend some:quiet months at-Cascade with you
all. It is very warm here, thermometer from 85° to
go in the shade. - It takes a long time for letters
to come here, as you may see by the dates.’ I don’t
know many of the people here, but there aré some
nice people whom I hope to know when I ‘get well.
Sir Rutherford and Lady Alcock have been most
kind to me. . . . I do not expect to go down to the
Inland. Sea now, as I am placed in command here,
and that is entirely a naval affair. We are build-
ing wooden huts for the. troops: in fact, it is the
Japanese Government which is building them—we
only furnish the plans... Sir Rutherford Alcock. is
a very:resolute man, and is pursuing a most deter-
mined course with the Japanese.

2 . I think it would be a mistake for C—— to
go te the medical profession, . . . but my opinion
in this matter should not go for much. I only know
that to hesitate is to be lost; and no fellow ¢an
prosper if he is thinking of one pursuit, and following
another. We arevall old enough now to know: what
is good for-us; :let>us all do what.we like as far as
is right, and do our best to help each other ony o7u:.

aad a Bue BY +8 f ele woe

es at
sak

 
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA, 209

To HIS SISTER E.

YoKoHAMA, August 24, 1864.

By the last mail I received your welcome letter,
dated June 16th. I am sometimes surprised at
the few changes that take place at home, when one
sees so much out here. If you told me when I
entered Woolwich that in nine years from that time
I should be living thirty miles from Yeddo, I
should scarcely have believed it.

The Japanese who went over to France returned
by last mail, after having made a treaty with the
Emperor to the effect that the Inland Sea
should be opened three months after their arrival
here. So our expedition, with which the French
and Americans were morally co-operating, was
postponed on the eve of its departure. To-day
there was a meeting of all the Ministers and the
Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs. I believe
there is a difficulty in getting the Tycoon to ratify
this treaty made with the Emperor, in which case
the expedition would soon take place. I shall not
be allowed to go, as I have been put in command
of the R. E.’s here. I am greatly disappointed at
this; I had quite counted on going from the first.
I am very busy every day now, and have not: had
time lately to go through the curio shops. I am
very happy, as you can imagine. I have a good deal
to do with the Japanese officers, and like them very

14
210 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

much. One of them yesterday promised me a fan
to send to you: the poor fellow was sick to-day, and
I gave him some physic. The Japanese Govern-
ment is building all the barracks for the troops
here. We have a very nice regiment here, the
and Battalion zoth Regiment. If we are only left
here for one year, I think this will be the nicest
garrison in the world; but we cannot tell on any day
what may happen the next. This, to my mind, isa
very happy state of existence. I am fond of un-
certainty. I only hope that 1 shall be spared to
see you all again ;—that is such a luxurious thought
to dwell on—I am almost afraid to look forward to
it. In the meantime you must not forget me: we
must always remain close allies.

I have found some difficulty in the matter of
Japanese servants. I got one, called Jim Patch,
and he ran away, taking with him £4 of mine. It
seems he was a deserter from the Japanese service,
and they were on the point of finding him out, which
accounts for his absconding. The Japanese police
are looking after him, and I expect to be repaid.
I have now a willing boy whom I am trying to
teach—rather a difficult matter, as I only know a
little of the language, and he is as ignorant as a
young plough-boy of the manners and customs of
civilized people.

The weather is now pleasantly cool, and we are
all much healthier in consequence. I have first-
rate quarters next door to the Legation, within
twenty yards of the sea, which is delightful.
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA. air

To His MOTHER.

YOKOHAMA, September 12, 1864.

We are going on steadily here. There is plenty
of work for me, as we are building huts for the troops.

There has been no news yet from the Fleet which
went down some time ago to the Inland Seas.
There have been some diplomatic interchanges going
on between our Minister and the Japanese. It is
said that the latter wished to recall the Fleet, but I
cannot say if this is the case. As far as the land
force is concerned, I don’t think we shall have any-
thing to do, as the Japanese seem inclined to yield
to our wishes on all points. However, it is such a
curious country, and its people so little known or
understood by us, that I am afraid to hazard any
opinion, but am contented to live in a state of un-
certainty, and not feel surprise at anything that may
happen.

I have a good deal to do with the Japanese officers.
I like them very well.

I was rather deel some eae ago, but now, thank
God, am in very fair health. The weather has been
beautiful for the last few days. We had a typhoon,
a tremendous circular storm, which blew the roof off
many of the houses, and wrecked some boats in the
harbour. The night before the typhoon there was
an earthquake that shook our frail houses, but not
sufficiently to awaken me. We are getting on very
comfortably, and if the Japanese will only let us
alone, and not insist on our fighting with them, I
312 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

think this will be an extremely nice station. There
is not a very large community here, or much trade
going on; but there are quite enough people to form a
society. I scarcely know any one yet, but will soon
make some acquaintances. I have not been into the
country at all since I came this time. We have been
forbidden to ride on the Tokaido (high road) for some
time, owing to the number of bad characters about
there, and the likelihood of rows in consequence. I
hope matters will soon be settled one way or the
other. ...I am naturally anxious to get home,
and look forward to the time when my service will
be completed as longingly as I used to look forward
to vacation when at school. I shall send you the.
photograph you have asked for so often when the
artist comes back to Yokohama: he has gone with
the fleet to the Inland Sea to take views. Mr. Wirg-
man, the correspondent of the Illustrated London News,
has also gone, so you may expect to see a flourish
of what has taken place, in the papers. I have gota
Japanese teacher, and am learning a little of the
language, but I do not study it as attentively as I
ought. It is almost as sweet a language as Spanish,
and it is very easy to pick up a few words, but very
difficult to speak well, there are so many different.
ways of expressing the same meaning when speaking
to men of different ranks. They have two written
languages—one like the Chinese, and another quite
different, a sort of running hand. Their system of
weights and measures is better than ours, being:
decimal. They are certainly a wonderful people.
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA. 213

“The 2oth band plays opposite my room every
Saturday. Whenever they play, I think of you all at
home !

To nis BRoTHER P.

September 28th. -

The fleet have given the Prince of Nagato a great
‘smashing. They destroyed all his forts, and they
took sixty-eight guns from him worth about £10,000.
There were but few casualties on our side— not
more than forty killed and wounded. The Japanese
lost about three hundred men. You will see an
account of the whole affair in the newspapers. Two
Royal Engineers went down— Major Wray, who
was attached to the Admiral, and a lieutenant in
charge of some sappers. Wray applied specially
for me to be allowed to go, but as I was the senior,
the General kept me here. We expected, if any
casualty happened to the fleet, to be attacked, but all
passed off quietly. Ifthe Japanese had come on us
determinedly they would probably have worsted us,
as there is no position here to hold on by. I am
busily employed superintending the building of huts
for the troops, and in consequence have a good deal to
do with the Japanese officials: The barometer you
sent was not the kind I want, as it is not divided all
round, and therefore not suitable for obtaining the
heights of mountains over 6,000 feet.

I have been very lucky since I came to the East
in being placed in command—in Shanghai for a long
time, and now here. I have learned more than I
214 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

should in double the time at home. Our pay has
been reduced; I lose about £150 per annum, which
seems a lot, but it gives me little concern. All the
other officials lose a like amount in proportion to
their incomes. This change has been made by the
paternal Government, though they gain nothing by it.
I now receive £480 a year, which is enough to sustain
me.

I have not had a letter from home for two mails.
This is probably owing to the mismanagement of
postal arrangements in Hong-Kong. I shall be
glad when my letters are sent direct here. We have
a capital United Service Club here. I live quite close
to it, and take my meals there. The table d’héte is
rather crowded ; sixty fellows frequently dine there.
I have learned a little Japanese from a teacher. I sent
him away the other day, as I had no time to attend
to him. He was a lazy beast, and very dense. I
have a Japanese boy whose name is Ki, which
signifies “‘ gold.” My former valet, by name Jim
Patch, ran away, taking some money with him. I
have had my room twice entered and things stolen
each time, so I can’t say much for the honesty of
the Chinese or Japanese. ...

I have not been very well since I had the last
attack of dysentery, and notwithstanding the attrac-
tions of this place, I shall be glad when my turn for
home comes. The East wears a fellow a good deal,
particularly if he gets much knocking zbout out of
doors. I very often see Sir Rutherford Alcock, the
Minister. He is a very determined and clever man.
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA. 215

I have sold my little gun and got a heavy shooter,
twelve-bore, which I call ‘“* No Mistake.” I think
I shall lock him up here altogether: there are two
sportsmen for every pheasant in the country ; but if
one could only get into the interior, he would have
wild boar, bears, and deer.

His being without letters from home for
two mails was due to the fact that his friends
were ignorant of his move to Japan, and had
addressed their letters to China. Alluding to
his disappointment, he writes to his sister

Ee

I have been looking out anxiously for a letter
from home, not having had one for two mails! It
is too bad. I wish you would jot down daily occur-
rences in a diary, and send me a copy every week.
It would be a great pleasure to me, and really I
would be interested in knowing whether you went
for a ride or a drive, played croquet, or had archery,
&c. I have grown awfully cross of late—my best
friends are getting cool, and say that I cut them.
Lady ; says that I am always ‘ between sleep-
ing and waking, like Kathleen Mavourneen.” My
answer to each and allis: ‘‘I have not had letters
from home for two mails.” Save me from this
melancholy ; write nonsense—anything, only write,
write, write !

 
216 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To Huis MOTHER.

YOKOHAMA, October 12, 1864.

This day I received your most welcome and long-
expected letter, dated July 16th. It was sent up
from Hong-Kong in the beginning of last month,
but has since been delayed by contrary winds and
accidents of sea. The steamer it came in was very
near being lost.

You are not a bit more anxious for my going
home than I am myself; but unfortunately I do not
see any prospect of it unless I get invalided, which
I should not like. I will hold on as long as I can,
and go home with the conviction of having done’ a
good time of foreign service. Since I had the last
attack of dysentery I frequently suffer from its
effects, and also from a bad liver. This is all I
have to complain of, and I trust I may be able to
get all right in the fine weather which we expect
to have for the next three months. Small-pox has
broken out amongst the troops. ‘To-day we buried
Captain Vereker, of the 2oth, and the only sergeant
of Engineers here died at eleven o’clock to-day.
Strange to say, that, although this place is noted
for small-pox, the doctors have no vaccine here. ...

You speak of your fear of my being changed by
seeing so much and meeting so many people since
I left home. It almost brings tears to my eyes that
you should say so. Who is there in the world I
care for in comparison to you? and I have often
CHEKIANG. YOKOHAMA. 217

told you that I have no better interest, or higher
wish than to please you. ... 1 think a child can
never repay his mother for all she has done for him.
. . . As for going to India, I should not dream of
it until after I had-been home, and then only after
mature consideration. The idea of returning a
subaltern after having been so long away, is, I must
say, very distressing to me... .

I am very sorry indeed that you did not get the
seeds. However, I hope to choose better seeds and
bulbs, and send or take them myself to you. I hope
ere this you have received the brown crépe silk, and
have converted it into a nice dress. I should like to
see you in it when I go home. I shall soon have
occasion for the warm socks and suits you sent me.
Everything of European manufacture is enormously
dear here—dollars vanish just as shillings would at
home. ...

October 16th.

I have just been on board a ship to see Captain
Alexander, Royal Engineers, who was wounded
at Limonosaki; he is going home by this mail. He
will most probably get a C.B. for his services.
Colonel Gordon is also going home soon: he de-
serves whatever they can give him. . . . Trade has
brightened up here since the hostilities in the Inland
Sea, and I expect we shall have no more fighting.
There have been two cases of assassination since
last mail. One was a sergeant- of Marines, who
was cut down by three Japanese soldiers not six
218 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

hundred yards from this house; the other was a
soldier who was killed at night in the Japanese
town. Both the men were to blame, as I believe
the first had ill-treated the soldiers, and the second
was in the Japanese town, which is against orders.
However, the Japanese have no right to take the
law into their own hands; they are horribly jealous
of foreigners—that is, the two-sworded men. I do
not like the idea of being here to protect a mixed
community of American, French, Dutch, &c., as
the merchants we protect will sell arms and ammu-
nition to the Japanese. At Shanghai they used to
sell to the rebels when we were at war with them.
The Japanese soldiers about here are armed with
the Enfield rifle of 1863. The Chinese ports are
no doubt a source of great revenue to us, but other-
wise they are no use. The trade is monopolized by
a small number of merchants, who have a large
capital, so there has been little encouragement
hitherto for strangers to come out. Unfortunately
when there was fighting going on at Shanghai, a
great number of rowdies and very bad characters
came there from California, and other parts of
America; they turned their talents to smuggling,
piracy, and stealing. Colonel Gordon ‘‘ expended” a
good many of them, and many joined the rebels,
and we got rid of them in that way. The American
Consuls are all men connected with trade, and have
no authority over their countrymen; that is pain-
fully felt out here. It is a pity the Americans do
not pay their Consuls, as we and the French do... -
CHAPTER xX,
1864.
HONG-KONG.

“Not fearing death, nor shrinking for distress,
But always resolute in most extremes.”
HENRY VI.

He was still in weak health, never having
quite recovered from the effects of his last
severe illness, when he was seized with a
return in an aggravated form of the same
malady. From his diary we learn that he
was struck down on the 4th of November,
and from that date there isa blank, with the
exception of the entry, ‘‘On the sick list”
occurring two or three times, until the 15th,
when he begins the following letter to his
mother. The uneven, wavering characters in
which the first part is penned show more
220 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

plainly than words could, the weakness of
the writer.
YOKOHAMA.

I have been laid up on the sick-list lately, and
am going down to Hong-Kong, as the doctors do
not think I shall get well here. I have never com-
pletely recovered from the last attack of dysentery
I had, and am now regularly laid up. If I do not
get well in Hong-Kong I am to go home; so you
may see me sooner than you expected. I go down
in a few days. Sir Rutherford Alcock is going
home soon, having been recalled; he, however,
has done a good deal of work out here. The “ peace
party’ at home is very strong just now. Every-
thing is very quiet here; it is expected the troops
will leave in four or five months from this time.
IT am——

He stops abruptly here, probably too ill to
go on. Then on the same page, a fortnight
later, in his usual firm hand he writes :—

Hone-Kone, November 30, 1864.

I arrived here the day before yesterday. I am,
thank God, quite recovered. The sea voyage had
a most miraculous effect on me. I began this
letter in bed, which accounts for the writing.
Colonel Gordon, by a curious coincidence, came
down in the same mail-steamer with me on his way
HONG-KONG. 221

to England; he was wishing that I was going the
whole way with him. We have been friends for a
long time. I might have been invalided home if I
would go, but I don’t like the idea of going home
on sick leave, as I should surely be well by the
time I reached home. Even now, people don’t
believe I have been so ill. Colonel Gordon. has
promised to try to get me home soon. The weather
in Japan was very cold—here it is beautiful. You
can’t imagine how fine it is, and the change here
is like going home—everything seems so luxurious
—good quarters, good food, and good servants. I
shan’t be sent back to Japan, as I shall be kept
here on duty. ... There is very little work for
the soldiers here. .

To HIS SISTER B.

Hona-Kone, December 12, 1864.

You will hear by this mail of the assassination of
two officers of the 2zoth Regiment in Japan. They
were killed at a place which is the usual resort of
picnic parties from Yokohama—even ladies ride out
there. These murders will occur periodically until
the feudal system of society which prevails is
changed.

There are only two Siasaes't in Japan, the privileged
and the un-privileged. The princes, all soldiers and
civil officers belong to the former class; while the.
latter consists of all traders, agriculturists, and arti-
zans. The good qualities of the former are their
222 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

patriotism and their regard for the lower class; over
whom they hold themselves so high, that they can
afford to behave with kindness and justice. The dark
side of their character is their treachery and duplicity,
and an inveterate hatred to foreigners, caused by their
knowledge that with increased trade a middle class
will rise up, which will injure them. They are con-
servative to the backbone, and are opposed to change
of any kind. The military followers or retainers of
the nobles are a very disreputable lot. They are
idle except in time of war; and being always armed,
and generally drunk, one does not wonder they are
quarrelsome, especially with foreigners whom their
masters hate. The country is infested with these
fellows: they carry long swords, and wear the crest
of their prince. There is yet a worse class in the
country, but I don’t know how they came to exist.
They are bands of discharged soldiers called Loonins.
These do not serve under any prince, but in case of
war between the government and a prince, or be-
tween two princes, they can be hired. They area
drunken and disorderly set, and frequently rob vil-
lages. The unprivileged class, who are not allowed
to carry swords, are a very quiet, peaceable race;
they are most industrious, and all you ever see of
Japan comes from them. I hada good deal to do
with Japanese officers, as when I went to Japan there
were no quarters for the soldiers, and when I was
leaving there were quarters for 1,400 men nearly built,
and for 100 men fitted up. All this was done by the
Japanese Government under our superintendence.
HONG-KONG. 223

The Japanese officers in charge are a very ignorant
lot ; they did not understand the simplest principles
of carpentry, and when I had to explain any neces-
sary alteration, &c., I was never allowed to tell the
workmen, who would have understood me at once,
but had to go first to the officers, and there was the
greatest difficulty in getting them to comprehend
me. I often gave them a bit of my mind—told them
how ignorant they were, and that they were too
conceited to learn—that the commonest tradesmen,
who went on bended knees to them, were higher
in our estimation than they; and many other un-
pleasant truths, which they had to swallow good-
humouredly. I was rather good friends with one
fellow : he gave me two fans to give you and Nell, but
they were such miserable things I did not send them.
I only brought a few things away, as my leaving was
so sudden. The doctors and commandant wanted
me to go home, but I thought it better not, as I
should be either dead or well by the time I arrived at
Southampton; and in the latter case I can imagine
the stern official at the Horse Guards looking as if
he would say :—‘‘ Behold the sick individual!” I was
never so ill before, and I often thought if it would
be nice to die—and came to the conclusion that it
would not—out here, with no relations near me; so
I came away and rapidly recovered. . . .

Colonel Gordon came from Shanghai in the mail
with me; he has gone home, and has promised to get
me home soon, so I hope to get away before the end
of the year.
224 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

As far as we can see, this resolve to remain
abroad until his term of service expired, or he
was recalled by the authorities, cost him his
life. But, as General Gordon said, “He
thought it would be a slur on him to leave
under a medical certificate.’ He could not
bear to seem to desert his post, or fail in
carrying out the high ideal of duty he had
ever set before him.

To HIS BROTHER C.

December 14th.

In the last letter I had from B. she said that you
had determined on going in for the medical pro-
fession. I was surprised, as I did not think you
would care to give up the comfort of home, and the
good prospect you had before you. However, I
entirely approve of it, for the sole reason that it
makes you independent. A man of spirit can never
be happy as long as he is dependent. Your age is no
drawback unless you want to enter the army; in all
other cases I should think it is an advantage not to
be too young. It is a mistake for fellows to go to a
profession very young, if they have enough to sup-
port them while studying for it; for, what is a year
when taken from a man’s life, and how much is it
when added to a man’s youth, if he spends it profit-
ably? I take your real life to commence from the
HONG-KONG. 225

time you go into the world on your own account.
You must work easily and systematically, taking
care not to allow study to interfere with regular
exercise. Make it a rule to walk so many miles a
day. It is a good plan to lay down certain rules and
not allow anything to interfere with them. I
hope you will take this adyice from a youth in good
part, as, from what B. said, I thought you would like
to hear what I have to say on the subject. I don’t
like giving any opinion on family matters unless
asked to do so....

I hope to be with you, please God, in five or six
months, unless something extraordinary turns up.
We have had two casualties in our department
lately. One captain coming out has got sunstroke,
and another, going home, smallpox... .

I long heartily for the time to go home. I have
no yearning after the country or the work, which is
inferior to what we have abroad. I only want to see
you all. Write soon, old fellow, and tell me how
everything is going on, and what you are doing.
Once having made your resolution, never depart from
it.

To HIS SISTER E.

Hona-Kona, December 15, 1864.

I have just sent a beautiful Chinese vase to
Colonel Gordon. It cost £50, and was presented to
him by a Chinese governor. He is going to give it
to the mess at.Chatham. He is now on his way

15
226 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

home. He refused all pecuniary offers from the
‘Chinese, as he said the services he gave them could
not be purchased. He has now more influence with
the Chinese than any man in the East; his name is
honoured out here by every one. He is certainly
the most genuine specimen of a nobleman I have
ever known or seen... .

You seem to be in a small circle of festivities. I
have not danced since I was at home, so I can’t be
accused of leading a frivolous life. Croquet has
found its way out to Hong-Kong, and some of the
mild ones attempt it with the ladies. I think riding
is the best exercise and amusement for ladies. There
are some beautiful horsewomen here. I hope you
tide as much as ever... .

You must excuse the shortness of this letter; I
have written so many, I am fairly bothered !

To HIs MOTHER.

Hona-Kone, Christmas Day, 1864.

The French mail leaves to-day, morning, so I take
this opportunity of writing to tell you how I have
been thinking of you all the morning and hoping
that you are well and happy. How I do wish I was
at home amongst you now. I never felt a greater
longing to see you all than I do this day. I trust in
‘God that I shall be with you this day twelve months.
I suppose not having much to do here has made me
think the more of home, and seeing so many children
HONG-KONG. ‘227

about brings one’s memory back to it. It is strange
that children always remind me of home.! I never
picture to myself the pleasures of being employed at
home, or the probability of getting to a good station.
I only think of seeing you all again. We have had a
beautiful morning, sunshiny, but not too warm. I
have had a good many invitations to dinner, as the
merchants here are most hospitable, but am going
to dine with an officer (married). The men had a
very nice dinner. I went round and drank their
healths. This time two years at Shanghai, I had a
company of my own. They were fine old warriors,
and had a splendid Christmas dinner. One corporal
—a noble fellow—proposed my health, and with
some others carried me round the room on his
shoulders. I saw the poor fellow some time after
on his death-bed, struck down by cholera; he was a
capital soldier and very handsome. Many of the
poor fellows have died since.

I spent last Christmas with Colonel Gordon. He
has been through many exploits since, but is now, I
am happy to say, safe out of China. I was always
anxious for his safety while he was here, he was so
fearless of danger. You will see an article in the
November Cornhill Magazine styled, ‘ Colonel
Gordon’s Exploits in China.” It will interest you
very much, I am sure. I feel quite deserted and
sad when I think of my friends—nearly all have
gone home, or else are soon to go... .

© His love of children was remarkable ; they had a wonderful
attraction for him.
228 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

The weather here is beautiful now, and I am
thankful to say I am enjoying excellent health. I
had some snipe-shooting a few days ago up the
Canton river. It was very dirty work indeed, up to
one’s knees in mud, and the sport was scarcely
worth it. I am thinking of going to Canton next
week, as Colonel and Mrs. Moody, who are there,
have kindly asked me to spend a few days with
them.

I am glad C. is taking up a profession. Why
doesn’t G., instead of going into the army as a
doctor, enter the combatant branch ?—it is far the
noblest, and a man can raise himself highest in it.
It is a curious fact that very few English now take
up the medical, and the canny Scotch are following
in their footsteps, while the Irish are content to take
what the others leave. I don’t look down on the
medical profession, by any means; but I do despise
a man whose only prospect is to pass an examination
to get into the service, and then sit down for the rest
of his life, only rising by seniority (I hate seniority !).
If I were a medico I should do as C. is doing—go
into civil practice.

God bless you and father, and keep you from
Christmas to Christmas.

To Huis SISTER B.

December 28th, 1864.

There is not much going on here now. I am
doing nothing, and I am scrry to say idleness.
.HONG-KONG. 229°

agrees exceedingly well with me. I intend soon
going to see Canton. Then I shall have been
to Pekin, Nankin, the Great Wall, and Yeddo. If
you told me when I was a small boy that I should
see all these places one day, I should hardly have
believed you.

I am glad to hear you have not got thin. Defend
me from scragginess, especially in a woman! A lean
man I don’t object to, as, if he has much to do, or
think of, he can’t be fat. But a cadaverous indi-
vidual whose food, consumed in large quantities,
doesn’t visibly affect him, is worst of all.

I will soon, please God, be with you all again ;
the time is rapidly approaching when I shall say
farewell to China. All my friends are going one by
one, and my transportation, too, will soon be over.
Sir Rutherford Alcock is leaving about the r5th of
January, and a few others, Cane among the number.
Cane is a very good friend of mine, and I admire him
very much. The gth Regiment will soon be here.
I suppose your friend Mrs. C. will be with it.
There are lots of ladies here. It is not a bad place.
for them for a short time, but very bad for a con-
tinuance. The children here look awfully pale and
delicate. Many of the soldiers are sending home
their children by a government ship which is going
next month. There has been any amount of house-
breaking and robberies going on here lately. The
Chinese are the most audacious robbers; they will
steal your teeth almost. What do you think of their
getting into a barrack-room and stealing the men’s
230 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

arms while they were asleep, some time ago? I was.
at Whampoa, a place on the Canton river, about,
forty miles from here, shooting, a few days ago.
We (a party of four) breakfasted with an English-
man who is in charge. of the docks there, and we
were admiring his house, which was nearly new and-
very nicely furnished, one of the-prettiest houses I
have seen for some time. I heard yesterday that-
the preceding night the house had been broken into
by an armed gang, who got hold of the Chinese nurse
and child (the gentleman and his wife were here at
the time). The ruffians drew a knife across the-
child’s throat so as to cut the skin, to try to frighten
the old woman into telling where the dollars were—
which she could not do, as the gentleman had taken
all his treasure to Hong-Kong the day before. They
then broke everything.in the house. It is satisfactory
to know that one of them was killed and several
wounded by the watchman. When I go out far into
the country I shall certainly take a revolver with me
for safety, as this time of year it is even dangerous
on the island. (Did you know that Hong-Kong is
an island? Some people don’t.) When you write
again, tell me what you think of China—what your
ideas are of the people,.and what you would like
from China. Choose..from these—Peach- stone
bracelets carved; ditto. brooches; carved ivories,
such as bracelets, brooches, chess-men, &c.; sandal-
wood boxes, fans: I have been out so long that my
taste has become quite vitiated, and I can’t tell what
things are most appreciated by ladies. .The paternal.
HONG-KONG. ‘ 231.

Government has required me to repay £53 too much
received. I am. sure I don’t know how—but must
obey. However, it is of little consequence, although
it is the price of a good horse or gun at home.

I, should like to go on the continent for a time the
year I go home (not all at once, before I see you—no,
not if I know it!). I want to pick up French, and see
many things. I read French books now, but that
won’t make me speak it. The language is of
incalculable use to a soldier when abroad. I have
been thrown ‘among the French a good deal, and
might have learned much from the French officers ;
they are a nation of soldiers, and one must admire
them. -I was very good friends at Shanghai with a
little captain of the Corps du Génie (a nicer name
than Royal Engineers) ; he could not speak English,
nor I much French, but we managed to get on
together. It is a pity that modern languages are
not more taught at schools.

December 29th. |

- I only to-day received your letter dated September
16th. It went to Japan and back again, and I must
say was well worth all its travelling. Iam glad to
hear that you have added to your accomplishments
by learning to swim, and by becoming a musical com-
poser. I am very anxious to see and hear your
waltzes. I am curious to know why you called them
the “ Regatta Waltzes”; it is a very commonplace
name..- Perhaps it was suggested by your learning to.
swim ! a
232° WITH GORDON IN GHINA.

What kind of Christmas did you have? I dined’
with two ladies—the first time I have seen so large a:
number of the fair sex at table for two years!

December 31st.

The mail is just closing, so I must say good-bye.
I will think of you to-morrow, and pray that the year
’65 will see us together again. With best love and
prayers for your welfare. ...

To HIS BROTHER P.

Hone-Kone, December 31st.

My peEAR P.,—I hear you are going to leave
Trinity in May. I am sorry for this, as I should
like to have seen you again in the old place, and’
have some sausages, bacon and eggs, and marma-
lade for breakfast in your rooms as of old.

We lead very quiet lives here—very little to do.
There is a good deal of dining-out, which I abhor!
There is a man here who was formerly at T.°C. D.
It is curious how often one finds men snobs, but
scarcely ever women. Why is this? I wish you
would write now and then to tell me how you are
getting on. I suppose you have to work hard—
indeed every one has, no matter what profession he
is in. Lawyers seem to thrive very well here; there
is a deal of litigation going on. It seems to me that
men who work hard get on everywhere if they are
not fools... .
HONG-KONG. 233

The J.’s will soon be here, also C. and Mrs. C.
Poor ladies—God help them here! .. . I think I shall
get home next autumn—I am afraid not before. I
wonder if we shall be at the partridges together
again! Who knows? Good-bye, old fellow.
‘CHAPTER -XI.
1865.
HONG-KONG (continued).

“Happy he
With such a mother ! faith in womankind
Beats with his blood, and trust in all things high
Comes easy to him.”
THE PRINCESS.

To HIS BROTHER P.

Hone-Kone, Fanuary 11, 1865.

I hope the year 1865 will be a happy one to us
all. There have been few changes in 1864. I am
getting along quite happily, not overworked. There
is a large staff of officers here, and a clerk of works,
so there is not much to do.

Hong-Kong is a pleasant enough place at this
time of year, but there is not the shooting here we
had at Shanghai. I get up every morning at six
o’clock, and go for a walk. . . . I intend soon
paying a visit to Canton and Macao; steamers run
from here every day.

I dined last night with a fellow who has married
a China woman. He was formerly in the Royal
Engineers, and, while he was stationed here, fell
-_ HONG-KONG. 235-

in love with this girl, and married her. He was
ordered home, and tried to get out again, but they
would not allow him, so he resigned. . . . It is a
miserable thing to be tied to a Chinawoman, but I
admire the man’s principle and pluck to give up
everything for her.. -He is.a very handsome fellow,
clever, and a perfect gentleman. . . . I suppose J.
is working hard. There is plenty of work for Civil
Engineers in India, and may be ‘here in course of
time. . . . Do you ever dream of being on the
Woolsack? I wonder if we shall ever make a
name? IfI live long enough I shall be a general,
but that expectation does not satisfy my ambition!
. . . Gordon is only about‘ thirty years old, and he
has been a general—and a very good one too. He
would be just the man to settle a war like that of
New Zealand. He is desperately energetic, and
has lots of resources; he had thirty fights with
the rebels, and was only beaten twice. I don’t
know what he will do now; he has too much “ go”
to settle down quietly at home... .

...+ Do you ever want money now? I have
more than enough ; however, we shall find a use for
it when I’ go home: good shooting, perhaps a
hunter; and a trip’ somewhere—lItaly, I think, to
look up the fortresses in the Quadrilateral, to see
if théy are all right. I should also like to see
Paris again, since the wonderful Napoleon III. has
made the improvements. All these ‘little castles
in the air” may be knocked down by the home
authorities only giving me a month’s leave, and
230 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

sending me to look after a fort which cannot ‘be-
deserted until completed! However, let us hope
for the best. . . . I am very happy at getting int
good health again. -

To HIS MOTHER.

Fanuary 12, 1865.

I have been getting very good health since I came
down here. It seems strange to be ill in such a
fine climate as Japan, and to recover in Hong-
Kong ; but the weather was very cold at Yokohama,
and there was not very good accommodation—no
fire-places when I left... .

I live in a house with two officers of the Royal
Artillery, in a place called Spring Gardens, a mile
and a half from the town. We have a very nice
mess; it would be considered expensive at home,
but is cheap in comparison to living at Shanghai.
We get a good many horses from Australia; they
are as a rule very ugly, fiddle-backed, long-legged
brutes, and addicted to buck-jumping. Great ex-
citement prevails every morning in the race-course.
For a month before the races no jockeys are allowed
to train the horses; they must be all ridden by
gentlemen. ...

There are heaps of robbers in Hong-Kong, and
one has to keep on the qui vive, as they often attack
people out walking. I don’t think they are punished,
severely enough; they are well fed and easily
worked. The police here is in a very bad state,
HONG-KONG. 237

and sadly wants re-organizing. I heard from
Colonel Gordon at Ceylon yesterday; he has taken
Captain Durnford,t who was coming out here, back
with him, as he was very ill from the effects of
sun-stroke. ...

. . . The mainland opposite, called Kowloon, now
belongs to us. ._The g9th Regiment is over there
under tents, and the men are suffering very much
from fever and ague. We are going to build
barracks there, and when that is done and the
place well drained, I think it will be very healthy.

I have not got a horse here, as I do not care for
riding on the roads. This is the first time I have
been without a nag since I left Chatham. ... I.
should not be surprised if they made some reduc-
tions in our pay, as economy “rules the roast” at
home. However, they may do as they please in the
way of retrenchment, and the reduction of army
and navy; but if there is another war they will
have to pay double for it. Many retrenchments
could be made in different departments and Govern-
ment offices. It is not the poor soldier who runs
away with the money.

I see that you have a new Lord-Lieutenant in
Ireland ; I should like very much to see that office
-abolished. What is the good of it, except to a few
tradesmen in Dublin? If the Queen, or Prince of
‘Wales would spend a few months every year in
- Dublin, it would do a deal more towards promoting

¥ Colonel Durnford, R.E., fell at Isandlwana, in the Zulu
War, on January 22, 1879.
238 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

the loyalty of the people. However a truce to
politics—they have no interest for either you or me,
ood mother. I am getting a nice collection of
‘Chinese and Japanese photographs. A wretch of-a
Japanese stole the nice photograph on glass I had
-of you. I suppose the barbarian was attracted by
your face. I have now only the carte-de-visite. ...
Be on the look-out for my being ordered home.
‘You will see it in the movement of troops; then do
not write more than once, as I shall take my depar-
ture pretty sharply, you may be sure! ...

I am sending you my photograph taken by a
-Chinaman ; when you write, tell me if you think it
like. You see I have not changed much. I have
gained a stone since I came down here... .

To HIS SISTER E.

Fanuary 12, 1865.

I often think of you, and even wish you were
~here—then I should keep two horses and ride all
over the place. Now I walk. A few days ago I
walked to Stanley, a very pretty place at the other
side of the island, about ten miles from here. It
was a beautiful walk—prettier than anything I have
ever seen in China, or expected to see. We have
barracks at Stanley, in which are located from fifty
to sixty women with innumerable children; they are
the families of the men of the 2oth quartered at
Yokohama. There is one officer and a doctor to
‘look after them.
HONG-:KONG. 239

“I went to a ball given by the sergeants of the
Royal Artillery the other evening. You can’t
imagine how nicely arranged it was. ... It made
me feel quite proud of being a soldier too, and a
comrade of such fine fellows. Their wives were
very nicely dressed, and some of them quite pretty
and lady-like. They had a capital supper, but I
did not wait for it, There is to be a ball at the
Governor’s to-night, and another (a fancy-ball)
next week. I am not going to either, I don’t
think there will be many ladies at the fancy-ball, as
they will have difficulties in getting dresses.

Nearly all the ladies here ride; some of them
have beautiful Arab horses—these, I think, make
the nicest ladies’ horses in the world, they are so
docile. What ponies or horses have you got now
for riding and driving? Be sure to tell me about
them.when you are writing. . . . Good-bye for the
present. ...

To nis MoTHER.

Hone-Kone, Fanuary 29, 1865.

I am indeed thankful to you for writing me such
a long letter containing such an amount of interest-
ing news... .

I think I told you before where I spent Christmas.
It was a very quiet one, and I thought a good deal
about you all during the day. Many thanks for
your attentions to Tony. I know you do not care
for dogs in general, and of course take your atten-
240 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

tions to Tony as a compliment to myself; but I may
assure you he is not an unworthy dog; like many of:
his betters, he requires to be kept in order, or rather
to be kept down when he is bumptious.

When going over. to Japan I left my rebel-boy at
Shanghai, as he did not wish to come and face the
cold. He also had an‘idea that we were going to
fight, and thought he had had. enough of it in his
youth. Of late he objected to my going about so
much. He said “it was always too muchee walkee;
more better stop at Shanghai all the same other
officers.” He accompanied me to Pekin, the Great
Wall, Japan, and Nankin; also on innumerable boat
expeditions up the country, in all of which he was
invaluable, as he spoke the different dialects. He is
now at Shanghai with my successor. It is the way
of the world—the best friends must part some time
or other. aus

I heard from Colonel Gordon at Aden; he is
now a C.B. He has promised to work with the
authorities for my relief, and he will, I think,
succeed. I must say I don’t like the idea of the
hot summer here, but will try to take good care of
myself, and avoid all exposure to the sun as much as

‘ possible.
I am now quite home-sick. I seeso many people
going home, it sets me longing to get away too....

If you have reason to be proud of your children,
dear mother, who have you got to thank for it? No
one but yourself alone... Your rule was always one of
love, and I can say the same of father. I never
HONG-KONG. ' a4r

remember receiving a punishment at your hands
though I remember deserving one many a time, and
the remorse that came after, which was worse than
any punishment you could have given.

I scarcely ever hear any music here. I am very
sorry I.did not learn some instrument. The other
fellows had the pull over me in that way, being so
much at home. You know since I was seven I have
never been longer at home than three months at a
time. I cannot dance either, which is a nuisance
when I am invited to a ball. What I learned at
home has all gone out of feet and head. When
trying the lancers the other night at a sergeants’
ball, I had to be set right by a sergeant’s buxom
wife, which was awfully infra dig! ...

Iam afraid that lately for want of news I have
got into the habit of writing nonsense. You must
forgive it, and in future I shall try to mend.

Fanuary 30th.

I have just now received your letter dated
November ist; it went up to Yokohama, and was
sent down here again... .

I did feel rather disappointed at first at not being
allowed to go down to the Inland Sea; but I have
learned to look at things philosophically, and so
forgot about it. I have seen events turn out so
unexpectedly here, and those which seemed certain-
ties never take place, that I am quite a fatalist, but
of the Cromwellian type—I like to see the “‘ powder

16
242 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

dry.” I must-tell you a piece of news which. you
arg. not to mention to any one. On the: way here.
from Japan Colonel Gordon asked. me ‘if I. should
like to go on the Survey at home.” | I said;. ‘‘ Yes.2’.
He.,made_a note in his memorandum-book, and _ said
“‘he would manage it for me when he went home.”
Anything entered in that book 1s, I know, not forgotten ;
therefore I have good hope. However, there may
be: many difficulties in the way—all the places: may
be- filled already, &c.; and if nothing -comes os it I
shall not be disappointed.

I have now talked a lot about igeald and feel
quite ashamed. I am in pretty;good health, and in
good spirits; for the latter I may thank:your letter..

I will now, say, good-bye, dear mother. God bless
you, and keep you till we meet again !

To THE.SAME.

Hona-Kona, February 14, 1865.

Yesterday I received from Yokohama two letters
from home which had gone up there. The-letters
were dated November 23rd-and 24th, so I got them
nearly a month late.

. The everlasting Taiping rebels have! come seat to
‘near .Swatow, an open port. There are a few mer-
chants there, and they have applied for-troops, but-I
don’t. think they will.get any. These rebels seem to
turn up everywhere in China. These are led bya
_ brother. of the Changwang who was taken ‘at’ Nankin.
-He was one of the. bravest and most intelligent-of
HONG-KONG. 243

the rebel leaders. He has written a history of the
rebellion, and he is not complimentary to the
“‘foreign devils,” as he calls us. The English
admiral is to be made a G.C.B., the French admiral
-a K.C.B., and the officers get the Legion of Honour.
This is rather too much honour for so small an affair
as Limonosaki. I was very much put out at first at
not being allowed to go down there, but it was a
matter of luck. If I had been junior to what I am
I should have gone, and who knows if I should have
come off “‘ scot-free”’ like the fellow who went in my
place? I ama head taller than he is; that might
have been sufficient to alter the course of events. I
think of this, and try to console myself thereby.
Also, if I had joined Colonel Gordon and escaped, I
think I should get a brevet-majority the moment
I become a captain. But the question is, should
I have escaped? One feels inclined to become a
fatalist living out here—so much turns on so little.

I went up to Canton on last Saturday week, and
Stayed until Monday. It is a very fine specimen of
a Chinese city, far better than any town I have seen
in the north; it has not been sacked by rebels, and
the Chinese there are a very wealthy class. I stayed
with a Mr. Hart, who is a commissioner of Customs
in the Chinese service. All the customs are collected
in China’ by Europeans—principally Englishmen.
We shall soon have their armies officered by English.
If I liked to go now, and could get leave, I should
be able to get an appointment instructing - the
‘Celestials! but I would not care to do so.
244 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

It is one of the nuisances out here that, when one
has spare time, one has no means of turning it to
advantage. I tried to get a French master, but
could not. I then determined to learn fencing, but
was not able to get any one to fence with me.
Indeed I am sick of colonial life, and heartily wish
for home again... . Our colonel is going home next
month; I shall then be out longer in China than
any other officer except one. I don’t like the idea of
the hot weather here; and then, if I get home just
as the cold weather is coming on, won’t it touch me
up? You must be very forbearing with me, for I am
certain to be cross—I feel it now. . . . I expect, the
mail after next, to hear from Colonel Gordon as to
when Iam going home. Keep a sharp look-out in
the papers, and you will know when to expect me.
Jackson’s Woolwich Fournal contains all our move-
ments. I found I could not live here without a
horse, so I have bought a beauty, an Arab. I got
him very cheap from a fellow who is going home.

By the same mail he writes to his brother
P, :—

I have not heard from you for an age—four
months. That is a long time out here, where life
is so short. A French missionary told me that their
lives only averaged eight years in China, and they
come out young men. Sad, isn’t it? ... 1 wish
you would write and tell me how you are getting on
at the Law. It is the best of all professions, but it
HONG-KONG. 245

requires very hard work. There is, I believe, a good
field in India for lawyers, but if I were you I should
not think of going there if I could get on at home.
There is no chance of my going back to Japan,
though I have only been sent here on sick-leave.
As for pay, Japan is better, but unfortunately the
climate did not suit me. There are great varieties
of temperature here; in two days the thermometer
fell between 20° and 30°! ...

We see that he had begun again to suffer
from the climate, and that he dreaded the
consequences of spending another hot season
in China. This made him all the more
anxious to get home; and in all human
probability his life would have been saved
if the strenuous efforts General Gordon was
at this time making for his relief had been
successful. He writes on the 26th of Feb-
ruary :—

My pEAR E.,—We have had very unpleasant
weather here lately. The hills overhanging the
place have been covered with dark, heavy clouds,
and the air below is saturated with moisture.
There being no wind, one’s clothes get quite damp,
the walls perspire, and everything one touches is
clammy. Nearly everybody seems to be going away
246 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

from here. It is very hard to be constantly obliged
to change. one’s friends. I have a good many in the
regiment now leaving. I must say one meets with
very nice fellows in the service, and can make many
real friends. I bought a saddle from a man who is
going away. I saw it, and gave him what he asked.
Two days after he sent me the saddle, and £1 back,
saying he had asked too much, as he did not think
it was so much out of repair as he found it was when
he came to look at it. Now, some people might call
him a fool; but he is no such thing. He is a very
clever fellow, has the confidence of his commanding
officer, and is liked very much by the men; he is
also adjutant, which post is only held by the best
officers. .

I am anxiously looking out for the next mail, as
_ I hope to hear by it from Colonel Gordon when I
am going home. . He is working hard for me.

I have a very nice horse and take long rides on
him. I rode yesterday to Stanley Barracks, about
eight miles from here, and walked to a village called
Wongma-Koak, about two miles beyond the barracks.
An Engineer officer, by name De Costa, was mur-
dered there some years ago. This place is full of
robbers. Chinamen can come down from Canton
by steamer for a few pence. . The bad characters
come down, make some money by robbing, and then
go back: there is no check on them. There are
lots of pirates about here: a gun-boat goes .out
constantly after them. I am going in it some day
to see how they are caught. The police here are
HONG-KONG. ‘ by

Almost useless, being “‘ Niggers,” or natives of India.
The Chinamen are much stronger and pluckier.
They are sadly in want of a new‘police system: in
the colony. The photograph of mother which I
had, was stolen out of my room by a beast‘ of a
Japanese. I suppose he has it hanging up in his
house, and his children look with curiosity on the
portrait of the “foreign devil’s” mother. He could
have stolen it for no other motive. En oe

I was at a dinner party given by a rich Chinaman
two days ago. We ate our food with chop-sticks:
He gave us about forty different dishes; amongst
them were bird’s-nest soup, shark’s fins, rotten eggs,
worms and snails of all sorts; really very palatable
dishes, and wonderfully well cooked. I-wish ‘you
had been with me to enjoy it. I am going to a
wedding at Canton on Shrove-Tuesday. A friend
of mine is to be married to his znamorata, who has
come on here from India: she is young and pretty.
I am going in the position of best man.

To Huis MOTHER.
March 13th.
Ten days ago, I heard from Colonel Gordon.
He wrote from Woolwich. He said he had asked
the D. A. General to order me home, and he said
he would; but I do not see any chance’ of getting
away before next August. This is an unpleasant
prospect ; for if I go home overland I shall be just
in time for the cold weather, which does not agree
with me quite as well now as it used at home;
248 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

There have teen a great many robberies here
of late. The other night’ an officer of the 6th
Regiment awoke, and thought he heard a man in
the room: he listened, and then saw a light like
the end of a lighted cigar hovering over the table,
he immediately jumped up and seized the proprietor
of the light, a powerful Chinaman, and gave the alarm.
They had a tremendous tussle, but the officer held
him until some others came in. They found a pistol
and dagger on the Chinaman, and he was recognized
to be an escaped convict. The strange part of the
story is that there was another officer in the room,
and though he was a light sleeper, he never woke
while the row was going on, so it is thought that
he was drugged. There were two sentries quite
close, but the thief managed to evade them. Not
a night passes here without some robbery or attempt
to rob. In Canton there is nothing of the kind, as
the law is strictly administered: a mandarin would
cut off a fellow’s head without the slightest hesita-
tion. The police here are useless; they are nearly
all Madrasees, and such like—the Chinese don’t fear
them in the least. It would be far better to have
native police under a native officer. At Shanghai
the police were all Europeans, with the exception
of some Chinese detectives, and they manage their
duties well. ...

The Taiping rebels are making head again, as you
will see by the papers. They have a most wonderful
vitality. One expected to see them extinguished by
Gordon and the taking of Nankin, but it seems it
HONG-KONG. 249

is not so. ‘They are now near Amoy and Swatow,
both open ports. It has also been reported that
they are coming down in the direction of Nankin.
I don’t think we shall assist the Imperialists any
more against them; it is bad “‘to help those who
won’t help themselves,” and the moment the danger
is over the Imperialists ignore us. The leader of
the Taipings has addressed foreigners to say, that
if we assist him he will.let us have all the seaport
towns, and he will take the interior. The Pekin
Government has no strength. You can scarcely
imagine the corruption that exists among the
mandarins, and what a slight force would be
sufficient to overthrow the Tartar Dynasty, and
tule the destinies of 300,000,000 of our fellow-
creatures! I don’t think there is any nation in
the world which would be more easily governed
than the Chinese; they are so industrious and
naturally fond of peace. The country has been
harassed by rebellions for a period of 1,200 years
before the conquest of the Tartars in 1644. There
have been fifteen changes of dynasty, all of course
accompanied by civil wars.

... I hope the seeds will turn out some good.
I heard of one fellow who sent a lot home and they
all came up carrots, parsnips, and turnips!
250 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To His SISTER E.

Hone-Kone, March 30, 1865.

I have but little to tell you. Hong-Kong is not
a place of much variety except as regards the
weather and the people. The thermometer went
down from 80° to 54° in twenty-four hours—a
very sudden change. The old inhabitants do
not like these changes. . . . I have got a good
appointment... It is to take charge of the Colonial
works at Kowloon. I .go over to-morrow. I
do my own work as well. This appointment
will increase my pay to £72 or £73. a month.
The officer who held the appointment is going to
Ceylon to be on the Government staff. I heard
from Colonel Gordon last mail, and he said he
would probably let me know next mail when I may
expect to go home! Hooray!

I shall have to part with my jolly little cob; he
would make a beautiful lady’s horse, he is so good-
tempered and playful, and has such nice paces.
The roads at Kowloon are too bad for him. I have
got a Chinese mandarin’s dress, and am getting a
tail made—a veritable hair one.

There have been a good many sounedes hee
lately. Englishmen have been attacked by daylight
in the open street, robbed and wounded. There
was a piracy committed a few days ago, close to this
place, and eighty unfortunates killed. Our system
of law does not quite suit the Chinese. .. .

Hong-Kong is undoubtedly the healthiest part of
HONG-KONG. 25t

China—the place is so much cleaner and better
drained. It is rather overcrowded with Chinamen,
but they are not so mixed up with the European
population as they were at Shanghai. |

Do you read as much as ever? I suppose you
don’t care about works on China; it is not a very
interesting country to anybody, with the exception of
those who are in some way connected with it. The
war of 1860 brought out hordes of works on it. I
have read five—four of which were by military men.
The best book ever written on China is by Huc,
an Apostolic missionary. I shall be able to tell you
a great deal about the country when I go home. If
you want to know about Japan, read Sir R. Alcock’s
book styled “ The Capital of the Tycoon”’ : it is most
interesting.

When I was up at Pekin I was one day riding
with the Secretary of Legation, when we met a man
dressed as a very smart Chinaman, but who spoke
English @ la Milésienne ! he answered to the name of
Father Fitzpatrick, and was attached to the French
Mission. There was a young fellow called Dillon
attached to the French Legation, and a Colonel
O’Malley, who commanded a French regiment ; also
a Lieutenant Tierney, who was killed at Ningpo.
All these names smack of “‘old Ireland!” There
are very few places in the world where one does not
come across the real natives!

It must. have been very jolly for you to have
so much frost ; there is no such thing here, and you
only see ice at the dinner-table. When I go home
252 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

I must show you how to make an ice-house; it is
the simplest thing in the world, and costs almost
nothing. I have never learned to skate, as I never
had a chance. My next tour of service may be in
a cold country, and I should not be surprised if some
of us were sent to Canada one of these days. The
Yankees are getting very cheeky—one can call it
nothing else. It would be a terrible war, as neither
side could give in...
March 31st.

This is, I think, my last day’s residence in
Hong-Kong—at least I hope so. I am going over
to-morrow to Kowloon, and look forward to the
change with pleasure. I will not write to mother
by this mail, as 1 could not find anything to write
about after this long letter. Tell her I never missed
writing home by a mail since I was up at Nan-
kin... .

I hope to be able to tell you something more
definite about going home the next time I write.
You would fancy that my getting such good pay
now would keep me from wishing to go home; but
itis not so. I dare say I shall not have as good an
oppurtunity again for twenty years.

From the time of General Gordon’s arrival
in England, until his friend was beyond the
reach of all human aid and sympathy, he was
unceasing in his exertions to help him; as
when his kindly efforts to get him recalled by
HONG-KONG. 253,

the authorities failed, he set to work to secure
the promise of an appointment at Kensington
for him as soon as his term of service in China
should be over. In a number of letters
written to him by General Gordon during this
period is expressed warmly the deep interest felt
in a brother-soldier’s welfare, and an earnest
desire to assist him.
CHAPTER XII.
1865.
KOWLOON.

“What are we set on earth for? Say, to toil;
Nor seek to leave thy tending of the vines
For all the heat o’ the day, till it declines,
And Death’s mild curfew shall from work assoil.
God did anoint thee with His odorous oil,
To wrestle, not to reign ; and He assigns
All thy tears over, like pure crystallines,
For younger fellow-workers of the soil
To wear for amulets.”
E. B. BROWNING.

‘On April rst, Lieutenant Lyster went to live at
Kowloon to take charge of the Colonial works
there. He considered himself fortunate in
getting this appointment. It made a large
addition to his pay, and he was glad of the
increase of employment, as he enjoyed work
for its own sake alone. Yet we cannot help
thinking that it would have been far better for
KOWLOON. — 255

him to have remained at Hong-Kong; the
quarters there were much more comfortable
than those at Kowloon, and the drainage of the
latter place being in an imperfect state increased
its unhealthiness, He seéms not to have suf-
fered at first from the change.

To HIs MoTHER.

Kow.oon, April 12, 1865.

MY DEAREST ‘MorTHEer,—T received your letter
dated February 24th, yesterday. You are very good
to write to me so often, and such long letters.
You never fail me, and are my best correspondent.
Letters from home are a-real “God-send” to me
over here, as I am quite: by myself and should feel
yery lonely if I had not some employment. .

I had a letter from Colonel Gordon by this mail.
He has been working hard;to get me home; but
they said my time would not’be up till August: so
they are determined to have the value.of me even to
the uttermost day. J. D.; who wasonce a soldier,
said to me one day when I asked- him how he liked
seryice in India, that it was not work for money, but
blood for money. That saying is applientis to” chine
as well. :

: IT. am, afraid . Colonel: Gordon can’t manage i
Survey for me either. They don’t seem to appreciate
me as.much at home as I-wish they would—or ‘as
256 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

they should! (don’t you think so?). However, I am
happy, and I hope to see you before the end of the
year (D.V.). Iam sorry I told you about the Sur-
vey, as it raised your hopes, and now you will be
disappointed.

I am tolerably comfortable here, though quite
alone. A detachment of the gth is quartered a long
distance off.

The robbers have been most audacious ; they stole
two rifles and bayonets out of a hut full of soldiers
the other night: they bored through the wall, which is
of bamboo mats and straw. I fully expect a visit
every night, and feel quite disappointed that they have
not turned up yet. They got into my servants room,
the night after my arrival, and stole everything, even
to the clothes on my boy’s bed, and the watch-dog
that was guarding the premises! They attacked a
doctor in the open street the other day, and when
they had. knocked him on the head, robbed him..
There are robberies here every night... .

I have a cook here, two house servants, and two
out-door servants, beside the office-boy. Iam so rich
I can afford it. Iwish P. or J. were living with me.
I am glad now Idid not go home from Japan.
Colonel Gordon complains of the cold, and I am afraid
it would touch me up too. I should like to arrive at
Cascade early in July. ...

“T have got a little garden here, with a fish-pond.
in it containing gold fish. I will send you a photo-
graph of my hut... .

Next Christmas, please God, we shall be all to-
KOWLOON. 287

gether again. You cannot imagine how I wish to be
with you. I often feel as if I had not enough of you,
I have been so much away. Itisa bad thing, looking
atit in one light, for a fellow who is knocking about
to have a home, because he is never satisfied, and is
always wishing to be there. I never felt so sorry at
leaving home as I did the last time, and lately I
have had a greater longing than ever before to see
you all again. At Shanghai and Japan I could not
look forward to it, when so many things might turn up
to prevent our meeting. I have now given up all
thoughts of India. I saw by the Sanatory Commis-
sioner’s report lately most unpleasant statistics.
One was the average time of existence of a youth of
twenty compared withone in England. In England
he may expect to live thirty-nine years: in India
seventeen—so he loses twenty-two years by going
to India. You will be sorry to hear that China is
still worse. A French Apostolic missionary told me
they lived on an average eight years in China. The
mortality amongst the troops in 1862 at Shanghai,
was 163 in 1900. Our Government is certainly a
bad one as regards military matters. There is the
greatest fear of responsibility in spending money,
and a dread of incurring any expense in providing
accommodation, &c., forthe troops. The muddling
made at the War Office is disgraceful. It is a. bad
system having a civilian at the head of the army, as
it were.
Good Friday, 1865.
I wish you alla happy Easter. The country at
17
258 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

home is now beginning to look beautiful. I well
remember walking to church one Easter Sunday
through the fields, while spending a short Easter
vacation at home when I was a schoolboy, and how
fresh and lovely the country was that day! Here,
the ground is all rocks and red earth, with a great
glare over it; so different from the green fields and
pure air of Ireland. ... You must not show my
letters to any one, as I only try to write long ones,
regardless of composition or even of grammar. The
weather has become warm; we have just got into
summer clothes. I am in pretty good health, better
than I was at Shanghai.

I must now say good-bye, my dearest mother; and
that you may be long spared in health and strength,
is my prayer for you.

He hoped that each succeeding mail would
bring the tidings of his relief. ‘I will not leave
a stone unturned to bring you home,” General
Gordon writes about this time; and all his letters
are full of expressions showing his great anxiety
to get his friend recalled, as he was fully aware
of the great risk incurred by him in staying on
for the unhealthy season in China.

On April 27th he writes to his sister E. :—

I scarcely have a chance of getting away before
August. I hear from Colonel Gordon every mail:
he has been trying hard to get me home, but has
KOWLOON. 259

not been successful. I like Kowloon better than
Hong-Kong, though it is rather lonely; and thieves,
Mosquitoes, and fleas are very plentiful.

Three nights ago a thief, or thieves, came, but
my faithful cur gave the alarm, and I went, out and
fired a shot into the dark to intimidate the beast, or
beasts. .

The weather now is very rainy; I believe it will
be so for the next two months. All one’s clothes
get horribly damp and mouldy. I bought a little
piebald pony the other day for £3; he is very small,
but pretty. I want him for my interpreter. All
the Chinamen are bad walkers, and this fellow is
knock-kneed, and particularly bad. He has been
to Australia and California. In talking about
Australia, he said it was a fine country, but that
there were a great many bad people there! I asked
him ‘‘who they were?” and he answered, ‘“ The
H’lrish.” He said “they were all bad without ex-
ception.” I then told him I was a “ H’Irishman !”
when he wanted to qualify his previous statement,
but I would not allow him. I have been down on
the rascal ever since, which will show him that
there are disagreeable natives of the Emerald Isle
in other countries besides Australia !

I am now living in a neat shed, which is com-
fortable enough in winter, but unhealthy in summer.
I have a little garden, but do not pay much atten-
tion to its cultivation, consequently it is rather wild.
I wish you were here to look after my household
affairs for me.
260 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

I have had a good deal of buying and selling of
horses and ponies since I came out to China. My
first pony I paid £10 for; I exchanged him with a
Chinaman for a horse and got £10. My next nag
I got a present of from a Chinaman; that is to say,
I looted him from a fat Chinese rebel officer, who
slipped off his back faster than he ever got on, and
handed him over to my care. He was a lazy beast,
and I sold him for £7. My next I bought for £r2—
a beauty, but he broke down and I sold him for £7.
The next was a Japanese pony, which I sold to a
brother officer for what I paid for him. He has
since won the principal race at a meeting. I paid
£40 for my good little horse, and sold him before
I came over here for £46. So you see I have not
done badly.

This season has been an unfortunate one for
many of the business houses in Shanghai. ‘Two
first-class houses have failed, and I believe there
will probably be more. I am very sorry for the
members, as they were all very nice people.

... I see by the papers that there have been
great debates on poor Ireland at the opening of
Parliament. When will the country be prosperous?
If they would only give up talking and work hard,
it would be better for them. .

I am horribly sleepy and tired, and must have
written you a stupid letter. I have endeavoured
to fill in the paper in any way, as I have no news.
KOWLOON. 261

To uis MorHER.

Kow.oon, May 9, 1865.

I am longing to go home; although I hold such
a nice appointment I don’t care about remaining,
I want to see you all again. When I was in Japan
and Shanghai I was not so home-sick; I suppose
not having so much time to spare, I did not think
so much of.home. I hear from Colonel Gordon
by every mail, and he tells me how things are going
on. He has been asking our Adjutant-General to
order me home, but that gentleman does not see it;
however, the time expires in August, when I hope
there will be no objection to my going.

The weather is getting warm here, but I am,
thank God, in good health. Now that I see a chance
of getting home, I am determined to take care of
myself. I have not been so well for a long time.
I don’t go about much in the sun. I have had a
great adventure, or rather misadventure, with the
thieves. They got into my room and stole a lot
of things, and my nice fox-skin and Spanish rug
you may remember. ‘These last are the only things
I regret ; the clothes were so worn, it is rather a
good thing they are gone, as I shall have to get new
ones. They came in through my pantry, and first
took ail the knives and forks which belong to the
mess. The night was dark and rainy, and so
stormy that even if I were awake I should hardly
have heard them. I have a lighted lamp always
262 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

beside my bed, and either the thieves or the wind
when they opened the door extinguished it. I awoke
and jumped up to light the lamp, but the matches
would not light, and { walked towards the pantry
in which two servants slept, to call them. I then
felt the wind blowing in my face, and suspecting
something went at once to the door, when a fellow
darted past me like a shot, but not before I had time
to fire at him with a small pistol I had in my hand
at the time. I was only two or three yards from
him, but the shot did not bring him to—it must have
gone over his head. I got out some of the men, and
we recovered some things, and the tools they used
in house-breaking, as well as their hats. It was a
miserable night, cold and wet. The next day I
dismissed the two servants who slept in the pantry,
minus their month’s wages—though I don’t think
they were accomplices, as all my domestics lost
something. My house-boy lost a watch and a lot
of swell silk clothes; he cried as if his heart was
breaking, and said he would ‘‘go home to his
mother, and makey die,” although he is a big, hulking
fellow of eighteen, and hasa wife. He is very honest,
but we are going to part, as he is a horrible liar, and
can only be frightened into doing things. He will
be the first servant I have ever sent away. His.
wages are so good, he will be sorry to go. I give
him £8 1os. a month to provide my food. I have
another servant, who is a reduced merchant; he lost
all his money in speculations. He seems to accom-
modate himself quite easily to his new circumstances;
KOWLOON. 263

he is a sleek fellow with a very honest face. The
establishment consists now of a house-boy (a sort
of valet), a cook, two coolies, a watchman, and an
office-boy ; the two latter are paid by Government.
All these live on the premises, and if they had pluck,
should be able to resist any number of robbers. I
also have an interpreter, who lives in the village.
The greater number of the natives about here are
what they call Hakka men, that is the Chinese of
“‘gipsy.” I have been at war with them since I came
here, as they are employed as stone-cutters, and
they bring bad stone to the work, which they won’t
take away; so I get it broken up, and they attack
my men. I sent some of them to prison. I caught
one of them near my hut the day after the robbery,
and gave him a licking he will remember for many
a day. The thieves have been here three nights
lately. At about two o’clock a few nights ago, my
boy saw a fellow contemplating me in bed through
the window. Since then I have been given a watch-
man. I am going to get rid of all my valuables,
and will then stand a siege.

I am afraid I have written too much about my
domestic affairs, but they are on my mind just
NOWS sé

May ith.

The mail closes to-morrow. No fresh news
here. We have heard of the fall of Richmond.
Poor old Lee! I am sorry for him. We get news
now from London in between twenty and thirty
days, vid Calcutta by telegram. .
264 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

There is a good deal of rain overhead that won’t
come down, and this makes the air intolerably close
and muggy. I need not tell you how anxiously I
am looking forward to getting away. There will be
a troop-ship going home about July—I think the
Tamar. It will be unlucky if I am obliged to go in
her ; though she is a fine ship, I would rather go over-
land. A great many Engineers have gone to Canada
to be employed on the new fortifications there.
B. said that father was keeping a horse for me:
I am much obliged to him. I don’t know how I
shall feel when I get on a tall horse. I am now
riding a beast not as big as a good-sized donkey ; he
does capitally for pottering about.

To HIS BROTHER P.

Kow toon, May 27th, 1865.

I am delighted to hear that you are getting some-
thing to do. If you came out here you would cer-
tainly do well in a pecuniary point of view; but I
should recommend you to stop at home if you can do
anything there. While you are here you don’t live,
you only exist: and that with the hope of getting
home. Men only come to China with the hope of
making some money and then leaving it. That suits
merchants, as they have branch establishments at
home, but it would not suit professional men,
especially lawyers. I am glad that we are all, I
may say, Started in life, and that father has lived to
see it. —
KOWLOON, 265

I am afraid the partridges will have a respite as
far as I am concerned, as the authorities won’t allow
me home till my time is up. I am sorry for this,
though I am very comfortable and contented here,
and shall never, as longas I am a subaltern, hold as
good an appointment. You know about the Ken-
sington affair, and the Survey? Gordon has been
trying hard to get me home: he is a regular brick!
He said he would ask the Duke (who was very civil
to him), if he thought it would doany good. General
Brown, who went home from here, wrote to ask me if
he could do anything for me. It was very kind of
him....

You make me envious when you talk of the musical
parties, dances, &c., you are enjoying. I have been
living like a true barbarian for a long time.

I wish I had studied music when a small boy. If
I were beginning the world again I should go in more
for modern languages, music, and drawing than I
did. They are of the most practical use to one. The
heavy scientific has been of little good to me since I
passed. I dare say you don’t find much use in
co-ordinates or conic sections in pleading for a
fellow ?

I found a great want of practical knowledge when
I first came to China, and in fact do now. In Japan,
you can’t fancy what trouble it was first starting.
First difficulty was the language; I had to learn the
colloquial. Second, no knowledge of the qualities of
the timber, &c. Then I had to make a drawing of
everything I wanted to have done, and there was the
266 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

nuisance of keeping accounts: here we have clerks,
so that my work is not nearly so hard.

When I get home we shall get rid of some of the
accumulated riches which I have earned, not alone
with the sweat of my brow, but of my whole body!...

To HIS MOTHER.
Fune 8, 1865.

... I cannot say much for the weather here.
It is endurable during the day, as there is generally
a sea breeze, but at night there is scarcely ever
a breath of wind, and it is very oppressive.
There has been little sickness as yet amongst the
troops. The Chinese are suffering a good deal from
low fever; nearly all my household were laid up at
the beginning of this week, but are now all right
again. The medical treatment here is rather
peculiar. The doctor irritates the patient’s neck by
pinching it with copper coins, and putting black
plaisters on the temples, which are anything but
ornamental. The people have great faith in their
physicians, and I suppose they are right to believe
in them when their treatment is successful. The
Chinese know nothing whatever of surgery, as it is
not correct to dissect dead bodies. The ladies’ affairs
don’t seem to trouble them much—as, a few days
since, I crossed over to Hong Kong in a boat in
which was a baby three days old, and the happy
mother was pulling an oar, looking as merry as pos-
sible,
KOWLOON. 267

I have not heard anything further about going
home, and can only trust that the day is not far distant
when I shall see you all again. I hear regularly
from Colonel Gordon: he has been very kind.

We had seven men hanged here on Tuesday last.
They were murderers and pirates: they attacked a
junk, and threw eighty of the crew overboard. Some
time after, nine of them took passage in a steamer
from Macao here, in order to get some bills cashed
that they had looted. They brought a little boy
with them who was son of one of the murdered crew
and adopted by one of the pirates. He told the story
to a friend of his father’s whom he met on board the
steamer, and the pirates were arrested on landing
here. Some of the crew had managed to escape by
swimming, and they turned up as witnesses. Piracy
is a very common occurrence here, andI am sorry to
say the perpetrators are seldom caught... .

I cannot say much in favour of our countrymen
abroad when one reads of them in America and
Australia. In the former country they compete with
the black men for menial employment, in the latter
with Chinamen; and—if my interpreter speaks truly—
even the Irish are servants to the Chinese there.
This seems impossible, as I can hardly imagine an
European servant to an Asiatic.

I have not been robbed since, although the thieves
have come to have alookat me. The police shot one
dead a few nights ago; they also shot a convict who
was trying to escape to-day.

I have my hut very prettily furnished now, and have
a jolly little garden... .
268 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To THE SAME.

Kow oon, Fune 27, 1865.

I am leading a very quiet and retired sort of life.
I find it very lonely in the evenings, but this is a
great inducement to read. The people out here are
very kind; I have made but few acquaintances, but
some of them are real friends. I have been asked
up to Canton to stay with a fellow of the Consulate
who has just been married and come out from
England: he is a splendid Chinese scholar. I have
asked him to look out for some flower seeds and
bulbs. Tell B. I essayed collecting ferns for her
when at Hong-Kong, but found them withered. I
should like to do it here, but I have so much out-
door work, and the sun is so hot I am afraid of it. I
did not mind it much three, or even two years ago.
There has been a good deal of fever, principally
among the Chinese; but the soldiers, especially the
new-comers, have suffered a good deal also. I have
ten men over here, and we have, everything con-
sidered, escaped pretty well. They are a good lot of
fellows. I have not had occasion to punish one of
them since I came over, although two are reformed
drunkards. Three of them rejoice severally in the
names of Montagu O’Reilly, O’Neill, and Charles
Stewart Mooney. The last is one of the reformed.
I believe his father isin a good position in Ireland.
Our men are as a rule very fine, intelligent fellows —
a contrast to the Line.
KOWLOON. 269:

Iam now tired of making the same remark, viz.
“T have heard nothing about going home.” I don’t
think I shall even be with you at Christmas, which is a
shame. It is depressing to see one’s friends all going
home, for I am now one of the oldest inhabitants of
this place ; still, no one has gone whose turn was not
before mine—so they are inclined to be fair at the
Horse Guards, which one cannot grumble at.

I suppose tea is very cheap at home now that the
duty is only 6d. per. Ib. I never drink less than five
large cups during the day and sometimes eight or
nine. I drank some tea the other day when dining
with a Chinese, which cost 16s. per. lb. I did not
think it was worth it: but I suppose my palate was
not refined enough to appreciate it.

I have had a deal of fighting with the contractors.
here. They are awful rogues. .. .

The Japanese Government is sending an army
against the Prince of Chosien, whom we have just.
punished, and some other refractory Daimios. They
say the army was 100,000 strong: it was a week
marching past Yokohama. They built up a place for
the foreigners to look on at the army, as it marched
along the Tokaido, or greathigh road. Poor Chosien
will have a bad time of it. I don’t know what his
offence has been; the Government will say it is for
firing on foreign vessels, and we will not believe them,
but say they are licking Chosien because he could not.
lick us.
270 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

To us SISTER B.

You see I am still in my blissful abode! It isa
shame if they keep me four years in this cruel
climate. Nell talks of my being baked! That is not
the word to describe one’s sensations here ; bozled or
stewed is more like it. No matter how hot it is, you
have the feeling of being in a vapour bath, and every-
thing around you is damp and mildewed. The salt
on the table every morning is saturated. All those
nice gloves you sent me are spoiled, although they
were put away in the recesses of my drawers. This is
splendid weather for bathing—but alas, what was
once my delight I cannot now venture on!

The Chinese sing most wonderful songs, and play
some really pretty tunes on an instrument like a
guitar. I wish I was musical enough to keep them
in my head and write them for you. I am sure you
would imitate them capitally. Their minstrels are
generally blind. Opposite to where I lived in Hong-
Kong a woman used to sing for hours at a time in
a loud, melancholy voice: all her tunes ended in a
plaintive quavering a, 4, aa. One can purchase
‘musical boxes here which play the Chinese tunes.
I will try to get one, or get the music of their tunes
‘written by some one, if it can be done. I expect they
‘will be written backwards, or upside down if that is
possible. Shuttlecock is a favourite game here; but
the Chinese play with their feet. I was glad to hear
‘that you had become such zealous toxophilites. . . .

A case of forcible abduction occurred last night in
KOWLOON. 271

the Chinese village under my quarters, or rather in
the bay opposite the village. Some Chinamen in a
boat attacked another boat, knocked the proprietor
on the head, shied him overboard, and took away
the boat with his wife and sister-in-law in it. How-
ever, they were pursued by the other boats and the
ladies recovered. This occurred close to the police
boat, which did not move for half an hour afterwards.

The thieves came a few nights ago, and stole my
groom’s clothes out of his room, although there was
a European sentry, ten yards off, on my quarters.
They have also been tampering with the locks of the
treasury. The Cantonese are certainly the princes
of thieves. I sent some of my valuable things to an
Artillery fellow to keep for me, as I had no locks on
my drawers, the thieves having stolen them. He
actually left the box open! and a gold chain and
three gold rings which I got at Tientsin were stolen.

The country must look beautiful now. How I~
wish I could see it—and those violets and primroses!
I don’t know when I saw a cowslip last! What
would I not give for one week of the weather you are
having now? If I were only two months at home,
I am sure I should be quite well again... . >

From his diary, which reveals far more of
the real state of his health than his letters, we
find that he was frequently indisposed during
May and June, though not so seriously as to
keep him from his work; but early in July
272 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

dysentery set in, and he went over to Hong-
Kong to stay at his old quarters, Spring Gar-
dens. From there he writes as follows:—

To unis BRoTHEr P.

Hone-Kone, Fuly 11, 1865.

I am still in the land of the living, if the perspiring
panting individual now writing to you can be calledso.
I was very ill over at Kowloon, and came here to get
into a house and good food, so that I might get better.
I am thankful to say I am now much better, but still
far from well. Iam as thin as a wafer, and as weak
as a spider. I had diarrhoea for fourteen days, which
turned to dysentery. A good many soldiers are sick
and some have died. I cannot stand the sun as well
as I could last year; the least exposure knocks me
up. I am thinking seriously of applying for a
Medical Board which would send me home round the
Cape in the Tamar. That would bring me home
before Christmas. It is a pity to throw up my
appointment if I could remain here. There is no-
news. The weather is sweltering hot. We had a.
typhoon on the 30th of last month; it did a great
deal of damage. The P. and O. Company lost two:
steamers. The rebels have begun to flourish again.
in China; they say they are close to Pekin now.
There is no news from Japan. The Tycoon has.
marched some men to attack the Prince of ABE Att
but it will take months before they arrive.
KOWLOON. , 273

We may have some snipe shooting together if I go
in the Tamar, and survive all dangers. I have long
been wishing to get a chance of recruiting my
strength. It is perfect misery to be an invalid. I
feel sorely tempted. The Tamar is a splendid troop-
ship, and I should like to see the Cape. Query:
Shall it be the Tamar ?

To His MoTHER (by the same mail).

I came over here from Kowloon two days ago,
as I had been ill for some time there. I am now
better, thank God, and will return to-morrow, or
in a few days. A great number of our people and
the Chinese have been ill of late. This seems to
have been a particularly unhealthy season... . I
have not heard anything of my going home yet, but
believe I may give up all hope of it before Christmas
unless I get worse, when I shall apply for a Medical
Board to recommend me to go in the troop-ship
Tamar, which leaves here early next month: that
would bring me home well in the cold weather. But
it cannot be helped. I wish I were going now, but
the doctors say it would not be good to go overland.
I suppose long ere this you have given up writing
to me—that would conduce to drive me out of this
place more than anything else. I need not tell you
that the weather is excessively warm. I must say
I have not exposed myself much to the sun. I am
‘afraid I am a bad bargain to the Queen at present.
I am glad E. and B. have taken to archery. There

18
274 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

are so many things girls have opportunities of.
becoming proficients in, which make them agreeable
companions, instead of their being obliged to be
gossips in order to while away time. I am sure
it is not derogatory to any lady to know how
to cook, yet how few know anything about it,
especially Irish ladies. I have been dining at a
place where the Iady of the house expressed a hope
that a certain dish was good, as the preparing of it
had given her some anxiety. If an Irish lady in
her position had made it, she would not have
acknowledged it. Some French ladies are very
handy with the rifle; I, think this is rather a mas-
culine accomplishment, and does not give as good
exercise as the bow.

We had a fearful storm here lately; a great many
of the huts at Kowloon were blown down: mine es-
caped, but everything got soaked, and it was miserable.
I lost one of my ten men a few days ago. I was
envying the man for being in such robust health: he
went to hospital and died in two days—the doctors
say of heat. . . . I can scarcely keep my hands dry,
it is so hot. Excuse the bad ink, the stupidity and
the brevity of this letter. When shall we meet
again? I think if you knew how I am, you would
wish me to sink the pride and the good pay, and
apply for a Medical Board to send me home.

He would fain have still struggled on to
complete the full term of his service, but yielding
KOWLOON. 275

to the persuasions of his friends in China,
he at last applied for a Medical Board, and
was at once ordered home. He writes to his
brother P. :—

KowLoon, Fuly 20, 1865.

This is the last letter I shall address to you from
this place, as I have accepted the offer to go home
in the Tamar, which will leave here in.about a week.
I may have done a foolish thing, but it is too late
now to retract, having once made up my mind. I
suppose we shall arrive in England in about four
months, or perhaps less; this will give me Christ-
mas at home. Somehow I don’t feel that exuber-
ance of spirits which is supposed to accompany one’s
departure for home; but it will be time to sing when
I get in sight of England. It is a very long way.
We touch at the Cape and Mauritius, and, I believe,
St. Helena. I hear that there is likely to be some
tow at the Cape; if so, we might be detained to give
the Kaffirs a lesson. We seem always to be involved
in small wars. ;

They have sent all the men except I00 from here
to Hong-Kong, as the place proved unhealthy. I
am in better health now than I have been for some
time. At this time of the year, every foreigner in
Hong-Kong is troubled with boils. I never had
them until now. .

I wish I had gone home when Colonel Gordon
was going; I should now be securely ensconced in
276 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

South Kensington. I am afraid now I have nota
chance of the post... .

Will you look out for a good spaniel for me, I
should like a young one. If I had a nice one I
could always keep her as a pet, even if I had no
shooting. If I am quartered in England, I am
afraid I cannot think of hunting, it is so expensive,
and my only sport would be the gun.... I have
been on only one shooting expedition since I came
here: it was very dirty work, you had to walk up
to the knees in mud looking for snipe. I believe
there is good wild-fowl shooting about here, if one
knew a little of the country.

This is an extraordinary climate. Some days when
the thermometer is 84°, it is insufferably hot; and
now it is in the other extreme, the thermometer
is 88°, and I had to get. up and put on a flannel
coat, I was so cold. I suppose it is the moisture
in the air which causes the closeness, I have
become acclimatized to a certain extent. In-doors,
I don’t feel the heat so much, but I feel the sun
more than when I came out first, and I cannot now
walk two miles: that is becoming acclimatized !
I have got fearfully thin, but I hope to pull up on
the voyage round the Cape. They offered to let
me go overland, but having been that way before,
and knowing how hot it is, I declined. Good-bye,
old fellow. I don’t feel in as good spirits as I
should at the prospect of meeting you all: four
months is a long time—one-third of a year!
LAST LETTER. 277

On the 26th he wrote a few lines :—

I embark in an hour in the Tamar, so can’t say
much. 4. x

Please God, I shall be with you in three months
and a half. Iwill write from Singapore. . . .

On the 5th of August, he sends to his mother
the last message she was to receive from his
true, loving heart. He enters on the same date
in his diary that he feels ill, but he says nothing
of this in his letter—evidently withheld from
doing so by the fear of alarming her.

H.M.S. Tamar, August 5, 1865.

‘“* My DEAREST MoOTHER,—We left Hong-Kong on
the 25th ult., and we expect to get to Singapore to-
morrow. It is.a long passage, twelve days. I hope
the remainder of the voyage will be made at a some-
what quicker rate. I think we shall remain at
Singapore for.three or four days, and then go. on
to the Mauritius, whence I hope to write to you
again.

The Tamar is a very fine troop-ship: the accom-
modation is better than that on board the P. and O.
steamers, and I think the living is quite as good.
There are a great many invalids on board, and we
278 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

have one or two funerals nearly every day, which is
very sad. It has got much cooler since we left Hong-
Kong, although we have been getting nearer to the
equator every day. We have had beautiful weather,
quite calm, with showers of rain frequently. I hope
to be all right by the time I get. home. Now that I
have left China, I don’t look back on it with very”
pleasant feelings. I am delighted to get away from
it. We have three ladies on board, and many chil-
dren, who make plenty of noise. We came away in.
rather a hurry from Hong-Kong. I did not expect
that we should leave so soon, and consequently
missed getting some things which I had sent for to
Canton for you—flower seeds and bulbs, and some
Chinese preserved fruits, ginger, and many other
things.

We have the band of the 67th Regiment on board;
they practise every morning and evening. There is
also a little library, so we are not badly off. We
have only been going at the rate of five knots an
hour; this is owing to bad coals, and the bottom of
the ship being covered with barnacles. She is to be
scraped at Singapore, and when we get through the
Straits of Sunda will be in the Trade Winds, and will
sail, when I hope we shall get on faster. . . . For an
invalid this is a better route than by the P. and O.,
as it so hot now in the Red Sea it would almost kill.
me. We shall find it spring when we arrive at the
Cape, which they say is delicious weather there. I
don’t expect we shall get home before the middle of .
November. I trust I shall find you all well.
LETTER OF A FRIEND. 279

You may expect to hear from me again from
Mauritius and the Cape.

With best love to all, ever, my dearest mother,
Your affectionate son,
T. LYSTER.

Long before this letter reached its destina-
tion, the hand that wrote it lay cold and still in
death ; and as the expectant ones at home were
looking out hopefully for fresh news in the dear,
familiar handwriting, there came instead tidings
that wrung their hearts with anguish, and cast
for many a day a chill, dark shadow over their
lives.

On board the Yamar, returning to: Ire-
land with her husband and children, was
the wife of an officer of the 9th Regiment,
between whose family and the Lysters there
existed a friendship of long standing. Through
her kind thoughtfulness, the heart-rending in-
telligence of their: bereavement was first broken
to them in the following letter :—

H.M.S. Tamar, OFF THE MAURITIUS.
August 28, 1865.

My pear Mrs. ——, —I have a hard task to per-
form ; how to do it I scarcely know, feeling so much
280-. WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

for you and knowing how heartrending the intelli-
gence will be to youall. May God give you strength
to break the sad tidings to his poor father, mother,
brothers and sisters, that he loved so dearly.

My dear Mrs., —— your poor nephew, Tom Lyster,
is no more. Hewas in delicate health when leaving
Hong-Kong. The day, August 8th, we arrived at
Singapore he complained of weakness. We were to
remain a week there; he thought if he went on shore
for a few days the change would do him good. When
he got tothe hotel, he got an attack of ague, so he
returned at once and went tobed. The next day fever
set in, accompanied by violent dysentery. He
suffered from the same thing twice before, once at
Shanghai and once in Japan. The doctors thought
he would get over it when he got through the Straits
of Sunda; but God thought fit to take him to Himself
on the 17th of August, five days after leaving
Singapore. Hedied at five in the morning, and was
buried at sea in the evening in the Indian Ocean.

He was a great favourite, and had many friends
on board. Mr. Lloyd, of the 67th Regt., who shared
his cabin, behaved like a brother to him, sitting up
at night, and only leaving him for a few moments now
andthen. No one who knew him could help loving
him: he was a fine, handsome, noble-hearted young
fellow—so good and generous, and a true friend, ever
ready to do a good action, without a thought of
either the trouble or expense it would cost him. I
loved him as a brother, and while I live shall never
forget the kindness he showed me while we were at
LETTER OF A FRIEND. 281

Hong-Kong. It must be a consolation to his family
to know how he loved them: he would never tire of
talking of them.

Two days before his death I went into his cabin to
see him, little thinking he was in danger. He was
sitting in an armchair. I knelt down beside him;
he turned his head towards me and said, “‘ Mrs.
Cumming, Iam very bad.” I told him that he must
cheer up ; I had spoken to the doctors, and they did
not think he wasin danger. He shook his head and
said, ‘‘ I’m afraid, I’m afraid—I know I am all gone
inside.” To cheer him, I spoke of home and of his
mother. ‘ Ah,” he said, “‘home I shall never see!
When lying on my bed I try to think of home, but I
cannot realize the idea of ever seeing mother,” and
then he repeated the word ‘‘ Mother” two or three
times, as if speaking to himself. Had I known he
was so near death, I should have asked him to send
some message to her. The next day he became
delirious, and remained so till hisdeath. I could not
write to poor Mrs. Lyster, judging from my own
darling mother what agony of mind hers will be.
I got my husband to cut off some of her poor boy’s
hair for her. I would enclose it now, only I fear it
might be lost as it is very short, but the moment I
arrive in England I shall send it. j

As poor Mr. Lyster had a great many valuable
“‘ curvios’? on board, besides other things, I suggest
that one of his brothers should come to Ports-
mouth when the Tamar arrives, which will be about
the first week in November. .
282 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

Will you, dear Mrs.——, not lose any time in
breaking the sad news to Mrs. Lyster, as there is
danger of her hearing suddenly from the Horse
Guards. May God in His mercy give her strength
to bear this terrible bereavement with which He has
seen fit to afflict her.

Believe me, yours very sincerely,
E. CumMInG.

The following letters of sympathy from
General Gordon may interest those who have
read so far :—

Gosport, October 26, 1865.

My DEAR Mapam,—It is with difficulty I can express
to you my sincere condolences on the death of your
dear son, who served with me for three years in China,
and to whose return I. was looking forward with
great desire.

I had heard from him at Singapore, and had hoped
that he was sufficiently strong to have got home.
Major Jebb wrote to me from the Mauritius and told
me of the sad event. I cannot say how much your
dear son was respected by myself and every one who
had anything to do with him. He was a most con-
scientious, energetic, gallant officer, who devoted
himself to his duty, and our regiment can ill spare
his loss. As Major Jebb says, ‘‘“he was a most
honourable, hard-working officer.” Poor dear fellow,
I had hoped to see him again, but it was God’s will
otherwise.
 

LETTERS OF SYMPATHY.. 283.

I believe truly that his heart was right with God,
for wherever he has been: with me, there he has had.
his Bible. I feel how futile it is for me to attempt
to offer you any consolation in this sad affliction. I
can merely add my testimony (to your knowledge of
him) of his disinterested gallant conduct while in
China, and of the very sincere regret expressed by
many of my comrades who were in China with him
on my acquainting them with the sad intelligence.

It has pleased God to deprive me within a month
of my father and brother-in-law (suddenly).

Trusting He will give you strength to bear this.

affliction,
Believe me, my dear Madam,

Yours sincerely,
C. G. GorDon.

RoyvaL Laporatory, Gosport, November 10, 1865-

My pear Mr. LysTer,—I must apologize for not
having answered your very kind note before this, but
I hoped to have been able to send you my carte de.
visite. As I shall not be able to do so for a short
time, I must write to thank you for your letter.

I have asked Sanford, a comrade of your dear
brother, to send you the last work your brother did
with me, namely, a survey of the country around
Shanghai. He was a very zealous, hard-working
officer, and took a great interest in everything he
laid hands to. I can with difficulty realize his loss,
and I feel so much for your mother and your family,
284 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

who must have been so proud of him. I had been
working for his return home for months, and Fowke,
one of our officers, would have got him the.appoint-
ment at Kensington if he had come home to us.
Two days ago the Tamar steamed into the harbour,
and reminded me of the poor fellow. I went on
board, but heard that they had sent his effects to
London or Chatham. Lieutenant Carden, 67th
Regiment, had left for London: he had come home
via the Cape, and was on board when your brother
died. I am very sorry I did not see him. I could
learn no fresh particulars from the officers of the
ship.

What can I say to comfort Mrs. Lyster in her
bereavement! I have given my humble testimony
to his value as a-friend and officer, and I can also
say what is of infinitely more import—that he lived
a Christian life; which in China is not easy, and-so,
having by his walk confessed his Master on earth,
‘we may in humble confidence believe that our Lord
will not deny him on that day when we shall all
stand before God. Mrs. Lyster will be supported in
her affliction by the knowledge that God does. not
' afflict willingly, but that He chastens in love.

If I ever happen to pass over, I will (D.v.) pay her
a visit, and, in the meantime, please present my
Sincere sympathy, and believe me,

Yours very sincerely,
C. G. Gorvon.

In conclusion, we give an extract from one of
LETTERS OF SYMPATHY. 285.

the many kind letters received by his family from
his comrades and others, bearing testimony to
the esteem in which he was held by all who
knew him. It is from Lieut. R. E. Cane, R.A.,
_and is addressed to the father of his friend.

Though I have not the pleasure of your acquaint-
ance, I cannot help writing to express to you my
sorrow and deep sympathy with you on the death of
yourdear son. . . . We had been comrades in China
since 1862. . . . The last long walk I had in Hong-
Kong was with him, and just before we parted, on
my leaving for England (poor fellow, how little either
of us thought it was our last earthly parting), he gave
me his photograph and a most beautiful little ivory
carving, on which he had my name engraved, with
his usual kind thoughtfulness. He will be greatly
and sincerely regretted by his old comrades in China,
he was greatly liked, and even more respected. It
would not be easy to find atruer friend, a better man,
or a more hard-working and excellent officer. ;

If anything can in any way console you for the loss
of such a son, it will be the certain knowledge that
his high principle, goodness of heart, and strict sense
of duty, gained him the confidence and esteem of all
who knew him, superiors, inferiors, and equals, and
that his memory with all his friends and companions
will be an unmixed recollection of all that was hope-
ful and good.
286 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

MEMORANDUM RESPECTING THE SERVICES OF
THE LATE LizurENANT LysTER, Roya.
ENGINEERS.

Having been requested to state my opinion re-
specting the services of the late Thomas Lyster,
Lieutenant in the Royal Engineers, who died on his
way home from China in 1865, I feel a sad pleasure
in relating what I am acquainted with of his services.

Lieutenant Lyster, R.E., landed in China in
August, 1862, and was at once employed in active
operations against the rebels, who were then
threatening Shanghai. For twelve months he was
most actively engaged either in direct operations
with the British troops against the rebels, or in
surveying the country around Shanghai, which had
hitherto been a tevva incognita to the European
settlers, and without this survey the efforts of the
troops would have proved futile in a great many
instances.

In 1863 he was sent as commanding Royal
Engineers to Japan, where he had the superinten-
dence and arrangement of the troops sent over there
to protect the mercantile interests when it seemed
probable that war would break out with the Daimios.
From thence he was invalided to Hong-Kong, with
MEMORANDUM. 287

the recommendation of the Medical Board that he
should go home; but he thought that it would bea
slur on him to leave under a medical certificate, and
therefore remained on till August, 1865, when the
authorities ordered him before a Medical Board
again, and sent him home. His health, severely
tried in China and Japan, was, however, quite
shattered: he sunk rapidly, and expired at sea on his
way home.

Intimately connected with Lieutenant Lyster
both in the field and garrison, I can testify to his
most valuable services. He was a most zealous,
brave, and enterprising young officer, and our corps
lost a valuable member in him. His services were
thoroughly appreciated by three generals he served
under—by Generals Staveley, Brown, and Grey, who
thought most highly of him.

In concluding my statement, I must add, that I
think my late brother officer sacrificed himself to
his profession, and paid the penalty of his life,
humanly speaking, that the service should not suffer ;
for it was the opinion of the doctors that he would
have recovered if he had gone home in 1864, when
he was first brought before a Medical Board.

C. G. GorDoNn,
Captain R.E., 2nd Batt., Lieut.-Colonel.
November, 1867.
APPENDIX.

———

LETTER FROM Captain D. Mc. S. SmitH oF
THE ELFIN.

S.S. Elfin, Kin-Kiane, Fune 12, 1864.

As we were all in readiness, Mr. Hammond came
on board with my sailing orders, and brought me
twenty-two men picked of Colonel Gordon’s body-
guard, who had been eighteen months in the field
with him, and fought at the taking of all the cities
from which he drove the rebels. They are armed
with Enfield rifles and bayonets, and thoroughly
drilled, and about the best specimen of Chinese
soldiers that I have seen.

My orders were to proceed direct to Kin-Kiang,
which is 232 miles down the river. On arrival there
I was to go to Silver Island, about two miles farther
down, and report myself and deliver despatches to
Colonel Gordon, whom I should find there with the
English Consul. My written order directed me to

19
290 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

place myself under his orders, and take him and his
staff wherever he might want to go. I arrived in
due time in Kin-Kiang, making a very quick run
down, and, although never on the river before, I
got on without a pilot. I went in a sail-boat down
to Silver Island, getting there about 7 o’clock in
the evening. I found Colonel Gordon there and
delivered my message. He received me in a very
friendly manner, and told me to take a full supply
of coals, and when the vessel was ready he wished
to proceed to Nankin, the great stronghold of the
rebels. He came on board next day, and brought
with him Lieutenant Lyster of the Royal Engineers,
Mr. Hobson and his interpreter, Ching, a Mandarin,
and his Chinese interpreter, and a lot of others.
We got up to and past Nankin without getting a
shot from the batteries, though the rebels knew the
Elfin well, and that she is in the Imperial service.
I anchored in a creek above the city at half-past
ten at night. An Imperial gun-boat came alongside
soon, and Colonel Gordon sent a letter on shore to
acquaint the Imperial General with his arrival.
An answer came back that night to say that the
General would receive Gordon at 10.30 next morn-
ing, and would send down an escort and horses for
himself and his staff. Next morning, the nags
having arrived, Colonel Gordon asked me to ac-
company him, and we landed. The distance from
the ship to the General’s headquarters was six
miles, and the whole of the way was lined with
soldiers, in some places two deep-and four deep,
LETTER FROM CAPTAIN D. Mc. S. SMITH. 291

every soldier with a flag in his hand about a mile-
and-a-half of the way up to the stockades. We
passed through a deep ravine, winding, and the
effect of the flags was really very pretty. As our
procession passed, they fired salutes, and the bands
struck up. Colonel Gordon rode in a handsome chair,
Lieutenant Lyster, Mr. Hobson, and I on horses.
There must have been about 15,000 or 20,000 men
turned out to receive Gordon. The General is one
of the highest in the Empire, and he couldn’t have
paid his Emperor a greater compliment were he to
visit him.

Gordon holds the highest rank in the Chinese
Empire. The Emperor presented him with a yellow
coat; there are only eight altogether in the Empire.
On this occasion he wore his uniform of a Colonel
in the Royal Engineers. I have read of politeness
and etiquette, but the Chinese Mandarins exceed
everything I ever smagined. After the reception and
no end of chin-chinning, as Colonel Gordon wanted
to have a long talk with the General about the
object of his visit, viz., the taking of Nankin,
Mr. Lyster and I asked permission to ride over
the lines and round the walls of the city. The
General immediately put a high Mandarin at our
service with horses and an escort, and we took our
leave and started off on our ride. We rode over
a distance altogether of thirty-two miles, nearly
round the city, and from one -point—the last we
came to—could see the remainder, and it was so
high that we could see into the city. There was
292 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

very little firing going on, as the rebels are very
short of ammunition, and don’t answer the firing
of the Imperialists. All the lines, batteries, and
stockades are within easy range of the walls, and
in several places we rode within pistol-range. The
Imperialists have an army of 70,000 fighting men
in lines that cover over 18 miles of ground, and
take in 122 batteries and stockades. On the sea-
front they have goo gun-boats, and yet they have
been eleven years trying to dislodge the rebels.
On one occasion, three years ago, the Chang-Mows
made a sally in concert with an army which took
the Imperialists in rear, and the latter were driven
away into the interior; but now they stand a better
chance of taking the place than ever, as théy have
it thoroughly invested, and they only want pluck
enough to make the assault. In one place they
mined the walls, and there is a capital breach.
Now they have a mine in another place, which
only wants forty yards of the foot of the walls.
Mr. Lyster examined it, and said it was very well
constructed. The shaft is a great depth, as it has
to go under the canal.

They are very short of provisions in the city.
Rice is 110 dollars per vessel of 133 lbs.; everything
else in proportion. The other day they sent out
3,000 women, as they could not feed them.

We got back to the ship at about 8 o’clock in
the evening, and I can tell you I was rather tired.
Next morning the Confucius steamer arrived from
Shanghai with despatches for Colonel Gordon, and
LETTER FROM CAPTAIN D. Me. S. SMITH. 293

news that General Burgevine and about fifty
Europeans were on their way to join the rebels
in Nankin. The former commanded the Anglo-
Chinese army, but deserted to the rebels at
Souchow. The Confucius saw nothing of them in
the river, though they searched every creek, and
two other steamers with two hundred men of the
67th Regiment (Queen’s) were also sent out. She
brought Colonel Gordon’s recall from the Chinese
Service, and orders for him, after he had visited all
the places he wanted to go to, to return to Shanghai,
where I believe he is to take command of the
defence force. A copy of the Times came with
his despatches, with the debate in Parliament on
the Chinese Question—all about Gordon and Osborn,
&c. His object in coming up the river was to visit
Nankin and examine the strength of the place, to
see all the Chinese officials and men in high places,
and try to induce them to allow him to bring his
siege-train—with which he took all the other cities
and Souchow finally —with his army up to Nankin
and assist them to take the place. He wanted
none of the credit, and he told the General that
he did not even want his name to appear. in his
despatches to the Emperor, and that he would
guarantee to take the place in three days from the
time he got his siege-train up and in position. The
General at Nankin said that he would be very glad
to have him to fight with them, but as they were
sure of taking the city in a little time, he declined
‘his assistance; but said, in an awfully polite manner,
294: ‘WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

‘“‘that he hoped soon to have the pleasure of receiv-
ing a.visit from him within the walls of Nankin.”
‘They are all very jealous of Colonel Gordon, as he
has done so much with his army in such a short
time. The next day I was too knocked up to go
on shore, so remained quietly on board, and the
chief officer went on shore with Colonel Gordon. at
‘my request. I also got horses from the Mandarin
in command down at the creek for the chief and
second engineers, and consequently I was left all
alone on board. I received the visits of about
one hundred Mandarins, who came to call on the
English General (Gordon), whose Chinese name is
“* Chung-Sing-Ko,” or, in English, ‘‘ The great General
Ko.” A Chinese card is the size of a large sheet
of note-paper—larger than this—with the name in
the left-hand corner. We always sign a document
at the right-hand corner, the Chinese at the left.
Having seen the process of official reception the day
before at the General’s, I was quite up to the thing,
and, after I had chin-chinned each in turn, and pre-
sented them with cups of tea, with my own hands,
as the General did to me, I had champagne, claret,
sherry, brandy, rum, and other liquors put on the
table ; and I can tell you the Mandarins soon found
out the use of them, and drank them off in rotation,
mixing their liquors to a frightful extent, till they
began to talk of their friends, and became very
jolly, and said and swore, I have no doubt, that I
was the best fellow they ever met! We were the
first Europeans that ever went round Nankin.
LETTER FROM CAPTAIN D. Mc. S. SMITH. 295

The next day the General, with a tremendous
train of Mandarins, came to return Gordon’s visit.
We gave him three guns on coming on board, with
Gordon’s body-guard drawn up at the gangway, and
the same at going away. After the official “talkey”
was over, I showed him over the ship. He was
delighted with his visit, and would have made me
a Mandarin, but Colonel Gordon advised me to
decline the honour at first, as he can get me that
honour at any time, should I desire it. But I am
told that the benefits to be derived would not
counterbalance the amount of trouble entailed... .

After spending three days at Nankin, we left and
proceeded up the river to Nganking, a very large
walled and fortified city in the hands of the
Imperialists, where the elder brother of the General
at Nankin commands. His name is San-Ko-Fan,
and he is one of the most influential men in the
Empire. Colonel Gordon visited him, and almost
the same ceremony was- gone through, but he did
not return the visit, as Mr. Hammond came down
from Kin-Kiang quite unexpectedly, and as there is
a large army of rebels, about forty thousand, passing
close at the back of Kin-Kiang to the relief of the
rebels in Nankin, the Taou-Tat, or Governor of the
province here, wanted the Elfin back, and also to
see Colonel Gordon. We came back here, and
although it was Gordon’s intention to go back to
Nankin again, and also to pay a visit to Hankow
up the river, owing to letters which he received, he
went straight back to Shanghai; and I now have a
296 WITH GORDON IN CHINA.

lot of carpenters busy making alterations in the
vessel and placing some guns on board : two-pounder
brass howitzers forward, two small swivel guns after,
and also a brass howitzer. I am to have a comple-
ment of Gordon’s Artillerymen on board. I am
also painting ship, and altogether up to my eyes in
business through the day, and have to suffer eight
o’clock dinners on shore at the Hongs and at Mr.
Hammond’s. How much I should enjoy all this
excitement and pleasure if I only knew that with
you all was right !

“UNWIN BROTHERS, THE GRESHAM PRESS, CHILWORTH AND LONDON.