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William Blackwoc | Sons, Edinburgh & London.
THE

“EVER-VICTORIOUS ARMY”

A HISTORY

OF

THE CHINESE CAMPAIGN

UNDER
LT.-COL. C. G. GORDON, C.B. R.E.

AND OF THE

SUPPRESSION OF THE TAI-PING REBELLION

BY

ANDREW WILSON

AUTHOR OF ‘ENGLAND’S POLICY IN CHINA,’ AND FORMERLY
EDITOR OF THE ‘CHINA MAIL.’

WITH SIX MAPS

WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS
EDINBURGH AND LONDON

MDCCCLXVIII
&
Wi aan
DS 17
wi4

WW aa\o
CONTENTS.

PAGE
PREFACE, a ‘ ‘ : ; i ‘ , xiii
LIST OF TAI-PING WANGS OR CHIEFS, g ; XXV
LIST OF LEADING EVENTS, . ; : : ; XXviii
LIST OF ENGAGEMENTS BETWEEN THE TAI-PINGS
AND DISCIPLINED IMPERIALISTS, 1862-64, ; XXxXi
PART I,

THE ORIGIN OF THE REBELLION.

CHAPTER I.
THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

Relations between the Past and Present of China—Antiquity of the Chinese
Nation and Government—The doctrine of Filial Piety—Advancement of
able men to official posts—Geographical isolation of China—The Chinese
language politically considered—The Doctrine of Harmony—A successful
ideal state—Symmetrical oneness of the Chinese state—Sages, Worthies,
and Worthless—Chinese political action founded on a Christian principle—
The harmony of relationships—Feeling against the employment of force
in government—Respect for age and learning—Education universal in
China—Position and titles of the Emperor—Mutual responsibility, . 3-21
vi CONTENTS.

CHAPTER II. e
PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

Eastern reverence for antiquity—The Asiatic Hebrew—The Indo-Aryan—
Chinese ideal of happy life—Chinese rebellions and revolutions—The
balance of power—Mongol and Manchu conquests—Secret societies—The
Opium war, and increasing disorganisation of China, . . . 22-34

CHAPTER III.
THE TIEN WANG AND HIS HISTORY UP TO 1860.

Hung Sew-tsuen’s origin—His position as a Hakka—His trances and super-
stitions—The terrible character of his career—His personal appearance—
The Tai-ping Wangs—Murder of the Eastern King—Hung’s jealousy of
his chiefs—The Rebel capital constantly besieged, . 3 . 35-45

PAKT 11

OUR COLLISION WITH THE REBELS.

CHAPTER IV.

REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION, AND ITS CONFLICT
WITH FOREIGNERS.

State of the Rebellion in 1859—Despair of the Tai-pings—Change in their
prospects caused by the new difficulty between China and Great Britain—
Sankolinsin—The Taku disaster of 1859—Relief of Nanking—The Tai-
ping outbreak into Kiangsoo—The taking of Soochow—The advance on
Shanghai—British neutrality—The Peking expedition—Imperial applica-
tion for British assistance—The Allies determine to defend Shanghai—
“*General” Frederick Ward—The capture of Sungkiang—Savage—Re-
pulse by Foreigners of the Tai-ping attack on Shanghai, . : 49-67
CONTENTS. vil

CHAPTER V.

TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY, AND
A CHANGE OF POLICY AT PEKING.

The Tien Wang’s indifference—Tai-ping plans in 1860—Four armies set in
motion—British agreement with the Rebels—Neutrality strictly enforced
—Arrest of Ward—Failure of the Rebel movements—Success of the Tai-
pings in Chekiang—Reasons for keeping them from Shanghai and Ningpo
—Death of the Emperor Hien-fung—Prince Kung’s coup d’éat, ‘ 68-79

CHAPTER VI.

ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI IN 1862.

The Tai-pings worsted without our aid—Their second advance on Shanghai—
The country people apply for protection against them—The Allies resolve
to clear a thirty-mile radius—The taking of Kading, &c.—Death of Ad-
miral Protet—The Faithful King retrieves the Rebel cause—Forrester’s
captivity—The end of the Heroic King—The Faithful King recalled to
Nanking—The Allies confine themselves to Shanghai and Sungkiang—
Reception of the news of Ward’s death— His burial —Burgevine appointed
in his place—Li made Futai of Kiangsoo—Their quarrel—General Stave-
ley asked to appoint a British: officer—Burgevine assaults Ta Kee—His
dismissal—Captain Holland appointed to command the Ever-Victorious
Army by General Sir Charles Staveley, . ‘ i ‘ ‘ js 80-94.

CHAPTER VII.

CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

British neutrality at Ningpo—Hostile attitude of the Tai-pings— Admiral
Hope sends Captain Dew, R.N., to Ningpo—Reasons for our interference
there—Apak, the ex-pirate—Captain Dew takes Ningpo by assault—Death
of Lieutenants Kenney and Cornewall—Order restored in the city—For-
mation of French and English corps of disciplined Chinese—Description
of the surrounding country, and effects of Tai-ping occupation—Clearing a
thirty-mile radius—taking of Yuyow and Tseki—Death of General Ward
—Repulse at Fungwha—Commander Jones in a fix—A Bishop’s spoil—
Half of Chekiang restored to Imperial rule—Pay of the Anglo-Chinese
contingent—Rebel defeat at Pikwan—Captain Dew goes beyond the thirty-
mile radius—Advance on Showshing— Death of Captain Le Brethon de
Coligny—Description of Showshing—Deaths of Captain Tardiff and Lieu-
tenant Tinling—Captain Dew undertakes the siege—Fall of Showshing—
Dashing nature of Captain Dew’s exploits, . ‘ : : é 95-120
Vill CONTENTS.

PART III. °

COLONEL GORDON’S CAMPAIGN.

CHAPTER VIII.

THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

Chinese partiality for beautiful phraseology—The title ‘‘ Ever- Victorious
Army”—Captain Holland’s defeat at Taitsan, and Major Brennan’s at
Fushan—Colonel Gordon appointed to command the E. V. A.—His pre-
vious services—Its officers and privates—Rates of pay—lIts artillery and
small-arms—The punishments inflicted—Chinese aptitude for drill—
Colonel Gordon’s flotilla—The steamer Hyson and Captain Davidson—
The auxiliary Imperialist force—Aptitude of the Chinese for war—For the
work of sappers—Colonel Gordon’s tactics—Expenditure of the Chinese
Government—Colonel Gordon’s view of his position and the authority
under which he acted, é : . . ‘ : . 123-141

CHAPTER IX.

GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

Burgevine’s visit {o Peking—The British Minister wishes him restored to com-
mand—Colonel Gordon takes command of the E.V.A.—His Staff—Cap-
ture of Fushan—Gordon receives an Imperial commission, with the rank
of Tsung-ping—Governor Li’s opinion of the new commander—Descrip-
tion of the theatre of war—An amphibious boat—Tai-ping treachery at
Taitsan—Capture of Taitsan—Alleged Imperialist cruelties—Chinese
punishments — Letter from Colonel Gordon—A mutiny in the Force—Situa-
tion of Quinsan—A demon steamboat—Great destruction of Tai-pings—
Capture of Quinsan—It is made headquarters of the Force—Another
mutiny, . i . 7 é q : 3 $ 142-165

CHAPTER X.

BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

A third mutiny—Situation of Soochow—Gordon’s troubles— Burgevine’s
previous career—He joins the Tai-pings—Alarm caused in Shanghai—
Gordon’s providential escape—The Foreign Allies desert the Rebels—Po-
lite interchanges between Burgevine and Jones—Burgevine attempts again
to join the Tai-pings—His seizure by the Chinese authorities—His re-
ported accidental death—The doubt which rests over his fate, . 166-182

CHAPTER XI.

THE FALL OF SOOCHOW, AND THE EXECUTION OF ITS WANGS.

The investment of Soochow—Storming of Leeku—Gordon’s ‘‘ Magic Wand”
—Death of Captain Perry—Disposal of the besieging forces—The Faithful
King’s apprehensions—Complete investment of Soochow—Pirating of the
steamer Firefly—A disastrous night-attack—Capture of the East Gate
CONTENTS. ix

stockades—Negotiations for surrender—Murder of the Moh Wang—A
characteristic letter from Colonel Gordon—The capitulation of Soochow
—Gordon’s perilous position—His grief and indignation—His search for
Governor Li—Execution of the Wangs—Li’s reasons for that act—Gordon
refuses to act, and rejects an Imperial douceur—Imperial decree regarding
the fall of Soochow, . ‘ ‘1 . ‘ : : - 7 183-208

CHAPTER XII.
GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

Imperialist successes—Inactivity of the Ever- Victorious Army—Gordon’s rea-
sons for retaking the field—Mr Hart’s report on the Soochow ‘‘ Massacre”
—Sir Frederick Bruce approves of the resumption of operations—A letter
from him—Gordon retakes the field—State of the country occupied by
Rebels—Evacuation of Yesing and Liyang—Severe repulse at Kintang—
Colonel Gordon wounded—Tai-ping advance towards Quinsan—Gordon
suffers a disastrous repulse at Waisoo—Fate of his captured officers—Im-
perialist successes in Chekiang—Death of General Ching—Li’s memorial
of him—Taking of Hangchow—Capture of Waisoo—Cruelty of the vil-
lagers—The Rebellion near its end—Death of Major Tapp—Repulse at
Chanchu—A Tai-ping letter—Storming of Chanchu—Death of the Hu
Wang—Close of the services of the E. V. A., . i ‘ . 209-240

CHAPTER XIII.

THE DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE, AND
A REVIEW OF ITS RESULTS.

Expulsion of the Tai-pings from Kiangnan—Recall of H.M. order permitting
British officers to serve the Emperor—Gordon determines, on his own re-
sponsibility, to dissolve his force—Appreciation of his conduct by the
Chinese—Gratuities to wounded officers—Dissolution of the Ever-Victorious
Army—Distinctions conferred on Gordon—Imperial decree recognising his
services—anxiety of Sir Harry Parkes—Letter from Governor Li, claiming
a chief share in the overthrow of the Tai-pings—Address to Colonel
Gordon from the merchants of Shanghai—The difficulties Gordon had to
encounter—Opinion of the ‘Times ’—An estimate of the military results
of his campaign—The political effects of his action—The Imperial mari-
time customs and the Lay-Osborm fleet—Mr Lay’s attempt to make him-
self an imperium in imperto—His failure, and dismissal from the Chinese
service—His use of Sir F. Bruce’s private letters—Appointment of Mr
Hart—The general effects of Gordon’s action discussed, : 5 241-266

CHAPTER XIV.
THE MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

Rudimentary state of medical science in China—Assistant-Surgeon Moffitt’s
services to Gordon’s force—Capacity of the Chinese as soldiers—Malaria
—Organisation of the medical department—Hospital tables of disease—
Effects and cure of opium-smoking—Dysentery—Table of wounds received
in action—Cases of wounds, i : é . ‘ ‘ . 267-277
x CONTENTS.

PART IV. =
THE END OF THE TAI-PINGS.

CHAPTER XV.

A VISIT TO TSENG KWO-FAN—SKETCHES OF NATIVE AND
ENGLISH OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

Tseng Kwo-tsun—View of Nanking and the Imperialist lines—Appearance
of Tseng Kwo-fan—Gordon’s conversation with him—Generals Paou and
Ping—Chinese mandarins—Mandarin buttons—Ki Ying’s history—His
ode on leaving Canton—His treatment by Lord Elgin, and his fate—Yeh
and Pih Kwei—Kweiliang and Hwashana—Sankolinsin—Su Shu-en and
the Princes of I and Ching—Shung Pow—Prince Kung—Wan See-ang,
the present Premier of China—Li Hung Chang—Tseng Kwo-fan, Gene-
ralissimo of all the Chinese forces—Sir John Bowring—Lord Elgin—Sir
Frederick Bruce—Sir R. Alcock—Mr Wade, Sir Harry Parkes, and Mr
Lay—Mr T. T. Meadows—Admiral Hope and Captain Dew—Generals
Staveley and Brown—Colonel Gordon and Mr Hart, . : . 281-317

CHAPTER XVI.

THE FALL OF NANKING AND THE LAST STRUGGLES
OF THE TAI-PINGS.

The Tien Wang’s indifference and seclusion—Sweet dew—His wisdom and
good fortune—Complete investment of Nanking—Despair of the Faithful
King—Last days of Hung Sew-tsuen—His death and burial—His son
Fu-tien ascends the throne—The fall of Nanking—Capture of the Faith-
ful King—His character and autobiography—His execution—-Fate of the
Shield King and of the young monarch—State of Nanking when captured
—Report on its condition by Vice-Consul Adkins—Reception of the news
at Peking—Imperial decree—The fall of Wuchu—Experiences of Patrick
Nellis—Retreat of the Tai-ping remnant through Kiangsi into Fukien—
They appear at Changchow, near Amoy—Manifesto of the Attendant King
—Their dispersion and final disappearance—Fate of the I Wang, 318-342

CHAPTER XVII.
NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

Meaning of the name Nien-fei—Origin of these rebels—Their character and
tactics—Weakness of the central government in China—Political parties
—Sankolinsin and Tseng Kwo-fan—Death of Sankolinsin—Varying for-
tune of the Nien-fei—Li Hung-chang appointed to the command against
them—His suppression of them—Relationships between China and Mo-
hammedanism—The Mohammedan Rebels in Shensi—Their retreat into
Kansuh—The province of Ili and its relation to China—The Miaoutsz
and Hakkas, 343-355
OFFICERS WHO DISTINGUISHED THEMSELVES,

LIST OF THE CHINESE NAMES OF PLACES NEAR SHANGHAI,

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER XVIII.

THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

China at present in a period of disturbance and transition—Causes of such

periods—Over-population—Falsehoods regarding the prevalence of infan-
ticide— Dangers of prosperity—China’s present favourable position—
Crushing of the Nien-fei rebels—Degradation of Li Hung-chang—Euro-
pean gunboats and artillery employed by the Government—Military re-
form—Services of a British officer required—China’s foreign relationships
—Foreigners have provoked hostility—Spaniards and Portuguese—Opium
versus tea—English merchants in China—The East India Company—
Opening of the five ports—Remarkable success of our merchants—Their
dissatisfaction—The Treaty of Tientsin—Our merchants ruined by the open-
ing of China—Over-trading—Tea sold cheaper in London than in China
—Complaints as to exactions on the transit of goods—Memorials of the
Anglo-Chinese Chambers of Commerce—Jardine, Matheson, & Co. on
the opium traffic, and on access to the interior of China—Net results of
an aggressive policy—A prophecy ee Wan See- eee of our trade

xi

passing into Chinese hands, 5 z , ¥ 356-382

APPENDICES.

LIST OF OFFICERS AND OTHER EUROPEANS KILLED AND

WOUNDED DURING COLONEL GORDON’S CAMPAIGN IN

LIST OF CHINESE TITLES, CIVIL AND MILITARY, ‘ . 383

1863 AND 1864, . ‘ : 7 ‘ . 384

ARRANGEMENTS FOR PLACING THE EVER-VICTORIOUS ARMY

UNDER THE JOINT COMMAND OF CHINESE AND FOREIGN
OFFICERS, APPOINTED BY HIS EXCELLENCY THE FUTAI

386

AND GENERAL STAVELEY, GB, . ‘ : . 388

“ TI-PING TIEN-KWOH,” ‘ : : , . 389
STATEMENT OF GEORGE BAFFEY, A PRISONER SENT TO H.B.M.

CONSULATE, CANTON, BY THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES, . 393

395
LIST OF IAPS,

TO FACE PAGE

. Map of China, ¢o face title-page.
. Sketch-Map of the Routes taken by the Rebel Forces

re

N

during the years 1851-65, ; :
Map illustrating the Operations of the Chung and Ying

o

Wangs, 1855-64, é i ‘ 2
4. Sketch-Map of the Operations against the Rebels,
1862-64,
. Sketch of Taitsan and Quinsan, .
Sketch of Country ravaged by Rebels, March “abi.

nw

48

68

122

142
209
PREFACE,

Tue Chinese people and Government have had to struggle
during the last ten years with difficulties of no ordinary
kind. In that period they have carried on a prolonged
war with two of the most powerful nations of the earth,
whose demands upon them, however warrantable, neces-
sarily weakened the power of the Chinese State by lower-
ing it from an authoritative position ; they have had to
adapt their long-isolated civilisation to the disintegrating
influence of close contact with Foreigners*—a difficult
and hazardous task, only accomplished by a ministerial
coup détat almost tantamount to an internal revolution ;
and they have suppressed a great internal movement,
which had become a most formidable rebellion chiefly
because a long period of isolation and of peaceful pros-
perity had led the authorities of the country to neglect
the arts of war.

The latter feat forms the topic of this book ; but it has
been found impossible to treat of it in anything like a

* The words “Foreigner” and “Foreign,” when commenced with a
capital letter, refer to the Europeans and Americans in China as opposed

to the people of the country. Hence “Foreign” is a proper name nearly
equivalent to the term “ Occidental,” which some writers use in its place.
Xiv PREFACE.

satisfactory manner without many references to the other
two difficulties just mentioned; for they not only all
existed contemporaneously, but were also closely con-
nected, and aggravated each other in a high degree.
It was not merely that the war with Foreigners gave
opportunity to the Tai-ping Rebels, and the Rebellion
diminished the means of external defence: the Rebel-
lion had its origin in the contact of China with Foreign
nations ; it was almost suppressed in 1859, when a new
difficulty between Foreigners and the Imperial Govern-
ment came to its aid; the loss of power consequent on
the Rebellion made it difficult for the Emperor to grant
Foreign demands, and the loss of prestige caused him
by Foreigners decreased his power of dealing with the
Rebellion.

Several interesting and instructive works—such as
those of Mr Meadows, Mr Oliphant, Commander Brine,
and Dr Rennie—have been published, relating to the
first half of the transition period through which China
has recently passed, and which closes with the Peking
coup d’état of 1861; but the important events which
followed, which have resulted in the complete suppres-
sion of the Tai-ping Rebellion, and the restoration of
China to a state of comparative order and peace, are
known to the British public only through an indistinct
recollection of telegrams and newspaper reports, or
through the frantic complaints of ignorant or unscrupu-
lous Tai-ping sympathisers. In these events Foreigners
in China took an important part. Some Englishmen
and Americans fought on the side of the Rebels ; while
on the other hand it will not be forgotten that almost
every mail from the Far East, during great parts of
PREFACE. XV

1863 and 1864, brought home intelligence that Major
(now Colonel) Gordon had taken another town from
the Tai-pings and handed it over to the Imperialists.
Hence this latter period has for us the double interest
arising from the restoration to order of a great country
with which we are commercially connected, and of the
military service in it of British officers to that end.

My information on this subject has been drawn chiefly
from unpublished sources. More than a year after his
connection with the Chinese Government had ended,
Colonel Gordon offered me his Private Journal and Cor-
respondence relating to that connection, and other papers
illustrative of Tai-ping history, with full permission to
make any use of them I pleased, but expressing at the
same time a strong wish that in anything published on
the subject he should not be made the hero of a work in
which so many other officers were engaged, who had, in
his opinion, as much to do with the suppression of the
Rebellion as himself, and that any relation of his ser-
vices in China should be subordinated to what he con-
sidered the more important object of presenting a true
account of the recent course of events in that country.
He was induced to place in me this valued confidence
chiefly by the perusal, after his return to England, of
a pamphlet on our policy in China, which I issued at
Hongkong in 1860, proposing and advocating that
change of policy towards the Celestial Empire which
was afterwards so ably carried out at Peking by Sir
Frederick Bruce, her Majesty’s Plenipotentiary ; at Shang-
hai by Mr Hart, the head of the Imperial Maritime
Customs; and by Colonel Gordon in the field.

Though I never had the slightest connection, directly
xvi PREFACE.

or indirectly, with the Celestial Government, or derived
any special benefit from it, yet, having lived a good deal
among the Chinese in their own Flowery Land, and being
deeply impressed with the convictions that the interests
of China and of Great Britain are at present identical,
and that a right understanding of the former country
may be of very great use in the new phase of political
matters into which we are ourselves entering, I felt
inclined to enter on the task thus committed to me.
Considering Colonel Gordon’s wishes, the absence in his
Journal of all details of personal adventure, and the un-
interesting nature of small military operations after the
recent great wars in America and on the Continent, it
seemed clear that the best course to pursue would be
to draw up a brief general history of the suppression
of the Tai-ping Rebellion, taking, only as a central figure,
the Foreign-officered Imperialist force officially called the
Ch’ang Sheng Chi’un or “ Ever-Victorious Army,” which
was originated in 1860 by Ward, an American adven-
turer, and which, under Colonel Gordon, did essential
service in clearing the province of Kiangsoo of Tai-pings,
and leading to the fall of Nanking, the Rebel capital.
The completion of this design has been delayed and
partially interfered with by very severe and prolonged
illness ; but the delay is not a matter of regret, for no
events of great importance have very recently occurred
in China, and the lapse of time has allowed idle reports
about the continuance of the Tai-ping Rebellion to die
away. Ido not plead my state of health in excuse of
any errors or defects in this short history, but only to
explain why some of the earlier chapters are more ela-
borate than may seem necessary as an introduction to
PREFACE. xvii

those which follow. I had planned the work on a larger
scale, and with the intention of more perfect execution,
but, having been reduced to writing by dictation, have
been compelled to content myself with presenting matter
which is either entirely new, or is of essential importance
to a right understanding of recent events in China.

About a third of this volume has already appeared in
the pages of ‘ Blackwood’s Magazine;’ but the remainder
is entirely new matter, with the exception of a few
sentences which I may have used when commenting in
the ‘Daily News, or ‘Pall Mall Gazette, on passing
events in the Hast.

I have to acknowledge my obligations for various
documents and information to Major-General W. G.
Brown ; Staff Assistant-Surgeon A. Moffitt; Captain
Roderick Dew, R.N.; Mr Dick of Tientsin; Mr James
Macdonald, formerly Secretary of the Shanghai Chamber
of Commerce; Dr W. Dickson, late of Canton; and espe-
cially to Colonel Gordon, with whom, however, I have
had no communication in regard to matters of opinion,
and who is in no way responsible for this work further
than for the correctness of my account of the operations
which he conducted.

My own experience in China and acquaintance with
Ward when he started the Ever-Victorious Army have
proved useful, as also the statements of gentlemen who
had opportunities of observing some of the operations
under Gordon; and I may say that all the infor-
mation now available regarding the suppression of the
Tai-ping Rebellion has been examined and considered,
but the materials of this work have been chiefly drawn
from the following sources :—

b
Xvill PREFACE.

1. The Private Journal and Correspondence of Lieu-
tenant-Colonel Gordon, C.B., relating to” his Chinese
Campaign.

3, A MS. Narrative of Gordon’s Campaign, compiled
under the direction of Major-General Brown, who com-
manded H.M.’s troops in China in 1863-64, and whose
brother, Major Brown, was Gordon’s A.D.C.

3. A confidential “Memorandum on the Quin-san
Force,” or Gordon’s Contingent, printed by H.M’s
Government, but never published.

4, The Private Journal kept by Captain Roderick
Dew, R.N., of his operations against the Tai-pings in
the province of Chekiang.

5. Imperial Decrees and other official Chinese docu-
ments, and Tai-ping Manifestoes.

6. The Autobiographies of the Tai-ping Chiefs, the
Chung Wang or Faithful King, the Kan Wang or Shield
King, and the son of the Rebel Monarch, who, before
being put to death by the Imperial authorities after
their capture at, or shortly after, the fall of Nanking,
were permitted to employ the brief remainder of their
lives in writing out accounts of their history.

7. Intercepted Rebel Despatches and the Letters and
Depositions of unfortunate Foreigners who served with
the Tai-pings.

8. “Notes kept by” Colonel Schmidt, “an officer who
served under Ward, Burgevine, Holland, and Gordon,”
which were published in the ‘ Friend of China, a paper
notorious for its Tai-ping sympathies.

9, A Medical Report on Gordon’s Campaign by Staff
Assistant-Surgeon A. Moffitt.

10. The Correspondence on our Relations with China
PREFACE, XIX

published in Parliamentary Blue-Books, and the Diplo-
matic Correspondence issued by the President of the
United States.

11. The Chinese Classics.

12. Files of old newspapers innumerable.

In regard to several of the maps which accompany
this book, I have to acknowledge my obligations, for
valuable assistance rendered in the preparation of them,
to Captain Sanford of the Royal Engineers, who is
personally well acquainted with the country in the
neighbourhood of Shanghai, having been engaged on
the survey of it, and having also taken a part in the
British operations against the Tai-pings. The “ Sketch-
map of the Operations against the Rebels in 1862-64”
will be found necessary to explain Colonel Gordon’s Cam-
paign, and has been reduced from a large military plan
constructed by himself and by other officers of her
Majesty’s army. The “ Map illustrating the Operations
of the Chung and Ying Wangs” is explanatory of the
attempts, as described in Chap. V., of the Tai-pings to
relieve Hankow. In the “Sketch-map of the Routes
taken by the Rebel Forces from 1851 to 1865,” advantage
has been taken of the lines illustrating the early Tai-
ping movements given by Mr Meadows in the map
accompanying his work on the Rebellion ; but the later
more important movements of the Tai-pings, up to the
time of their extinction, are also shown, together with
the lines established by Li Hung-chang, in 1857, to
destroy the Nien-feii The “Sketch of Taitsan and
Quinsan ” may serve to explain the capture of the latter
town, as described in Chap. IX.; and the “Sketch of
Country ravaged by Rebels, March 1864,” illustrates Col-
XX PREFACE.

onel Gordon’s last operations. For the benefit of readers
who desire to have a really good map of China on a small
scale, I have given one in which (it having been pre-
pared upon steel for another purpose by a distinguished
living geographer) the spelling of the names is slightly
different from that of the other maps and of the text.

The English orthography of Chinese names is at pre-
sent in such an extremely unsatisfactory state that I
have not thought it necessary rigidly to follow any
particular system of spelling in regard to words such
as “Kiangsoo” and “Soochow,” which have become
familiar to English eyes; and some of the names of
Chinese persons and places must be incorrectly given,
because they were written down, from sound, in English,
by persons ignorant of Chinese, and it was not worth
while to procure the proper orthography ; but some of
these are corrected in an appendix. In regard to little-
known yet important terms, such as “Futai,” I have
inclined to the modification of the system of Sir Wil-
liam Jones, which has been adopted for Asiatic lan-
guages generally by the learned societies of Europe, and
which has been followed by the American missionaries
in China. The complicated system followed of late by
the British Consular service in China is most misleading
to English readers, and is responsible for such barbarities
as “Shanghae” and “Tae-ping.”

The word “Tai-ping” signifies “great peace,” and is
pronounced with a strong aspirate after the 7, with
the az likez in “high” or “aisle,” and with the vowel
in ping asin “ring.” It has also been written “'Thai-
ping,” “Tae-ping,” and “Ti-ping.” The first of these
methods is that used by Mr Hamberg, the biographer
PREFACE. XX1

of Hung Sew-tsuen, and is the most correct of all; but
it is unnecessarily cumbrous: for ordinary use. “Tae-
ping,” the English official way of spelling the word, is
open to the fatal objection that it causes ninety-nine
Englishmen out of a hundred to pronounce the Tae
with a broad sound, as in “lay” or “hay,” which is
very different from the Chinese. “Ti-ping” will
not do, because it suggests that the Zi should be
sounded as in “tippet.” It may be said that “Tai-
ping” is open to a similar objection, because both in
English and French az usually represents the broad
sound of a; but in point of fact ai naturally suggests
the vowel-sound in the Tai of Tai-ping, and has been
long used for that purpose by students of Oriental
literature. Though not perfect, it is the best representa-
tion which has been offered, and -has the advantage of
being well known both in English and French literature.
The most perfectly correct spelling would be “T’hai-
p hing.”

Chinese being a monosyllabic and ideographic, not
a phonetic, language, its proper names are sometimes
separated into distinct words, as “Hong Kong” for
“ Hongkong,” and “Tien-tsin” for “Tientsin ;” but this
is quite unnecessary in regard to the names of places,
and is even scarcely accurate, because one of the syllables
in such cases is almost always an adjective. Inthe names
of persons, however, a distinction should be marked be-
tween the family name and that which is conferred. To
write “ Hungsewtsuen,” for instance, would be like
writing in English “Smithjohn” instead of “Smith
(John).” Hung being the family name, it should stand
by itself, and the conferred name is marked by a hyphen
Xxil PREFACE.

between the name and the adjective, so that its com-
posite nature may be marked, thus making “ Hung
Sew-tsuen.”* The same principle has been followed
whenever practicable, as in “Tseng Kwo-fan” and “ Li
Hung-chang ;” but Tartar names, like “ Sankolinsin,”
have been treated more simply, the language being
alphabetic.

It is very difficult to secure perfect verbal accuracy in
a work of this kind where so many minute details have
to be considered and compressed, and where, to a Foreign
ear, there is so little difference between the Chinese
monosyllables. On looking over the work, however, now
that it is in print, I observe only a few errors, and not
important ones, which require correction. In p. 126,
“Shensi” has slipped in instead of “Shansi;” in one
place a pamphlet of Mr Lay’s has been called ‘Our
Policy’ instead of ‘Our Interests in China ;’ and ina
note hastily added to p. 148, “ Chekiang” has, by a slip
of the pen, been inserted instead of “ Nganhwui,” but
the point referred to is more fully explained in a note
to p. 298.

Perhaps it may be thought that some of the state-
ments given in this work ought to have been supported
by a fuller reference to authorities ; but to have done so
in anything like a satisfactory manner I should have
required to publish not one volume but at least three,

* Unlike ourselves, the Chinese make a practice of proceeding from
generals to particulars. Hence they always put the family name first, and
in addressing a letter they would write, “England, London, Piccadilly 8,
Smith John.” The advantages of this method are sufficiently obvious, The
opposite practice could never have sprung up in a civilisation guided by
intelligence; but the most curious point about it is its want of that practi-
calness of which we make so much boast.
PREFACE. XXill

and so have ruined myself both with the publisher and
the public. Besides, China is especially a country at
present which stands much more in need of the general
features of its recent history being pointed out to intel-
ligent persons than of any public writer on the subject
involving himself in ridiculous discusssions such as that
as to whether the Tai-pings represented any national or
religious movements, when to do so would be almost
as bad as for a writer illustrating the great practical
applications of astronomy to devote his time to com-
bating the ignorant, the fanciful, or the interested argu-
ments of those who still maintain that the sun goes
round the earth, and that the stars are merely street
lamps for the sons of men.

In conclusion, I have only to beg that readers who
have been unaccustomed to see Chinese matters treated
from a rational point of view, will believe that I am no
Mandarin worshipper, and that I am quite alive to the
great faults of the Chinese nation and Government.
Their civilisation, like our own, has been in great part
a failure, though perhaps not such a saddening one as
ours, for it has not had such fine material to work
upon ; but we must at least understand it and treat of
it as it really exists, if we would avail ourselves of its
experience. Mr Disraeli has well said that Europe is
now passing from a feudal to a federal system. Through
this stage China passed long ago; and as we know it, its
government has been committed to a body of officials
chosen from all ranks of the people by a competitive
examination which tests power of genius and intellect,
rather than of acquirement, and which has been to some
extent successful in raising the "Apioror of the country
XXIV PREFACE.

to the possession of both wealth and political power.
To talk of Manchu tyranny in China is about as absurd
as it would be in England to speak of the tyranny of
the house of Hanover. In Great Britain the power of
the aristocracy, or rather say of the upper classes, has
been losing ground of late years, and some barrier is ne-
cessary against the state of matters in which the power
of the people can be directed by passionate demagogues,
or by politicians of the American stamp who seek purely
personal ends. How far the Chinese system might afford
hints to this end, or supply warnings, is an important
question which will soon be forced upon us by the course
of events, and hence it is desirable that we should know
that system as it really is, and not as it has been
fancifully represented—a subject of ridicule to amuse
the passing hour, or a subject of abuse to justify dubious
agoressions.

May 1868.
LIST or TAI-PING WANGS or CHIEFS.

The word “Wang” properly signifies a Prince; it would be im-
possible to name all the Tai-ping Wangs, of whom there were about
2300 ; and among these Rebels the name did not imply any royalty by
blood. In the first years of the Rebellion the title was conferred only
on a select few, but latterly it was given largely by the Heavenly Mon-
arch, and conferred by some of his adherents upon themselves. The
following list of the more prominent of them may be useful in ex-
plaining the references in the text. The title is given first, then a
translation of it, and afterwards the individual’s name :—

1. Tren Wane or Tar-rpive Wane: the Heavenly Monarch or King
of the Great Peace; Hung Sew-tsuen. This was the origi-
nator, centre, and king of the whole movement. Born 1813.
Formally proclaimed his rebellion in 1850; established him-
self at; Nanking in 1853, and committed suicide in June 1864.

2. Tren Wane IT.: the second Heavenly Monarch ; Hung Fu-tien.
A son of Hung Sew-tsuen and of Lai, the second of the former’s
eighty-eight wives. Born 1848, assumed the nominal sceptre
on the death of his father, and shortly after the fall of Nan-
king, in July 1864, was taken and executed by the Imperial-
ists.

3. Fu Wane: Hung Jen-ta. An elder half-brother of Hung Sew-
tsuen, who seems to have been with the latter from the com-
mencement, aud to have had great influence. Executed after
the fall of Nanking. There are also traces of another half-
brother, called the Ngan Wang, Hung Jen-fu, who disappears
at the fall of Nanking.

4, Kan Wane: the Shield King; Hung Jen-kan. A cousin of
Hung Sew-tsuen, who joined the latter in 1859, and was made
Prime Minister, being well acquainted with Foreigners, and
speaking English. Some doubts have been raised as to his
fate, but he seems to have been executed after the fall of Nan-
XXVi LIST OF TAI-PING WANGS OR CHIEFS.

king; and the alleged Kan Wang, who appeared near Amoy
in the year 1865, was probably the K’ang Wang, a chief of
little note. .

Then come in the five original Wangs, who alone held that title
during the first years of the Rebellion.

5. Nan Wane: the Southern King; Fung Yun-san, an early
friend of Hung Sew-tsuen. Killed in action in 1852.

6. Tune Wane: the Easten King; Yang Sew-tsin. A great
fighting Chief, and organiser of the rebel movement. An
incarnation of the Holy Ghost, and an aspirant for supreme
power, which caused his being murdered, at the Heavenly
Monarch’s instigation, in August 1856.

7. Per Wane: the Northern King; Wei Ching. Killed soon
after the Eastern King at Nanking in 1856.

8. St Wane: the Western King; Siaou Chai-kwei. A brother-
in-law of Hung Sew-tsuen. Killed in action in 1852.

9. I Wane: the Assistant King; Shih Ta-kai. A great fighting
Chief. Left Nanking in 1854 ; afterwards quarrelled with the
Tai-pings, and set up for himself in the province of Szechuen.
Taken prisoner by the Imperialists and executed in 1863.

To these early chiefs may be added the

10. Tren-rze Wane: the Heavenly Virtue King ; Hung Tai-tsuen.
This was no relative of Hung Sew-tsuen, and the Tai-pings
make no mention of his existence; but being taken by the
Imperialists in 1852, he declared before his execution that he
was one of the originators of the Rebellion. Probably he was
an impostor.

The titles of two of the original Wangs were continued in the per-

sons of their sons.

11. Nan Wane I. Killed when trying to escape from Nanking
after its fall in 1864.

12. Sr Wane II. Killed as above.

After the murder of the Eastern King in 1856, Hung Sew-tsuen
created no more Wangs for some time; but when he was joined by
Hung Jen-kan in 1859, and had made the latter the Kan Wang, he
found it necessary to confer the title on two others of his great fight-
ing Chiefs, viz. :—

13. Caune Wane: the Faithful King; Li Siu-cheng (originally
called Yi Wen) ; a Tai-ping generalissimo, and the most dis-
tinguished leader of the latter years of the Rebellion, which
he joined as a private soldier, under compulsion. Executed
by the Imperialists on 7th August 1864.
LIST OF TAI-PING WANGS OR CHIEFS. XXVii

14. Yine Wane: the Heroic King; Chin Y-ching; also called
Sz-yan Kow, the Four-eyed Dog. Also a noted warrior.
Betrayed to the Imperialists, and executed at Showchun
early in 1862.

After these so many Wangs were made that the title lost its distinc-

tive value, but the following are the most prominent :—

15, Soe Wane: the Attendant King; Li Siu-shien. A relative
of the Faithful King. Escaped from Nanking just before its
fall ; entered Fukien, and, pursued by the Imperialists, dis-
appears from history at Yingting, on the Han River, in July
1865.

16. Tow Wane: the Yellow Tiger. Fought at Wuchu after the
fall of Nanking, and escaped into darkness.

17. Liza Wane: the Zealous King; Li Wan-tse. Executed at
Nanking in August 1864.

18. Hu Wane: the Protecting King; Chen Kuan-shu. Taken
at Chanchu fu, and beheaded in April 1864. Also called
“ Cockeye.”

19. Tso Wane; Huang Ho-chin. Killed in defence of Chanchu in
April 1864.

20. Mou Wane; Tan Show-kuang. Assassinated at Soochow by
the other Wangs in 1863.

21. Na Wane; Kow Yuen. Beheaded at Soochow.

22. Sine Wana; Che Wun-chai. Beheaded at Soochow. Another
“* Cockeye.”

23. Kone Wane; Wan Nan-tin. Beheaded at Soochow.

24, Pz Wane; Wo Que-won. Beheaded at Soochow.

25. Tat Wane; Sin-tin Min. Escaped at the taking of Soochow.

26. Coane Wane; an engineer officer. Commander of the Metro-

politan Force at Nanking. Spared by the Imperialists after
the taking of Soochow.

. K’ane Wane. An obscure chief who escaped with the rem-
nant of the Tai-pings into Fukien, and was there mistaken by
Foreigners for the Kan Wang or Shield King.

bo
1
LIST or LEADING EVENTS
B.C.

2356-2254,—The age of the Emperors Yaou and Shun, when pro-
bably the earliest chapters of the Shoo King or Historical
Classic were written.

2204.—Establishment of the Hea dynasty.

1621.—Commencement of the Chow dynasty, which lasted down to
B.c. 249,

551.—Birth of Confucius, who gave distinct shape to Chinese politi-
cal and social ideas, and also the period of Laou, the founder
of Taouism, or Chinese Rationalism.

240-184 s.p.—The first Empire, which comprehended all that part of
modern China which lies north of the Yang-tsze, and founded
by Che Hoang-te, the builder of the Great Wall, who at-

A.D. tempted to destroy all copies of the Classics.

166.—Alleged Roman Embassy to China.

184—260.—The period of the three states which struggled with each
other for supreme power, when the Chinese character reached
its highest martial development.

260.—The second Empire, founded by the Tsin dynasty.

416.—China again divided into a northern and a southern kingdom.

420.—Nanking made the capital.

585.—The northern and southern kingdoms united.

627.—Reign of the Emperor Tai-tsung, of the Tang dynasty, who
established the system of literary examinations, drew up the
Celestial Code, and extended his sway into India and to the
shores of the Caspian.

1260.—Peking made the capital.

1270.—Marco Polo visits Nanking and Soochow.

1281.—China conquered by Kubla Khan and the Mongol Tartars.

1368,—The expulsion of the Tartars and establishment of the Ming
dynasty.

1506.—European vessels first visit China.

1616—1644.—China conquered by the Manchu Tartars, and the Ta-
tsing, the reigning dynasty, established.

1637.—First English vessels visit China.

1684.—The East India Company establishes an agency at Canton.

1813.—Birth of Hung Sew-tsuen, the Tai-ping monarch.

1837.—His first trance and proclamation of himself as a heavenly prince.

1842.—The treaty of Nanking made between Great Britain and China.

1850.—Hung Sew-tsuen proclaims his temporal sovereignty.

1853.—He takes Nanking and makes it his capital.
LIST OF LEADING EVENTS. XXIX

A.D.
1856.—Murder of the Eastern King.
1858.—The Allies take the Taku forts, and obtain from the Emperor
the treaty of Tientsin.
1859.—The Imperialists nearly suppress the Rebellion, and defeat the
Allies at the Taku forts.
1860.—May.—The Tai-pings break out of Nanking, take Soochow, and
occupy the country towards Shanghai.
June.—Ward originates the “ Ever-Victorious Army.”
August.—The Tai-pings attack Shanghai and are repulsed by
the Allies.
September.—The Taku forts taken from the Imperialists by
the Allies, an event soon after followed by the advance on
Peking, the burning of the Summer Palace, and the con-
cluding of the Convention of Peking.

December.—Allies tell the Tai-ping monarch not to attack
Shanghai, and he leaves it unmolested for a year.
14],—Hostilities suspended on the part of the Allies towards both

Tai-pings and Imperialists.

August.—The Emperor Hien-fung dies.

September.—Prince Kung makes his coup @ état.

November. —Tai-ping attempts towards Hankow frus-
trated.

1862.—January.—Tai-pings again attack Shanghai, and are repulsed
by the Allies.

February.— Ward again takes the field.

Allies determine to drive the Tai-pings out of the thirty-
mile radius round Shanghai.

February-June.—The Allied forces co-operate with Ward
and the Imperialists.

May.—Captain Dew, R.N., drives back the Tai-pings from
Ningpo.

September.— Ward killed; Burgevine takes command of
the E.V.A.

1863.—January.—Burgevine dismissed, and Captain Holland, R.M.L.,

takes command of the E.V.A.

February.—Captain Holland defeated.

The province of Chekiang is in great part restored to the
Imperialists by the capture of Showshing.

March.—Colonel Gordon takes command of the E.V.A.

May.—Captures Quinsan.

August.—Burgevine joins the Tai-pings.
XXX LIST OF LEADING EVENTS.

A.D.

1863,—September.—Gordon invests Soochow. e
October.—Burgevine surrenders to Gordon.
November.—Gordon defeated before Soochow.
December.—Fall of Soochow.

Execution of the Wangs.
Gordon resigns command.
1864,—March.—Gordon resumes command and retakes the field.
Hangchow captured by the Imperialists.
Repulse of Gordon at Kintang.
May.—Chanchu fu captured.
June.—Suicide of Hung Sew-tsuen, the Tien Wang.
July 19,—Fall of Nanking.
August.—Execution of the Chung Wang.
Wuchu evacuated by the Tai-pings, who disappear from
the provinces of Kiangsoo and Chekiang.
Establishment of a camp at the Fung-wang Shan, near
Shanghai, for disciplining the Chinese troops.
1865.—April.—The remnants of the Tai-pings driven out of Chang-
chow, near Amoy.
May.—Sankolinsin killed by the Nien-fei.
Tseng Kwo-fan made Generalissimo of all the Imperial
Forces.
June.—Death of Burgevine.
July.—The Tai-pings finally disappear in the mountains between
the provinces of Quangtung, Fukien, and Kiangsi.
The Nien-fei give much trouble in the valley of the Yellow
River, and the Mohammedan rebels in Shensi.
Prince Kung made Inspector-General of all Military Camps,
as a counterpoise to Tseng Kwo-fan.

1866.—Defeats of the Nien-fei and Mohammedan rebels.

A Chinese Commissioner sent to Europe, and received by her
Majesty the Queen.

1867.—Improved state of China.

The Nien-fei again give trouble, and escape through the lines of
Governor-General Li, but are dispersed in the end of the year.

Discussions arise in connection with the coming revision of the
Treaty of Tientsin.

1868.—Li crushes the Nien-fei in Shantung, but some parties of them
escape and unite with the Mohammedan rebels in Chili, for
which Li is degraded at Peking, but he continues to pursue
the rebels and drives them before him.
LIST or ENGAGEMENTS setween toe TAI-PINGS anp
DISCIPLINED IMPERIALISTS, 1862-64.

A RAP

RAR ORO RAO © HOR RW AO A

N.B.—CHEKIANG PROVINCE.....
Kianasoo PROVINCE ...

. SUNGKIANG

QUANFULING

. Kasow

. Tsrpone

. WoNGKADZA

. SEKING

. TsrProo

. NAIZEAN

. Kapine

Nrnero

. SINGPOO

Nasow

CHOLIN

. KInsawal

Yuyvow
SINGPOO

TSEKI

FunewHa
KapiIne
Powoxona
SHANGYU
TAITsan
SHOWSHING
FusHAN

. TAITSAN
. QUINSAN

 

June 1860
Feb. 10, 1862

Feb, 21, 1862

Ward and 100 Foreigners.

Ward and his Force.

British and French Admirals and
Ward’s Force,

March 1, 1862 British and French Admirals and
Ward’s Force.

British and French Admirals and
General Staveley and Force; Ad-
miral Hope wounded.

British and French Naval Forces
and Ward’s Force.

General Staveley and Force, and Brit-

ish and French Naval Forces with
Ward’s Force.

General Staveley and Force,and Brit-

April 4, 1862
April 5, 1862

April 17, 1862

April 27, 1862 ish and French Naval Forces with
Ward’s Force.

General Staveley and Force, and Brit-
ish and French Naval Forces with
Ward’s Force.

Captain Dew and Encounter, &c. &c.

British and French Forces.

British and French Forces; French

May 1, 1862

May 10, 1862
May 13, 1862

May 17, 1862

Admiral Protet killed.
May 20, 1862 _ British and French Forces.
July 17, 1862 Ward’s Force.
Aug. 2, 1862 Captain Dew and Contingents.
Aug. 17, 1862 Ward’s Force.
Sept. 21, 1862 ae killed; Captain Dew and Con-
ingents,
Oct. 11, 1862 Captain Dew and Contingents.
Oct. 23, 1862 British and French Forces.
Nov. 13, 1862 Burgevine and Ward’s Force.
Nov. 27, 1862 Captain Dew and Conutingents.
Feb. 14, 1863 Defeat; Holland.

March 18, 1863 Captain Dew and Contingents.

April 4, 1863 Colonel Gordon and Chinese Troops.
May 2, 1863 Colonel Gordon and Chinese Troops.
May 31, 1863 Colonel Gordon and Chinese Troops.
XXX11

ORR R ARO

al alaici alc tatcic¥ al alalcl atctcl-tct <tatal i clatalalotalctalatclatal cl ata

KauHPoo
Woxkone
Kanpoo
FonecHIne
SEEDONG
Fouyane
Koneyin
PATACHIAO
PATACHTAO
Wokone
WULIUNGCHIAO
Wokone
LEEKU

WantTI
FusAIQWAN
Low mun Soocoow
Low mun SoocHow
Soochow
WUSIEH
PingHoo
CHaAPoo
HaAtyvuEN
KansHoo

. PIncwana

HaInine

YESING

Tasow KU

Liyane

KasHiIne FU
HanecHow
KINTANG
YECHANG

Waissoo

SEMEN

Watssoo
CHEWYUNG
StocKADES, WEST
Gate, CHANCHU FU
Trzin

KintTane
CHANCHU FU

CHANCHU FU

Tayan
CHANGCHING

. NANKING

Wucuu Fu

July 28, 1863
July 29, 1863
Aug. 4, 1863
Aug. 13, 1863
Aug. 15, 1863
Sept. 8, 1863
Sept. 17, 1863
Sept. 29, 1863
Oct. 1, 1863
Oct. 13, 1863
Oct. 23, 1863
Oct. 26, 1863
Nov. 1, 1863
Nov. 11, 1863
Nov. 19, 1863
Nov. 27, 1863
Nov. 29, 1863
Dec. 5, 1863
Dec. 13, 1863
Dec. 16, 1863
Dec. 20, 1863
Dec. 21, 1863
Jan. 7, 1864
Jan. 9, 1864
Jan. 25, 1864
March 1, 1864
March 3, 1864
March 9, 1864
March 20, 1864
March 21, 1864
March 21, 1864
March 21, 1864
March 31, 1864
April 7, 1864
April 11, 1864
April 20, 1864

April 23, 1864

April 25, 1864
April 25, 1864
April 27, 1864

May 11, 1864

May 13, 1864
July 4, 1864

July 19, 1864
Aug. 28, 1864

LIST OF ENGAGEMENTS.

Colonel Gordon and Chinese Troops.

Colonel Gordon apd Chinese Troops.

Colonel Gordon and Chinese Troops.

Macartney and Chinese Troops.

Macartney and Chinese Troops.

Franco-Chinese Troops.

Imperialists.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Repulse of Rebel attack.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Defeat; Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Surrenders.

Evacuated.

Surrenders.

Surrenders.

Surrenders.

Surrenders.

Imperialists.

Surrenders. :

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Colonel Gordon and Force.

Imperialists.

Franco-Chinese Troops.

Repulse; Colonel Gordon and Force.

Evacuated.

Defeat of Gordon’s Force.

Evacuated.

Capture of position; Gordon & Force.

Evacuated.

Captured ; Gordon’s Force and Im-
perialists.

Evacuated.

Evacuated.

Defeat of Gordon’s Force.

Captured ; Gordon’s Force and Im-
perialists.

Evacuated.

Evacuated. -

Captured ; Imperialists,

Evacuated.
PART I.

THE ORIGIN OF THE REBELLION
CHAPTER 1.
THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

RELATIONS BETWEEN THE PAST AND PRESENT OF CHINA — ANTI-
QUITY OF THE CHINESE NATION AND GOVERNMENT— THE DOC-
TRINE OF FILIAL PIETY—ADVANCEMENT OF ABLE MEN TO OFFI-
CIAL POSTS—-GEOGRAPHICAL ISOLATION OF CHINA—-THE CHINESE
LANGUAGE POLITICALLY CONSIDERED — THE DOCTRINE OF HAR-
MONY—A SUCCESSFUL IDEAL STATE—SYMMETRICAL ONENESS OF
THE CHINESE STATE—SAGES, WORTHIES, AND WORTHLESS—CHI-
NESE POLITICAL ACTION FOUNDED ON A CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLE—
THE HARMONY OF RELATIONSHIPS -— FEELING AGAINST THE EM-
PLOYMENT OF FORCE IN GOVERNMENT—RESPECT FOR AGE AND
LEARNING — EDUCATION UNIVERSAL IN CHINA — POSITION AND
TITLES OF THE EMPEROR—MUTUAL RESPONSIBILITY.

Tue fundamental principles of the Chinese State have
never yet been fully discussed, and present in them-
selves, as also in their historical development, a subject
of interest and importance. Without some attention
being given to these principles, the history of China
must be tolerably unintelligible to Europeans, and so
I enter on them briefly, as necessary to a right under-
standing of the events relating to both the rise and the
suppression of the T'ai-ping Rebellion. .
It would appear very absurd to attempt to explain a
modern English political movement by a reference to
Jack Cade or the Wars of the Roses, and a French
4 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

revolution would not receive much elucidation from @
history of the Carlovingian kings; but the early past
of China has, for many centuries, been so closely linked
to its present, that the half-fabulous Emperors, Yaou,
Shun, and the Great Yu, who lived about four thousand
years ago, are more really rulers of that country to-day
than are its living Manchu sovereigns. Confucius, “the
Master,” “ the Throneless King,” “the Instructor of ten
thousand generations,” who possessed the most powerful
mind that has appeared in the Far East for thirty cen-
turies, and who is regarded by the Chinese with religious
veneration, repeatedly disclaimed being more than a trans-
mitter of moral, social, and political truth.* “I am not
one,” he said, “ who was born in the possession of know-
ledge; I am only fond of antiquity, and earnest in
seeking wisdom there. I do not make, but transmit,
believing in and loving the ancients.” One emperor of
great note, Che Hoang-te, a sort of Chinese Napoleon,
and builder of the Great Wall, made a most vigorous
attempt to cut out this reverence for antiquity. He
sought to destroy all records written previous to his
reign ; and, in order to accomplish this end, put nearly
five hundred men of letters to death; but his efforts
eventually proved futile. To this day the Chinese State
is based upon an inseparable union of political, social,
moral, and religious ideas, which existed in a period
anterior to the birth of Abraham.

The history of the human race presents no similar
phenomenon to this of China, preserving its national
unity and its virtual independence for four thousand
years, without any serious change in its ruling ideas, in
its social civilisation, or in its theory of government.

= See his ‘Analects,’ Book vii. throughout, in Legge’s edition and trans-
lation of the Chinese Classics. Hong-Kong, 1865.
ANTIQUITY OF THE CHINESE STATE. 5

Very many of its dynasties have been violently over-
thrown, and its external forms of government have
slightly varied from age to age; but the principles of
its social and political organisation have remained un-
changed, despite the most violent attacks upon them both
from within and from without. Mongul and Manchu
Tartars have effected nominal conquests of the Middle
Kingdom, only to adopt its ideas, manners, and institu-
tions, to be absorbed into the mass of “the Black-haired
People,” * or, when remaining distinct, to sink into de-
spised feebleness. Elsewhere over Asia and Europe, great
empires—Assyrian, Eeyptian, Persian, Grecian, Roman,
Arabian, and Teutonic—have risen in splendour, holding
sway over vast portions of the earth, only to perish in
their glory, and sometimes leave nothing but their name
behind ; while China has steadily pursued its quiet way,
enlarging its boundaries and consolidating its unity from
above twenty centuries before the Christian era to this
year of grace. Nations innumerable have risen and dis-
appeared since the Chinese first presented themselves
with most of the marked national characteristics which
they possess at the present day. How many pantheons
of deities have been overthrown since Pwan-ku was
represented chiselling out earth and heaven! How many
languages have found no tongues to utter them since the
Chinese monosyllables now used in the British colony of
Hong-Kong were first heard ringing on the banks of the
Yellow River! How many characters have men in-
vented to represent their speech since the Chinese pro-
duced their system of writing! The more the antiquity
and continuousness of this isolated civilisation of the
Middle Kingdom is considered, the more interesting does

* The Chinese called themselves by this name in the earliest historical
times, having probably displaced tribes of lighter hair,
6 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

it appear, and the more forcibly does it suggest the idea,
that in thus preserving a people from the e@ftliest times,
and providing for their independent development, Provi-
dence has had in view some great purpose which, as yet,
we can only dimly see.

“By a long road,” says a Celestial proverb, “we know
a horse’s strength; so length of days shows a man’s
heart.” Judged in that way, Chinese nationality has an
overpowering claim to respect, and its most intelligent
students have thought much and deeply over the causes
of its extraordinary longevity. Sir George Staunton
(Preface to his translation of the Penal Code) and the
earlier Jesuit missionaries attributed the long duration
and stability of the Chinese empire to the influence of
the doctrine of filial piety and parental authority, as
inculcated by its sages, and universally accepted by the
people. Mr Meadows, in his ‘Desultory Notes,’ asserts
that “the long duration of the Chinese is solely and
altogether owing to the operation of a principle which
the policy of every successive dynasty has practically
maintained in a greater or lesser degree, viz., that good
government consists in the advancement of men of
talents and merits only to the rank and power conferred
by official posts ; ’—a principle which makes able dema-
gogues rare, by opening a satisfactory path to every
man of real talent. Mr R. H. Patterson, in his able
essay “on the National Life of China,” * lays stress on
the geographical isolation of the empire, bounded as it
is on the north by vast herbless and wind-swept deserts,
on the west by lofty mountain-chains, and on the south
and east by a tempestuous sea. To these causes, which
must all be admitted as effective, there may be added,
on the same level, the peculiar nature of the Chinese-

* ‘Essays in History and Art.’
CAUSES OF THE NATIONAL LONGEVITY. ' 7

written language, which has served as a very powerful
bond of union. The characters of that script represent
not sounds, but things and ideas, in the widest sense of
the term, and consequently it has stood in great part
superior to, and unaffected by, the fluctuations of sound
and dialect. Thus, the speech and thought of the
Chinese have been kept within certain rigid limits, all
the local streams of divergence being turned back, as it
were, into the fountain from whence they issued. Over
the spoken language, with its frequent changes and cor-
ruptions, the written language has stood supreme; so
that while a native of Shantung may be unable to
understand the spoken words of a Cantonese, they use
identical characters in expressing the same meaning. If
the Latin races had a single character, like the Chinese
for yen, to denote Man, then whether pronounced Homo
in Latin, Uémo in Italian, Hombre in Spanish, Homem
in Portuguese, or Homme in French, the written word
would be the same everywhere among them, and its
being so would have a tendency to check diversity of
pronunciation, especially among the educated classes.
Out of the written language thus universal among these
races, there would arise a certain common standard for
expressions, both in speech and writing, which would
involve or evolve a certain unity, otherwise unattainable,
of thought and feeling, that would have an immense
influence in sustaining a common nationality.

But it seems to me there has been a deeper influence
at work in preserving Chinese nationality than the doc-
trine of filial piety, the principle of choosing able men
for official posts, or the character of the language, and
one which underlies all these secondary causes. Dr
Williams correctly states that the ‘Shoo King, or Hisr
torical Classic, “ contains the seeds of all things that are
8 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

valuable in the estimation of the Chinese,” and that “it
is at once the foundation of their political“system, their
history, and their religious rites—the basis of their tac-
tics, music, and astronomy.” On examining that frag-
mentary but most ancient work in the light thrown upon
it by the reported conversations of Confucius, and by
the general practice of the Chinese in all the relations of
life, there appear indications of a great and most preg-
nant generalisation or first principle, beyond which the
mind of the Celestials has never ventured to pass, and
from which arise their whole system of ideas, their social
and their political organisation. It is difficult briefly to
express this first principle, though it makes itself con-
stantly felt ; but I may roughly describe it as the asser-
tion of a Divine Harmony in the universe, which affects
all existing objects, and to which the souls of men are
naturally attuned. specially in the ‘Shoo King,’ but
through all the Classics, and in every Chinaman’s prin-
ciples of action, harmony is the fundamental and ruling
idea. Of the Emperor Yaou, we are told in the ‘ His-
torical Classic, * that “having become harmonious, he
equalised and illumined the people of his domain.” The
Emperor Shun was chosen for high office, because he had
been able “ to harmonise” his father, his mother, and his
brother, all stupid, bad relatives. The Great Yu was
made Prime Minister, because he had “ already equalised
the land and water.” When the empire is in disorder,
it is said that “the people are not harmonious.” When
Yu advises Shun how to act, he says, “ Let the elements
of water, fire, metal, wood, and earth, with grain, be well
regulated ; adjust the domestic virtues ; increase useful
comniodities, promote human existence, and cause har-
mony to prevail. Let these nine affairs be well adjusted ;

* Medhurst’s edition and translation. Shanghae, 1846,

 
THE DOCTRINE OF HARMONY. 9

and, being adjusted, let them be set to music.” “The
announcement of Thang” was, “Heaven has commis-
sioned me, a single individual, to harmonise and pacify
all you states and families.” Of the monarch T’hai-kea,
we read that “ Heaven noticed his virtues, and made use
of him to sustain the great decree, and soothe and tran-
quillise the myriad states.” The intelligent prince is
described as one who “ harmonises with his inferiors ;”
but we are expressly told that “he is only a substitute
(or medium): it is Heaven that works.” So also in the
‘Chung Yung, or Doctrine of the Mean, a profound
work attributed to the grandson of Chung-ne or Confu-
cius, it is said of the great sage that “above, he har-
monised with the times of heaven, and below, he was
conformed to the water and the land.” Even in the
physico-theological ideas of the ‘ Yih King,’ or Book of
Changes, perhaps the most venerated of all the Classics,
the Yin and the Yang, the male and female elements of
creation, are considered as made in harmony, as worked
on by harmonious powers, as acting harmoniously, and
as moving man in the same manner when no disturbing
causes interfere.

This idea of harmony underlies all the thought and
institutions of the Chinese. Dimly it may be, yet most
potentially they have

“ A sense sublime
Of something far more deeply interfused,
Whose dwelling is the light of setting suns,
And the round ocean, and the living air,
And the blue sky, and in the mind of man,
A motion and a spirit that impels
All thinking things, all objects of all thought,
And rolls through all things.”

With this Divine spirit or arrangement the Sages are
in perfect accord ; the Worthies seek, with ever-increas-
ing success, to understand its dictates; and only the
10 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

Worthless stand in punished opposition to it. This is
the Tien, or “ Heaven,” of Confucius, th® Shang-te, or
Deity, of the older writings. Being understood only by
the Sage, it is his sacred, peculiar, and inalienable privi-
lege to be the interpreter between Heaven and earth,
Heaven and mankind. Perfectly in accord with the
Divine idea, and illumined by its light, he alone knows
infallibly how its harmony may manifest itself in all the
affairs of human life—in the relations of prince and sub-
ject, of father and son, of husband and wife, of brother
and brother, of friend and friend. Consequently he, and —
he alone, has a right to govern mankind. As the repre-
sentative of Heaven, or the Supreme Emperor, he is by
Divine right Emperor of the Great Flowery Land, of the
Black-haired People, and not of these alone, but of all
the nations of earth who sincerely desire to follow the
ways of Heaven. And as he is Heaven to his people,
so, when the Divine harmony prevails, his viceroys are
Heaven to their provinces, and each father in his wide
domains is Heaven to his own family. As the ‘ Doctrine
of the Mean’ has it, “ All-embracing and vast, he is like
Heaven. Deep and active as a fountain, he is like the
‘abyss. He is seen, and the people all reverence him ; he
speaks, and the people all believe him ; he acts, and the
people all are pleased with him, Therefore his fame
overspreads the Middle Kingdom, and extends to all
barbarous tribes. Wherever ships and carriages work ;
wherever the strength of man penetrates ; wherever the
heavens overshadow, and the earth sustains ; wherever
the sun and moon shine; wherever frost and dews fall,
—all who have blood and breath unfeignedly honour and
love him. He is the equal of Heaven.”
Rémusat, W. H. Medhurst, and other scholars by no
means inclined to exaggerate in such matters, conclude
A SUCCESSFUL IDEAL STATE. II

that a portion of the ‘Historical Classic’ was written 4000
years ago ; and, curiously enough, this view is supported
by an incidental reference in the commencement of the
work itself to the culminating of certain stars on the
evenings of the solstices and equinoxes. It is passing
strange to find thus, that in almost the earliest dawn of
time there were laid the foundations of an ideal State, so
similar in its principles, though not in all its details, to
that which Plato shadowed out in his ‘ Republic,’ to that
which Fichte deduced in his ‘ Geschlossene Handelstaat,’
and to that which, less scientifically, Mr Carlyle has
made the burden of his message to his age and country.
The wonder increases when we observe that the early
Chinese sages have actually succeeded in establishing
their State so that, however it may have fallen short in
practice, yet has it always aspired towards, and theoreti-
cally been guided by, the ideas on which it was founded.
And lastly—most astounding fact of all—we find that
the State thus originated, instead of dissolving like a
dream, exists after the lapse, and despite the vicissitudes,
of forty centuries ; has extended its boundaries over the
most fertile region of Asia, and holds powerful sway
over an energetic and myriad-numbered race, which, far
beyond its own boundaries—in India, in Tartary, in
Malaya, in Australia, in California, and even in the
Atlantic-washed West India Islands—is competing not
unsuccessfully with the labour of other nations, without
losing its own ancient ideas and characteristics.

In the ‘Doctrine of the Mean’ it is laid down:
“While there are no stirrings of pleasure, anger, sorrow,
or joy, the mind may be said to be ina state of equi-
librium. When those feelings have been stirred, and
they act in their due degree, there ensues what may be
called the state of harmony. This equilibrium is the
12 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

great root, and this harmony is the universal path. Let
the states of equilibrium and harmony €xist in perfec-
tion, and a happy order will prevail throughout. heaven
and earth, and all things will be nourished and flourish.”
Now, not being sages, it cannot be expected that we
should enter into the essential nature of this harmony,
which bears a relation to equilibrium somewhat like that
of the being-in-action of the Buddhists to their being-in-
rest, and which reminds one of Plato’s intelligible ideas,
and of that passage in the ‘Timzeus’ where he says: eds
ov Tw Oy TOTe TepuKdTa TadTAa TPATOV SiecynuatioaTo
eldeou TE Kal apiOwous—* Thus, in their first origin, God
certainly formed these things after ideas and numbers ;”
but it is open to us to note the particular forms in
which this idea of harmony is envisaged, and has been
embodied in institutions. The doctrines held by the
Chinese in regard to parental authority, and the choos-
ing of only able men as rulers, are only subdivisions of
the great idea of harmonious unity which possesses their
minds. Their notion is, that in all relationships, in all
combined action, however opposing the forces are, there
should be a symmetrical oneness. They regard all ex-
istence in its normal condition, from the lowest to the
highest, as moving sphere within sphere. Among no
other people have organisation and centralisation been
carried out to such an extent; but it must be specially
noticed that their idea is that of an organic unity, of an
organisation where the lower naturally and willingly
submits to and unites with the higher, not of an ex-
ternal and apparent unity produced chiefly by force.
Hence they are really a very democratic people. In
order to understand both the strength and the weakness»
of Chinese civilisation, it is essential to bear in mind
that their idea of harmony manifests itself as regards
. THE HARMONY OF RELATIONSHIPS. 13

mankind, as well as in reference to everything else, in
the sub-idea of a vital organic unity, to which men
incline naturally, most usually, and for the most part.
This is the means by which the Celestials have solved,
in so far as they have done so, the problem of reconcil-
ing individual freedom with general interests, and local
with imperial government. It is an utter mistake to
suppose that, either in theory or practice, the Emperor,
or any of his subordinates, have much liberty of enforc-
ing their decrees. Confucius and all the sages of China
are at one with Plato when he said, Kakds pev éxav
ovdeis —“ No one does evil willingly”—though they
entirely shirked the question as to how evil exists at
all; and, consequently, they held that, usually at least,
good government would in itself secure willing obedi-
ence from the people. I have already noticed what the
‘ Historical Classic’ says about a prince being able to
harmonise with his inferiors. In the ‘Great Learning’
a perfect ruler is thus described: “ Profound was King
Wan. With how bright and unceasing a feeling of
reverence did he regard his resting-places! As a sov-
ereign, he rested in benevolence. As a minister, he
rested in reverence. As a son, he rested in filial piety.
As a father, he rested in kindness. In communication
with his subjects, he rested in good faith.” So in the
third part of “The Great Oath,” in the ‘Historical
Classic, a proverb more ancient than the book itself is
quoted: “He who soothes me is my prince; he who
oppresses me is my foe, the abandoned of heaven and
men!” In the same work, in “The Announcement to
K’hang,” the crime of a father failing “to soothe (or
harmonise) his son,” is coupled with that of a son who
does not “respectfully subject himself to his father ;”
and that of an elder brother becoming unfriendly to a
14 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

younger, with a younger being “unmindful of Heaven's
clearly-displayed relationships.” A familiar proverb in.
China runs: “The Emperor offending the laws is the
game crime as the people doing so;” and it would be
easy to quote innumerable passages from the Classics,
and from the decrees of the Government itself, illus-
trating the great Chinese doctrine, that the harmony of
all relationships is to be found in an adaptation of the
higher existence to the lower, as well as in submission
of the lower to the higher.
As the mystic doctrine of Harmony—fit only for
Sages to discuss—becomes more definite in that of vital
unity, which the Worthies may perhaps appreciate, so
the latter ought to be understood and obtemperated
even by the Worthless, as it manifests itself in the five
relationships—of ruler to ruled, of father to son, of
husband to wife, of brother to brother, and of friend to
friend. On the one side the ruler must act with benevo-
lence and in good faith; while on the other, the people
must exercise reliance and submission; and it is held,
so great is the confidence of the Chinese in the goodness -
of human nature, that if either act fitly, the other will
act fitly also. When Ke K’ang asked Confucius about
inflicting capital punishment, the Master replied (Ana-
lects, xii. 19): “In carrying on your government, why
should you use putting to death at all? Let your
desires be for what is good, and the people will be
good.” In book ii. 2, 3, he expressly deprecates the
notion of upholding government by force, saying, “If
the people be led by laws, and uniformity sought to be
given them by punishments, they will try to avoid the
punishment, but will have no sense of shame. If they
be led by virtue, and it is sought to harmonise them by
the rules of propriety, they will have a sense of shame,
CHINESE DEPENDENCE ON MORAL FORCE. 15

and moreover will become good.” In the ‘Great Learn-
ing, the commentator (ch. x.) thus answers what is
meant by making the empire peaceful and happy
through government: “When the sovereign behaves
to his aged as the aged should be behaved to, the people
become filial; when the sovereign behaves to his elders
as elders should be behaved to, the people learn bro-
therly submission; when the sovereign treats compas-
sionately the young and helpless, the people do the same.
Thus, the ruler has a principle with which, as with a mea-
suring square, he may regulate his conduct. . .. . The
ruler will first take paims about his own virtue. Pos-
sessing virtue will give him the people. Possessing the
people will give him the territory. Possessing the terri-
tory will give him its wealth. Possessing the wealth, he
will have resources for expenditure. Virtue is the root ;
wealth is the result. If he make the root his secondary
object, and the result his primary, he will only wrangle
with his people, and teach them rapine.” So likewise in
family relationships, moral influence is regarded as the
appropriate ruling power. Of the great Emperor Shun,
we read in the ‘Shoo King, that he was elevated from
the position of a husbandman because “he went forth
into the fields, and daily cried and wept to the soothing
heavens on account of his father and mother: he bore
the blame, and drew upon himself the reproach ; while
he was respectful in business, and waited on his sire
Kow-Sow, penetrated with veneration and awe, until
Kow also sincerely conformed to virtue.” And it is re-
commended that this almost Christian principle should
be acted upon with regard to the rebellious people of
Meaou.* Similar admiration is given by the Chinese to
a father for harmonising his children by moral suasion,

* The Meaoutsze or aborigines of China.
16 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

though children regardless of filial piety might perhaps
be regarded as more blameworthy than fathers neglect-
ing their parental duties. In the celebrated “Sacred
Edict” of the Emperor Kang-he, the second maxim is,
“Respect kindred, in order to display the excellence of
harmony.” It is a mistake to suppose, as many Euro-
pean writers have done, that the idea of paternal autho-
rity is that on which the Chinese State has been based.
The conceptions of a certain complete harmony for all
relationships, and of a graduation of authority from
Heaven downwards, have determined their views, in re-
gard both to fatherhood and to the government, to such
an extent that their peculiar institutions might have
sprung up had the black-haired race, by some mysterious
means, been brought into existence without the aid of
parents at all.

There is some difficulty in determining how far, accord-
ing to the Chinese system, the employment of force is
lawful and expedient in preserving the due medium of
relationships. Heaven is never spoken of as vindictive,
seldom even as moved to anger, but it is considered
capable of terrible punitive judgment; and this prero-
gative, somewhat inconsistently with passages I have
quoted, is spoken of as shared by its representatives, the
heavenly-appointed rulers of mankind. Against unjust
rulers Heaven becomes incensed, decrees their ruin, and
sends down calamities on the people as a mark of its
displeasure. ven so early as in the “ Military Comple-
tion,” in the ‘Shoo King,’ we read of “ Heaven’s exter-
minating decree” against an offending prince being de-
livered to “an insignificant one.” Up to this hour the
Imperial edicts conclude with the admonition, “trem-
blingly obey ;” and it is sufficiently obvious that, con-
stituted as men are, even among so easily-governed a
RESPECT FOR AGE AND LEARNING. 17

race as the Chinese, authority could not be sustained,
and order preserved, without a very considerable use of
punishment and military force. Roughly speaking, pro-
per relationship is sometimes so far departed from that
punishment becomes a duty ; and it is worthy of note
that, according to Celestial ideas, the great sign of inca-
pacity or wickedness in a ruler is great calamities be-
falling the people. Heaven is then displeased beyond
endurance, and all the people are in expectation that
some one will arise to put in execution the exterminat-
ing decree. Hence in all Chinese political movements
the declarations of both sides that they are divinely com-
missioned, and their frequent references to examples of
the past.

To the further understanding of the system of the
Chinese, it is well to note their respect for learning, their
respect for age, and the universal diffusion of education
among them. In the ‘Great Learning’ (text iv.) Con-
fucius expresses the convictions of almost every China-
man when he says, “ The ancients who wished to illus-
trate illustrious virtue throughout the empire, first
ordered well their own states. Wishing to order well
their states, they first regulated their families. Wishing
to regulate their families, they first cultivated their per-
sons. Wishing to cultivate their persons, they first rec-
tified their hearts. Wishing to rectify their hearts, they
first sought to be sincere in their thoughts. Wishing to
be sincere in their thoughts, they first extended to the
utmost their knowledge.” It is this relation between
learning and harmony, between knowledge and the sage,
that has afforded the principle of competitive examina-
tion on which governmental officers are chosen, and which
has opened up the way to the very highest offices for the
' son of any Chinese peasant or coolie. Apart also from
B
18 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

filial piety, this reverence for wisdom has afforded the
principle of reverence for old age ; for, with their confi-
dence in the goodness of human nature, the Celestials
cannot but regard the older man, with all his past studies
and experiences, as superior to the younger, and specially
deserving of veneration. The Throneless King (Con-
fucius) himself said (Analects, ii. 4): “At fifteen; I had
my mind bent on learning. At thirty, I stood firm. At
forty, I had no doubts. At fifty, I knew the decrees of
Heaven. At sixty, my ear was an obedient organ. At
seventy, I could follow what my heart desired without
transgressing what was right.” This respect for learning
and for age is fostered among the Black-haired People
by their system of education. It is expressly asserted
in the Classics that a knowledge of the doctrine of the
due medium may be obtained even by common persons
busily occupied in the affairs of life, if their hearts are
only right ; and it is obvious that a very considerable
portion of the sacred writings may be understood and
appreciated by persons whose minds are not very highly
developed, and who have not devoted the time to study
which would be required to gain what is considered a
good education in European countries. “Among the
countless millions that constitute the empire,” says Sir
John Davis, “almost every man can read and write
sufficiently for the ordinary purposes of life, and a re-
spectable share of these acquirements goes low down in
the scale of society.” And it must be observed that this
education is not devoted to inflating the mind with false
accounts of contemporary events, with falsifications of
history, appeals to class-prejudices, and galvanic attempts
at sharpness, such as constitute the intellectual pabulum
offered by their newspapers to the labouring classes of
America, but to the laws and other institutions of the
POSITION OF THE EMPEROR, 19

country, the principles on which these laws are based,
and to great moral and social truths, having an imme-
diate bearing on practice, and expressed in a beautiful
simple way, in sentences of which the mind cannot
easily get rid. Hence the ordinary Chinaman takes an
interest in the theory, as well as in the practice, of his
government; and all the officials of the empire feel them-
selves in face of an intelligent, and sometimes exceedingly
intelligent, public opinion, which they dare not disregard
in the absence of a priesthood and of a standing army of
any size or value. It is also obvious that this power of
the people, this general information existing among them
—their respect for learning, their reverence for sages,
and their belief that knowledge affords a key to the har-
mony of relationships—are the real supports of the prin-
ciple of choosing only able men for office, to which Mr
Meadows attaches so much importance.

Also proceeding from their ideas in regard to harmony,
we have next the Chinese ideas and practice in regard
to gradations of rank, mutual responsibility, and mu-
tual surveillance. The Emperor, representing Heaven,
is Tien Tsz’, Son of Heaven; Kwa Jen, the Solitary
Man; Chin, Ourself; Hwang Te, August Sovereign ;
Hwang Shang, August Loftiness; Tieng Hwang, Celes-
tial August One; Shing Te, Sacred Sovereign; and
Wan Sui Ye, Father of Ten Thousand Years. But this
is in virtue, not of his office, but only of the manner in
which he fulfils that office. So far from his being of
necessity pater atque princeps, Mencius boldly says :*
“The people are the most important element in a nation;
the spirits of the land or grain are the next ; the sove-
reign is the least.” Elsewhere he quotes approvingly

* Book IL. part ii. chap. xiv. in the second volume of Legge’s edition of
the Chinese Classics.
20 THE PRINCIPLES OF THE CHINESE STATE.

the words of the Great Declaration in the ‘Shoo King’
—“ Heaven sees according as my people*see ; Heaven
hears according as my people hear.” In the ‘Histori-
cal Classic, T’hang exclaims in his “ Announcement,”
“Should any of you myriad states transgress, let the
blame rest on me, a single individual; but should I,
a single individual, offend, let it not involve you, the
multitude of states.” In the “Announcement at Lo,” it
is said that “the people come to meet a well-balanced
government.” Confucius, who was very fond of incul-
cating subordination, counterbalanced his advice by his
repeated assertion that good government requires no
force for its support; and, as Dr Legge says, “he
allowed no jus divinwm independent of personal virtue
and a benevolent rule.” When asked (Analects, B. xii.
8) whether sufficiency of military equipment, sufficiency
of food, or the confidence of the people, was most neces-
sary to sustaining a government, he selected the last as
most essential, and he declared that the government of a
personally correct prince would be effective without the
prince issuing orders. Thus the Emperor is properly not
so much an absolute ruler as the embodier, recorder, and
declarer of the wants and legitimate wishes of his people.

And the whole machinery of government may be
viewed not so much as a means for carrying out the
Emperor’s will, as an organisation by which the wants
of the people may be met, and those of their designs
which require the exercise of supreme authority be placed
in Imperial hands. It is quite true that China, as a
nation, may be compared to a vast army under one
generalissimo, the Son of Heaven, and that this army is
elaborately divided into corps, regiments, and companies
paying, or called on to pay, implicit obedience to their
immediate leaders ; but it is still more necessary to look
MUTUAL RESPONSIBILITY. 2I

at the matter in a reverse light, and to consider each
leader as only such in so far as he represents the natural
action of those over whom he is placed. Hence a pecu-
liarity in Chinese government which has frequently been
alluded to without being properly understood. Each
family, clan, village, district, department, and province,
is expected to harmonise itself; and, strictly speaking,
it is no part of the business of supreme authority to in-
terfere, unless when called upon by the parties them-
selves, with the affairs of minor circles. If quarrels or
crimes arise in a family, then the head of the family
must settle these, or take the consequences, and to that
end he has very great’ power committed to him. If a
village is at war with itself, the head men have power to
settle the dispute, and have practically almost unlimited
power of punishing. So in the district, the department,
the province. Lach circle being called upon to harmon-
ise itself, has immense power committed to it for that
end, and must take equal responsibility. Hence the
rationale, if not the rationality, of the Chinese system of
punishing a parent for the sins of his children, and of
holding a village or_a district responsible for the crimes
of its individual members. The whole arrangements of
the nation, public as well as private, are based on a sys-
tem of mutual responsibility, which of course involves
a system of mutual surveillance. Even the Emperor,
though nominally supreme, stands in awe of the Censor-
ate, and of a popular revolution ; the Futai, or governor
of a province, has to stand well with his subjects, as well
as at Peking; and the Magistrate of a district is nothing
more than the recorder and executor of sentences passed
by local juries.
CHAPTER I,

PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

EASTERN REVERENCE FOR ANTIQUITY—THE ASIATIC HEBREW—THE
INDO-ARYAN—CHINESE IDEAL OF HAPPY LIFE—CHINESE REBEL-
LIONS AND REVOLUTIONS — THE BALANCE OF POWER — MONGOL
AND MANCHU CONQUESTS—SECRET SOCIETIES—THE OPIUM WAR,
AND INCREASING DISORGANISATION OF CHINA.

OF course the Chinese State has fallen very far short of
the theory on which it was founded; but I have indi-
cated that theory, which hitherto has been overlooked by
European scholars, because some comprehension of it is
absolutely necessary to a proper understanding of Chinese
rebellions and revolutions. Every people has certain tra-
ditionary and religious ideas, sustained by spirit-stirring
stories, which underlie its institutions, and limit the work-
ing of the national mind, however despised by individuals,
and imperfectly conformed to in the national life. De-
spite our modern disregard of tradition, and even amid
the innumerable influences affecting modern civilisation,
each nation of Europe, of any strength, moves within a
charmed circle of its own ; and an instinctive feeling of
the limits of that circle is necessary to the great states-
man, even to the great warrior. But when religious,
social, and political ideas are inextricably interwoven,
springing from one common root, as in the case of the
EASTERN REVERENCE FOR ANTIQUITY. 23

Chinese, and when, moreover, these are hallowed by the
history of at least four thousand years, it may easily be
believed that the influence they exercise has become
sacred, and is something quite beyond the experience
of younger and occidental nations. Races may remain
unchanged, or nearly so; the Copt and the Negro may
present the same features which they had when their
effigies were sculptured on the ancient tombs of Egypt ;
but of all the nations which surrounded the Chinese in
the dim morning of history, not one other remains to
tell the story of its birth. The Hebrew race alone
preserves many of its ancient institutions, as well as its
ancient features, but its chosen place of abode knows it
no more, and its nationality was destroyed centuries
ago, while the Chinese still hold by their own ways in.
their Great Flowery Land, as they did before the
Hebrews issued from the loins of Abraham. Con-
sequently, the old ideas on which their State was
founded, their ancient institutions, and the history of
their ancient emperors and sages, still exercise upon
them a most vital influence.

We require to go to the Hast in order to find races that
regard their past in a manner which largely affects their
present. What to the modern Greek is the tale of Troy?
or to the Roman the story of Latium? ‘Thor and Odin
exercise no influence in Scandinavia, nor the Nibelun-
gen heroes in Germanic Europe; and even the Pilgrim
Fathers are forgotten in New England. But with the
immobile races of the East, matters in this respect are
entirely different. The mind of the Oriental Hebrew is
still possessed by visions of his earliest forefathers wend-
ing in grey antiquity from the slopes of Ararat, holding
special communion with Jehovah, forming a chosen people,
led through the terrible wilderness by pillars of smoke
24 PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

and fire, destined to rule the earth, and receiving amid
the thunders of Sinai a sacred, moral, affd ceremonial
law of which no clause must pass away. Even at the
present hour the Indo-Aryan, as he watches the red flush
of morning, or sits under the palm and banian, is really
dwelling in an antique ideal world of the most extraor-
dinary kind. Accepting for his practical life, with im-
plicit submission, the laws of Manu, and the most rigid
ancient caste arrangements, his ineffable yearning for
eternity and for reabsorption into deity leads him to shut
his eyes on the glories of nature in India, and on all this
world of outward seeming, as merely evil illusions ob-
securing eternal light. Aided by mystic rites and ancient
hymns, he looks entranced into a vague world, at first
without sky above or firmament beneath, but filled with
a shoreless dazzling light of power and love, which is
soon darkened by the vast shadowy forms of Varuna,
and Indra, and Agni, and all the mighty gods. Ushas,
the beautiful dawn, passes over the horizon ; Vishnu, the
preserving light, strides thrice through the universe, and
the Maruts or winds sweep over; but the evil form of
Shiva the destroyer appears upon the scene. Gods play
with milkmaids; Rama the divine hero makes war on
minor evil spirits and hideous giants ; and long lines of
fabulous kings enter into the vision. In the confusion
which follows, the natural and supernatural, the grotesque
and the sublime, become inextricably blended. The ashy
devotee sitting at the roadside may be a demon, or Vishnu
himself, or the Lord of Devas; but, with all its modern
touches, it is the world of ancient India in which the
modern Hindu daily dwells, and for him, having turned
away his wearied eyes

From earth’s dull scene, Time’s weary round,
To realms eternal—heavenly ground— ~
THE CHINESE IDEAL OF LIFE. 25

Blue Krishna frolics o’er the plain,
Varuna skims the purple main,

Gay Indra spans the crystal air,

And Shiva braideth Durga’s hair,
Where golden Meru rises high

His front to fan the sapphire sky.
And nightly in his blissful dreams

He sits by Ganga’s holy streams,
Where Swarga’s gate wide open lies,
And Narga’s smoke pollutes the skies.”

Even more, perhaps, than the Hindu, the Chinaman
dwells in a peculiar ideal world of his own, but it is
one much less fanciful, much more definite, much more
credible, and much more historical. Still it is an ideal
world beyond which he can rarely pass, which constantly
occupies his thoughts, and conditions his actions. Every
one who has dwelt much among the Chinese, as I have
done, and especially in their villages, will bear me out in
saying that there is common to them all a certain simple
ideal of life which they regard as constituting the highest
human happiness, which they claim as their right, which
they hold usually existed from the earliest times, and
which is intimately connected with the doctrines of their
sages, and with their historical beliefs. Unlike the
Hindu, the Chinaman lives in an ordered and some-
what prosaic ideal world. He beholds, indeed, against
his Turanian historical dawn the gigantic figures of Yaou
and Shun, and the great Yu overshadowing the long val-
ley of centuries ; and the great sages, such as Confucius
and Mencius, correcting the errors of their times, and
dropping words of invaluable wisdom ; but though all
these are grand to him, they are so not so much in them-
selves as in their useful relationship to the knowable and
the attainable—to the great primary wants of his race,
The determination of the seasons, the building embank-
ments against devastating floods, or the harmonising of
26 PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

land and water, the overthrowing of unjust kings, wise,
kind action in family relationships, and tle expression of
moral doctrines in an intelligible, impressive way—these
are the claims to reverence of the heroes of the Chinese
Pantheon. The (miscalled) Celestial is a narrow-minded,
but exceedingly practical, sort of being. He wants an
ordered world, but one ordered only in a certain kind of
way. Before his rapt celestial vision lie the fruitful
plains of the Great Flowery Land, lively and bright
with the normal life of China, guarded on the north
by snowy deserts, which are happily far away from him,
and on the south by stormy seas, with great winds and
waves, which he does not tempt. His ideal is a happy
family life, with age benignant, youth reverential, three
or four generations living contentedly under the same
roof; the fish-pond in front well stocked; grain abun-
dant ; tea fragrant; the village harmonised ; the school
well taught ; the young Confucius of the family prepar-
ing for competitive examinations ; the ancestral tablets
going far back, and recording honoured names ; the an-
cestral hall well gilded, and a fit meeting-place for the
wise elders ; the spirits of deceased ancestors comforted
with offerings and loving remembrances, not left to wan-
der friendless in the air; the holidays cheerful, with
bright silks and abundance of savoury dishes ; the Em-
peror benevolent ; the people obedient ; Foreign Devils
far away or reverential ; evil appearing only in the forms
of impossible demons, and hideous wicked emperors,
painted on the walls of his house as a warning to foolish
youth ; no change in old customs to perplex the mind;
the sacred books reverentially read and remembered ;
the present definitely arranged ; the fruitage of the past
stored ; behind, sages and emperors; around, happy
families; beyond, a darkness with which he little con-
CHINESE REBELLIONS. 27

cerns himself, but into which his spirit may occasionally
float a short way on some Buddhist or Tauist idea.

We may now understand the position in which a
Chinaman finds himself when he has very serious reason
to complain of the condition of his country. All the
most revered literature of that country, all the ideas
which have possessed his mind from childhood, and even
the language of the Imperial rescripts of his day, point
to the conclusion that the existing authorities rather
than the people are to blame. I have looked through
the Classics in vain for any indication of a belief that,
where great calamities befall the country, the mass of
the people may be considered as the guilty cause. The
authorities undoubtedly are in the habit of throwing
the blame off themselves, but they do so only by accus-
ing certain sections of the populace of living in guilty
opposition to the will of Heaven, and so cut off from
the rest of the people. The history of China also has
been of such a character as to sustain the notion that
the responsibility of national disaster rests chiefly with
the Government. While admitting the extraordinary
longevity of the Chinese State regarded in its essentials,
we must not leave out of view the fact that its life has
been broken, but also preserved, by innumerable rebel-
lions and changes of dynasty. Revolution is to the
Chinaman something more even than it is to the modern
Parisian. It is, so to speak, the constitutional means of
getting rid of bad governments, and is associated in his
mind with deeds of heroic daring, of noble self-sacrifice,
and with some of the brightest periods of the national
history. De Guignes, in his ‘Tableau de lHistoire
Ancienne de la Chine, correctly enumerates twenty-two
imperial dynasties, commencing with the Hea, founded
by the Great Yu, and ending with the Ta Tsing, the
28 PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

present Manchu reigning family; and many of these
were overthrown by violence, to the gre€t advantage of
China, or of those portions of it over which they reigned.
The ‘Historical Classic’ is full of “oaths” and “announce-
ments” and “ chastisements” of revolutionary leaders, to
whom was delivered “‘ Heaven’s exterminating decree”
against cruel or too luxurious princes. At a later
period the famous Han, Tang, and Sung dynasties, with
many others of less note, were founded by revolutionary
violence ; and the Ming, or “ Bright,’ dynasty, which
established itself for a time against the Tartars, excited
patriotic feelings in the breasts of the Chinese. Thus,
the Tai-ping rebellion was no novel phenomenon in the
history of China, but had intimate relationship with the
national ideas and history ; and Hung Sew-tsuen, its
leader, was influenced to his terrible and unsuccessful,
yet perhaps beneficial, movement, not less by the ideas
which float in the Chinese mind than by the actual
events which, as we shall presently see, led him up to
that movement, on into his terrible career, and to its
final catastrophe.

In some most important respects the present state of
China is very much what it was in the earliest recorded
times. The cities exercise but little influence, and power
lies in the balance between the Emperor with his Minis-
ters and the country people. Bold warriors, ambitious
priests, and designing statesmen play no great part in
the national history. It is out of the country people, the
innumerable owners of the land, that the ruling power
has arisen, and it is their wants that must be attended
to. So long as they are well off they are contented
with the existing dynasty ; but when they suffer greatly
then Heaven appoints some one to exterminate the
dynasty. This is the leading point in the whole history
THE TARTAR CONQUESTS. 29

of China. The dynasties are always established by men
of lofty virtue and great force of character, perhaps
aided by able and devoted Ministers ; but as generations
pass away their successors deteriorate in character, and
finally reach some one who combines debauchery and
cruelty, so that he injures public affairs as much by his
interference as by his neglect. Then comes ruin over
the country ; there are signs and portents in the heav-
ens, and there rises some patriot to say, like Tang,
who destroyed the most famous Hea dynasty, “I dread
the Supreme Ruler, so I dare not refuse to destroy
the wicked sovereign.”

Such a period in China was that when Hung Sew-
tsuen, the Tai-ping chief, arose. There were many
circumstances which had tended to throw the country
into a state of disorganisation, causing widespread
misery; and there were even special circumstances
which tended to ascribe the evil to the ruling dynasty,
and called upon a patriot to remove it from the throne.
As regards the latter point, it is only necessary to note
here that the Imperial family, as is well known, was
Manchu. In the thirteenth century the immediate
descendants of Genghis Khan conquered China in a
sort of way, and established the Yuen dynasty, which
ruled the country till a.p. 1368, but was then over-
thrown by a native line, the Ming, or “ Bright.” This
latter reigned till the year 1664; but the last thirty
years of their government, which had been moved from
Nanking to Peking, was a continual strife with the
tribes of Manchu Tartars on the frontier, and with in-
surrection in the interior. In 1664, a native Chinese,
Le Taiching, entered Peking with his insurgent forces,
and on his arrival the last Emperor of the Mings com-
mitted suicide. Le proclaimed himself emperor, but was
30 PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

soon driven from the capital by the Manchu Tartars,
who were invited into the country by a Chinese general,
Woo San-kwei, who had been defending the frontier
against them, but who, looking on the usurpation of the
throne by the rebel Le as intolerable, now begged their
assistance against the usurper. The Manchus having
entered the country had no intention of leaving it.
They proclaimed Shun Chi, their chief, Emperor ; and
in a few years contrived to gain the government of
China, and even compelled the people to shave their
heads after the Tartar fashion. ‘his was long resisted,
especially in the south-east, but after a time all open
defiance of the Tartar ceased, though in that part of the
country secret societies were formed for the purpose of
throwing off the foreign yoke, and defied the power
of the Government to extinguish them. The Manchu
Government, however, reigned with great moderation
and justice up to the end of last century, and in fact on
to about 1830; it had become quite Chinese in char-
acter, and was chiefly composed of native Chinamen, so
that in the beginning of this century resistance to it
had almost entirely ceased, or when it existed, was con-
fined to those disorderly classes which, from early times,
have infested the innumerable islands which fringe the
southern seaboard of the Flowery Land. The Manchus
as nominally ruling the country, and supplying the Im-
perial family at least, were always open, on account of
their being Tartars, to an extra share of odium in the
event of the Government failing very grossly ; but up
to 1830 there was no appearance of such failure, except
the existence of certain illegal associations in the shape
of secret societies, such as that of the Triad and of the
Waiter Lily.

There can be no doubt that these societies had some
THE SECRET SOCIETIES OF CHINA, 31

effect, both directly and suggestively, on the Tai-ping
movement; but, as in all such cases, it is difficult to
find out to what extent they existed, and what their real
objects were. From the severity with which they were
pursued by the Imperial Government, we may infer that
some of them were really dangerous to the State; but
others again seem to have been harmless enough. Thus
the “Tea Society” was suppressed in 1816, and its
leaders executed ; but on turning to the Imperial edict *
on the subject, it does not seem that this association,
though illegal, was very hurtful. Of the leaders of it,
who called themselves Wangs, the worst that is said is,
“They lyingly and presumptuously affirm that the pro-
genitor of the clan of Wang resides in heaven. They
affirm that Mi-li-Fuh (the Buddha to come) will descend
and be born in their family, and carry all the members
of the society after death into the regions of the West,
into the palace of the immortal Sien, where they will
be safe from the dangers of war, of water, and of fire.”
Other societies, however, we know, did conspire against
the Government, and sometimes openly raised the stan-
dard of rebellion ; and it is interesting to notice how far
they presented characteristics common to the Tai-ping
also. In so far as they rose above mere robber associa-
tions, or guilds for mutual protection, they seem to have
aimed either at professing a divine commission or an
intention to substitute a native Chinese for the Man-
chu dynasty. The Yaou-Jin rebels, who gave so much
trouble in the provinces of Kwangtung, Kwangsi, and
Hoonan in 1832, but who had appeared so far back in
Chinese history as the Sung dynasty,t alleged that they
were descendants of Pwan-ku, a sacred legendary charac-

* ‘Peking Gazette? 27th day, 5th moon, 21st year Kia-king.
+ ‘Chinese Repository,’ vol. i.
32 PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

ter, the shaper of earth and heaven. The Pih Leen Keaou,
or Water Lily Society, which has appéired at various
times throughout the duration of the Ta-Tsing, the pre-
sent dynasty, scarcely made a secret of their desire to
overthrow the Manchus, and early in this century caused
considerable trouble in the southern provinces. The San
Ho Hwui, or famous Triad Society, the most formidable of
all in late times, not only prepared the way for the Tai-
pings, but also evidently gave them a number of hints,
Its original title was “Tien Te Hwui”—the Celesto-
terrestrial Society; and its neophytes were sworn “to
recall the Ming, to exterminate the Barbarian, to cut off
the Tsing, and to await the right prince.” They took
for their surname the word Hung. They had traditions
of being directed by supernatural beings, and their head-
lance took the name of Tien Hung, or Tien-yu Hung,
the “ Heaven-protected Hung,” which is not very far
from the Tai-ping Hung Tien-Wang—“ Hung the Hea-
venly Prince,” the Chinese character for Hung being in
both cases the same—a point worthy of notice. There
is no ground to conclude that these societies were very
formidable; but their mere existence, and the claims
they put forward, were sufficient to prepare the way for
a wider associated movement in troublous times, and
such times did speedily arrive, caused by an external
series of events, and increasing incapacity in the Celestial
Government.*

That the period of disorganisation, rapine, and war
which afflicted China from 1851 to 1864 was not entirely
caused by foreign import, is clear from the state of the
country from 1830 to 1840, when there was a greater

* See on the Triads Dr Milne’s paper in ‘Transactions of the Royal
Society of Great Britain and Ireland,’ vol. i. part ii. (1826), and the ‘ Chi-
nese Repository,’ vol. xviii. p. 281.

 
EFFECTS OF THE OPIUM WAR. 33

number of rebellions, inundations, famines, and similar
disasters, than it had seen for generations; but though
the people were getting discontented, and the Govern-
ment weak, it is undeniable that an enormous impulse
was given to these evils by the foreign relationships which
ensued. Soon after 1830 troubles began to arise with
Foreigners, which caused the Peking Government con-
siderable alarm, and induced it to take measures to
maintain the isolation of the empire. The history of the
events which followed has been recorded from various
points of view, and need not be repeated here ; but it
may be remarked, that however desirable it was that
Chinese exclusiveness should be destroyed, every writer
on the subject has expressed regret that the work of
doing so should have been so much an attempt on the
part of Great Britain to force the objectionable opium
traffic.

The British war with China of 1841-42 was most in-
jurious to the peace of the country, because the power
of the Government had for long depended greatly on
prestige ; because large districts had been brought to
ruin ; and because the calling out bands of local militia
had taught the people their power. It is well known
that, previous to that war, the appearance of the insignia
of a Mandarin, accompanied by a few lictors armed with
whips, could disperse the most turbulent crowd in Can-
ton, the most turbulent city in the empire; and, by a
long-established rule, the people were denied the posses-
sion of firearms. But during the war arms were so
generally distributed that loose characters of all kinds
got possession of them, while at the same time respect
for the Government had been destroyed by the manner
in which its immense pretensions had been broken
through by the despised Barbarian ; and, instead of ven-
)

ao?
34 PREPARATIONS FOR TAI-PINGDOM.

turing on a bold course against the local riots, robber
bands, and insurrections which then arose, the Admin-
istration, conscious of its military weakness, and still
stunned by its recent defeat, began to temporise and
appeal. In 1845 at Ningpo, and in 1847 at Canton,
when serious disturbances arose from trivial causes, the
Mandarins quieted matters only by yielding. The asso-
ciated banditti of the Triad increased so in many parts
of the country that life and property became exceedingly
insecure. The indemnity of 21,000,000 dollars exacted
by Britain on account of the war brought on a financial
crisis, while trade was suffering from the operations
which had taken place. Great inundations of the Yel-
low River and of the Yangtsze occurred inopportunely to
increase the distress and decrease the land-tax, the only
great source of revenue. In these circumstances, the
Government fell upon the fatal expedient of commuting
punishments for money, and putting civil offices to sale,
thereby increasing the number of criminals at large,
holding out inducements to crime, and exciting against
itself the animosity of the powerful literary and official
classes, who thus saw themselves defrauded of their just
privileges. Thus robbers began to increase on land, and
pirates at sea; the local governments being powerless
to protect, the people armed and organised themselves
against banditti; and everywhere over China, but espe-
cially in the south, troubles had gathered, and dark
times seemed at hand, when in February 1850 the
Emperor Tau-kwang “ascended on the dragon-throne to
be a guest on high,” and his youthful, ill-fated son, Hien-
fung, reigned in his stead.
CHAPTER. III.

THE TIEN WANG AND HIS HISTORY UP TO 1860.

HUNG SEW-TSUEN’S ORIGIN—HIS POSITION AS A HAKKA — HIS
TRANCES AND SUPERSTITIONS—-THE TERRIBLE CHARACTER OF
HIS CAREER—HIS PERSONAL APPEARANCE—THE TAI-PING WANGS
—MURDER OF THE EASTERN KING — HUNG’S JEALOUSY OF HIS
CHIEFS—THE REBEL CAPITAL CONSTANTLY BESIEGED.

Ir was in this troubled fermenting state of China that
there appeared one of those extraordinary men who in-
carnate in themselves the tendencies of a revolutionary
period, and who, more frequently in the East than else-
where, gather myriads round them, and pass over their
country like a destroying but purifying tempest.

So many writers on this subject have availed them-
selves of the Rev. Mr Hamberg’s pamphlet,* which really
contains all that is known of the early life of the Tai-
ping leader, that the facts of Hung Sew-tsuen’s early
history must be quite familiar, and these have been
further substantiated by the autobiography which the
Kan Wang or Shield King wrote, prior to execution,
when in the hands of the Imperialists in 1864. But it
may be well, very briefly, to show the bearing of these
facts, to point out how far the chief’s career potentially
originated in the ordinary circle of Chinese ideas, and

* ‘The Visions of Hung Sew-tchuen.’ Hong-Kong, 1854.
36 THE TIEN WANG.

how far it was affected by his peculiar descent and by
his contact with Foreigners ; in brief, to give the rationale
of his history. No special notice seems to have been
taken of the fact, that though born within thirty miles
of Canton, he was of the Hakka, a rude race, who are
regarded as aliens by the Punti, the mass of the people
of Kwangtung.* This itself goes some way to account
for his opposition to the Imperial Government, and for
the ease with which he formed the nucleus of his: insur-
rection. There have been hatred and feud for nearly two
centuries in Kwangtung between the Punti, or “In-
dwellers,” and. the Hakka, or “Strangers,” who came
down on the province from the mountains of Kiangsi
and Fukien ; and the latter are regarded by the former
very much in the light of barbarians, or, say, as the Irish
of Liverpool are by the English workmen of that city.
Whether Hung Sew-tsuen’s genealogy, as it was given to
Mr Hamberg, was invented after he aimed at the empire
or was literally true, is a matter of no consequence ; he
“was a poor youth of a rude despised race; and, either
from prejudice against him on that account, or from in-
ability, never succeeded in taking a degree at Canton.
Thus his start in life was on the opposition side; but
the Kwangtungers, generally, would scoff at the notion
of him and his confréres having had any special claim
to represent the native patriotic element in China. At
the same time the Hakkas are Chinese, less intelligent,
and, consequently, more indifferent to the grander ruling
ideas of the country, than are the rest of the agricultural
population, but still pretty well imbued with these ideas.
Bearing this in mind, it can easily be conceived that a

* For a description of the Hakkas, and of a residence among them, see
“Six Weeks in a Tower,” by the author, in ‘ Blackwood’s Magazine’ for
June 1862. :
HIS HAKKA SUPERSTITIONS. 37

man of Sew-tsuen’s undeniable ability and wild visionary
spirit,—steeped to the lips in poverty, admired exceed-
ingly by his immediate friends and neighbours, members
of a despised but sturdy and numerous clan, moved,
very likely, by traditions of illustrious ancestors, living
in a portion of the country becoming more unsettled
every day, hearing a rising undergrowl of discontent,
and himself denied entrance at the door of admission to
the ruling body,—would naturally cast about for some
means of asserting, and perhaps avenging, his slighted
family race and person. So far we have got circum-
stances and characteristics which cut him off from the
mass of his countrymen ; and to the characteristics may
be added the fact that repeated failures to take his
degree threw him, in 1837, into a state of madness,
epilepsy, trance, ecstacy, or whatever else we may like
to call it. But this disappointed youth was not an
Englishman or a Hindu. Essentially a Chinese of the
Chinese, his mind had a very wide circle of grotesque
superstitions and solemn terrible thoughts in which it
could find consolation. Was he the first in his country’s
history to mourn a distracted age, or be pursued by the
demons? Might not “ Heaven’s exterminating decree”
be delivered to him also, as to so many “ insignificant
ones” before? This was the result into which his visions
hardened ; but in the first of them I can recognise only
the ordinary grotesque figures which haunt the imagina-
tions of southern Chinese of a low class. The tiger, the
cock, the old woman who washed him in a river, the
taking out his heart and putting in a new one, the old
man in a black robe, whom he afterwards believed to
have been God, and the demon-exterminating sword, are
the ordinary stock-in-trade of the village geomancers
of Kwangtung. The only things which give dignity to
38 THE TIEN WANG.

these visions are their connection with the old Chinese
idea of the exterminating decree, and thé biblical gloss
he afterwards put upon them. These visions, and their
change into loftier meanings as new ideas came to him,
are exactly what might have been expected from a man
of very powerful imaginative mind, brought up amid the-
ignorance, superstition, and squalor of a Hakka village.
It should be added, however, that, looking at the verses
he soon began to ejaculate, at his early but as yet harm-
less proclamation of himself as a heavenly king, and at
his whole story, there is a certain something about him
—that which Goethe used to call the daimonic—which
defies analysis, and even description.

The elevation of character which Sew-tsuen obtained
from the conviction his trances had given that he was
a chosen instrument of Heaven, sustained him in quiet
up to 1843, but naturally led him to seek to extend the
sphere of his influence and knowledge. During these
six years, though affairs in China were degenerating,
yet they were not so bad as to afford an opening for a
revolutionist ; but in 1843, when he began seriously
studying Christian tracts, the opium war had opened the
flood-gates. It was natural that he should turn curiously
towards the teaching of a people who had defied and so
deeply injured the Government he hated ; but the whole
history of his relation to Christianity shows that his was
a mind which, while it might incorporate foreign ideas
with its own, would never suffer itself to be ruled by
them. Neither at this time nor in 1847, when he went
to Canton and put himself under the teaching of Mr
Issachar Roberts, an uneducated American missionary,
did he show any disposition to be a sober searcher after
religious truth, but only sought that which would give
force and shape to his own divine mission. To the
HIS RELATION TO CHRISTIANITY. 39

grossly superstitious Hakka, and to the ardent student
of the more ancient Chinese classics, there was now
added a third person, so to speak, imbued with certain
Hebrew and Christian beliefs. It is a proof of the extra-
ordinary power of this man’s mind, and depth of his con-
-victions, that he could blend these three individuals so
completely into one under the transmuting belief in his
own mission. As the poor superstitions of the Chinese
peasant were elevated into this egoism, so the sublime
doctrines of Christianity were degraded into it. Who
could the God of the Christians be but the old man, the
very God who had appeared to him in his dreams? He
must have been in heaven, and the middle-aged man
who instructed him how to exterminate the demons
was our Lord. But then the seer himself was a Son of
Heaven, so Christ became the Elder, and Hung Sew-
tsuen was the Younger, Celestial Brother. There is no
trace in any of the Tien Wang’s productions of his
having in the slightest degree appreciated the real spirit
of Christianity; but the skill and completeness with
which he turned some of its doctrines to his own use
are really wonderful. These results were far beyond the
power of a mere cunning impostor. From the hour
when Hung arose from his sick-bed after his first
forty days’ trance, and, poor and nameless, proclaimed
his avatar by fixing on his door-post the proclamation,
“The noble principles of the Heavenly King, the Sove-
reign King Tsuen,” on through success and defeat and
Imperial opposition, up to the hour of his death at
Nanking, when human flesh was selling in the market at
so much per catty, he seems never to have’ wavered or
abated one jot of his claim to supreme rule on earth. In
ordinary times it might have been that Hung Sew-tsuen
would have found an ordinary place as an able Man-
40 THE TIEN WANG.

darin, a village teacher, or a literary farmer, of more
than average power and eccentricity. le might have
lived and died the admiration or the wonder of his
neighbourhood, but unknown beyond the Hwa district
where he was born ; and only his near relatives, as they
pointed proudly to the gilded letters recording his name
in the ancestral hall, or gave his departed soul kind
offerings of food, would have remembered his existence.
His bones might have been inurned in some peaceful
spot on the hills close to his home, where he used to
confer with his friend Fung Yun-san; and when his
spirit desired to revisit earth, it might there have
had sweet repose, shaded by the pine-trees, cheered by
the singing of birds, looking down contented on the
ancestral fields still ploughed by his descendants, and
beyond these to the flowing waters of the Pearl River
and the mountains of the White Cloud. This is what,
according to all Chinese ideas, would have been a happy
and enviable fate ; but it was not decreed for him. The
son of a small peasant farmer, and himself a poor literate,
afflicted with fits of madness and trances and visions,
he was to sweep over the great Flowery Land, and, as
Tseng Kwo-fan says, cause devastation in sixteen pro-
vinces and six hundred cities. As it turned out, cruel
exterminating Wangs—not brown-haired, pot-bellied
little children— were his disciples. His ploughshare
of steel and fire drove through the great valley of the
Yangtsze, and approached the walls of Peking. No small
tawdry yamun, or village school-house, was his abode
for many years, but the ancient capital of China and the
palaces of the Ming. His visions turned into heaven-
sent edicts which decided the fate of millions, and were
pondered over in the distant capitals of Europe. At one
moment the Black-haired People seemed about to accept
HIS PERSONAL APPEARANCE. 41

his sway ; and when the end came—when his earthly
existence was extinguished amid the horrors of the siege
of Nanking—his body was found by the Imperial con-
queror “enveloped in yellow satin embroidered with
dragons ; his head was bald, without hair; his mustache
remained, but had become grey; there was flesh on his
left thigh and right shoulder ; and, as soon as the ex-
amination had been concluded, the head was secured,
and the remainder of the body, after being cut up, was
burned” *—almost all China exclaiming, with Peking
officialdom, “Words cannot convey any idea of the
misery and desolation he caused: the measure of his
iniquity was full, and the wrath of both gods and men
was roused against him.” +

There is no authentic portrait of Hung Sew-tsuen,
though MM. Callery and Ivan have given what professes
to be a representation of him in their lively sketch of the
first years of the Rebellion. With regard to his personal
appearance, however, he is known as having been of
large stature, with a flowing black beard, bright eyes,
and an intelligent, prepossessing countenance. Soon
after establishing himself at Nanking, he entirely se-
cluded himself within the walls of a large palace, beyond
the outer court of which no male attendants were allowed
to enter. In the interior the Heavenly Prince was
waited upon by females alone, by his numerous wives,
and still more numerous concubines, to whom acces-
sions were made from year to year. Occasionally he
held levees of the leading kings and chief men; but only
his brothers and the Kan Wang, his cousin and Prime
Minister, were admitted freely into his presence. Not-

* Tseng Kwo-fan’s Memorial to the Throne with respect to the disposal
of the two rebel leaders Hung Sew-tsuen and Li Sew-cheng.

+ Imperial edict of 1st August 1864, in reply to Memorial announcing
the taking of Nanking.
42 THE TIEN WANG.

withstanding this seclusion, the Tien Wang exercised
despotic power, and his edicts were Wually implicitly
obeyed. According to his own belief, and the profes-
sion of his followers, he was distinguished from men by
being a veritable son of God, coequal with Christ, and
commissioned to afford a new revelation to mankind.
The Wangs, or kings, were all appointed by him on the
ground of their services to the Tai-ping cause, and were
described as “brethren of the same womb.” Lach of
these Wangs had usually a distinct province and army
assigned to him, but, at least in the latter years of the
rebellion, the Kan Wang or Shield King, being Prime
Minister, was virtually director of the movement ; and,
from his military skill, the Chung Wang took the lead
in the field.

After the first formal proclamation of his rebellion in
May 1850, and his assumption of the title of Tien Wang
or Heavenly Prince in 1851, Hung Sew-tsuen selected
five of his adherents as kings, and commenced that
predatory march through China which enabled him to
establish himself at Nanking in 1853; for in the then
state of the empire as already described, his party, like an
avalanche, gathered magnitude from its own movement.
The armies, however, which he despatched from Nan-
king in the same year for the capture of Peking, were
checked and destroyed after having made a long march,
and the Imperialist forces which had followed him down
the Yangtsze took up a position within five miles of his
heavenly capital. It is a mistake to suppose that the
Tai-pings were ever unopposed, or in a safe position in
any place or at any moment. Nor is it less a mistake
to suppose that they could in any sense be called Chris-
tians. The Blue-books on China are full of conclusive
. evidence as to the monstrous and blasphemous character
THE CHARACTER OF THE REBELLION. 43

of Tai-ping theology, and the want of reality in Tai-ping
religion. They also show abundantly that the Rebels were
essentially destroyers, and possessed no capabilities for
reconstruction. Ina sort of general way it is now very
well known what the true character of this movement
was, so I need only refer readers who wish more infor-
mation on this part of the subject to the Blue-books,
and to the volume of Commander Brine,* who is very
far from being in any way prejudiced against the in-
surrection. The growing ferocity of Hung Sew-tsuen
and of his attendant Wangs, the manner in which the
exterminating decree was enforced, and the fluctuating
fortunes of the Tai-pings, need only be referred to here.
The great internal difficulty which Hung Sew-tsuen
had to contend with was his own aversion to guiding
military operations, and the consequent danger of
being superseded by one of his abler lieutenants. His
cause lost much by the necessity under which he was
placed in 1856, of having the Eastern King put to
death ; for that chief was not only his best fighting
man, but also his best civil governor. Still, what else
could have been done? The Eastern King, not con-
tented with asserting that the Holy Ghost, the Com-
forter, was incarnated in himself, took to having trances,
visions, and heavenly commands, in which he revealed
that the Heavenly Father was so displeased with the
Tien Wang (among other things for kicking his wives
when they were enceinte!), that the latter was required
to humble himself and receive forty lashes. Now this
was going a little too far, even for Tai-pingdom. It
became a question whether the Tien Wang or the
Eastern King was to rule; and though the former very
judiciously accepted the command for his punishment
* ‘The Taeping Rebellion in China.’ London, 1862,
44 THE TIEN WANG.

without questioning at the moment, he soon took meas-
ures for abolishing the Eastern Kirt and the Com-
forter both together ; and the massacres perpetrated by
the Northern King in carrying out this order, led to
that prince also being killed. This rather awkward
affair made the Tien Wang very jealous of another great
fighting man, the Assistant King, who, in consequence,
soon after broke off allegiance, and set up for himself in
the distant province of Szechuen. Thus Nanking was
left for some time without any able man either to carry
on the government or to conduct military affairs ; and
when the latter want was afterwards supplied in the
persons of the Faithful King and the Heroic King, or
the Four-eyed Dog, the Heavenly Monarch was too
suspicious of them to rely upon their advice, and al-
lowed them to be foolishly interfered with and directed
by his half-brothers, the Hung Jens.

Nanking, while the capital of the Tai-pings, was never
free from danger from Imperialist armies, and in 1855
it was closely invested, being blockaded completely on
the north-east, and partially on the south, while its
river-frontage to the west was commanded by Imperial-
ist gunboats. At the same time the important Rebel
position of Nganking, some distance up the Yangtsze,
was closely laid siege to by Tseng Kwo-fan ; and it was
only by some very severe and fortunate fighting, that
the Faithful and Heroic Kings managed to relieve these
places. Even after this, at the end of 1859, the Tai-
pings held only Nanking, Lowhoo, Tungching, Hochow,
Nganking, Woohoo, the Two Pillars, and Taiping fu;
and the two most important places, Nanking and
Nganking, were severely pressed by the Imperialists.
According to the report of the governor of the province,
the Imperialists had 100,000 soldiers round the former
NANKING BESIEGED. 43

place, besides a large fleet, and were determined to con-
quer the garrison by starvation. “The prospect of the
Tai-pings,” says Commander Brine, “in the early spring
of 1860, had become very gloomy. Pressed by want,
the garrison of Nanking resorted to every possible means
of sustaining life short of eating human flesh. The
Imperial Government were highly elated, and the be-
sieging force looked upon the fall of the city as a mere
matter of weeks.” Out of the lower portion of the Yang-
tsze valley, the Tai-pings proper had no footing, though
the Assistant King was carrying on a small rebellion on
his own account in the far west of China. The move-
ment had ceased to prosper, partly owing to the action
of Imperialist generals, who had succeeded in hemming
it within a certain limited district, and partly from its
destructive and exhausting nature, which, to continued

vitality, constantly required new districts of country to
exhaust and destroy.
PART II.

OUR COLLISION WITH THE REBELS
  
  
  
 

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CHAPTER IV.

REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION, AND ITS CONFLICT
WITH FOREIGNERS.

STATE OF THE REBELLION IN 1859—DESPAIR OF THE TAI-PINGS—
CHANGE IN THEIR PROSPECTS CAUSED BY THE NEW DIFFICULTY
BETWEEN CHINA AND GREAT BRITAIN—SANKOLINSIN—THE TAKU
DISASTER OF 1859—RELIEF OF NANKING—THE TAI-PING OUT-
BREAK INTO KIANGSOO — THE TAKING OF SOOCHOW — THE
ADVANCE ON SHANGHAI — BRITISH NEUTRALITY —THE PEKING
EXPEDITION—IMPERIAL APPLICATION FOR BRITISH ASSISTANCE—
THE ALLIES DETERMINE TO DEFEND SHANGHAI—‘‘ GENERAL”
FREDERICK WARD—THE CAPTURE OF SUNGKIANG— SAVAGE —
REPULSE BY FOREIGNERS OF THE TAI-PING ATTACK ON SHANGHAI.

In order to understand how much and how little British
interference had to do with the suppression of the Tai-
ping Rebellion, it is necessary to notice exactly how
matters stood in the year 1859, which promised at
one moment to see China restored to a state of order
and peace. Foreign affairs had been settled apparently
to the satisfaction of all parties; and, except at Canton,
where the people had got to like them and rely upon
them, the Foreign forces had been withdrawn from
every foot of Celestial soil. Even the Great Rebellion,
now in the ninth year of its reckoning, was in a fair way
of being crushed. The Faithful King says truly, in his
autobiography, that at this time “Nanking was now
D
5O REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

closer besieged than ever. The place was as secure as if
an iron band had encircled it. . . . . Whe siege of
Nanking was now progressing, and events assumed a
more threatening aspect daily.” The Tai-pings lost place
after place; their troops had neither rations nor gun-
powder, and were defeated at every point; while the
close investment of the Sacred Capital by the Imperial-
‘ist generals, Chang Kwo-liang and Ho Ch’un, threatened
the very heart of the Rebellion. It is curious to notice
that in these circumstances the Heavenly Prince seems
to have remained entirely unmoved. According to the
Chung Wang, “he contented himself with merely in-
structing his ministers to adhere to the precepts of
Heaven, and telling them that the surrounding aspect
indicated signs of great peace.” The Faithful King him-
self seems to have been perfectly astounded and mysti-
fied by the inexplicable way in which he and the other
Tai-pings got out of the difficulty. “Then,” is all he
can say, “in those days the Heavenly Dynasty was not
doomed to be destroyed.”

But instead of being content to accept the new rela-
tionship with Foreigners, and to employ all its military
power in extinguishing the still warm embers of the
Rebellion, the Imperial Government, then practically in
the hands of Su-shun, of the Prince of I, and of other re-
actionists, determined not so much to violate or discard
the Treaty of Tientsin, as by an exercise of Celestial in-
genuity to make it void without departing from the letter.
The ratifications of the Treaty were to be exchanged at
Peking, but there was no special provision as to the way
in which that capital was to be reached by the British
Minister ; and the Chinese calculated that by refusing
permission to the Hon. Mr Bruce and to the vessels
accompanying him to enter the Peiho, they would bring
SANKOLINSIN. 51

matters to a crisis which would relieve them from the
obligations to Foreigners which, under pressure, they had
contracted in 1858. Accordingly the forts of Taku, at
the mouth of the Peiho or White River, were repaired,
enlarged, and strengthened, but in such a way as to con-
ceal their strength, matting being placed so as to cover
the embrasures; and the command of these forts was
given to Sankolinsin, a man of energetic and remark-
able character, but ignorant of the power of foreign
arms. Prince Seng, as he was entitled, was the leader
of Tartar cavalry who drove back the Tai-pings when they
threatened Peking in 1853. His history was a remark-
able one. Being a Mongol, he was in no way connected
by blood with the ruling, the Manchu, dynasty; and
being a poor boy, though son of a Mongol chief, he was
educated for the Lama priesthood in Peking, where he
attracted the notice of the Emperor, who took him into
his service, employed him in military expeditions, ad-
vanced him rapidly, and gave him a sister of one of the
royal wives in marriage. There was a prophecy among
the Tai-pings that their empire would be endangered by
a Buddhist priest, and this they held to have been ful-
filled_in Sankolinsin’s Lama education. From a memo-
rial which this Prince addressed to the Emperor in the
commencement of 1859, it would seem he fancied that
Foreign nations wished to devour China, because it had
neglected the arts of war, and had become weak. His
memorial is very interesting, as showing the feeling
entertained at that time towards Foreigners by really
well-meaning influential persons in China, and concludes
with an offer of both men and money to assist in repel-
ling Foreign aggression. With such an instrument in
their hands, ready and eager to take the command of
the Taku forts, and looked up to by all China, the
52 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

Imperial Government felt itself strong eenough to
move.

Accordingly Mr Bruce, the British envoy, was refused
access to the Peiho, and on the 26th June 1859 Admiral
Hope attempted to force a passage through the stakes and
beams which closed the entrance to the river. It was an
oppressive, sultry day, with a lurid mist stretching over
the muddy shores and turgid water of the Gulf of Peche-
lee. The guns in the forts were concealed, and only a few
ragged louts showed themselves at the gates; but when
the gunboats rushed up against the beams, suddenly the
matting over the cannon of the forts rolled up, and a
terrible cross-fire opened on the devoted British vessels,
crashing through oak and iron, making the vessels
tremble with every shot, knocking men in two, and
sending splinters around. It was rather surprising for
three British gunboats to be destroyed by the Chinese ;
and the land attack which followed was not more suc-
cessful. Men jumped out of the boats into mud and
water never to rise again. The six hundred yards of
mud to be crossed under a heavy fire, the two ditches,
the rifles filled with mud, and the broken ladders, made
the assault worse than useless. Those who crossed the
second ditch had to remain under shelter of the bank
until after dark, the enemy amusing them with arrows
shot vertically, and with balls of blue-fire.

This disaster was, of course, not one which the wrath
of Britain could endure, and its influence on the future
of Tai-pingdom was very great. It not merely concen-
trated the attention of the Imperialists upon the defences
of the Peiho, and made them indifferent to other matters,
so enabling the Rebels to recover lost ground ; it also
encouraged a certain class of Foreigners at Shanghai,
who saw that troublous times were coming, to devise
THE RELIEF OF NANKING. 53

schemes for affording the Tai-pings what Americans
would call “aid and comfort.” Further, it led to the
allied French and English expedition against Peking of
1860; to a temporary paralysis of the power of the
Imperial Government, which allowed the Tai-pings again
to become very formidable ; to the pressure of these last
upon Shanghai, which first caused our interference with
them, and also to that employment of British officers by
the Imperialists which, followed up as it was by Chinese
commanders, finally resulted in the extinction of the
Great Rebellion.

A detailed account of the movements by which the
Faithful King contrived to relieve Nanking for the sixth
time, would be exceedingly uninteresting. It is of more
importance to note that the rescue of the capital educed
not even an encouraging edict from the Heavenly Prince,
much less any permission for the fighting Ministers to
enter his presence. He seems in some way or other to
have held their lives pretty much in his hand, and to
have ordered them to attempt whatever he desired. Nor
is this very strange, for his life and pretensions consti-
tuted the centre of the whole revolutionary movement.
It may be well, however, as we now approach the close
of the period when Tai-pingdom had only the Imperial-
ists to contend with, to state the positions of the oppos-
ing parties after the raising of the siege of Nanking by
Chung, the Faithful King, and Ying Wang, the Heroic
King, better known as the Four-eyed Dog.

Nanking, the Rebel capital, was not threatened by any
Imperialist force either on the north or on the south, and
in the direction of the Grand Canal and the Taiho Lake
the Tai-pings held the country as far, as Liyang and
Chewying; the Imperialist General Chang Kwoliang
having retreated to Tanyan, and Ho Ch’un to Chanchu,
54 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

both places on the Grand Canal near the estuary of the
Yangtsze. Thus a large district of rich coffntry, lying
towards the sea, was left ill protected against the ravages
of the Tai-pings—a district which was fated to witness
their last great efforts and their final extinction. Tseng
Kwo-fan, the ablest and highest of the Imperialist gene-
rals, was at Kuanteche, a considerable way south-west of
the Taiho Lake, but he had little part in the operations
which took place at this time. His brother, Tseng Kwo-
tsun, was engaged up the Yangtsze in investing Nganking
with a large army, his covering forces being at the cities
of Soosung, Taho, Tsienchow, and in front of Tungching,
which was held by Rebels belonging to the army of the
Four-eyed Dog. In the province of Kiangsi, at Yen-
chow, there was also a force of Tai-pings under the com-
mand of Shi Ta-kai, the I Wang, or Assistant King; but
this was held in check, and prevented from advancing
on the provincial capital, by an Imperialist army under
the command of Paou Chiaou, stationed at Hokin, to the
south of the Poyang Lake. The Imperialist Chang Yu-
liang was advancing from Hangchow (whither he had
gone on a fruitless chase of the Faithful King) to Chan-
chu on the Grand Canal, where were the forces of Ho
Ch’un, and the residence of Ho Kwei-tsin, the Governor-
General of Kiangsoo. At Nanking, Yenchow, and Ngan-
king, the Rebels had three commanding situations, of
which only the latter was invested by the enemy; and
by pushing on their forces from the Sacred Capital to-
wards the Taiho Lake, they kept the Imperialist troops
in Kiangsoo in a divided state.

Leaving the Four-eyed Dog to proceed to the relief of
Nganking, and at the express command of the Heavenly
Prince, but somewhat against his own inclinations, the
Faithful King advanced against Tanyan in May 1860,
THE SORTIE FROM NANKING. 55

and defeated Chang Kwo-liang, that general being him-
self drowned in a creek and 10,000 of his men being
“cut up” or destroyed. This general was brave and
capable. He had formerly been a Triad chief, then a
leader among the Tai-pings themselves; but, as hap-
pened in many cases during this long conflict, he sur-
rendered to the Imperialists and took service under
them. The Faithful King next advanced against Chan-
chu, to which the remnant of the defeated army had fled,
and where Chang Yu-liang (not Chang Awo-liang) had
assembled his force. This place was also taken, and, as
the Chung Wang admits, when the Rebels entered many
of the people committed suicide from fear. Ho, the
Viceroy, had left it with his family before the assault ;
and Chang Yu-liang made another stand at Wusieh,
being reinforced by an army under Liu, which came up
from the Taiho Lake. Twenty-four hours’ hard fighting
ensued, and the Faithful King says he was just on the
point of giving way when, to his unexpected delight, the
enemy did so instead. This gave the Tai-pings com-
mand of the Grand Canal between the Taiho Lake and
the Yangtsze and of all the neighbouring country ; but
southward there was still a formidable Imperialist army
at Soochow, under Ho Ch’un. This general, however, was
so dismayed on hearing of the death of Chang Kwo-liang
that he committed suicide, and the Faithful King met
with almost no resistance at one of the very wealthiest
and most fashionable cities of the Flowery Land, Soo-
chow, the capital of Kiangsoo.

“ Above,” says a Chinese proverb, “is paradise, but
beneath are Soo and Hang.” “To be happy on
earth,” runs another, “one must be born in Soochow ;”
because the people of that place are remarkable for
their personal beauty. The walls of the city itself
56 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

were at this time ten miles in circumference ; but out-
side there were four enormous suburbs, one of which,
on the west side, extended for ten miles each way, and,
besides, there was a large floating population. It was
supposed to contain about two millions of inhabitants,
and had almost a fabulous reputation throughout China
for its ancient and modern marble buildings, its elegant
tombs, granite bridges, canals, streets, gardens, quays,
intelligent men, and beautiful women. Soochow was
famous for manufactures of many kinds, but especially
for the richness and variety of its silk goods. Even after
the suicide of Ho Ch’un it might have been expected
that Ho, the fugitive Viceroy, and Chang Yu-liang would
have made some energetic efforts to save this magnificent
city from becoming the prey of the spoiler; but the Im-
perialist troops seem to have been thoroughly disorgan-
ised, and Ho hastened its fate by ordering the suburbs
to be fired for purposes of defence. To a large number
of the inhabitants this appeared quite as bad as falling
into the hands of the Tai-pings, and, combined with out-
rages committed by the fugitive soldiers of Chang Kwo-
liang, caused such a state of confusion and anarchy, that
when the Chung Wang advanced on the 24th May 1860
he found no opposition, and, amid the welcome of the
lower class of the population, walked in at one gate
while the Imperial troops fled at another. Shortly after
the city of Hangchow was taken by the Faithful King,
and in the province of Kiangsoo everything looked pro-
mising in the prospects of the Heavenly Empire of the
Great Peace.

Up to this period, May 1860, the Tai-pings had only
the Imperialists and the people of the country to
contend with. A few Malays and Manilamen, and,
FIRST CONTACT OF TAI-PINGS WITH FOREIGNERS. 57

perhaps, a crazy English sailor or two, may have found
their way into the ranks on either side; but the long
ten years’ conflict had been entirely one of Chinese
with Chinese, uninterfered with by Foreign powers and
unaffected by any enlistment of Foreign auxiliaries.
As I have pointed out, the Tai-ping rebellion in part
originated from the opium war, and was very nearly
crushed in 1859, when a new difficulty with Foreigners
came to its rescue, so there was political justice in its
receiving its death-blow from the hand to which it had
owed so much. Had it not been for the rude shock
given to the prestige of the Imperial Government by
the first war with Britain, the Rebellion, so far as we can
see, would not have arisen; and had it not been for
the assistance given by Foreigners towards its suppres-
sion, it might, possibly, still be uselessly devastating the
country. But, in the progress of events, it was quite
impossible that the Tai-pings could any longer keep
clear of the Foreign element which during the few pre-
ceding years had been so rapidly blending its interests
with those of the Black-haired People. The hour had
come when, either for weal or woe, the Tai-pings had to
do with the energetic strangers from the West who had
begun to swarm at the consular ports. The only ques-
tion was, whether the new influence would be favourable
or unfavourable to the Empire of the Great Peace.

From the autobiographical sketch of the Rebellion,
written before his execution, by the Kan Wang, or
Shield King, it appears that in 1860 he was made
Generalissimo of the Rebel forces; and having passed
four years in Hongkong, he was well acquainted with
Foreigners, and knew the importance of securing them
as allies. Valuable as Soochow and Hangchow were,
his main object in sending the Faithful King in that
58 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

direction was to establish communicatigns with the
open port of Shanghai, distant not 400 miles from
Nanking, and to purchase there from Foreigners about
twenty steamers, to be sent up and employed on the
Yangtsze. This would have given him the command
of that great river; and he proposed at the same time
to make other movements by land for the purpose of
relieving Nganking and thoroughly securing both banks
of the river between that place and the capital. He
saw clearly the immense importance of not allowing
Nganking to fall, and said very expressively in a letter
to the Faithful King, “Let me tell you that the great
river may be likened to a snake, the head of which
is formed by Hoopeh, the body by Kiangnan. Hoopeh
not being ours, the moment Nganking is lost the snake
is divided: and though the tail may survive, it can only
enjoy a transitory existence.”

It is interesting to notice how practical were, at this
crisis, the ideas of the Shield King. The general plan
of the Imperialist authorities was to pen up the Rebels
so as to drive them into the sea, or on to the open ports,
trusting that from these latter they would be kept by
Foreigners. Thirty years before, to press the Rebels
into the sea would have been all that was required ;
but pressing them into the sea in 1860 meant thrust-
ing them upon Shanghai and other Consular ports,
where steamers and munitions of war sufficient for the
conquest of all China were to be obtained ; but the
Imperialists had good grounds to believe that we would
protect the ports, and the outbreak of the Rebels was
too sudden and unexpected to allow of effectual meas-
ures being taken to prevent their going towards the
sea.* The Tai-pings, on the other hand, saw that it was

* This point is more fully discussed in chap. xiii.
THE PEKING EXPEDITION. 59

of importance to them to be in contact with Foreigners,
and actually entertained the design of procuring a num-
ber of steamers for use in war. Let us bear in mind
also that even at this time the opinion of Foreigners,
and especially of Englishmen and Americans, in regard
to the Rebels was still divided. If the delusive ideas at
first entertained in regard to their Christianity and their
Protestantism had entirely disappeared—and it was not
alleged that they possessed any organising power—still
it was held by many that they were quite as good as
the Imperialists, perhaps a shade better; and that no
real harm could result to China from giving them en-
couragement. Her Majesty’s Government had directed
all her representatives in Cathay to maintain a strict
neutrality between the contending parties, so that the
hands of the most ardent Mandarin sympathiser, if any
such there were in her Majesty’s diplomatic service, were
effectually tied ; while, on the other hand, there existed
in Shanghai at that period a certain number of unscrupu-
lous traders, and a considerable rowdy population whose
interests lay, or were supposed to lie, in supporting the
Rebellion, and fostering a state of anarchy and warfare
in China.

To all human appearance there was even a still more
cogent reason why the Tai-pings should have calculated
on Foreign comfort and aid. At this moment we were
really at war with Imperial China, and an allied French
and English expedition was on its way to Peking to
avenge the Taku disaster of 1859. Vessel after vessel
was leaving Singapore and Hongkong for the Gulf of
Pechelee with troops and stores. Past the desert islands
of the Prata shoal, where the ribs of many a goodly ship
lie bleaching under the fierce sun, in the white sand or
on the pink coral; round the huge and almost unex-
60 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

plored yet lovely island of Formosa, with its great
mountains, rich tropical vegetation, and Wild cannibal
tribes ; up the coast of China, broken into deep bays,
fringed with innumerable islands, and every island
fringed with boats innumerable; through the Chusan
Archipelago, where the islands are a mass of temples;
across the sea-like floods of the Yangtsze and the Yellow
River, pouring down into the ocean; over the muddy
Yellow Sea, tumbling beneath the mighty crags of Shan-
tung promontory,—a splendid English naval and mili-
tary force was pursuing its way to its rendezvous under
the bare cold hills of Manchuria, with the design of ad-
vancing on the inviolate northern capital and disturbing
the Son of Heaven in his Tranquil Palace. On the
other hand, the Imperialists had braced themselves up
for one great effort against innovating foreign power; a
large army had been collected on the Peiho; in case of
any disaster on the seaboard, extensive fortifications had
been thrown round Tientsin; the Taku forts had been
still more enlarged, and in their embrasures, beside the
huge English guns won in the victory of the preceding
year, might have been seen the dark firm face of the
Tartar Generalissimo, Sankolinsin,* eagerly looking sea-
ward for the first smoke of the coming fire-vessels, with
perfect confidence in his power to overcome. Looking
at all these circumstances, few could have anticipated
that any harm would have come to the Tai-pings from
their advance on the City of the Sea. ,

So strangely, however, do matters go in China, that,
ati the very time the allies were collecting their forces at
Shanghai and elsewhere, preparatory to a march on Pe-

*Sankolinsin was described to Dr Rennie (‘ Peking and the Pekingese,’

vol. ii. chap x.) as “ tall and stout, with a very energetic eye, just like Louis
Napoleon’s.” :
DETERMINATION TO DEFEND SHANGHAI. 61

king, and just at the moment they were about to start,
first the Tautai of Shanghai, and then Ho Kwei-tsin,
the Governor-General of Kiangsoo, who had come from
Chanchu fu to the consular port, applied to the British
and French authorities for assistance against the Tai-
pings. As the lives of a number of Catholic priests were
endangered, the French General offered to send 1500
men if the English would send 500; but Mr Bruce con-
sidered the matter too hazardous, as, should the 2000
troops be obliged to retire, a bad effect would be pro-
duced, and if they were reinforced the expedition to the
north would be crippled; and in this view the French
Minister coincided. Still, a step was taken pregnant of
future disastrous consequences to the Tai-pings. “I de-
cided,” says Mr Bruce, in his despatch to Lord J. Russell
of the 30th May 1860,—* I decided, in concert with M.
Bourboulon, that it was expedient, both on grounds of
policy and humanity, to prevent, if possible, the scenes
of bloodshed and pillage being enacted here which took
place at Hangchow fu, when that city was lately as-
saulted by the insurgents ; and it appeared to me that,
without taking any part in this civil contest, or express-
ing any opinion on the rights of the parties, we might
protect Shanghai from attack, and assist the authorities
in preserving tranquillity within its walls, on the ground
of its being a port open to trade, and of the intimate
connection existing between the interests of the town
and of the Foreign settlement, the former of which can-
not be attacked without great danger to the latter. We
accordingly issued separate proclamations to that effect
in identical terms.”* This was the little cloud, no big-

* The British proclamation was as follows :—“The undersigned issues
this special proclamation to tranquillise the minds of the people.
“ Shanghai is a port open to foreign trade, and the native dealers residing
62 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

ger than a man’s hand, which was destingd to obscure
the sun of Tai-ping success. In a memorial sent at this
time to the Throne by Ho, that unfortunate Governor-
General, who was soon after recalled to Peking and exe-
cuted for his non-success, speaks of his army as having
been annihilated in consequence of the état de délabre-
ment into which it was thrown by the successes of the
Faithful King, and especially by the taking of Soochow.
“Never,” he wrote, “in all antiquity has there been a
state of confusion so remarkable,” and, “ trembling be-
yond measure,” he begs the Emperor to make peace with
the Allies and employ all his troops against the Rebels.
When, at the risk of his head, and, as it proved, at the
cost of his head, one of the highest of Chinese officials
could write in this way, the circumstances of the Impe-
rialist cause in Kiangnan must have been apparently
desperate indeed.

Besides the proclamation of the Allies in regard to
Shanghai, another very important, but, at the time, ap-
parently insignificant, event was the appearance on the
stage of “General” Frederick Ward. Before the former
had agreed to defend Shanghai, Ta Kee, and several
other wealthy merchants of that place, not relishing the
idea of its falling into the hands of the Tai-pings, had
arranged with Woo, the Tautai, to afford funds for the

therein have large transactions with the foreigners who went to their place
to carry on their business. Were it to become the scene of an attack and of
civil war, commerce would receive a severe blow, and the interests of those,
whether foreign or native, who wish to pursue their peaceful avocations in
quiet would suffer great loss.

“The undersigned will therefore call upon the Commanders of Her
Majesty’s naval and military authorities (sic /) to take proper measures to
prevent the inhabitants of Shanghai from being exposed to massacre and
pillage, and to lend their assistance to put down any insurrectionary move-

ments among the ill-disposed, and to protect the city against any attack.
“Shanghai, May 26, 1860.”
“GENERAL” FREDERICK WARD. 63

enlistment of Foreigners to fight against the Rebels.
He had, therefore, engaged two Americans called Ward
and Burgevine to enlist a number of Europeans and
Manilamen, and had promised these leaders a large sum
if they would retake Sungkiang, a city eighteen miles
distant from Shanghai on the river Whampoa.

Of Burgevine I shall speak afterwards. Ward was
born about 1828, at Salem in Massachusetts, and was a
man of courage and ability. Probably from poverty he
was unable, when a youth, to gratify his desire of study-
ing at West Point; but his mind seems always to have
been occupied with military matters as affording his
proper and destined sphere in life. Like not a few of
his countrymen, he combined the life of an adventurer
with that of a sailor, and had seen a good deal of the
world before he came to China. In Central America he
had been engaged in filibustering under that celebrated
chief of filibusters, General William Walker; at Tuhu-
antepic he had been unsuccessfully engaged in trying to
found a colony from the United States ; and at one time
in Mexico he had been on the point of taking military
service under President Alvarez. Ward seems to have
turned up in Shanghai some time in 1859; and his first
operation, the attack upon Sungkiang, with about 100
Foreigners, mostly seafaring men, under his command,
took place in July 1860, and resulted in a repulse with
some loss. He persevered, however, in his design ; and,
having augmented his force by a company of Manilamen,
lay concealed during the day, and contrived to seize a
gate of the city just at sunset, repulsing all the Rebel
attacks till next morning, when the native Imperialist
troops coming up, were enabled to drive out the Tai-
pings. Ward then received the ransom of the city, and
Ta Kee and the other patriotic merchants were promoted
64 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION.

in rank. The success of this affair, together with the
high pay of 100 dollars per mensem, attracted more men
to the banner of the Salem adventurer, who, being
offered a further reward if he would take Singpoo, at-
tempted to do so with 280 followers of his own, and
two six-pounder guns; but in conjunction with 10,000
Chinese troops under General Li Adong, and about 200
small Chinese gunboats. The Tai-pings, however, by
this time had begun to see the benefit of employing
Europeans, and at Singpoo, among others, they had an
Englishman of the name of Savage who had formerly
been a pilot. The consequence was that when Ward
attacked the city on the night of the 2d August and
succeeded in getting on the wall, his force was driven
back with very great loss, and he himself was severely
wounded in the jaw. Being an irrepressible sort of ele-
ment, however, he went to Shanghai, and, despite his
wound, immediately returned to Singpoo with two eigh-
teen-pounder guns, and 100 fresh men, mostly Greeks
and Italians. But this did not avail much; for the
Faithful King came down to the rescue of the city, sur-
prised and outflanked Ward, took his guns, boats, and a
good many muskets, and drove him back to Sungkiang.
This latter place the Tai-ping chief soon attempted to
take by storm, but there he was repulsed, and in the
attempt Savage received a wound, from the effects of
which he soon after died at Nanking,

On the 16th of August the Faithful King advanced
upon Shanghai, leaving Sungkiang invested in his rear,
and accompanied by the Shield King, whose knowledge
of Foreigners was expected to be useful. Chung Wang
immediately sent in a proclamation to the consuls, ex-
plaining the accidental slaughter of a French priest on
the previous day, and telling them that he was about to
TAI-PING ATTACK ON SHANGHAI. 65

attack Shanghai, but that Foreigners would not be mo-
lested if they remained in their houses. No answer was
sent to this communication; but the Tai-pings must have
been aware of the proclamations which had been issued
by the French and English authorities, and they had
been warned shortly before by the Rev. Mr Edkins, and
other missionaries, that the Allies would defend the city
against them.

On the 18th August the Faithful advanced, burn-
ing everything before him, on a very wide front. He
passed through the Jesuit establishment at Sikawai,
where several Roman Catholic converts and another
French priest were killed; then he attacked the Im-
perialists, who were intrenched about a mile from the
west gate of Shanghai, occupied their camps, and drove
them into the city. The Tai-pings then made an at-
tempt to enter the gates along with these fugitives ; but
the walls were manned by French and British troops,
who drove them back with great loss. A skirmishing
fire was kept up on the walls; and the Rebels, along
with whom were several Europeans, one of whom was
killed, also tried to advance under cover of the Imperial
flags which they had captured in the stockades. Next
day the Faithful King resumed his attack, in expectation
of a rising among the Cantonese and Chinchew men, who
were very numerous in Shanghai, and who were only de-
terred from revolt by the force of the Allies. In one of
the suburbs they did indeed break out, and commenced.
plundering and massacring the more respectable Chinese;
and before that could be put a stop to, the greater part
of this wealthy suburb was destroyed by fire, causing
great distress among the people. On the next day,
the Chung Wang again renewed his attack, and directed
his efforts specially against the British settlement ; but

E
66 REVIVAL OF THE REBELLION,

he was easily repulsed, and, giving up the futile attempt,
fell back with his troops on Sikawai. In his own ac-
count of this affair he says that he was induced to go
to Shanghai “by some Barbarians residing there ;” and,
in a communication which he sent in to the Foreign
authorities on the 21st August, he expressly accuses
the French of having deceived him. This is rather
curious, and is not quite explained away by the Hon.
Mr Bruce when he remarks, in his despatch of the 4th
September 1860, that the French were of all Foreigners
the least likely to have made any advances to the Tai-
pings. It is well known that the Roman Catholic priest-
hood in China—a very powerful body, with a system of
underground communication all over the empire—were
bitterly hostile to the Rebellion, and it is not at all un-
likely that some of their agents may have been employed
in luring the Chung Wang on to his injury by false
representations of the ease and safety with which Shang-
hai might be occupied. Another curious point is, that
in his sketch the Faithful King asserts he had prepared
for a march into Shanghai, and arrangements had been
made there for his reception ; but a storm of wind and
rain arose, which rendered the ground so slippery that
neither man nor horse could obtain firm footing, and so
the Foreign Devils who came out to meet him had to re-
turn without him. This is not like pure invention, and
there was such a storm a day or two before the at-
tack of the 18th August; Mr Bruce also acknowledges
that the Rebel attack “took us by surprise ;” so that it is
far from impossible that the wealthy city of Shanghai
had a narrower escape from Tai-ping occupation than it
was, or is even yet, aware of.

Having inflicted an immense amount of injury upon
the peasantry, the Rebels retreated on the 22d of August,
RETREAT FROM SHANGHAI. 67

and left the vicinity of Shanghai. Passing Sungkiang,
which was held by Ward and his contingent, they cap-
tured Pinghoo and Kashing hien,* which caused the Im-
perialist general, Chang Yu-liang, to raise the siege of
Kashing fu, which he was again attacking. By the cap-
ture of Shemen they managed to get in between Chang
and that portion of his force which was stockaded near
Kashing fu, and so to cut the latter off from Hangchow,
compelling it to surrender, and the general to retreat
upon Hangchow. Most of the troops thus taken in Sep-
tember joined the ranks of the Rebels. The Faithful
King then proceeded to Soochow, where the distress
of the people from famine was very great. It is to his
credit that he endeavoured in every way to relieve them,
and was so far successful that they erected to him an
ornamental arch—a tribute of gratitude which caused
them considerable trouble, when, afterwards, the city
was recovered by the Imperialists, by whom it was

pulled down.

* “Hien” thus used indicates the chief city of a district, and “fu” that
of a department.
CHAPTER. Ve

TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY,
AND A CHANGE OF POLICY AT PEKING,

THE TIEN WANG’S INDIFFERENCE —TAI-PING PLANS IN 1860—
FOUR ARMIES SET IN MOTION—BRITISH AGREEMENT WITH THE
REBELS—NEUTRALITY STRICTLY ENFORCED—ARREST OF WARD—
FAILURE OF THE REBEL MOVEMENTS—SUCCESS OF THE TAI-PINGS
IN CHEKIANG—REASONS FOR KEEPING THEM FROM SHANGHAI AND
NINGPO—DEATH OF THE EMPEROR HIEN-FUNG—PRINCE KUNG'S
COUP D’ETAT.

TuE redoubtable Tseng Kwo-fan, at this time War Com-
missioner against the Rebels, was now pressing the siege
of Nganking ; and the Heavenly Prince, being apprehen-
sive for its safety, ordered the Faithful King to return
to Nanking, in order to oppose the Imperialists on the
Yangtsze. Accordingly the latter left Soochow in charge
of Chen Kuan-shu, who was afterwards called the Hu
Wang, or Protecting King, but was better known by
the name of “ Cockeye,”* one of his optics having been
injured by the explosion of a percussion-cap. On the
arrival of the Faithful King at the capital, he assembled
the various chiefs, and, following Dugald Dalgetty’s
principles, recommended them to procure provisions s0

* Though “Cockeye” is an English slang word, it is well known and
often used by the Cantonese, Foreigners in the south having for long been
in the habit of applying it to Chinamen, and Chinawomen also, who have
certain peculiarities about their eyes.
cee if ees —>.—.— Chung Wang march in I860O for relick of Nanking. o|.
— Chung Wang march in 1862 for capture of Hankow. Sinyang
—ling Wang march in I862 for capture of Hankow.

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THE TAI-PING PLANS IN 1860. 69

long as the city was open, and not to retain money in
their hands, as that would be useless during a siege.
Upon his urging the same advice on Hung Sew-tsuen,
that Heavenly Prince only answered characteristically,
“Are you afraid of Death? I, the truly-appointed
Lord, can, without the aid of troops, command Great
Peace to spread its sway over the whole region.” What
could Chung Wang say to this? as he himself patheti-
cally inquires. All he could do was to breathe a sigh,
and move away with a body of troops in order to raise
the siege of Nganking, that place being, in fact, the key of
the whole Rebel position in the valley of the Yangtsze.
The whole of the chiefs being assembled at Nanking
in October 1860, it was resolved that the great objects
of the coming year should be the capture of Hankow
and the raising of the siege of Nganking; and to effect
these four armies were to be put in motion. The first
army, under the Ying Wang, or the Four-eyed Dog, was
to move from Tongching to Hwangchow, along the north
bank of the Yangtsze, in rear of the covering force of
Imperialists engaged at Nganking, and thence on to
the east of Hankow. The second, under the Tu Wang,
was to cross from the north to the south bank of the
Yangtsze, in order to attack Hokeou at the entrance of
the Poyang Lake, and from thence to ascend the river on
Hankow. Another division, under the Attendant King,
was also to march on the Poyang Lake, and thence by
Nanchang, the capital of Kiangsi, on to Woochang, the
city vis-a-vis to Hankow, on the southern bank of the
Yangtsze. The fourth army, under the Faithful King
himself, was to march south of the Poyang Lake to
Yotehow on the Tungting Lake, and from thence to
descend the great river to Hanyang, which is only
separated from Hankow by the river Han. All these
70 TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY.

forces were to move so as to be at or near their common
object in March or April. At the sam® time arrange-
ments were made for the Rebels at Soochow to move
down on the cities of Chapu and Haiyuen, while the
Nienfei (who, without subscribing to the tenets of the
Great Peace, fought on the side of the Tai-pings when it
suited them) were to make a raid from Tongyan against.
Yangchow, Kwachow, and Chinkiang. The Imperialists,
on the other hand, were thus placed :—Tseng Kwo-sun
was besieging Nganking; General Paou Chiaou and
his forces were near Hangchow; Tseng Kwo-fan, the Gov-
ernor-General, was at Kimen in order to prevent any
advance on Kiangsi; and Chang Yu-liang was at Hang-
chow. The intended route of the Faithful King was
somewhat disturbed by General Paou, who defeated him
at Yuhain and compelled him to move into Chekiang.
In the neighbourhood of Shanghai the Rebels were pretty
-quiet about this period, but they made one or two raids
against Woosung in October, and ravaged the country,
inflicting great misery on the people, and filling Shanghai
with fugitives, the latter fact affording evidence of the
terror which they inspired.

The war with the Imperialists in the north being now
ended, Admiral Sir James Hope, our naval commander-
in-chief, was able to turn his attention to the Tai-ping
question—to its effect on our trade and on our possession
_ of Shanghai. It was also necessary to visit the ports on
the Yangtsze which had been opened to trade by the
_ new treaty; so the Admiral started up the river in
February of 1861; and, passing Chinkiang, which was
in a most ruinous state, anchored at Nanking. Here
he entered into correspondence with the Tien Wang
on the opening of trade in the Yangtsze, on the neces-
sity of the Tai-pings being forbidden to interfere with
BRITISH AGREEMENT WITH, THE REBELS. 71

Shanghai, and on orders being given that they should
not approach within 100 Jz, or 30 miles, of it; that dis-
tance being supposed sufficient to secure it against any
sudden attack. In answer to these demands the Tien
Wang agreed to leave Shanghai unmolested for a year,
and issued some regulations in regard to the ports on
the river and its navigation. Sir J. Hope then pro-
ceeded up to Nganking, which was closely besieged by
the Imperialists, Kiukiang, which was in ruins, and
Hankow, establishing consulates at the two last ports.
The Rebels at this time occupied the river from their
Heavenly Capital to Wuhu, including the East and West
Pillars. The accounts of the various officers and gentle-
men who went up on this expedition agree in describ-
ing the Tai-ping cities and districts as having been in a
state of great desolation, while the people who were
left were in the utmost misery. On the other hand, in
places which had been retaken by the Imperialists, con-
fidence had returned; the people were crowding back
to their ruined homes, and trade and new houses were
springing up.

Meanwhile at Shanghai Ward and Burgevine began ;
again to make themselves felt, again collecting men
for a third attempt on Singpoo, where they had been
defeated by the Faithful King in 1860. In March and
April 1861 Ward had collected a number of Foreigners
and sent them up from Sungkiang to Burgevine, who was
intrenched with some Imperialists near Singpoo; but
the consuls and admirals were so desirous to avoid any
unnecessary embroilment with the Tai-pings, that they
arrested Ward and some of his men on the 19th May,
and took him to Shanghai, where he was tried as an
American citizen illegally engaged in operations of war,
but avoided jurisdiction by disowning his country and
72 TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY.

claiming Chinese nationality. It was arranged, however,
that Ward should not then make any ‘nore attempts
to enlist Europeans and Americans on the side of the
Imperialists ; and about the same time the Tien Wang,
on demand, delivered up to Admiral Hope a number
of Foreigners, some of whom were deserters from the
royal navy, who had taken service with the Tai-pings,
from whom they got no pay, but plenty of spirits and
full permission to plunder. Thus we see that at this
period a sincere attempt was made by the Foreign
authorities to carry out a policy of complete non-inter-

vention, and it was only after-events which necessitated
a departure from it.

It is now expedient to turn to the movements of the
Rebels in the beginning of 1861, when their various
armies were put in movement for the capture of Hankow,
the bold conception of the Chung Wang, who to attain
this end undertook a march of not less than 500 miles.
In January 1861 this chief left Shangchow, and marched
without opposition through Yuchan, Quangsin, to Kian-
chang, which he found held by Imperialists, and which
he failed to take, though he captured a force that was
coming to its relief. He then pushed on to the banks of
the river Kan, which runs into the Poyang Lake, but
was there delayed for some time, the stream being swollen
by melting snows. On crossing, he drove off the local
militia, and, marching on, placed his troops in April in
Ngan and Ouhning; so as.far as his column was con-
cerned it had done its part, though his failure to take
Kianchang had rendered his return precarious in the
event of anything unfortunate happening to the other
Rebel armies advancing on Hankow. The Ying Wang,
or Heroic King, advancing on his shorter line, captured
Yochan and Yinchan early in March, and then attack-
FAILURE OF THE TAI-PING MOVEMENTS. 73

ing a-camp of Amoor Tartars with great success, took
all their horses. Hwangchow, a city only 50 miles from
Hankow, was taken by him by surprise on the 18th
March 1861, by which time he had marched a force of
nearly 80,000 men 200 miles in eleven days, and had
quite outflanked the Imperialists at Loosong. The
column under the Assistant King, however, was not so
lucky, being defeated in April at Loping, with the loss
of 10,000. The Tu Wang also was checked ; for after
crossing the Yangtsze at the Pillars, he was met by one
of Tseng Kwo-fan’s generals, and completely defeated,
while another portion of his army was overthrown by
the Governor-General himself. When the Faithful King
heard of these failures he had himself got into difficulties,
for the Imperialist general, Paou, was following him up
with a large force, the Governor of Hankow had de-
spatched another to check his advance, and the people
were pillaging his convoys, so he determined to turn on
his tracks. before it was too late; and after some narrow
escapes, and a march of more than 800 miles, reached
Quangsin in September 1861. The Heroic King, find-
ing his colleagues did not approach, had also to fall back;
and thus ended the grand scheme for relieving Nganking
by an attack on Hankow.

Paou Chiaou followed up the Faithful King some
distance, and received the Yellow Jacket from the Em-
peror for his services, which had saved Hankow. After
retreating to Tongching the Heroic King again at-
tempted to relieve Nganking, but his troops were sadly
in want of provisions, while those of his opponent, the
Governor-General, were well supplied, and assisted by a
fleet of gunboats; and about this time General Ching
(afterwards associated with the Ever-Victorious Army),
a Rebel chief of some eminence, high in favour with the
74. TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY.

Ying Wang, went over to the Imperialists from Ngan-
king, giving up a most important post® In November
1861 Nganking fell, after having been defended heroically
for three years by Yeh Yun-lai. On entering, the people
were found dead in the streets by hundreds. They had
been reduced to the last’ extremity ; for human flesh
had been sold as their food at 40 cash per catty, or one
penny per pound ; and it is worthy of note that, almost
at the same time, the Imperialists besieged in Hangchow
were reduced to the same dreadful extremity.

As to the movements of the Nienfei, and of the Tai-
pings, from Soochow towards Chapu, of which mention
has been made, it is sufficient to note that the former
failed, while the latter did capture Chapu, and killed the
Tartar garrison; but were told by Captain Roderick
Dew, of H.M.S. Encounter, who was sent to warn them,
that they were not to attack the consular port of Ningpo,
to which they assented. They afterwards pushed on,
and captured Haiyuen. The Faithful King, for his part,
finding it impossible to relieve Nganking, determined
on an invasion of the province of Chekiang, where he
captured several towns, and, dividing his force, placed a
portion of it under the She Wang. After this he con-
tinued to advance, and captured Oukiang and Tezin, north
of Hangchow, and besieged Wochow, which is to the
south of the Taiho Lake. Another portion of his army
proceeded to the south of Hangchow. In fact, every
place in the vicinity of the latter city was conquered by
the Tai-pings except Ningpo, which was threatened by
the She Wang, and protected chiefly by a British naval
force.

It seems quite obvious that at this period the Tai-
pings were in distressed circumstances, and were being
driven by the Imperialists out of the valley of the
ADVANCE ON THE SEABOARD. 75.

Yangtsze, down upon the seaboard lying between Shang-
hai and Ningpo. The fall of Nanking seemed only a
question of time, and the Imperialist theory of sweeping
them into the sea had about it some appearance of feasi-
bility. But then, on the other hand, had they been per-
mitted to take possession of Shanghai and Ningpo, their
cause would, in all probability, have gained a new lease
of life, and caused not only China, but also Foreigners
in China, a great deal of trouble for a much longer
period than that which actually served for its final ex-
tinction. Had the Tai-pings been allowed to take Shang-
hai and Ningpo, they would not only have been able to
secure European arms and ammunition to an extent
before impracticable, but might also have largely rein-
forced their strength from the hardy maritime popula-
tion of China. It would have been difficult also, in such
circumstances, to prevent European and American ad-
venturers from taking service with them ; and, once in
occupation of the cities at these consular ports, the Tai-
pings, in the event of any collision with the Foreign
authorities, would have held the residents in their power,
and would have been almost certain to apply to them
also the system of cruel intimidation which had been
continually practised throughout the Tien Wang’s exter-
minating career. This would, of course, have directed
the arms of Foreign powers against the ruthless sectaries
of the Great Peace, but only after a most lamentable loss
of life and bloodshed had occurred. Tai-ping sym-
pathisers have naturally felt and expressed themselves
very bitterly about this matter of our defending Shang-
hai and Ningpo, because it led to events which were
speedily very disastrous to the Rebel cause ; but in their
zeal for the Tien Wang’s Christianity and their grief at
having lost a grand opportunity for making fortunes by
76 TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY.

the sale of bad firearms, they quite ignore not only the
necessity which the right of self-protection imposed upon
us, but also the fact that it was the distress of Tai-ping-
dom which drove it into the neighbourhood of the Foreign
settlements. It had the remainder of all the vast empire
of China in which to beat the Imperialists, nor up to this
period had the latter availed themselves of Foreign arms
any more than the Rebels had done. Abhorred wherever
they had been, defeated, and being slowly hemmed in
on every side, the Tai-pings in their later victories had
shown only the delusive success of despair. The Foreign
authorities had to determine whether that despair was
to end amid the plunder and burning of Shanghai and
the massacre of those they were bound to protect, or
in its congenial home amid the desolation and ruins of
Nanking.

About this time some events occurred at Peking which
had a not unimportant bearing on the future of China
and of Tai-pingdom. On the 21st August the Emperor
Hien-fung died at the Jehol, his hunting-seat in Tartary,
in the 26th year of his age and the 11th of his reign.
Unequal to the difficulties of a transition period, he had,
like many other rulers similarly placed, sought consola-
tion in sensual indulgences, and had allowed himself to
be led by unworthy favourites. At last, as the decree
announcing his death stated, “his malady attacked him
with increasing violence, bringing him to the last ex-
tremity, and on the 17th day of the moon he sped up-
wards upon the dragon to be a guest on high. We tore
the earth and cried to heaven, yet reached we not to him
with our hands or voices.” When the mortal shell of
this frail and unfortunate monarch was laid in its “ cedar
palace,” his spirit ascending on the dragon would have
many strange things to tell to the older Emperors of his
DEATH OF THE EMPEROR HIEN-FUNG. "7

line. He would have to speak of trouble, rebellion, and
change through all the years of his reign, over all the
vast plains of the Celestial Empire, from the guttural-
voiced tribes of Mongolia and the blue-capped Moham-
medans of Shensi, down to the innumerable pirates of
Kwangtung; he might complain that, east and west,
north and south, his people had been disobedient and
rebellious ; the administration of his empire had been
set at defiance, and his sacred decrees had been imper-
fectly carried out by weak and corrupt viceroys, much
more intent upon their own aggrandisement than upon
the welfare of the people. Year after year great bands
of marauding rebels had moved across the once happy
Flowery Land, marking their progress in the darkness
of night by the glare of burning villages, or shadowing
it in the day by the rolling smoke of consuming towns.
A maniac usurper had not only sought to ascend the
dragon throne, but had nearly done so, and had claimed
divine honours ; while invading armies of the outside
barbarian had humiliated the empire, had visited the
once inviolate city of Peking, and had burned the palace
of the Son of Heaven.

But we, who now know more of the meaning of these
events which caused the Emperor Hien-fung so much
distraction, can see that they were the necessary accom-
paniments of a period of extraordinary, of quickening,
strengthening, and, it may be hoped, purifying change.
Even the death of the Emperor was a signal for a great
advance. The regency appointed to take care of the
new boy-emperor consisted of Su Shu-en and the Princes
of I and Ching, members of the extreme anti-Foreign
party, and men who had been responsible for the cruel
murders of Captain Brabazon, Mr Bowlby, and others,
taken under a flag of truce in 1860. The Supreme
78 TAI-PING REVERSES IN THE YANGTSZE VALLEY.

Council was opposed to carrying out the gistasteful con-
ditions of the Treaty of Tientsin, and of the Convention
of Peking. Prince Sankolinsin still held by the delusion
that he would in time be able to resist Foreign demands
at the point of the sword or the mouth of the cannon;
and when a brother of the late Emperor, the more en-
lightened Prince of Kung, who had signed the Conven-
tion of Peking, was invited to the Jehol, there was no
very sanguine expectation that he would ever come back
alive, or that the invitation meant anything more than
the permission, politely granted to erring members of
the Imperial family, of despatching himself in private
by swallowing gold-leaf, or by strangulating himself
with a silken cord. Fortunately, however, as it turned
out, the disposition of events was to a great extent in
the hands of a woman of intelligence and strength of
character. The. Dowager Empress of China was the
head of the regency ; and she had wisdom enough to
perceive that the Prince of Kung understood the inte-
rests of the country better than did her late lord’s ad-
visers, and was the statesman for the situation. So
when every one expected to hear of his self-extinction,
he suddenly reappeared in Peking; and though he said
nothing, so far as has transpired, yet there was sufficient
evidence in his countenance that he felt satisfied and
secure. The result was that the entry of the youthful
Emperor into Peking was accompanied by the Prince of
Kung’s famous coup détat of the 2d Nov. 1861, which
overthrew the anti-Foreign party at the capital, and led
to the execution of its leaders a few days after.* This
event consolidated friendly relationships between the
Foreign Ministers and the Imperial Government; it
gave an important impetus to the policy of strengthen-
* See Dr Rennie’s‘ Peking and the Pekingese,’ vol. ii. chap. v.
PRINCE KUNG’S COUP D’ETAT. 79

ing the hands of that Government ; and it gave security
for a healthier and more reasonable central power in
China than had existed for a long period. Many things,
as we see, were thus working together for the destruc-
tion of Tai-pingdom, and for the restoration of the

Celestial Empire to a state of comparative order and
peace.
CHAPTER. V1.

ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI IN 1862,

THE TAI-PINGS WORSTED WITHOUT OUR AID— THEIR SECOND AD-
VANCE ON SHANGHAI—THE COUNTRY PEOPLE APPLY FOR PRO-
TECTION AGAINST THEM -—THE ALLIES RESOLVE TO CLEAR A
THIRTY-MILE RADIUS—-THE TAKING OF KADING, ETC.—DEATH OF
ADMIRAL PROTET—THE FAITHFUL KING RETRIEVES THE REBEL
CAUSE—FORRESTER’S CAPTIVITY—THE END OF THE HEROIC KING
— THE FAITHFUL KING RECALLED TO NANKING— THE ALLIES
CONFINE THEMSELVES TO SHANGHAI AND SUNGKIANG — RECEP-
TION OF THE NEWS OF WARD’S DEATH—HIS BURIAL— BURGE-
VINE APPOINTED IN HIS PLACE—LI MADE FUTAI OF KIANGSOO—
THEIR QUARREL—GENERAL STAVELEY ASKED TO APPOINT A BRIT-
ISH OFFICER—BURGEVINE ASSAULTS TA KEE—HIS DISMISSAL—
CAPTAIN HOLLAND APPOINTED TO COMMAND THE EVER-VICTORI-
OUS ARMY BY GENERAL SIR CHARLES STAVELEY,

As I have mentioned, it had been arranged between the
Tien Wang and the British authorities at Shanghai, that
in the year 1861 they were to observe strict peace to-
wards each other; and this arrangement was kept on
both sides. It is of great importance to bear this fact
in mind, because that year was a most critical one with
the Rebels. In it they put forth all their power in order
to take Hankow and re-establish themselves in the
Yangtsze valley. When people say that the Tai-pings
were overthrown by British arms, they leave this fact
out of view. In the very turning-point of their later
SECOND ADVANCE ON SHANGHAI. 81

history, the Rebels were allowed to fight the Imperialists
without any interference on the part of Foreigners, and
got by far the worst of it, though at that time the Im-
perial Government underwent an internal revolution,
and had just had its prestige seriously injured by the
advance of the Allies to Peking. The fighting which
afterwards took place between Colonel Gordon and the
Tai-pings in the neighbourhood of Shanghai, was not
rendered necessary by any success of their cause so
much as by the fact that the complete manner in
which Tseng Kwo-fan had defeated the Rebels in the
Yangtsze valley, forced them down again into the
neighbourhood of the Consular ports of Shanghai and
Ningpo.

Our interference with the Tai-pings at these ports was
at first entirely in defence of our own settlements. In
the end of 1861, when Sir James Hope, the Admiral
commanding her Majesty’s naval forces in China, went
up to Nanking, in consequence of rumours that the
Faithful King was about to attack Shanghai, and warned
the Tien Wang against such a proceeding, he was an-
swered impertinently, and was told whenever the year
of truce had drawn to a close the Divine troops would
certainly make such an attack. Accordingly, on the 11th
January 1862, the Faithful King went down to Soo-
chow, and after reducing the taxes there and alleviating
the distress of the people, who had suffered much from
the cruel misrule of the Hu Wang, or Protecting King,
he put his forces in motion against Shanghai, capturing
various towns on the way, and ravaging the country.
In the proclamations which he issued he said that
“Shanghai was a little place,” and added, “We have
nothing to fear from it; we must take it to complete
our dominions.” As he advanced, the horizon round the

F
82 ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862.

Consular city was obscured for days by the smoke of
burning villages, and thousands on thouSands of fugi-
tives poured into the Foreign settlements, many of them
having been plunged from a prosperous condition into
utter want and misery in the depth of a severe winter.
This caused the Foreign community to enrol themselves
into a volunteer force for the purpose of defending the
city, and they and the Chinese merchants emulated with
each other in relieving the distress of the fugitives. The
Rebels having got down into the Pootung peninsula to
the south of Shanghai, the people there petitioned the
Consuls for protection in a most imploring manner, and
this Admiral Hope and the French Admiral Protet were
the more ready to grant because the Tai-pings had fired
upon some boats under the protection of their men-of-
war anchored at Woosung.

At this time General Ward had a drilled force of
nearly 1000 Chinese at Sungkiang, with which the
Admirals determined to act in concert; and by -their
combined forces, Kajow, the Rebel headquarters in the
south of the peninsula, was taken on the 21st February.
Several other places were also released; and both Sir
John Michel, commanding her Majesty’s troops in
China, and Admiral Hope, having reported favourably
on Ward’s force, the merits of the “ Ever-Victorious
Army,” as this infant force was now called, were very
handsomely acknowledged in an Imperial decree of the
16th March 1862, and 9000 Imperial troops were
ordered down to its assistance from Nganking. At this
time, Sir John Michel having returned home, Brigadier-
General C. W. Staveley, C.B., assumed command of her
Majesty’s forces in China, and determined to continue
the operations against the Rebels, having just had an
opportunity at Peking of consulting with the British
THE THIRTY-MILE RADIUS. 83

Minister and with Prince Kung upon the subject. Both
he and Admiral Hope, who first made the suggestion,
judged that the safety of Shanghai could only be secured
by clearing the country round from Rebels within a
radius of thirty miles; and this conclusion received the
warm support of the mercantile community, with the
insignificant exception of some small traders who were
making a large profit by illegally selling arms to the
Rebels. Had the Tai-pings been allowed to enter the
native city, the inhabitants would have crowded into
the Foreign settlement, which would thus have been
rendered powerless to protect itself from rapine and
murder. When it was once resolved to defend the place
both native and foreign, it was only reasonable that care
should be taken to provide it with the means of subsist-
ence, by keeping a portion of the surrounding country
free from the devastating hordes of the Rebellion. More-
over, the military authorities were of opinion that it
was necessary to clear the radius in order to efficiently
protect the city. This arrangement soon afterwards
received the approval of Sir Frederick Bruce, on condi-
tion that the Imperial authorities should hold the places
taken by the Allies.

On the 4th April the two Admirals and General
Staveley, with their forces, took Wongkadza, which
was strongly intrenched, the Rebels falling back on
another series of stockades five miles further inland.
Ward, with 500 of his disciplined Chinese, and accom-
panied by Admiral Hope, attempted to take this second
position, but was repulsed, seven of his officers being
wounded, and the Admiral receiving a ball in the leg.
Next day, however, the place was attacked by a com-
bined French and English force of about 700 seamen
and marines, under Protet and Captain Borlase, R.N.,
84. ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862.

assisted by Ward and 1000 of his men, wen the Rebels
retreated, and were pursued for some distance. A fort-
night after, Tsipoo, about twelve miles above Shanghai,
on the right bank of the Wompoa river, was taken by
the Allies, and 300 Rebels were killed. In order to
illustrate the serious character of Colonel Gordon’s after
- operations, it is well to note that Naizean and Kading,
the next places taken by the Allies (on the 27th April
and Ist May), had operating against them a force under
General Staveley, composed of a wing of H.M. 31st
Regiment, a wing of the 67th, a company of the 99th,
the 5th Bombay N.I., Bradshaw’s battery of artillery,
300 British sailors and marines, 800 French sailors and
Infanterie de la Marine, and 1000 of Ward’s disciplined
Chinese.

On the 6th May a new expedition started from
Shanghai, of about the same strength, under the two
Admirals and General Staveley, but with 35 guns and
mortars, and took Singpoo, Najow, and Cholin. The
second of these places was stormed by a party of the
31st Regiment, under a heavy fire of gingals and
muskets ; and Admiral Protet, who accompanied them,
was shot dead,* which caused the French seamen and
marines to show no mercy to the defenders.

When Kading was taken, some of the Allied troops
had been left to garrison it, and they were joined by
5000 Imperialists who had come down from Nganking.
These men being much elated by the success which had
attended their arms in the interior, determined to attack
Taitsan, a town twelve miles distant, being urged to do
so by Governor Sieh, who had just learned that he was
to be superseded by Li Hung-chang, and was anxious to:

* An Imperial decree directed high honours to be paid to him, and 100
marten-skins and 4 rolls of Imperial silk to be presented to his friends.
THE ALLIES RETURN TO SHANGHAI, 85

be able to report a victory when giving up office. The
Faithful King, however, was infuriated at this move of
the Imperialists, and went from Soochow to Taitsan with
10,000 of his picked troops. On the 15th May there
was an indecisive engagement; next morning 2000 of
his men shaved their heads, pretending to join the Im-
perialists ; and the King, moving round so as to intercept
their retreat, attacked the latter, when the pretended
Imperialists fought on his side, and the result was a
most disastrous defeat, scarcely 2000 out of 7000 men
returning to Kading. This affair, and the manner in
which the Chung Wang began to follow up his success,
induced the Allies to return to Shanghai.

When the latter found that the Imperialists were
unable to hold the cities taken from the Rebels, they
evacuated Kading after a good deal of skirmishing, and
confined themselves to Shanghai and its more immediate
neighbourhood. Elated by his success, the Faithful
King sent out marauding parties nearly to the walls of
that city, and invested Singpoo and Sungkiang, which
were held by Ward’s force. At the latter place a party
of British seamen under Lieutenant Stephens, R.N., were
introduced to assist the garrison, and fortunately in time
to resist an attack made by the Rebels to scale the walls.
During the engagements at this time it was seen that the
Tai-pings had been well supplied with arms by Foreign
traders, for nearly a third of them had muskets. The
great heat of the weather had also some effect in in-
ducing the Allied Commanders to retain their troops
for the most part at the Consular port.

The garrison at Singpoo, commanded by Colonel For-
rester, was soon closely invested by the Rebels, who
sent in a letter offering to allow the “Strange Devils
and Foreign Demons” to escape by the south gate and

°
86 ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862.

return to their own country. Though the disciplined
Chinese under Forrester made many sorties against the
Rebel works, yet their position soon became desperate,
as their numbers decreased and they had fewer men to
guard the walls, which were three miles in extent, and
were liable to be escaladed at any point. Accordingly,
on the 10th June, 200 men of the 31st Regiment under
Colonel Spence, the naval brigade under Admiral Hope,
and Ward himself with two steamers and some of his
men, went up to relieve Singpoo and withdraw its gar-
rison. Unfortunately, when evacuating this city, Ward
ordered it to be set on fire, which betrayed his intention,
and caused a great deal of confusion. The Rebels en-
tered before the garrison had left, and taking Colonel
Forrester prisoner, drove out his force with considerable
loss, pursuing them to the spot where Admiral Hope had
halted with his naval brigade. It was a disastrous re-
treat, for the bridges over the innumerable creeks which
intersect the country having been previously broken
down, many of the retreating forces were drowned.

It was feared that Colonel Forrester, who had thus
been taken, would be tortured to death, but he turned
up some time after in exchange for a ransom of powder
and muskets. On being seized by the Tai-pings, his
hands and feet were bound, and he was kept in prison
without food till next morning, when he was taken be-
fore a Chief, who ordered him to be tortured, and then
decapitated. A young Tai-ping leader, however, who
admired the Foreign Devil’s courageous bearing, inter-
fered, and the sentence was not carried out. After being
kept in prison for some weeks in a state of semi-starva-
tion, he was stripped naked, was loaded like a donkey,
and in this way had to march for several days to Chapu
under a burning July sun. After that, his hardships
DEATH OF THE FOUR-EYED DOG. 87

ceased ; he was well treated, though closely guarded,
and at last induced his custodians to accept a ransom.
Thus, after two months’ captivity, he returned to his
astonished comrades with only his constitution a little
shaken.

The Faithful King expatiates with considerable plea-
sure in his Autobiography on this victory over the
“False Foreign Devils,’ as Ward’s men were called,
owing to their being dressed in European clothes.
There is no doubt that at this time he might have
endangered the safety of even Shanghai itself, had he
not received intelligence which cut short his career
in that direction, and recalled him to Nanking, which
was again threatened by the Imperialists. It seems
that the Ying Wang, or Four-eyed Dog, fell back on
Tongching after the failure of the various expeditions
to save Nanking, and that he was degraded by the
Tien Wang. After some more reverses, he was deluded
by an ex-Rebel, Miao Pe-ling, a subordinate of the
famous General Shung Pow, to enter a city under the
pretext that it would be surrendered to him; but when
he did so, along with about thirty high Rebel dignitaries
and leaders, the drawbridge was pulled up, and he and
his friends were taken prisoners. The Four-eyed Dog,
who deserved a better fate, was then executed ; but his
captors also came to a violent end, for Miao broke out
again into rebellion in 1863, and was executed, while
Shung Pow was degraded for having recommended him
for service, and for that and other sins was ordered to
commit suicide. The Imperialists had also advanced
down the Yangtsze from Nganking, and in May 1862
had captured the West, and invested the Hast,. Pillar—
two high conical hills ten miles below Wuhu. Tseng
Kwo-tsun, the brother of the Imperialist Generalissimo,
88 ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862,

had also moved down with 40,000 men against Nanking,
had established himself at the south-west of the city, and
had extended his camps from the river to Porcelain Tower
Hill, which was still held by the Rebels, but round which
he had thrown up intrenchments. If we aided the Im-
perialists by defending Shanghai for them, they certainly
aided us effectually by withdrawing the most formidable
general of the Tai-pings, and a great portion of his force,
at this critical moment.

Alarmed at all this, and by the capture of some
other places both above and below his capital, the
Tien Wang ordered the Faithful King to come up to
Nanking directly, and the latter had to do so sorely
against his own judgment. His own notion was to
pour supplies into Nanking sufficient for two years,
and to allow it to be beleaguered by the Imperial-
ists during that period, while he pursued his designs
towards the seaboard. But the Heavenly Monarch sent
a peremptory mandate to him requiring his presence, and
significantly added, “If you do not obey this decree, the
law must inevitably take effect upon you.” He found
things in a bad way, and illustrates the effect of the loss
of Nganking by remarking that when a bamboo is once
split, it splits easily all the way down. Instead of lis-
tening to the wise advice of this loyal adherent, the Tien
Wang accused him of treachery, and overwhelmed him
with abuse. On reaching Nanking, the Faithful King
was ordered to take T'seng Kwo-tsun’s intrenched camps,
which were defended with deep trenches and strong bas-
tions, and with connecting drawbridges, so that a force
could be concentrated at any one point. Many weeks
were wasted in uselessly attacking this position, and his
failure in taking it was punished by severe censure, by
depriving him of his rank as a noble, and by sending
WARD’S DISCIPLINED CHINESE. 89

him in to Nganwhui to join the remnant of the Ying
Wange’s force.

During the heats of this summer the Allied forces
remained quiet at Shanghai, round which works of
defence were completed ; and Admiral Hope and Gen-
eral Staveley went away—the one to Chefoo to recover
from his wound, and the other to Japan to recruit his
impaired health. The only places near Shanghai from
which the Rebels were excluded was Najow, where there
was a garrison of British troops, and Sungkiang, which
was held by Ward, whose force was now 5000 strong,
well armed with percussion muskets, and supported by
artillery. This force was still paid by the Chinese mer-
chants of Shanghai, and was only partially under the
orders of the Governor of the province. By this time
General Ward had a good position with the Chinese
authorities, and could get what money he required
without trouble. His higher officers received £70 per
mensem, his lieutenants £30, and the men rather more
than 1s. 6d. per diem, with free rations when in the
field. The non-commissioned officers and men were all
Chinese, but the other officers were Europeans with the
exception of one Chinaman named Wong Apo.* A thou-
sand of the men were armed with Prussian rifles of the
old pattern, and the Ever-Victorious Army had by this
time assumed, chiefly owing to Ward’s exertions, a
good many of the characteristics of a regular disciplined
force.

On the other side, the recall of the Faithful King
must have discouraged the Tai-pings, so on the 6th of
August Ward ventured out of Sungkiang with nearly
3000 men and retook Singpoo, leaving it to be gar-

* In such names as Apo, Apak, and Atai, the “A” is merely a euphonistic
aspirate, and the Chinese characters represent Po, Pak, and Tai.
90 ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862,

risoned by the Imperialists. This event roused the
Tai-pings at Soochow, and their bands again appeared
in the vicinity of Shanghai, driving the peasantry before
them and cramming that city with fugitives. Some
good service was done in repelling these marauding
bands by the mounted rangers of Shanghai, a volunteer
force composed of the Foreign merchants of that place,
and not a little confused skirmishing took place. Im-
portant events, which are recounted in my next chapter,
had meanwhile been going on at Ningpo, and General
Ward went down in September to that neighbourhood,
where he unfortunately met with his death-wound. In
an attack on Tseki on the 21st of September, he was
shot in the stomach at the moment of attack by a stray
bullet. Being carried back to Ningpo, he survived for
a short time, meeting his fate with much firmness and
composure, and disposing by will of the considerable
fortune which he had acquired during his military
career in China, Ward was a brave, energetic leader,
and managed very well both with his force and with the
Mandarins. When the news of his death reached Sung-
kiang, he was deeply lamented both by his officers and
men, and by the people of the city. When his remains
entered that place for interment, all the shopkeepers at
once shut their shops for the day; several officers of the
British army and navy attended his funeral; the usual
volleys for a general were fired over his grave, and he
was buried in the Confucian University, which the
Chinese considered a great honour, and which place had
been closed for many years until that day in September
1862. Colonel Forrester, Ward’s second in command,
was now offered charge of the Ever-Victorious Army,
but declined, and the command was accepted by the
officer next in rank, Henry Burgevine, a young American
LI BECOMES GOVERNOR OF KIANGSOO. OL

from North Carolina, who, like Ward, had been a sea-
faring man, but from an early period had cherished
vague dreams of founding an empire in the East. Some
weeks elapsed before the new Commander took the field,
and at this time an officer of the Russian Government
came to Shanghai to offer Li Hung-chang, who was
‘now Futai or Governor of the province, the assistance
of 10,000 men. But this offer was calculated to cause
the Chinese alarm rather than gratification, and was
respectfully declined. The new Futai, who had served
long under Tseng Kwo-fan against the Tai-pings,
proved to be a man of much more ability than his
predecessor, and one likely to follow a definite path of
his own.

The country remained quiet till November 1862,
when the Moh Wang, who had made an advance from
Soochow, was attacked on one side by the forces of Li,
on the other by those of Burgevine, and so met with a
severe repulse, in which his son, a young man of distin-
guished bravery, was killed. Before this event there
was some bad feeling between Burgevine and Governor
Li, which was now increased by the latter taking the
credit of this victory to himself. General Ching, an ex-
Rebel chief who fought under the Futai, and was jealous
of the disciplined Chinese, did all he could to ferment
the quarrel, and Burgevine himself increased it by his
peremptory manner, and by rousing suspicions in the
mind of the shrewd Futai as to his ultimate intentions.
There were also reports that Ward, had he lived, had
intended to establish himself as an independent power
in the country, and so the Chinese at this time became
very distrustful of the Ever-Victorious Army, and of its
Commander. One consequence of this was that the
merchants at Shanghai, who had hitherto supported
92 ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862,

the force from dread of the Rebels, were now not dis-
posed to give such large sums for its maintenance as
they had formerly paid. Li became so suspicious of the
new Commander, that on Ist December he went to
General Staveley, begging him to remove Burgevine
and to appoint an English officer in his place. He also
complained much of the enormous expenses of the force’
both under Ward and Burgevine ; of the interference by
the latter with the civil government of Sungkiang ; of
disputes between the disciplined Chinese and the Im-
perialist troops; of the way in which the former plun-
dered the people of the country, and in‘ general of
Burgevine’s independent insulting demeanour. These
complaints of the Chinese were not altogether without
reason, especially as regarded the expenses of the force,
which had amounted to £30,000 per mensem; but
General Staveley had no wish to interfere in the matter,
and stated that he had no power to grant their request,
though he would communicate on the subject with the
Home Government and with the British Minister at
Peking. His own idea was that, if the Chinese Gov-
ernment wished to organise its military forces, it should
be assisted in doing so under proper conditions ; but he
was not prepared to give his support to the Ever-
Victorious Army in its then unsatisfactory state,
officered as it was by a body of men who, however
brave, were not fit representatives of their respective
nations, and who, on any disagreement arising, might
turn against the Chinese Government itself. It occurred
to him, however, that some more satisfactory arrange-
ment might be made for placing the disciplined Chinese
under the joint command of Native and Foreign officers ;
and accordingly he drew up a rough sketch of the
terms on which, if his Government approved, the ser-
BURGEVINE’S QUARREL. 93

vices of a British officer might be obtained for the pur-
pose.*

The quarrel between Burgevine and the Futai soon
came to an issue. For two months the troops had
not been paid regularly, and when 6000 of them
were ordered up to Nanking they refused to proceed
until the arrears were paid. Their Commander also de-
manded that a number of other back claims should be
cleared off before he left. The fact was, that neither the
men nor the officers had much relish for being sent
against the Rebel capital; for the former, being chiefly
natives of the Sungkiang district, were averse, like all
Chinese, to going far from home, while the latter ima-
gined, and not without some reason, that up at Nanking
both their lives and their pay would be very much at
the mercy of the Imperialists. On the other hand, the
Mandarins were glad to make Burgevine feel how much
he was in their power, and they probably expected that
this unpleasant demand might enable them to get rid
of him. Ta Kee, the banker through whose hands the
payments of the force were made, kept back some moneys
which he had promised to advance in the commence-
ment of January, on which Burgevine, accompanied by
his body-guard, paid him a visit at Shanghai, struck him
on the face in the course of the altercation which ensued,
and carried off for the troops a sum of money that he
found conveniently ready in the banker’s house.

Of course Ta Kee reported this affair to the Futai, who
determined to dismiss Burgevine; but being in fear of a
revolt on the part of the Ever-Victorious Army, he went
to General Staveley and the American Consul, and re-
quested they would arrest the Commander. This the
General refused to do, but he informed Burgevine that

* See Appendix IV.
94 ALLIED OPERATIONS ROUND SHANGHAI, 1862.

the Futai had dismissed him, and recommended him to
give up the force quietly, a request which was at once
complied with, and Captain Holland of the Royal Marines,
the Chief of Staveley’s Staff, was left in temporary com-
mand. At the same time the Futai assumed the respon-
sibility of supporting the Sungkiang force, which had
hitherto been paid by the Chinese merchants; and he
quelled a great commotion which arose amongst them
when they heard of the dismissal of their Commander,
by the simple but effectual expedient of paying their
arrears. :

Again General Staveley urged that Colonel Forrester
should be placed in command, so anxious was he to avoid
any appearance of putting the disciplined Chinese exclu-
sively under British management; and it was only on that
officer again refusing that he agreed to place Captain
Holland in temporary command, and to recommend Cap-
tain Gordon of the Royal Engineers as its permanent
Chief, if his Government approved of a British officer
taking such an appointment.
CHAPTER VII.

CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

BRITISH NEUTRALITY AT NINGPO—HOSTILE ATTITUDE OF THE TAI-
PINGS—ADMIRAL HOPE SENDS CAPTAIN DEW, R.N., TO NINGPO—
REASONS FOR OUR INTERFERENCE THERE—APAK, THE EX-PIRATE
—CAPTAIN DEW TAKES NINGPO BY ASSAULT—DEATH OF LIEU-
TENANTS KENNEY AND CORNEWALL—ORDER RESTORED IN THE
CITY—FORMATION OF FRENCH AND ENGLISH CORPS OF DISCIP-
LINED CHINESE—DESCRIPTION OF THE SURROUNDING COUNTRY,
AND EFFECTS OF TAI-PING OCCUPATION—CLEARING A THIRTY-
MILE RADIUS—TAKING OF YUYOW AND TSEKI—DEATH OF GEN-
ERAL WARD—REPULSE AT FUNGWHA—COMMANDER JONES IN A
FIX—A BISHOP’S SPOIL—HALF OF CHEKIANG RESTORED TO IM-
PERIAL RULE—PAY OF THE ANGLO-CHINESE CONTINGENT—REBEL
DEFEAT AT PIKWAN—CAPTAIN DEW GOES BEYOND THE THIRTY-
MILE RADIUS—ADVANCE ON SHOWSHING—DEATH OF CAPTAIN LE
BRETHON DE COLIGNY——DESCRIPTION OF SHOWSHING—-DEATHS
OF CAPTAIN TARDIFF AND LIEUTENANT TINLING—CAPTAIN DEW
UNDERTAKES THE SIEGE—FALL OF SHOWSHING—DASHING NATURE
OF CAPTAIN DEW’S EXPLOITS.

THE operations against the Tai-pings which were carried
on at Ningpo and in its neighbourhood by Captain
Roderick Dew of the Royal Navy afford material for a
very noteworthy chapter in the history of our relations
with China. With very scanty materials, and by as
dashing exploits as the annals of the British navy have
to record, this officer not only drove the Rebels away
96 CAPTAIN DEW'S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

from the port where he was stationed, and had to pro-
tect, but also managed, by assisting in gettfig up a dis-
ciplined Chinese force, and by pushing his expeditions
into the interior, to restore almost the entire province of
Chekiang to Imperialist rule.

For some time previous to his advent on the scene,
the Rebels had had very much their own way in Che-
kiang, but now met there with a severe check from the
hostility, which they wantonly provoked, of the naval
forces of Great Britain and France. This rich province
had been entered in the autumn of 1861 by an army of
100,000 Tai-pings, who established themselves in the
city and at the open port of Ningpo, the city of the
“Peaceful Wave.” Our policy at this place was at first
strictly neutral ; and though Captain Corbett in H.M.S.
Scout was at Ningpo, he had the most positive orders
not to interfere with the Tai-pings unless they insulted
our people or attempted to occupy the Foreign settle-
ment. They took good care, however, to be on their
best behaviour, and remained so till they had exhausted
the supplies of guns, other arms, and ammunition, which
Foreigners of nearly all nations hastened to sell them.
They then began to be insolent, and had a greedy eye
on the Foreign settlement, intending, no doubt, if they
had not been turned out of Ningpo, to have visited the
Kampo (the name of our settlement), and, with their
arms, to have got back the dollars they had bartered for
them. Commander Craigie of H.M.S. Ringdove, senior
officer at Ningpo, writing about the middle of April
to his Admiral, Sir James Hope, informed him of the
hostile and alarming attitude the Tai-pings in Ningpo
were assuming towards Foreigners. His ship, which
Jay at anchor off the British Consulate, and within
pistol-shot of the walls, had been fired on several times
CAUSES OF OUR INTERFERENCE IN CHEKIANG. 97

by the lawless soldiery, and. many Chinese in the British
settlement had been killed by bullets from the city.
Expostulations with the Chiefs having failed to prevent
recurrence of such insults, Admiral Sir J. Hope instruct-
ed Captain Dew to proceed to Ningpo, to use his best
endeavours to bring the Tai-ping Chiefs to reason, and
to warn them that, while on the one hand we had every
wish to remain neutral, such neutrality depended solely
on themselves, and that the Western nations would not
brook insults to their flags and people. On the 24th
April this officer entered the river Yung in the En-
counter, passed the walled city of Chinhai, and, after
steaming six miles, anchored off Ningpo.

No proper apology was offered, and matters were in an
unsatisfactory state, when Captain Dew received intelli-
gence that the late Tautai of Ningpo, Chang, had arrived
with a fleet of war-junks, under the command of one
Apak, formerly a pirate, but who now, with all his fol-
lowers, had received pardon, and had become a good sub-
ject of the Emperor. Commander Kenney, of the French
gunboat Etoile, joined Captain Dew on board the Hardy,
and they visited this Imperial force. The Mandarins
requested assistance in attacking Ningpo, but this was
declined ; at the same time they were informed that if
shots were fired either by them or by the Tai-pings in
the direction of the settlement, the Allies would return
fire. The Imperialist leaders Chang and Apak then
stated that it was their intention to attack Ningpo, but
were requested to delay for forty-eight hours, till Cap-
tain Dew had communicated with the Tai-ping Chiefs,
after which time permission would be granted or refused:
The latter had built a formidable granite battery, armed
with 68-pounders, which both commanded our settle-
ment and the reach of the river up which the Imperial-

G
98 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

ists would have to advance. Moreover, fregh guns had
been mounted in the embrasures opposite the English
vessels, masked in a crafty manner by loose bricks.
Thus it was now quite evident that mischief was in-
tended by the Tai-pings, and that if the Imperialists
advanced, our own ships and the settlement would suffer
from the fire of both parties. Foreseeing this, Captain
Dew wrote a despatch to the Tai-ping Chiefs, in which
he informed them that, if they would remove their guns
form the walls and battery opposite the settlement, he
would guarantee that no attack should be made by the
Imperialists by the river, an offer which was positively
doing the Imperialists an injustice. Captain Dew also
sent a letter to the Tai-ping Chiefs on the 8th May, in
which he said :—

“Encounter, Ninepo, 8th May 1862.—This is to
inform you, on the part of the English and French senior
naval officers, that had you agreed to their demands, and
removed your guns from the battery and walls, they
should have felt bound in honour to have acted up to
their promise, and have prevented an attack from the
river on the settlement side by the Imperialists who now
advance to attack you. We inform you that we wish to
maintain a perfect neutrality; but if you fire guns or
musketry from the battlements or walls opposite our
ships or settlement on the advancing Imperialists, there-
by endangering the lives of our men and people in the
Foreign settlement, we shall then feel it our duty ‘to
return the fire and bombard the city.”

The Imperialists were then informed that they were
at liberty to attack the city, if they did not fire upon the
settlement or the ships in the river, among which were
of English vessels, the Encounter, 14 guns, 175 men,
Captain Dew; Ringdove, 4 guns, 90 men, Captain
CAPTAIN DEW’S CAPTURE OF NINGPO. 99

Craigie; gunboats Kestrel and Hardy, 40 men each,
commanded by Lieutenants Huxham and Bogle ; and of
French (who were placed under Captain Dew’s orders
by Admiral Protet), the Etoile, 1 gun, 30 men, Lieuten-
ant de Vaisseau Kenney; and Confucius, 3 guns, 40
men, Enseigne de Vaisseau Le Brethon de Coligny.

On the morning of the 10th May, Apak’s Imperialist
junks shaved clear of the point below the Foreign vessels,
and a heavy fire was opened on them by the Tai-ping
Point Battery. At the same time a volley of musketry
was poured into H.M.S. Encounter by the Rebels, and
so, in mere self-defence, Captain Dew was forced to take
part in the engagement. A general fire began from
ships and walls. The bastions, guns, and guard-house at
the Salt Gate were soon smashed up by the Moorsom
shells of the Encounter, while the Ringdove silenced the
guns at the North Gate. Lieutenant Bogle, in the gun-
boat Hardy, did good service, steaming up and down
before the walls on the river face, shutting up gun after
gun; and the Etoile, Kestrel, and Confucius were
smashing the Point Battery. Apak and Chang, with
their Imperialist war-junks, let down their anchors at
the first shot, being satisfied with the honour of opening
the ball. As the running spring-tide effectually pre-
vented them coming up the river, the Kestrel was sent
to tow them up; but this aid they steadily declined,
urging paltry excuses, such as having no powder. Cap-
tain Dew felt at this moment in rather a dilemma; he
knew he had no aid to expect from the Imperialists, and
it seemed almost too much to hope for success in an
assault on Ningpo with the two or three hundred men
he could count on, against a garrison of between 20,000
and 30,000, who had been well supplied with arms by
their friends in the Foreign settlement. Experienced,
100 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

however, in Chinese warfare, he thought that Jf he could
once gain and open a gate of the city while the thunder
of his bombardment was still fresh in the enemy’s ears,
he might count on co-operation from Apak and his gang,
and that a panic would ensue among the Tai-pings. On
the other hand, he felt that if he rested content with
what he had done, there was great danger of the Tai-
pings taking heart again, letting loose fire-rafts on his
vessels, and destroying the Foreign settlement.

Having determined to attack, he landed at noon to
collect scaling-ladders from the houses of the mission-
aries, and wrote to Lieutenant Kenney, asking him to
join in an assault on the city, with what men he had
available, at two o’clock. At that hour Dew landed—
leaving his ship in charge of the master and the gunner,
with a crew of cooks, stewards, and boys—taking with
him all his available men, and being joined by about 100
white-turbaned Chinese soldiers. While waiting for
Lieutenant Kenney, who could scarcely stem the tide in
the Etoile, he planted five ladders against the wall of
the city, but sqon found he had committed a grave error,
for the enemy massed themselves in a graveyard beneath
the wall, hove back the ladders with their spears, and
with a storm of stinkpots, fireballs, stones, and bricks,
forced the British sailors on the other side to take shelter
in outhouses, and made the Chinese allies take to the
water. On the French Lieutenant joining him with
twenty men, another attempt was made with the ladders.
Kenney, the first on his, was shot through the lungs ;
David Davis, who was foremost on the next, was shot
through the head as, revolver in mouth, he topped the
wall; and so Captain Dew himself was the first to gain a
position on the rampart, which was soon passed by the
greater part of his force ; and in less than two minutes
DEATH OF LIEUTENANT CORNEWALL. IOI

Lieutenant Tinling and Boatswain Cantlow had a howit-
zer parbuckled up and ready for action.

In this way the Salt Gate was taken, and a few volleys
soon cleared the neighbouring streets; but Fang, the
Tai-ping Chief, soon made a great effort to dislodge the
assailants. Forming his body-guard of about 400 men
at the East Gate, he led them along the wall to the attack,
and they came on at the double, with their yellow tur-
bans, gaudy silk dresses, and banners, their leader being
well in advance. Hastily forming all the men he could
spare, French and English, from the defence of the gate,
Captain Dew advanced at the charge to meet them.
When within about ten yards, Fang fired both barrels of
his double gun, but at that moment the whole parapet
of the wall which divided the two forces fell down, hav-
ing been hit by a lucky Moorsom shell, which was fired
by the crew of cooks and stewards which had been left
on board the Encounter. On the Allies returning to the
gate, a shot came from the houses below which almost
avenged the fall of the city, as the gallant First-Lieuten-
ant of the Encounter, William Cornewall, was pierced by
it through the heart.

Meanwhile Lieutenants Craigie and Siardet had taken
the North Gate, and Lieutenant Bogle cut through the
bridge of boats which had presented an obstacle to vessels
advancing up the river. The news of this success soon
spread over the settlement, reaching Apak and his fol-
lowers, who now, inspired with desire for plunder, did not
wait for tide or powder, but landing, crossed over the
settlement, and seizing boats opposite the city, entered
it like a pack of ravenous wolves. From the mastheads
of the shipping the Tai-pings were seen streaming out
by the West Gate; and so great was the panic that seized
them, that hundreds of their number were speared by
102 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

their own people in their haste to escape. Fearing the
result, if he allowed his men to enter the town and mix
with the Apak crew, Captain Dew re-embarked them
along with the French, making arrangements in case the
Tai-pings attempted to reoccupy the city, but these
latter stopped as little as possible till they found them-
selves within the walls of Yuyow, thirty miles distant.
On the following day the city was handed over,
through Mr Harvey, the British Consul, to Chang, the
ex-Tautai. “I had known,” writes Captain Dew,
“Ningpo in its palmy days, when it boasted itself one
of the first commercial cities of the empire ; but now, on
this 11th May, one might have fancied that an angel of
destruction had been at work in the city as in its suburbs.
All the latter, with their wealthy hongs and thousands
of houses, lay levelled ; while in the city itself, once the
home of half a million of people, no trace or vestige of
an inhabitant could be seen. Truly it was a city of the
dead. The rich and beautiful furniture of the houses had
become firewood, or was removed to the walls for the
use of the soldiers who had dwelt thereon. The canals
were filled with dead bodies and stagnant filth. The
stone-work of bridges and pavements had been uplifted
to strengthen walls and form barricades in the streets;
and in those temples, once the pride of their Buddhist
priests, the chaotic remains of gorgeous idols and war
gods lay strewn about, their lopped limbs showing they
had become the sport of those Christian Tai-pings, whose "
chief, the Tien Wang, eight years before, at Nanking, had
asked Sir George Bonham if the Virgin Mary had a
pretty sister for him, the King of Heaven, to marry! It
has been my good fortune since to assist at the wresting
of many cities from these Tai-pings, and in them all I
found, as at Ningpo, that the same devilish hands had
ORDER RESTORED IN THE CITY. 103

been at work, the people expelled from their houses, and
their cities ruined.”

After Ningpo was thus retaken, Apak, the ex-pirate,
and his fleet were dismissed, and at the urgent request
of Chang, the Imperialist Tautai or Governor, Captain
Dew undertook the military command of the city, in-
cluding the control of 400 of Ward’s disciplined Chinese,
who were sent round from Shanghai, and were placed in
charge of the gates. A proclamation was issued to the
people, inviting them to return to their homes, and
stating that the Allies would guarantee the city against
another visit from the Tai-pings. Such faith had the
Chinese in our promise that by tens of thousands they
flocked to their old homes; and in a month houses had
been refurnished, shops opened, and commercial activity
began to return. Some trouble was caused by a number
of rowdies, the mawvais sujets of all nations, who ap-
peared in the settlement, intent on robbing what little
the Rebels and Apak had left in the city. They were
wont to hire gangs of Chinese, and to declare they acted
on Captain Dew’s authority. In this manner quantities
of rice, valuable medicines, &c. &c., were lowered over
the walls; and a German who was caught in the very
act of carrying off a 24-pounder gun, received four dozen
lashes on board the Encounter. Mr Harvey and the
other Foreign Consuls issued certificates to all Foreigners
pursuing lawful callings; and one night Captain Dew
landed a party of his men and seized all unprovided with
such a document, and sent them to Shanghai. The
Chinese customhouse was opened, and numerous seizures
of arms intended for the Rebels were made. When the
British ship Paragon was visited by a naval officer, the
master declared his cargo to be bamboo wares; but on
opening the hatches, 200 iron cannons, thousands of
104. CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG,

stands of small-arms, and a large quantity of ammuni-
tion, were disclosed. The cargo was confiscated by the
Chinese, and the master was fined £100 for his false
manifesto. The temptation to squeeze the Chinese going
in and out of the city was too great for Ward’s men,
and sometimes for even his officers, to resist ; and at last
French and English men-of-war’s men were placed at
the gates.

These measures had the desired effect, and confidence
was soon restored. It was also arranged with the Man-
darins that a Chinese disciplined force of 1000 men
should be raised for the defence of the city, as it was
intimated that Ward would soon require his men at
Shanghai. There was no difficulty in obtaining recruits
from Chusan in any number. The good treatment of the
men by their European officers, and, above all, the fact
that they really received weekly pay in money, and not,
as frequently from Mandarins, in promises, made the
disciplined force a very popular one. A dozen British
marines were appointed instructors to six companies, and
an artillery company of 100 men was likewise formed.
The artificers of the Encounter, under the gunner and
carpenter, were employed in making gun-carriages and
gun-gear ; and so in a month the city was brought into
a creditable state of defence, with sixty guns of all sizes
in position. Good guard-houses were built at each gate,
and solid granite magazines were also constructed. Lieu-
tenant de Vaisseau Le Brethon succeeded Kenney (who
had died from the effects of his wound) as French senior
officer, cordially aiding Captain Dew in all that con-
cerned the defence of the city, and in subsequent opera-
tions. Not wishing that France should be unfelt, he and
Monsieur Giquel, formerly a French officer, but then
engaged as Commissioner of Chinese Customs, raised a

 
THE NEIGHBOURHOOD OF NINGPO, 105

Franco-Chinese corps, with the aid of some instructors
from Shanghai. Occasional trips were made up both
branches of the river in gunboats; so several skirmishes
occurred with the Rebels, who were concentrated in force
in the walled city of Yuyow, thirty miles from Ningpo
on which they appeared to meditate another attack.

On one occasion, when the Hardy and Etoile were
reconnoitring, a strange deputation of aged persons came
down to the river-bank, headed by a little girl leading a
venerable blind old man. Their story was that the Tai-
pings had the day before burned their village, carried off
their sons and daughters, and because these poor helpless
people had no money to give, the fiends had cut off their
ears. To prevent the Tai-pings ravaging the country
after this fashion, the Ringdove was placed about twenty-
five miles up the river, and she effectually kept them in
check for a time.

Towards the end of July, Captain Dew moved the
Encounter up the river as far as her draught would
allow, within ten miles of Yuyow, under the Joss-house
Hill, and made preparations for attacking the city, which
was held by 20,000 Tai-pings,—his orders being to use
his best exertions in carrying out the policy of the Gov-
ernment in clearing a thirty-mile radius. The attack-
ing force consisted of the Hardy, with 40 men of the
Encounter’s crew, and towing-boats containing about 500
of Ward’s men ; the French steamer Confucius, command-
ed by Lieutenant Le Brethon, having on her deck 400
Franco-Chinese ; and 1500 Cantonese braves in a dozen
armed junks which the Chinese merchants of Ningpo had
fitted out. Nothing could exceed the beauty of the
scenery between Joss-house Hill and Yuyow. The river
wound its tortuous course among pine-clad hills, in whose
gorges, fringed with the feathery bamboos, lay villages
fYo6 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG,

once teeming with life, but at this time blackened ruins
haunted by hungry dogs. The large hill in the centre
of Yuyow and all neighbouring eminences seemed like a
vast tulip-field, owing to the gaudy banners of the Rebel
host. The walls of this place, three miles in circum-
ference, enclosed a high hill. As usual with Chinese
cities, a canal encircles it, save on the side of the river,
which is navigable for a gunboat to within 200 yards
of the walls. A bridge spanned the river, and commu-
nicated with a ruined suburb on the left bank; on the
right, and commanding the city, stood a high hill, with
a large joss-house on its summit. A line of stockades
and batteries extended along either bank of the river for
half a mile; and the stream itself, which was only ten
feet deep, had been staked.

On the 2d August the gunboats advanced up the
river, and it was arranged that, when they had shelled a
téte du pont, Ward’s men and the Franco-Chinese should
advance, carrying a bridge which led to the joss-house,
which, being the key of the position, might lead to the
fall of the city. After the téte du pont had been shelled
until it seemed untenable, the Chinese troops advanced
gallantly, led by M. Giquel and Major Morton ; but on
reaching the centre of the bridge, they were brought up
by a wooden stockade and a heavy fire from the hill-top,
as well as from a large body of men concealed in a bomb-
proof near the bridge. With heavy loss they had to
retreat, and other attempts were also failures, the fall
of 100 killed and wounded, together with heavy rains,
having dispirited the assailants. Next morning a new
plan of attack was arranged, and Yuyow was taken
without much loss, the Franco-Chinese under M. Giquel
greatly distinguishing themselves. Chang, the Tautai,
was highly delighted, not so much at the fall of the city,
TAI-PING REVERSES IN CHEKIANG. 107

as at his release from the post of honour his junk had
been made to occupy near the Hardy, where round-shot
fell rather plentifully. A large quantity of rice and a
gigantic farmyard, the plunder of the surrounding dis-
trict, was found in this place. The peasants reclaimed
their buffaloes, but the victors feasted high on poultry
for many a day. The Tai-pings retreated to a chain of
intrenched camps about twelve miles distant, and for a
month gave no trouble. In that interval Yuyow was
placed in a state of defence, and a garrison of 1000
drilled Chinese, half Ward’s, half French, were left in it
under command of a French artillery officer, Captain
Tardiff de Maidrey, who had done good service with an
irregular artillery force at Shanghai.

Towards the middle of September the Allies received
information that the Tai-pings had collected a large force
with the intention of descending on Ningpo on two
sides, and on carrying off, if they failed to get the city,
the magnificent rice crops now ripening on the plains.
The Rebel force first descended into the Ningpo plain
and captured from the Mandarin soldiers the walled city
of Tseki, situated between Yuyow and Ningpo. Their
foraging-parties scattered over the plain, and the villagers
came flocking into the Foreign settlement, where volun-
teers were collected for defence. General Ward arrived
at Ningpo on the 18th September, and arrangements
were made for the recapture of Tseki. At daylight on
the 20th, he and 200 of his men were sent up in boats,
while the 400 of his force in Yuyow were brought down,
Captain Tardif undertaking to guard that place with his
Franco-Chinese. Round Tseki the whole plain seemed
on fire. The terror-stricken inhabitants, many of them
swimming on logs, were crossing the river ; and for miles
the long reeds on its banks gave shelter to men,. women,
108 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG,

and children up to the middle in water. Yard, landing
with his men, made a short cut across the country to a
bridge which he was to hold, supported by the Hardy
and by Captain Dew, who was to join next morning
with all available forces. He surprised numerous looting
parties, and soon gained the bridge, and drove the Rebels
into the city. Now and then a Tai-ping would escape
into the tall rice, and give rise to an exciting chase on
the part of the infuriated villagers. It was a service of
much danger for the Hardy to approach, as her decks
could be commanded from hillocks on the banks of the
canal, which were in possession of the enemy; but the
last glimmer of daylight found her close up to the bridge
held by Ward.

At midnight a despatch reached Captain Dew which
made it imperative for him to give up co-operation with
Ward, and return immediately to Ningpo. The town
of Fungwha, which held the same relative position
to Ningpo on the south that Tseki did on the north,
had fallen the day before, and the Rebels were advancing
on Ningpo on that side. Weighing at daylight, he
anchored off the Salt Gate at 8 a.m., and found Ningpo
like a disturbed ant’s nest, the people in their terror not
knowing where to go; so he had the gates closed, and
landing his men, held the South and West Gates, burn-
ing the suburb outside the former. The Mandarins at
this time were in a state of great fear, sleeping at night
in the gateway, and by day asking for the British gun-
boat to be in twenty places at once. Advantage. was
taken of this state of things to get all back pay due to
the troops, also to obtain a round sum to raise a per-
manent force for the defence of the Foreign settlement,

and to have the canal and defensive works properly
finished.
THE DEATH OF WARD. 109

The Hardy returned to Ningpo that evening with
news of the capture of Tseki by escalade. After the
gate had been shelled by Lieutenant Bogle, Ward’s body-
guard, led by Captain Cooke, advanced with ladders, and
took the wall and city. Ward himself, while watching
the advance from the arch of a gate 200 yards from the
walls, was mortally wounded by a chance ball. He was
conveyed on board the Hardy, and Dr Hogge of the
Encounter extracted the ball, which had passed through
the abdomen and lodged in his back. On being brought
to Ningpo -he was carried to Dr Parker’s house, and was
attended also by Dr Irwin; but there was no hope from
medical aid, and he died next day after much suffering.
So passed away a man who, as the originator of the idea
of disciplining the Chinese, had done good service. Sur-
mounting all difficulties, Ward, in the outset of his
adventurous career, had gained a strange ascendancy
over Europeans as well as Chinese by his cool and daring
courage. Ever foremost in fight, he was honourably
scarred, but his ambition was unbounded; and perhaps
it was well for the Imperial Government of China that
he was removed at this stage of the Rebellion, and
that his work was left to be completed by one who,
though his equal in courage and in coolness, far sur-
passed him in all the higher qualities of asoldier. Ward
was quite collected during his last hours, and able to
give directions for the disposal of the fortune which he
had amassed in China. He estimated it at about
£60,000; but his accounts were all in confusion, and
mixed up with those of the banker Ta Kee and other
Chinamen, so that only about £15,000 were eventually °
realised.

The Allies were rather hard pressed at this time, having
to garrison Yuyow and Tseki; so 500 more of Ward’s men,
110. )60 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

now commanded by Colonel Forrester, weregbrought from
Shanghai, and on their arrival along with the Flamer
gunboat, Dew’s men were re-embarked from duty on the
city walls, and preparations were made for attacking
Fungwha, which the Rebels had garrisoned in force, and
which was a considerable walled town, in a gorge of
the mountains, on the south side of the river, and was
the key to the vast plain between it and Ningpo. On
the 8th October the marines and small-arm men of
the Encounter and Sphinx were embarked in the
Hardy and Flamer gunboats, and 1000 of the dis-
ciplined Chinese under Forrester were also on board,
or towed by the French steamers Deroulide and Confu-
cius. On arriving at a large stone bridge about twenty
miles up the river, this force was landed. Owing
to heavy rain, the narrow road was impracticable for
the conveyance of its guns, which had to be placed in
boats; but the rain had swollen the stream, and the
boats could not pass under the bridge. A stout hawser,
however, with 100 men on it, soon removed the massive
blocks of stone that formed the arch, and enabled the
boats to get through; and that night the expedition
quartered in a very large deserted village four miles
from Fangwha. The rain had drenched every one, and
through the night there had been constant alarms of the
enemy and of fire, so the men were not sorry when the
morning broke fine and sunshiny. A march of four
hours through a golden plain of ripe rice brought them
under the walls of Fungwha, where Forrester advanced
with 600 of his men and two guns to attack the North
and West Gates,.while Dew went to the East Gate, and
established a position with three howitzers, under Lieu-
tenant Bosanquet, at 200 yards from the wall. A storming
party of 400 men, under Major Rhode, was held ready,
THE ASSAULT OF FUNGWHA. III

supported by the marines atid small-arm men. The
artillery fire having silenced the guns on the walls, and
knocked down a portion of the parapet near the gate-
way, an advance was sounded, and Bosanquet ran his
guns to within fifty yards of the walls. When the ladder
party reached the bridge, they were met by a heavy fire
which killed most of them; and the men following, though
well led by their officers, would not face the showers of fire-
balls, stinkpots, and powder-bags which were hurled upon
them, so they fell back. To reassure them, Commander
Jones, with twenty small-arm men, went to the front,
and most gallantly led on through a similar fiery ordeal,
followed by Lieutenants Davis and Tinling, Mr Douglas,
midshipman, and Mr Coker, master-assistant, who, clearing
off the dead, carried the ladders. up to the walls. Ward’s
troop would not return, so Jones, seeing the folly of at-
tempting to storm with his small force, wisely placed his
men in the arch of the gateway, and attempted with axes
to cut through the gates, but solid stone-work behind
the wood resisted all his efforts. Bosanquet and Lieu-
tenant Rawson and half their crews having been wounded,
Captain Dew ordered the remainder to seek cover behind
some graves, where the marines were also placed to keep
down the fire of the besieged. Commander Jones and
his party had to keep in the gateway till dark, when
they withdrew, having had a most unpleasant time of it,
Stinkpots and powder - bags, with lighted brooms at-
tached, had been dropped over the wall, and had half
suffocated them; but this wasnot so bad as the con-
tinued trickle of the nastiest conceivable liquid manure,
which some Tai-ping humorist had capsized on the top
of the arch.

Next morning a large body of 6000 Tai-pings appeared
on the plain advancing towards Fungwha, on the walls
112. CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

of which there was an immense excitemgnt and dis-
play of banners. From the leisurely manner in which
the new arrivals came up, their chiefs being carried in
sedan-chairs, it was evident they had not observed the
Allies ; so they were taken at a disadvantage, and easily
routed, leaving on the plain an immense quantity of
plunder, ammunition, and stores, which had been car-
ried by about 1000 country people, who had nearly all
been branded on the forehead as belonging to the “ Hea-
venly Kingdom.” More powder and ammunition having
arrived from the river, preparations were made for
storming the walls at seven different places at daylight
next morning, but the Rebels evacuated the city during
the night, and it was garrisoned by Ward’s troops. As
the force. returned to Ningpo next morning, nothing
could exceed the gratitude of the country people who
passed, flocking back to their homes to reap the harvest
that covered the plain, for the fall of Fungwha and
Tseki saving them from starvation in the coming
winter. As ever, the Rebels left behind them evi-
dences of their brutal nature. In one spot nearly a
hundred bodies of peasant men and women lay bud-
dled together, their only crime having been refusal to
carry the plunder of their own homes. The loss had
been rather serious ; 24 British officers and men, and
about 70 Chinese, had been placed hors de combat.

In this way the thirty-mile radius was cleared round
Ningpo, to which city the rich merchants were flocking
back from Shanghai. A new Tautai who had been ap-
pointed was ambitious to regain the other cities in the
province, and promised the necessary funds, so Wards
force was raised to 1400 bayonets, and the Franco-Chi-
nese to 1000. Le Brethon de Coligny, being appointed
to the command of the latter force, received a commis-
THE COUNTRY CLEARED ROUND NINGPO. 113

sion as commander of 1000 men from the Emperor of
China. Early in November Le Brethon advanced on
Shungyu, and the Tai-pings evacuated that city. Every
50 or 100 yards along the line of the Rebel retreat lay
the bodies of men, women, and children. In Shungyu
itself a perfect army of old women and little children
were found, cold, starving, and suffering from every ima-
ginable disease. It was well for these poor creatures that
Monseigneur de la Place, Roman Catholic Bishop of Che-
kiang, was with the expedition. It was to the humane
and energetic measures he took that many owed their
lives on this as on other occasions, when cities were taken
or evacuated during the Rebellion. He was wont, when
others were seeking for plunder, to search for what he
called his own loot—les misérables, whom he gathered
together in some joss-house, and for whom he established
rice-kitchens. The fall of Shungyu led to the evacuation
of two more cities, and the Tai-pings retired across the
great river of Shungyu, thus leaving half the province in
Imperialist hands.

Shortly afterwards Ward’s force went back to Shang-
hai, and Captain Dew was not sorry to end the connec-
tion with them, because he could never fully persuade
the men or officers that “soldiers should be content with
their pay,” and cases of “squeezing” on their part were
continually complained of. On one occasion the major
in command at Yuyow, formerly a sergeant in one of our
line regiments, sold all he could lay hands on in the
city, and was arrested as he was leaving the province
with plunder sufficient for a month’s pay of the troops.
On arrangement with the authorities, an Anglo-Chinese
contingent of about 1000 men was raised, the higher
officers receiving £1800 and £1000 a-year, and the cap-
tains £700, which was an inducement to respectable

H
114. CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

men, and even to English officers, to sgrve. Several
petty officers from the English fleet engaged in it, and
by the end of December there was a respectable force
ready to take the field. At the same time Le Brethon,
at Shungyu, by the sale of rice, wood, boats, and all that
had belonged to the Rebels, was enabled to recruit 1200
men, and to clothe and arm them fairly. An arsenal
had been established, and lead and powder found in
Rebel magazines enabled him to make a good supply
of cartridges.

In the end of December an expedition, under Dew
and Le Brethon, advanced to the town of Pikwan from
a hill near which there was a magnificent view of a
noble river winding through an immense and fertile
plain (which again was cut by innumerable canals), and
at the far end of which lay the great city of Showshing,
with walls fifteen miles in circumference, the centre
of the silk district, and the key of the province. The
Rebel banners thickly fringed the opposite banks of the
river, and strong bodies of their cavalry were patrolling
the country. The reconnoitring force was attacked by
the Rebels, whom it drove back ; but, being rather small,
set off to return to Shungyu for reinforcements. On
the way, the Tai-pings in great numbers overtook and
attacked it when-it was in a small town; but Dew and
Le Brethon suddenly turned and surprised their pur-
suers, who, firing a volley, turned and fled, communicat-
ing their panic to, and throwing into disorder, the dense
masses which extended for a mile behind them. As
usual, the line of the Rebel march was marked by the
smoke of burning villages and hamlets; and now, in their
retreat, they had to pass through the still smouldering
ruins. They never turned to see by how small a
number they were pursued, but, pressing on, threw away
THE VILLAGERS AND THE REBELS. 115

arms and clothing to aid their flight. A thin coat of
snow covered the muddy rice-fields, and it was only
possible to travel on the paths between them. The
chase lasted for four miles, and many prisoners were
taken. Some hundred Rebels had been cut off at an
angle near the river, and being hard pressed by the
disciplined Chinese, and fearing that the death they
would undoubtedly have meted, had positions been
changed, awaited them, took to the cold and swollen
river, which soon engulfed them. Only a few nearly
reached the opposite bank, but being weary from their
march, one by one they disappeared. Captain Dew
asserts that during the time he was associated with the
disciplined Chinese he never knew them murder a
prisoner or commit a cruel act; but can it be wondered
at that the country people could not refrain from re-
taliation when the Tai-pings were caught knife or torch
in hand? This officer’s instructions limited him to the
employment of his own men against the Tai-pings within
a thirty-mile radius round Ningpo ; but looking to the
spirit of these instructions, and the evident and wise
wish of the Government to give all moral support to
the cause of order, he was wont, in company with his
officers and on his own responsibility, frequently to
pass up the country and to aid and assist the Im-
perialist forces with advice, guns, and ammunition.
The officers of the squadron were always eager to join
in these expeditions, and as they were on leave, he was
always happy to have their company and advice.
Towards the end of January Le Brethon advanced on
Showshing with 1200 of the Franco-Chinese, the first
and only expedition they ever made without being
accompanied by the Anglo-Chinese troops. They were
very badly off for guns, having but two 12-pounder
116 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG,

howitzers and a couple of old English Q-pounders. A
three days’ march brought them unopposed to Showshing,
which Le Brethon intended to carry by a coup de main,
and failing in that, he proposed to commence a siege and
wait till he could effect a breach with four 32-pounders
which Captain Dew expected from Hongkong. With
this view he placed the 9-pounders in position to knock
away the parapet over the gateway; but at the first
discharge the gun burst, and a large portion of the
breech struck Le Brethon, carrying away the whole upper
part of his body and causing instantaneous death. The
command was now taken by M. Cymer, formerly an
officer in the French army, who unwisely determined to
retreat to Shungyu.

Captain Dew was at Ningpo when the news of Le
Brethon’s death reached the Mandarins, and he felt that
Ningpo would not be safe so long as Showshing, the key
of the province, remained in possession of the Rebels.
Hence he sent up some of the Anglo-Chinese contin-
gent to retrieve matters, and procured an 8-inch howit-
zer with Moorsom shells from Shanghai. Being warned
by Admiral Kuper that the Encounter might be wanted
.for service in Japan, he was anxious to have matters in
a secure state before leaving ; and so, when Lieutenant
Tinling offered to assist in conveying fresh ammunition
to Showshing, leave was allowed him to take it to
Sangkow, a town ten miles from Showshing, where
General Tardiff and the Franco-Chinese then were; but
he was also ordered, after doing so, to return to Ningpo.
A few days subsequently Dew, accompanied by several
of his officers, joined Tardiff at Sangkow, and meeting
Lieutenant Tinling, allowed him to remain there two
or three days.

Showshing was a large city, with walls thirty-five feet
ATTACK ON SHOWSHING, 117

high and fifteen broad, and fifteen miles in circumfer-
ence ; it was garrisoned by 40,000 Tai-pings, under the
command of the Sing Wang, commonly called “ Cockeye,”
who was afterwards taken and executed at Soochow.
It stands near some hills at the head of an immense
plain of forty miles in length, unrivalled even in China
for the richness of its soil and the beauty of its scenery.
This plain is intersected by thousands of canals which
in some parts will scarcely admit the passage of a boat,
but open out at others into vast lakes of thousands of
acres in area, and dotted over with picturesque islets,
with temples embosomed among their trees. Villages
and towns by hundreds lay flourishing and peaceful
around, the Tai-pings having spared them for heavy
ransoms; but the inhabitants seemed delighted to see
the Allies, and insisted on supplying them gratis with
cattle, rice, and all other necessaries.

On the evening of the 17th February the attacking
force occupied a large untenanted suburb near the Liquo
Gate, on an island with a bridge in rear, canals on both
flanks, and the city walls and gate in front. The whole
of the suburbs within 600 yards of the walls had
been levelled, on each side of the paved road leading
to the gate only beautifully carved stone pillars, dedi-
cated to the “ young widows and virgins of Showshing,”
having been left standing. The gate itself was strongly
fortified by an immense strong outer wall, loopholed,
and with six guns in position. The walls themselves
being roofed over all round the city, the defenders took
up abode on them entirely. Several hills inside the
city were also fortified, while a deep canal, thirty feet
in width, encircled the whole city. After a reconnais-
sance on the following day, it was determined to breach
the wall near an angle 200 yards from the gate, while
118 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN’ CHEKIANG.

boats and planks were got ready to forma bridge over
the canal for the assaulting columns. That night the
howitzer, with muffled wheels, was placed in battery
160 yards from the walls with trifling loss, while an-
other battery of four 12-pounder howitzers was planted
100 yards in rear for its protection. On the 19th, by
8 am. Tardiff had made all his preparations—the boats
in a dense fog were got up and hid under the arch of a
bridge under the walls—and at 9 a.m. Captain Ganghan,
with his Anglo-Chinese artillerymen, who alone worked
the howitzers during the day, opened fire. A few
hollow shot sent into the base of the wall soon formed an
opening for the 8-inch Moorsom shells, which exploding
therein, soon acted like so many mines and brought the
wall crumbling down. The defenders meanwhile were
not idle ; about thirty guns were well served during the
day, and the fusilade of small-arms never ceased. At
10 a.m. Tardiff was mortally wounded by a musket-ball
fired by accident by one of his own men who was in
his rear. His iron constitution enabled him to live for
eight hours, though his brains were scattered over the
hair of his head. He had told Dew at breakfast that
morning that he had a presentiment he should not sur-
vive the day, and begged the latter to suceeed him in the
command, as he had no one competent to undertake it.
Under these circumstances Captain Dew appointed the
senior instructor, with the rank of colonel, to the com-
mand, on the understanding that he carried out Dew’s
directions. Shortly after Lieutenant Tinling, R.N., was
wounded while watching with his opera-glass the
effect of the shell on the walls. He was, as he thought,
in a place of safety, but a spent ball from an angle
struck the back of his head. Dr Lockhead at once ex-
tracted it, and gave it as his opinion that he would be
DEATHS OF TARDIFF AND TINLING. 119

well in a week; but after being sent down to Ningpo,
inflammation of the brain set in and terminated fatally,
to the great grief of his brother officers, to whom his
many fine qualities had greatly endeared him. By
2 P.M. ninety shells had effected a magnificent breach,
though between each discharge of the howitzer the Rebels
sent streams of men with sandbags to fill up the space.
An assaulting column of 800 men then advanced, and,
in spite of a heavy fire from the walls, gained the canal,
placed a bridge of boats in position, and about twenty
men, chiefly Europeans, crossed over and made for the
breach, which they had half mounted when they found
that the boats had got adrift and they were unsupported.
The Rebels soon found this out, rallied in the retreat
they had commenced, and, swarming on the walls, re-
pulsed the attack, those of the assailants who survived
having to swim the canal. All attempts to bring the
Chinese again to the attack were vain, though they were
_ rallied by Lieutenant Holders, R.N., at half musket-shot.
The loss of the Allies was 140 hors de combat; and
much credit was due to Dr Lockhead, R.A., the only
medical officer, for his attention to the wounded.
Captain Dew intended to have ordered another assault
next morning ; but during the night, in spite of the fire
on it, the breach had been so far repaired that it was
impossible for the ten remaining Moorsom shells to open
it again. Pine-trees had been driven in as piles, the
upper ends being supported by ropes, while the space
between was filled up with debris and sandbags. A
regular siege was now commenced, the assailants making
their own position secure by throwing up a high wall,
cutting ditches, and making batteries and approaches
with gabions. This enabled half the force to occupy _
itself in attacking and dispersing large bodies of Rebels,
120 CAPTAIN DEW’S OPERATIONS IN CHEKIANG.

who issued out of the other gates and began to burn the
country in the rear. _

In four days all those bands had been driven into the
city, and the approaches to a third gate were occupied,
and the Rebel communication with Hangchow cut off,
as were all convoys that attempted to enter. Ammuni-
tion seemed plentiful with the besieged, about 300
round brass shot being daily thrown into the besieging
lines and among the boats. Captain Dew was most
ably assisted by Mr M‘Arthur, paymaster of the En-
counter, and the various measures employed soon began
to damp the spirit of the besieged. Day by day their
fire slackened, and the fall of the city soon became only
an affair of time. Early in March, D’Aiguibelle, Lieu-
tenant de Vaisseau, having been appointed by Admiral
Jaures to succeed Tardiff in the command, Captain Dew
returned to Ningpo; and on the 18th of that month
Showshing was evacuated by the Rebels, who retreated
by the hills to Hangchow. Thus the province of Che-
kiang was in great part restored to Imperialist rule.
The officers who served along with Captain Dew in these
operations were killed off very rapidly; but distinguished
success attended his movements, and it is a wonder that
he has not received the Victoria Cross, for which he was
recommended. A British Admiral, under whom he once
served, writing to me about the capture of Ningpo, calls
it “by far the best thing of the kind done either in China
or elsewhere since the peace of 1815 ;” and really, con-
sidering all the circumstances, this praise is not un-
deserved.
PART III.

COLONEL GORDON’S CAMPAIGN
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CHAPTER VIII

THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE,

CHINESE PARTIALITY FOR BEAUTIFUL PHRASEOLOGY— THE TITLE
“ EVER-VICTORIOUS ARMY”’—CAPTAIN HOLLAND’S DEFEAT AT TAIT-
SAN, AND MAJOR BRENNAN’S AT FUSHAN—COLONEL GORDON
APPOINTED TO COMMAND THE E. V. A.—HIS PREVIOUS SERVICES
—ITS OFFICERS AND PRIVATES—-RATES OF PAY—ITS ARTILLERY
AND SMALL-ARMS—THE PUNISHMENTS INFLICTED—-CHINESE AP-
TITUDE FOR DRILL—COLONEL GORDON’S FLOTILLA—THE STEAMER
HYSON AND CAPTAIN DAVIDSON — THE AUXILIARY IMPERIALIST
FORCE—APTITUDE OF THE CHINESE FOR WAR-—FOR THE WORK
OF SAPPERS—COLONEL GORDON’S TACTICS—EXPENDITURE OF THE
CHINESE GOVERNMENT—COLONEL GORDON’S VIEW OF HIS POSI-
TION AND THE AUTHORITY UNDER WHICH HE ACTED.

THoucH it had done some good service, and had re-
ceived its title under Ward, yet it was not until it came
under Colonel Gordon’s command that the Ever-Vic-
‘torious Army became in any degree worthy of its high-
sounding name, which must be taken not in a literal
but in a transcendental and Celestial sense. The
Chinese have a fine faculty for inventing happy names
—their streams are fragrant, their mountains holy, the
poorest hamlet may call itself the place of sweet-
smelling grain, and the smallest junk be a wonder of
the deep. Nor are such titles merely hollow sounds.
Foreigners, on discovering the immense discrepancy
between the Celestial phrase and that which it re-
124 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE,

presents, are apt to regard the former ag a mere trivial
absurdity ; but to the Chinaman these titles have a vital
significance, and the turn of a phrase will often influence
his whole conduct towards the subject designated. No
principle is more constantly enforced in the Chinese
Classics than that wisdom lies in the proper knowledge
and use of words. When it was asked of Mencius in
what he surpassed, his brief reply was, “I understand
words ;” and elsewhere he complains of inauspicious,
hurtful words, which throw men of virtue and talent
into the shade. When inquiry was made of Confucius
as to what was the first thing necessary to improve the
government, he answered, “What is necessary is to
rectify names;” and very expressively he said, that
“to have a bad name is to dwell in a low-lying situa-
tion, where all the evil of the world flows in upon one.”
Views such as these have sunk deep into the national
mind, and every Chinaman is singularly desirous that
he and all his belongings should have auspicious and
honourable designations. When the people are so in-
clined, of course the Government is very careful in all
its edicts and proclamations to use either high-sounding
or beautiful phraseology, whether the reference be to the
Son of Earth and Heaven sitting on the dragon throne,
or to a ragged lictor who runs by the chair of some
petty Mandarin. Crime and official imbecility are re-
probated in the most vigorous and picturesque manner
by the Emperor’s vermilion pencil; but where praise is
to be awarded for judicious counsel or for battles won,

then
“Strength is gigantic, valour high,
And wisdom soars beyond the sky.”

Hence it is in a Celestial and somewhat transcendental,
not in an occidental or literal meaning, that this phrase,
THE OFFICIAL NAME OF GORDON’S FORCE. 125

“The Ever - Victorious Army,” must be understood.
“Ch’ang Sheng Chi’un,” however— the high - sounding
title which this army received at a very early period of
its existence, and by which it will be known, in Chinese
history at least—turned out to be by no means extrava-
gantly hyperbolic, seeing what was the work that it
accomplished in the suppression of a most formidable
movement, which afflicted the Flowery Land for more
than ten years, which at one time had threatened to sub-
vert not only the ruling dynasty, but also the institu-
tions of the empire, and which had caused a prodigious
amount of devastation and slaughter.

It has been mentioned that in January 1863, General
Staveley, now Sir Charles Staveley and second in com-
mand of the Abyssinian Expedition, but then chief of
her Majesty’s forces in China, being applied to by the
Futai for advice and assistance, offered to place Captain
Holland, the chief of his staff, in temporary command,
and recommended Captain Gordon, R.E., to the perma-
nent command, if his Government should approve of its
being taken by a British officer. While under charge
of Captain Holland, in February 1863, this disciplined
force made an attack upon the town of Taitsan, but was
defeated by the Tai-pings, with the loss of some guns
and of many officers and men, though the commander
made great exertions, and exposed himself throughout
the engagement to a very heavy fire. Another expedi-
tion, under Major Brennan, was repulsed in an attempt
to take Fushan; and these two failures, together with
the insinuations of Imperialists, made the Futai very
much dissatisfied and disgusted with this far from vic-
torious army.

But,on the very day of Captain Holland’s defeat a
despatch arrived from Sir Frederick Bruce, sanctioning
126 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE,

the placing of a British officer in command of this dis-
ciplined force ; and on receiving this permission, General
Staveley decided on placing Captain and Brevet-Major
Gordon of the Royal Engineers in charge whenever that
officer had finished with the survey on which he was
engaged of the country within the thirty-mile radius
round Shanghai. Captain (now Lieutenant - Colonel)
Gordon, C.B., had served before Sebastopol in the
Crimean war, and been there wounded in the trenches.
After peace had been made, he was employed in survey-
ing and settling the Turkish and Russian frontier in
Asia,—a work of no little danger and difficulty, owing
to the wild character of the tribes of Armenia and Koor-
distan. Engaged in the expedition against Peking, he
continued on service in China after our difficulties with
the Imperial Government had been arranged; and in
the end of 1861 made a long journey from that capital
to the Chotow and Kalgan Passes on the Great Wall,
striking down from the latter place through Shensi, and
passing Taiyuen, the capital of that province, a city
before unvisited by foreigners, unless by Catholic priests
in disguise. In his new position as commander of the
Ever-Victorious Army, Colonel Gordon did not fail to
display the judgment and tireless energy which had
characterised his brief but not undistinguished career.
Indeed, it very soon became apparent that the Tai-pings
had to meet a more formidable opponent than any they
had before encountered, and one who knew how to break
their ranks, not less by his skill in the arts of war than
by his personal prestige, and by the assurance which his
character soon inspired, that those who gave up their arms
to him would receive humane and honourable treatment.

Some curiosity may be felt in regard to the composi-
tion, arms, rates of pay, and so forth, of this disciplined
COLONEL GORDON’S PREVIOUS SERVICES. 127

Chinese force which Colonel Gordon now undertook to
command ; and, moreover, without such knowledge his
operations and the state of affairs in China can hardly
be understood. Its origin under Ward has already been
noticed, and as further organised by Gordon it may now
be described generally.

The commissioned officers were all Foreigners—Eng-
lishmen, Americans, Germans, Frenchmen, and Span-
iards, but Americans were in the majority. Among
them were to be found many seafaring men, and old
soldiers of our infantry regiments who had purchased
their discharge. As a rule they were brave, reckless,
very quick in adapting themselves to circumstances, and
reliable in action; but, on the other hand, they were
troublesome when in garrison, very touchy as to prece-
dence, and apt to work themselves about trifles into
violent states of mind. Excited by Rebel sympathisers
at Shanghai, and being of different nationalities, one
half of them were usually in a violent state of quarrel
with the other; but this, of course, was often an advan-
tage to the commander. The non-commissioned officers
were all Chinese, selected from the ranks ; but very few
of these were advanced to the higher grade, as it was
found that, on such promotion, the most zealous ser-
geants became lazy and useless.

Up to the capture of Quinsan in May 1863, the
privates were principally natives of Kiangsoo and Che-
kiang, inferior to Cantonese and N ortherners ; but after
that date the force was largely recruited from the
captured Rebels, who were from all parts of China, and
who, having been accustomed to very hard work and
no pay, found the new service an elysium, and when
taken one day, never objected to going into action
against their old comrades the next.
128 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE,

The force varied in strength from 30Q0 to 5000 men,
divided into from five to six infantry regiments, with
four batteries siege, and two batteries field, artillery.
Each infantry regiment consisted, when complete, of six
companies, averaging 500 men in all, as follows :—

Foreigners,

Per Mensem,
1 Colonel or Lieutenant-Colonel, . ; at £75 to £85
1 Major, . _ 3 4 » £60 to £70
1 Captain and Adjutant, 5 . ‘ » £50 0 0
6 Captains, each. 7 A : » 42 00
6 Lieutenants, each . . . ° » 30 0 0

Chinese.

6 Colour-Sergeants, each » 400
12 Sergeants, each . ; i i » 38 00
24 Corporals, each , ‘ ‘ ‘ » 210 0
480 Privates, each . ‘ a a » 117 6

When in garrison, they had to find themselves out of
their pay; but when in the field, each man received
daily, in addition to his pay, 2 Ib. rice, 2 lb. salt pork or
2 Ib. salt fish, besides vegetables and oil,

The artillery was commanded by one colonel at £70
to £75 per mensem. Tach battery consisted usually of

Foreigners.

. Per Mensem.
1 First Captain, . ‘ ‘ . at £50 0 0
1 Second Captain, . ‘ é . » 45 0 0
2 Lieutenants, each z i ‘ » 35 0 0
1 Sergeant, . 4 é ‘ a » 20 0 0

Chinese.

1 Colour-Sergeant, . . ‘ i » 410 6
6 Sergeants, each. ‘ 5 » ey 38 15 0
12 Corporals, each . ‘ r ‘é » 38 0 0
120 to 150 Gunners, each . ‘ , » 200

The whole of the men and officers were paid monthly
by a Chinese official of high civil rank, Paymaster Kah,
a good man of business, well educated, honest, pleasing
in manner, and of venerable appearance. The payment
RATES OF PAY IN THE FORCE. 129

was made in Mexican dollars, in presence of the com-
mander, Colonel Gordon, “whose aim,” one of his officers
—a commissioned officer in H.M. service—writes, “ever
was to prevent, as far as possible, squeezing and the
misappropriation of funds.” ‘The dollars required for
these payments monthly varied from the value of
£14,000 to £26,000, and at no time were the men ever
kept more than ten days in arrears. In addition to this
rate of pay, on the dissolution of the force in 1864, the
officers received large dowceurs, varying from £200 to
£1600 each, and the men each from £2 to £3, those
wounded receiving further donations, according to the
nature of their wounds.

In General Ward’s time it had been customary for the
Ever-Victorious troops to receive from about £15,000
to £20,000 for each city they captured, the sum being
agreed upon before the assault was made; but on the
appointment of a British officer to command, this prac-
tice was discontinued, and it was agreed that the troops
should be regularly paid so much per diem, and receive,
for special feats, anything which the Futai might deem
it advisable to give. The high rates of pay were not
necessary latterly, for recruits offered themselves in
abundance; but no change in this respect could have
been effected without causing delay in the operations,
and perhaps danger. It would certainly have caused a
revolt, as both officers and men would have been per-
fectly agreed on this subject ; for if the pay of either the
officers or of the men had been cut down first, the other
section would naturally have expected their turn to
come next, and would have acted accordingly. When
the force was originated by Ward, high rates of pay
were fixed, because the Chinese objected to being drilled
and disciplined by Foreign Devils in a manner totally

I
130 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE,

different from that to which they had been accustomed,
and also because they were required to wear a motley
half-European uniform which subjected them to the
jeers of their own people, who used to call them “ Imita-
tion Foreign Devils.” This European style of dress was
adopted partly to make the Rebels imagine that they
had foreign soldiers to contend with; and Wu, the
Tautai of Shanghai, paid us the compliment of buying
up some thousands of European boots, in order that the
very footprints of the disciplined Chinese might leave a
like impression. It was not till these troops became
“victorious” that their appearance was any source of
pleasure to them ; but after a time they became proud
of the “imitation foreign devil” uniform, and would
have objected to change it for a native dress.
The staff consisted of—

Per Mensem,
The Commander, . ‘ i . y at £160
Adjutant-General, i . ; _ » 10
Quartermaster-General, . 5 a 3 » 10
Principal Medical Olicer, ‘ ‘ ‘ » 80
Paymaster, 5 f 3 » 60
2 Adjutants, Sauk. , ‘ : : » 60
Provost-Marshal, , . » 70
Commandant and Second i in Command, . » 80
Aide-de-Camp, . ‘ . . : » 40
Brigade-Major, . ‘ ‘ : " » 60
Medical Officers, each. : . » 60
Commissariat Officers and Assistants, each ‘ » 60
Military Storekeepers and Assistants, each ji » 60

Though these officers bore high-sounding titles, it was
not office work, but practical work, which they had to do,
each of them having not only to give his order, but also
to see that it was obeyed. To have invented new titles
for their various positions would have been very trouble-
some; and so it is to be hoped that officers of H.M.
army will not be displeased at the appropriation which
has been made.
ARMAMENT OF THE FORCE, 131

The infantry were for the most part armed with
smooth-bored English muskets; but one regiment had
Prussian rifles of the old pattern, firing conical balls,
and 300 Enfields were distributed in the ranks. Their
pouches carried more than fifty rounds of ammunition.
The artillery armament consisted of two 8-inch howit-
zers, four 32-pounder guns, three 24-pounder howitzers,
twelve 12-pounder howitzers, ten American 12-pounder
mountain howitzers, eight 44-inch mountain howitzers,
fourteen mortars, brass, 44 inches to 8 inches, and six
rocket-tubes. This was a heavy force of artillery in the
circumstances ; it was well supplied with ammunition,
each piece having from 250 to 500 rounds; and the
greater portion of it was mounted on travelling-carriages.
Boats, however, were the usual means of conveyance for
the artillery, there being sixteen of these for the artillery
armament and ammunition. This part of the force was
well provided with all the usual requisites, and had also
large mantlets of elm, of sufficient thickness to afford the
gunners protection from the fire of muskets and gingalls.
So useful did these prove, that in an engagement at Tait-
san one of these mantlets was found to have caught
eighteen bullets. The country being intersected with
creeks, each field-battery carried planks, to make a short
tramway; and the infantry had planks strapped on their
bamboo ladders, so that the troops were able to pass
over the country easily enough. The artillery also car-
ried a pontoon equipment, which consisted of about 150
feet of Blanchard’s infantry pontoon-bridge.

The drill of the force was according to that in use
in H.M. army, and the words of command were given
in English. Only the most simple manoeuvres were
attempted, and more stress was laid on speed than on
accurate dressing. The men were trained to come into
132 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

line quickly, irrespective of inverted order. «Ihe Chinese
drilled well, and were very steady, their great fault being
that of talking in the ranks. Each regiment had two
buglers, some of whom knew the calls well. The prac-
tice of the artillery, both in breaching fortifications and
in covering storming-parties, was considered by many
persons unconnected with this army to be uncommonly
good ; and the officers and men of the artillery were
far superior to any other arm of the force. The in-
fantry were taught to form square; but on the only
occasion when they were attacked by cavalry — at
Waisoo in March 1864—the two regiments engaged
broke, and lost 320 of their number in killed and
prisoners.

The punishment of flogging was inflicted by the bam-
boo, as is usual in the Imperial army; and the command-
ing officers of regiments had the power of inflicting it.
The European method of flogging was objected to both
by the men and the Mandarins, so it was thought better
to employ the Chinese mode, which consisted in giving
a certain number of blows on the back of the thighs with
a rattan, or with a small piece of bamboo, somewhat like
a ruler. Dismissal from the force was sometimes re-
sorted to, but only by the Commander himself. There
was, however, very little crime, and consequently very
little punishment. Sometimes a regiment would be a
whole month without any one in it deserving punish-
ment, and the relationship between the men and the
officers was on the whole affectionate. The Chinese
were as a rule very-orderly; and as drunkenness was
unknown amongst them, the services of the provost-
marshal rarely came into use except after a capture, when
the desire for loot was a temptation to absence from the
ranks. On the officers it was impossible to inflict minor
THE PUNISHMENTS INFLICTED. 133

punishments, because their service was voluntary, and
no engagement was ever entered into with them by the
Imperial Government beyond a promise of the current
month’s pay. Hence the only penalty which could be
held over them in terrorem was dismissal from the force ;
and it says much for them, as well as for the command-
ing officers, that this means proved so effectual in pre-
serving order. It was to their commanding officer they
had to look for everything, as the Chinese authorities
refused to give them any direct hearing ; and he allotted,
on the recommendation of the principal medical officer,
the various sums which were given to those who were
wounded. If time had allowed, it would have been better
to have entered into some arrangement with the Chinese
Government which would have permitted the force to have
been governed by some sort of articles of war; but the
Chinese were averse to binding themselves in the matter;
time and circumstances pressed, and some of the bravest
officers, who were not always the best behaved, would
have been soon excluded by the regulations of a more
regular army. Hence it was thought best to take the
material as it was found, to lose no time in turning it to
use, to treat it fairly, and then dissolve it if expedient,
so that it could hurt no one. This plan was followed
with success at considerable risk and expense—the finale
being, that the Chinese crushed the Rebellion. The
officers and men of the force were all handsomely dealt
with at its dissolution, which was judged necessary in
order to prevent likely future trouble.

After the artillery, the most important part of the
force was the flotilla which belonged to it, and which
was composed of steamers and Chinese gunboats. Each
of the former was quite equal to 3000 men in a country
such as that where the force had to act. The number
134 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

of the steamers at one time in employ varjed from one
to four, and the Hyson may be taken as a specimen of
them all. This vessel was a small iron paddle-steamer,
of about ninety feet long and twenty-four feet wide,
drawing three to four feet of water, and carrying one
32-pounder on a moving platform at her bows, while at
her stern there was a 12-pounder howitzer. A loopholed
protection of elm planking ran round the bulwarks to
the height of ‘six feet, and the steam-chests were pro-
tected by a timber traverse. She averaged eight knots per
hour, and had a crew of one captain at £80 per mensem, a
mate at £40, an engineer at £50, and an artillery officer
at £30. The Chinese on board were four stokers, ten
gunners, and twenty sailors. The steamers were usually
managed by Americans, who handle river-boats of this
class better than Englishmen do; and among these
Captain Davidson, of the Hyson, specially distinguished
himself by his coolness, skill, and daring. He had served
under Ward and Burgevine before Gordon gave him a
steamer to command, but died at Shanghai as he was
about to return to his native land. Strange to say,
though the Rebels were put in possession of two steamers,
the Kajow and the Firefly, they failed to make any use
of them, to speak of. Besides the steamers, the Kiang-
soo force had two large siege gunboats, four large
ammunition-boats, and eight large covered boats, each
with a gun mounted at the bows. There were also
attached to it a large flotilla of Chinese gunboats, some-
times to the number of fifty. These vessels were usually
about forty feet long, ten feet broad, and did not draw
more than two feet of water, being flat-bottomed vessels.
Each had a crew of ten men, and they were propelled
by a sweep working over the stern. They carried a
6-pounder or 9-pounder Chinese gun in the bows; and
GORDON’S STEAMERS AND GUNBOATS. 135

though not much used by the force, these guns were of
great service, when in numbers, to the co-operating
Imperialists, by firing with grape. The great use of
this part of the flotilla was the means of transport which
it afforded. The country being cut up by creeks, these
boats enabled an attack to be made with great suddenness
from unexpected points. By lowering their masts and
taking down their flags they could creep unperceived
along the creeks till quite close to the position of the
Rebels. Moreover, these latter usually shut themselves
up within their camps during the night, and even during
the day knew little of what was going on beyond it,
having no out-posts or out-sentries, and receiving no
reliable information from the villagers they had ill-
treated ; otherwise the boats would have been in great
danger of falling into ambuscades.

The Imperialist forces which acted in conjunction with
the Anglo-Chinese, were generally composed of men from
_ other provinces, and principally from Honan. They
were fine able-bodied men, and were usually kept in a
state of very strict discipline. As is usual with the
Chinese, they were divided into camps of five hundred
men, each under a blue-button military Mandarin ; and
each of these regiments was complete in itself. No
sooner was a regiment encamped than it began to
intrench itself in a square earthwork; and sometimes
these forts were rather formidable, though cast up in a
very short time. In a few hours, on favourable ground,
they could throw up an earthwork that would offer
a most effective obstacle to a night-attack; and they
never encamped for the night without such a temporary
security round them. When making any longer stay
in a position, the work was surrounded with ditches and
palisades within the space of three days, and stone flags
136. THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

were laid down where it was possible to gef material.
At night the drawbridge was raised, and six sentinels
were placed at each angle, who kept beating bamboos or
raising a peculiar cry through the whole night, and by
these a very strict watch was kept, the penalty for sleep
being death ; whereas, in the Ever-Victorious Army, the
sentries were often caught napping, as they had only to
fear being bambooed. It has often been said that the
Chinese are not a fighting people, and have no genius
for military matters ; but the celerity with which they
raised these earthworks, the skill with which they shaped
them, the judgment they displayed in choosing positions,
the facility with which they raised large bodies of men,
and their systematic mode of working these to the best
advantage, all went to prove very considerable genius
for the art of war within the limits to which it has-been
developed amongst them. The long seclusion of the
Chinese, and the primitive character of their opponents
up to within the last few years, have prevented them
from developing this art in any high degree ; but so far
as they have gone with it, they have not shown them-
selves inferior in courage or in military skill to any
nation of. the world. Among ourselves it is only the
rivalry of the different European nations which has
developed the art of war to so monstrous a height. Had
Europe, like China, been under one rule for the last ten
centuries, our weapons would not have been better than
those of the Celestials.

The soldiers employed by the Imperialists were badly
armed, judged by European usage, but usually they were
pretty well clothed, and had inscribed upon their uniform
the names of their person, regiment, and province. The
Cantonese were considered to be the best fighters, and
after them came the men of Honan. The greater num-
THE CHINESE AS SOLDIERS. 137

ber of the military officers who commanded the Impe-
rialist troops had risen from the ranks, and were not much
better educated than the rank and file. Ordinarily there
was one Mandarin of high rank to every twenty camps
or regiments of five hundred men each; he had complete
control over them, and was sometimes a military Man-
darin, sometimes a civil one bearing military rank. He
generally had attached to him a fleet of thirty or forty
gunboats. About twenty or so of these bodies of ten
thousand men are often placed under a still higher
official, such as the Chetai of Kiangnan, who may thus
command a force of two hundred thousand men drawn
from several provinces.

As sappers, the Chinese are equal to any Europeans.
They work well; are quite cool, from their apathetic
nature ; and, however great their losses, do not become
restless under fire like Europeans. At Chanchu fu, the
Mandarin in command was requested by Colonel Gordon
to construct trenches of approach at night, up to the
edge of the ditch around the city; and, fully under-
standing what was wanted, he immediately set one thou-
sand men to work, who, despite their number, made the
trenches very well and quietly. At Nanking the Im-
perialists proved they were no contemptible engineers
by carrying on mining operations for two hundred yards.
In these engineering operations the Ever - Victorious
Army took almost no part. Its soldiers could not easily
have been made to raise earthworks, and the Foreign
officers, with their limited education, were not usually
competent to superintend such operations, consequently
this force had to remain unintrenched ; and it was a
good deal due to the inertness of the Rebels that serious
night-attacks were not made upon it in frequent circum-
stances when such attacks might have been very success-
138 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

ful. The success it obtained was owing togits compact-
ness, its completeness, the quickness of its movements,
its possession of steamers and good artillery, the bravery
of its officers, the confidence of its men, the inability of
the enemy to move large bodies of troops with rapidity,
the nature of the country, the almost intuitive percep-
tion with which its commanding officer understood the
nature of the country so as to adapt his operations to it,
and the untiring energy which he put forth. Colonel
Gordon seems to have acted continually on the French
principle, to which Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia
so ably called attention a few years ago *—of always
taking the initiative and acting on the offensive. In
war the party thus acting has many points in its favour;
for a force on the defensive is perplexed by looking out
for and preparing to meet a great number of schemes,
any of which its adversary may undertake against it ;
while he who makes the attack has one well-defined
object in view, and his troops are in much higher spirits
than those which have to stand still and wait. If in
the Kiangnan campaign, the Tai-pings, with their large
numbers, had pushed out in their full strength and fallen
on the Ever-Victorious Army, that small force could
hardly have stood against them ; but this was rendered
very difficult by the nature of the country ; and when
the Rebels did attempt it at Quinsan, they were out-
manceuvred, and so nearly annihilated that they never
forgot the lesson. Moreover, the jealousy of the differ-
ent chiefs was an obstacle in the way of formidable com-
bined action, and led to their being overcome in detail.
Each Wang, however gallant, was nothing more than the
head of a lot of banditti, ignorant of almost everything

* ¢L’Art de Combattre l’Armée Frangaise.’ Par le Prince Frédéric
Charles de Prusse, Paris, 1860.
COLONEL GORDON’S TACTICS. 139

pertaining to organised warfare, and thinking only of
skirmishing and pillage. As such they fought well, and
were capable of acts of very great bravery, but were
easily panic-stricken when attacked in rear or in flank,
or even when boldly assailed in front. To compare
small things with great, the fighting in Kiangnan was
something like that which has occurred in Bohemia be-
tween the Prussians and Austrians. There was on one
side the same superiority in arms and in tactics, while
on the other there was the same want of cordial co-
operation among the chief officers. But the great point
of resemblance is, that in both cases there was, on the
one side, a bold, energetic, assailing tactic, which took
no thought of defeat, and which, if it had been met by
an able general, might have resulted in most complete
and disastrous defeat; while, on the other, there was a
puzzled expectant attitude which dispirited the troops
and paralysed the talent of the commanders.

During Ward's time the Ever-Victorious Army cost,
from September 1861 to September 1862, about
£360,000. In the three months Burgevine was in com-
mand, about £180,000 were expended upon it; and
after that it cost about £580,000. Altogether, at the
lowest computation, £1,300,000 may be debited to it.
If to this be added the half-million sterling expended
on the Lay-Osborn flotilla, we have a total of about
£1,800,000 paid in specie to Foreigners in their employ
within about two years by the Chinese Government, and
that exclusive of the large expenditure on the ordinary
service of the Imperial maritime customs. Let us also
consider here the great and various expenses of the Im-
perialists besieging Nanking and in the province of
Kiangsoo, which may be put down as at least half a
million sterling monthly, and some idea may be formed
140 THE ORGANISATION OF GORDON’S FORCE,

of the military expenditure of the Chingse, at a time
when they were paying two-fifths of their customs
revenue to Great Britain and France. If at this period
Foreign governments did give China some assistance, it
cannot be denied that the Celestials paid pretty hand-
somely for it.

Colonel Gordon’s opinions as to his position when he
‘took command of the disciplined Chinese were as follows,
as expressed in a memorandum he made on the 5th May
1863. In entering on joint command with a Mandarin,
Li Adong, it was arranged that the latter should in no
way interfere with the discipline of the force or with the
appointment of its officers. Li (who must be distin-
guished from Li the Futai or Governor) appeared to
Gordon a man well fitted for his position, and likely
to be extremely useful, because his influence with the
other Mandarins was so great as to prevent the action
of all petty intrigues against the force, and because his
knowledge of the country, and skill in obtaining in-
formation by means of spies, were of essential service.
Colonel Gordon thought that the British Government
was desirous that China should have armies able to
cope with its internal disorder, and that the best means
of assisting it to that end would be to make the disci-
plined Chinese force the nucleus of a new Chinese native
army. The Sungkiang, or any other force entirely irre-
sponsible to the governor of the province, would have
been in a most invidious position ; daily reports about
its bad conduct, sent in by the local Mandarins, would
have disgusted both the Peking Government and the
Foreign Ministers, while its supplies and payment would
have been uncertain. At the same time, Colonel Gordon
considered that the precarious way in which this army
existed from month to month was detrimental to its use-
POLICY OF THE BRITISH GOVERNMENT. 14!

fulness and an encouragement to plunder. Its service
was by far the most dangerous to its officers of any that
he had ever seen, and their apparently high pay was not
a dollar too much. If the policy of the British Govern-
ment was merely, while putting down the Rebellion, to
keep China weak, and leave the Imperialists as they
were, then he considered that his position would be only
that of a mercenary; but believing, in the absence of
special instructions, and being by his commanding-
officer appointed * with sanction of the British Minister
at Peking, that the object of his Government was to
strengthen China and create a national army, he held
his command with pleasure.

* This appointment was soon after approved of by her Majesty’s Secre-
tary of State for War, then Lord de Grey.
CHAPTER IX.

GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

BURGEVINE’S VISIT TO PEKING—THE BRITISH MINISTER WISHES HIM
RESTORED TO COMMAND-——-COLONEL GORDON TAKES COMMAND OF
THE E.V.A.—HIS STAFF—CAPTURE OF FUSHAN—GORDON RECEIVES
AN IMPERIAL COMMISSION, WITH THE RANK OF TSUNG-PING—
GOVERNOR LI’S OPINION OF THE NEW COMMANDER—DESCRIPTION
OF THE THEATRE OF WAR— AN AMPHIBIOUS BOAT — TAI-PING
TREACHERY AT TAITSAN— CAPTURE OF TAITSAN — ALLEGED IM-
PERIALIST CRUELTIES —- CHINESE PUNISHMENTS — LETTER “FROM
COLONEL GORDON—A MUTINY IN THE FORCE — SITUATION OF
QUINSAN—A DEMON STEAMBOAT—GREAT DESTRUCTION OF TAI-
PINGS—CAPTURE OF QUINSAN—IT IS MADE HEADQUARTERS OF
THE FORCE—ANOTHER MUTINY.

BURGEVINE, of course, was very much dissatisfied with
his supercession, and the appointment of a British officer ;
and on the 20th of February started for Peking, in order
to lay his case before the Foreign Ministers and the Im-
perial Government. Being a man of gentlemanly and
plausible address, he was well received at the capital,
and, to some appearance, soon obtained his object. Sir
Frederick Bruce evidently was charmed with him, for
in a-letter to Prince Kung, dated April 2, 1863, the
British Minister says, “I have formed a high opinion of
General Burgevine’s qualifications for the post he occu-
pies. He is brave, honest, conciliatory in his manner,
and is sincerely desirous of serving the Chinese Govern-
 
 

Sketch of Taitsan and Quinsan

au

 

Yansinghe Lakes iF

‘i

   
 

int where theRebd Retreat.
was cut off, SIMay 1863.

    
 
 
  
   
         
  
  
  

 PUec 72 SLL Ks”

lA.

' Taitsan .

Stockade evacuated
27April 1863.

Site of the Futts
Brothers disasta-
BURGEVINE’S VISIT TO PEKING. 143

ment, as he looks upon this country as his home.” Mr
Burlinghame, the American Minister, writes of him in
similar high terms, but very loosely as to facts, for he
speaks of him as having fought in nearly one hundred
“battles” in the Chinese service, though Burgevine had
really not been in more than five engagements. ‘Prince
Kung, in treating this subject, very clearly said that the
restoration of Burgevine was a matter which lay in the
hands of Li, the governor of Kiangsoo; and there does
not seem to have been any disposition on the part of the
native authorities either at Peking or at Shanghai to
restore him to command, though it has been stated that
he returned to the latter city in company of an Imperial
commissioner directed to replace him in his former
position. It is quite evident from the American Diplo-
matic Correspondence that neither the Prince of Kung
nor Governor Li had the slightest thought of reinstating
him ; and whether his case were a hard one or not, the
Chinese authorities knew very well what manner of man
he was, and what chance there existed of their being
able to work along with him. As to the action of the
British Minister in this matter, the truth is, he at first
considered Burgevine had been unfairly dealt with ; and,
taking this view, thought further, that if a man with
such apparent claims upon the Chinese Government
could be dealt with unjustly, the same course might be
adopted in regard to any Englishmen who entered the
service of the Chinese. Moreover, as the officer to be
appointed in Burgevine’s place was.an Englishman, Sir
Frederick Bruce believed it would be extremely un-
gracious for the British Minister to refuse his support
to the claims of this American.

On the 24th March 1863, Colonel (then Major) Gordon
was put in orders to command the force of disciplined
144 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

Chinese in Kiangsoo, and next day went up,to Sungkiang
to take over the command from Captain Holland, accom-
panied by Captain Stack, of her Majesty’s 67th Foot, as
his Commandant ; Ensign Stevens, of her Majesty’s 99th
Regiment, as Adjutant-General ; Lieutenant Ward, R.A.,
as Commandant of Field-artillery ; D. A. C. G. Cooksley
as Quartermaster-General; and Assistant-Surgeon Moffitt
of the 67th as Principal Medical Officer. It was an-
nounced that both the officers and men had determined to
obey no one but Burgevine ; but Colonel Gordon, having
assembled the officers and non-commissioned officers, told
them plainly that they need not fear sweeping changes or
anything that would injure their future prospects ; and
no outbreak took place.

The first operation requested of the new commander
was an attack upon the town of Fushan, situated a con-
siderable way from Sungkiang, above the Tsung Ming
island, at the estuary of the Yangtsze. This place, long
a haunt of pirates, was held by the Rebels ; it threatened
Chanzu, about ten miles inland, in which an Imperialist
force was besieged; and an unsuccessful attack had
been made upon it shortly before, by Major Tapp, com-
mander of the disciplined artillery, with 600 men and a
few howitzers. Colonel Gordon proceeded against Fushan
in two steamers, with the 5th Regiment, a 32-pounder,
and four 12-pounders, being supported also by Major
Tapp’s force, and by some ordinary Imperialist troops
that were stockaded on the beach and on some neigh-
bouring hills. The Rebel stockades were not strong,
but there were heavy masses of Tai-pings in the rear
and on each flank. The 32-pounder, however, which
was placed in position during the night at some risk
of being taken, was too much for their guns, and soon
brought down the wall of the stockade in masses. On
CAPTURE OF FUSHAN, 145

the advance being sounded, the defenders left, and the
place was taken with the loss of only two killed and six
wounded on the Imperialist side. A slight effort was
made by the Rebels to return, but they only succeeded
in inflicting what eventually proved a mortal wound on
Captain Belcher, of the 5th Regiment. On the road to
Chanzu, Colonel Gordon passed, near a large joss-house,
no less than thirty-five crucified Imperialist soldiers, who
had been burned in various places before death.

The garrison of Chanzu itself had a curious story to
tell. They had all been Rebels, but had suddenly trans-
ferred the town and their services to the other side.
Their chief, Lo Kwo-chung, had persuaded them to shave
their heads and declare for the Imperialist cause early
in the year, and this they did in conjunction with the
garrison of Fushan; but no sooner had they done so,
than, to their dismay, the Faithful King came down
upon them with a large force, took Fushan, and laid
siege to them, trying to overcome them by various kinds
of assault and surprise. He brought against them 32-
pounders which had been taken at Taitsan, and partially
breached the wall. He offered any terms to the soldiers
if they would come over; and, in order to show his
great success, sent in the heads of three European
officers who had been killed at Taitsan. Lo, in these
trying circumstances, had been obliged to do a good
deal of beheading in order to keep his garrison stanch ;
but he, and probably most of his followers, felt they had
committed too unpardonable a sin ever to trust them-
selves*again into Tai-ping hands. For this affair Colonel
Gordon was made, by decree of the Emperor, a Tsung-
Ping, a title which is a grade higher than any Ward
ever held, and which may best be translated by our
phrase Brigadier-General. This alone, not to speak of

K
146 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

the much higher position afterwards conferred upon
him, is enough to confute Mr Lay’s statement * that
this officer never held an Imperial commission. The
following are the terms in which the conferring of this
grade was announced :—

Despatch from Lt, Governor of the Province of Kiangsoo,
to Major Gordon.
May 16th, 1863.

The Governor has already communicated a copy of the
Memorial to the Throne, despatched on the 12th April from his
camp at Shanghai, in which he solicited the issue of a decree
conferring temporary rank as a Chinese J'sung-Ping (Brigadier-
General) upon the English officer Gordon, on his taking com-
mand of the Ever-Victorious Force. He is now in receipt of an
express from the Board of War, returning his Memorial with
the note that a separate Decree has been issued to the Prince of
Kung and the Council of State; and on the same day he
received, through the Prince and Council, copy of the Decree
issued to them on the 9th May in the following terms :—

“Gordon, on succeeding to the command of the Ever-
Victorious Force, having displayed both valour and intelli-
gence, and having now, with repeated energy, captured Fushan,
WE ordain that he at once receive rank and office as a Chinese
Tsung-Ping, and WE at the same time command Li to com-
municate to him the expression of OuR approval. Let Gordon be
further enjoined to use stringent efforts for maintaining disci-
pline in the Ever-Victorious Force, which has fallen into a state
of disorganisation, and thus to guard against the recurrence of
former evils. Respect this!”

The Governor has accordingly to forward a copy of the

foregoing Decree, to which the officer in question will yield
respectful obedience.

Translated by

®
(Signed) Wm. 8. T. Mavers,
Interpreter H. M.'s Consulate.

General Staveley having now resigned his command

* In ‘Our Policy in China,’ a pamphlet published in 1864,
GORDON MADE A TSUNG-PING, 147

from ill-health, Major-General Brown was in command
of the British troops in China, and Burgevine reappeared
on the stage, accompanied by an Imperial commissioner
from Peking. As has been pointed out, there is no
reason for supposing that the Prince of Kung had any
wish to reinstate the American in his former position ;
and Sir Frederick Bruce writes only of the commissioner
as having been sent down “to settle the affair with the
Governor ”—namely, Li;* and he had previously ex-
pressed his opinion on the subject, and given his au-
thority in the following passage in an official letter to
Brigadier-General Staveley:+ “As respects Ward’s
corps, I regret that circumstances should have led to
a misunderstanding between Mr Burgevine and the
Governor, as the accounts I had received of the former
led me to think that he was well fitted for the post.
But as this breach has taken place, it appears to me that
the great amount of foreign property at Shanghai ren-
ders it desirable that this force should be commanded
and officered by men who are not adventurers, and who
afford a guarantee, by the position they occupy in the
military service of their own country, that they are both
competent and to be relied upon; otherwise we should
be constituting a force which would be as dangerous to
us as the insurgents themselves.”

Governor Li, in a long letter on this subject,{ remarks
that he does not wish at all to remove Colonel Gordon,
who had worked night and day harmoniously with the
other generals; who had already won conspicuous suc-
cess; who had reorganised the force, and proved himself
valiant, able, and honest. “As the people and place,”
he continues, “are charmed with him, as he has already
given me returns of the organisation of the force, the

* Blue-Book, China, No. 3 (1864), p. 80. +b. p.68 + Ib., p. 82.
148 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

formation of each regiment, and the expensgs, ordinary
and extraordinary, in the clearest manner, wishing to
drill our troops and save our money, it is evident that
he fully comprehends the state of affairs; and, in the
expedition he is preparing, his men delightedly obey
him, and preserve the proper order. I cannot, therefore,
remove him without cause.” Something very much the
opposite of this is said of poor Burgevine, whom, it is
evident, Lf, and not without some reason, would not
have at any price.

In order to understand the operations which followed,
it should be noted that the field of action was the
large peninsula formed by the river Yangtsze and the
Bay of Hangchow, an immense alluvial flat in Kiang-
nan,* having a superficial area of nearly 50,000 square
miles. This district has been raised from the bed of the
sea by the vast deposits of the great muddy river
Yangtsze, and, though thickly peopled, it is for the most
part only a few feet above the level of the ocean, and in
some places is even lower than that level. Here and
there isolated hills rise to the height of a few hundred
feet, but for the most part there is a dead level, rich
with trees, growing various kinds of cereals in great
abundance, thickly studded with villages and towns,
and intersected in every direction by rivers, creeks, and
canals. On looking across any portion of this great
plain, boats, with their mat sails, appear to be moving
in every direction over the land, and in some places the
waters spread out into lakes of considerable size, such as
the Taiho. Except on a few lines, there are no con-
veniences for transit by land but narrow footpaths,

* Kiangnan signifies “South of the river,” and comprises great part of
Chekiang, together with that portion of Kiangsoo which lies south of the
Yangtsze.
THE THEATRE OF WAR. 149

where people can only go in Indian file; but the net-
work of waters affords great facility for the movement
of boats and of small steamers. In order to realise this
district as it was from 1861 to 1864, we must conceive
the Tai-pings coming down upon its peaceful villages
and rich towns, moving flags, beating gongs, destroying
images and temples, seizing valuables, occupying houses,
dealing with all disobedience according to the exter-
minating decree of Heaven, and being a terror unto
young women ; but still not at first destroying the crops
or many of the houses, or slaying many of the males.
Then we have the Allies driving them back, firing into
their masses of men with long-range rifles, and pounding
at their stockades with heavy guns and shells. On the
retirement of these we have the Rebels again advancing
to the neighbourhood of Shanghai, but this time in an
infuriated demoniac state, burning and destroying every-
thing in order that there may be a waste round the —
starving city, and murdering or driving before them all
the villagers. Lastly, the Ever-Victorious Army appears
on the scene, not by any means always victorious, but
very frequently so, and bringing European drill and
officers, with heavy artillery, to bear on a settlement of
the question. Let this be embellished (as the scene ap-
peared to me in 1860) with views of rich fertile plains,
where the crops are trampled down or consumed, a few
narrow bridges of the willow-plate pattern, a dilapidated
pagoda or two, broken blackened walls of village houses,
the deserted streets of towns, innumerable swollen, black-
ened corpses lying on the slimy banks of the muddy
streams, or rotting underneath the graceful bamboos,
red flames at night flashing up against the deep dark
sky ;—let us imagine, also, the Tai-pings throwing them-
selves into all sorts of postures impossible to the Euro-
150 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

pean, and uttering cries scarcely less painful, or hideous
than those from the ravished villages ; and we may form
some conception of the great Chinese tragedy which was
enacted in Kiangnan.

The next movement of the Sungkiang force was against
the large town of Quinsan; and in the approach to that
place good service was done by the steamer Hyson, a
species of amphibious boat, which possessed the power of
moving upon land as well as upon water, for she could
drive over the bed of a creek upon her wheels when
there was not sufficient depth of water to keep her afloat.
But at this time, the end of April, the force was diverted
to Taitsan by certain events which it is of importance to
notice, because they had no small share in afterwards
causing what has been ridiculously called “ the massacre
of Soochow.” It is to these events that we must chiefly
look for an explanation and vindication of the execution
by Governor Li of the Tai-ping kings who surrendered
to him at Soochow—an alleged breach of faith, which
led Colonel Gordon temporarily to resign his command,
and which, misrepresented and misunderstood, gave rise
to a considerable outcry both in China and in this
country.

After Chanzu had yielded to the Imperialists, and Fu-
shan was taken, the Tai-pings at Taitsan made pro-
posals of surrender to Governor Li, who sent up his
brother with about 2000 troops to arrange the matter.
Tsah, the Tai-ping chief, led the Imperialists to suppose
that he was prepared to give up the place, and even
accepted a large number of mandarin hats to be put on
by his officers when the besiegers entered. Presents
were interchanged, frequent meetings were held between
the two leaders, everything seemed going on smoothly,
and the 26th April was fixed for giving up the city;
TAI-PING TREACHERY AT TAITSAN. I51

but when, according to agreement, a portion of the Im-
perialists had entered the South Gate, a gun was fired,
the gate was closed, and 1500 of them were treacherously
attacked and seized, along with all their camp equip-
ments. Of these not less than 300 were decapitated,
their heads being sent to Soochow and Quinsan as a
general encouragement to the followers of the Great
Peace, and the remainder were of course compelled to
join the Tai-pings.

In consequence of this act of stupid treachery, Gordon
and his force, to the number of 2800, were diverted
against Taitsan. He halted about 1500 yards from
the West Gate, where the Rebels had two strong stone
forts, and captured two stockades, enclosing small stone
forts. On the 2d May the 1st Regiment was moved
at an early hour towards the North Gate, in order to
prevent a retreat from that point, and to cover the
left flank of the main body of the attacking force, which
was established in the western suburb. The troops were
so placed as to be under cover, and the guns, protected
by portable wooden mantlets, were gradually pushed
forward until they were within a hundred yards of the
walls of the city, which, by 2 p.m., were rather dilapi-
dated, as every gun and mortar available was in action.
Two hours after this, a wide breach having been made
in the walls, the boats were ordered up, and a storming
party advanced to the assault. The resistance made,
however, was now very serious—the place being garri-
soned by 10,000 men, 2000 of whom were picked braves,
and its guns being served by several English, French,
and American adventurers in Tai-ping employ. The
Rebels swarmed to the breach, manned the walls, and
poured down a tremendous fire on the attacking column
as well as on the bridge beyond. Major Bannon, how-
152 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

ever, who led the storming party, succeeded jn mounting
the breach, and a hand-to-hand conflict took place, in
which the assailants were for the moment worsted and
compelled to retire, the Tai-pings being bravely headed
by the Foreigners in their service. Again the guns
played upon the breach for about twenty minutes, and
then the assault was renewed. At last the 5th Regi-
ment, under Major Brennan, advanced, and Captain
Tchirikoff’s company managed to plant the colours of
that regiment on the top of the wall. On this the
storming party crowded in while the Tai-pings fled in
every direction, trampling each other to death in their
eagerness to escape. Hither during or immediately after
the attack there were killed two Americans, two French-
men, who begged hard for mercy, and three sepoys,
formerly of the 5th Bombay Native Infantry, all of
whom were fighting with the Tai-pings. This may be
called Imperialist cruelty, but every military man knows
that whenever a place is taken by assault under the flag
of any nation, many of the defenders are put to death
though they throw down their arms and cry for quarter.
The loss on the part of the Ever-Victorious Army was
also heavy, Major Bannon of the 4th Regiment, with
twenty rank and file, being killed, while there were
wounded Lieut. Wood, R.A., Commandant of the Field
Artillery, Major Murant, Captains Chapman, Chidwick,
Ludlam, Robinson, and Williams, with 142 privates,
out of a force of 2800 men. It is doubtful whether this
assault would have been successful had it not been for
some 8-inch howitzers which were played over the heads
of the stormers, and mowed down the Tai-pings on the
breach, from a distance of only 200 yards. The steamer
Hyson also did some service by moving in the neigh-
bourhood, throwing heavy shells into the city; and
CAPTURE OF TAITSAN. 153

General Brown afforded “ moral support” by moving up
a small British force of about 500* to the village of
Waikong, about six miles off. From the statements of
Private Hargreaves, an English deserter from H.M. 31st
Regiment, who was taken prisoner in Taitsan, it ap-
peared that, though the Europeans in the place had
fought well, they had done so unwillingly, and had told
Tsah, the Tai-ping chief, that it was useless for him to
resist. The officers of the disciplined force who specially
distinguished themselves in this engagement were Major
Brennan, with Captains Howard and Tchirikoff of the
5th Regiment, and Captains Williams and Brooks of
the 2d.

There were some circumstances connected with this
capture of Taitsan which gave rise to a curious dis-
cussion, that did not confine itself to China, but was
taken up also in this country, and was even allowed to
occupy the attention of her Majesty’s Foreign Secretary.
It was a common thing among certain persons in China
at this period to invent stories of Imperialist cruelty.
For instance, most hideous accounts were published in
the ‘ Times of India’ of almost unmentionable atrocities,
said to have been committed on Tai-ping women and
children by the Imperialist authorities at Shanghai, and
yet, on examination, the whole dismal story turned out
to have been a pure invention. One might have thought
that such a case, and similar ones only too abundant at
this time, would have been a warning to respectable per-
sons not to give a ready, and much less an eager, heed to
anonymous stories of the kind ; but such does not seem
to have been the immediate result. After the capture of

* This force consisted of 60 Royal Artillery, 80 Lascars, 2 howitzers,
two 54-inch mortars, 80 of the 31st Regiment, 150 Belooches, and 150 5th
Bombay Native Infantry.
154 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

Taitsan, an anonymous writer in the Shgnghai ‘ Daily
Shipping and Commercial News’ came forward under the
specious nom de plume of “Justice and Mercy,” and in-
sisted that, after the capture, seven Rebel prisoners had
their eyes pierced out by Imperialist soldiers, and were
then roasted alive, their clothes being previously saturated
with oil, and that more than one Englishman witnessed
the deed, powerless to save. Behind the screen of the
‘North China Herald,’ of 13th June 1863, another anony-
mous person, under the signature of “An Eyewitness,”
asserted that “Justice and Mercy” had exaggerated the
affair; but that he himself could say, from personal ob-
servation, that the prisoners referred to were “tortured
with the most refined cruelty,” that “ arrows appeared to
have been forcibly driven into various parts of their
bodies, heads, region of heart, abdomen, &c., from whence
issued copious streams of blood ; that strips of flesh had
been cut, or rather hacked, from various parts of their
bodies ;” and that “for hours these wretched beings
writhed in agony” before they were led out to an inhu-
man death. Having had a private interview with this
witness, Dr Smith, the Bishop of Victoria, thought fit to
write to Harl Russell on the subject, and to express his
opinion that there was no reasonable doubt as to the
truth of the witness’s allegations.

In an official letter to the Secretary of War,* General
Brown, as commander of her Majesty’s forces in China,
very naturally expressed his surprise that the Bishop had
not communicated with him upon this subject, and had
not inquired whether he, the General, could supply any
reliable information regarding it. From reports made.
by Lieutenant Cane, R.A., and other English officers who
were witnesses of the affair, and who did not speak of it

* Blue-Book, China, No. 3 (1864), p. 117.
ALLEGED IMPERIALIST CRUELTIES. 155

from behind a screen, General Brown had, almost at the
time, been put in possession of the facts of the case, and
had taken all the action which it demanded. Colonel
Gordon and his force had nothing to do with the seven
prisoners who were taken by Imperialist soldiers after
they had escaped from Taitsan, and were condemned.
near Waikong, where a British force was, to the punish-
ment of the “ Ling-che,” or slow and ignominious death.
As the Tai-pings of Taitsan had been guilty of an act of
bloody treachery, they had no claim to be treated as or-
dinary prisoners of war ; and it was, moreover, alleged by
the Mandarins that these particular prisoners were special
offenders. As it was, according to the testimony of several
British officers, the sentence upon them was carried out
only in a very modified form. They were tied up and
exposed to view for about five hours, each with a piece of
skin cut from one arm and hanging down, and with an
arrow or two pushed through the skin in various places.
They did not seem to suffer pain, and were afterwards
beheaded in the ordinary way. Even this, of course, was
objectionable ; and General Brown, careful of the honour
of a British officer, at once told the Futai, Li, that if any
similar cases were reported to him he should withdraw
his troops, and cease to act along with the Imperialists.
This was quite right ; but it should be noticed also, that
we are apt to attach an exaggerated importance to the
cruelty of Chinese punishments from our own superior
sensitiveness to pain. What might be exquisite torture
to the nervous vascular European is something much less
to the obtuse-nerved Turanian ; and it may be safely
affirmed that the Chinese penal code,* as actually carried
out, is, considering the nature of the people, not a whit

* The ‘Edinburgh Review, in an article on Sir George Staunton’s trans-
lation of that code, said, “ We scarcely know a European code that is at
156 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

more severe than that of any European eguntry. Every
doctor who has had to perform operations on Chinamen,
knows how little they suffer in comparison with more
sensitive races. As to the conduct in such matters of
the Ever-Victorious Army, Colonel Gordon wrote to the
Shanghai ‘Shipping News :’—

June 15th, 1863.

I am of belief that the Chinese of this force are quite as
merciful in action as the soldiers of any Christian nation could
be; and in proof of this can point.to over 700 prisoners, taken
in the last engagement, who are now in our employ; some even
have entered our ranks and done service against the Rebels since
their capture. But one life has been taken out of this number,
and that one was a Rebel who tried to induce his comrades to
fall on the guard, and who was shot on the spot. It is a great
mistake to imagine that the men of this force are worthless; they
will, in the heat of action, put their enemies to death, as the
troops of any nation would do, but when the fight is over they
will associate as freely together as if they had never fought.

If “ Observer” and “ Eyewitness,” with their friend “Jus-
tice and Mercy,” would come forward and communicate what
they know, it would be far more satisfactory than writing state-
ments of the nature of those alluded to by the Bishop of Vic-
toria. And if any one is under the impression that the inhabi-
tants of the Rebel districts like their Rebel masters, he has only
to come up here to be disabused of his idea. I do not exagge-
rate when I say, that- upwards of 1500 Rebels were killed in
their retreat from Quinsan by the villagers, who rose en masse.

The plunder it obtained at Taitsan had somewhat
demoralised the Ever-Victorious Army, which of course
could hardly be kept in a state of strict discipline; and
so its commander moved it back to Sungkiang, in order
that it might be reorganised. Previous to this the force
had been accustomed to dissolve after the capture of
any place, in order that the men might dispose of their

once so copious and so consistent, or is nearly so freed from intricacy,
bigotry, and fiction.”
A MUTINY IN THE FORCE, 157

loot ; and though the practice was eminently unsoldierly,
the abolition of it by Colonel Gordon was not at all appre-
ciated by these soldiers of fortune, who had no desire
to peril their lives without compensating gratifications,
and whose pay was not high considering the risks they ran.
General Ward had even allowed them coolies to clean
their arms ; and the idea of carrying their own rations
was thought quite derogatory to their dignity. Many of
the officers themselves did not show an example of dis-
cipline to the troops, and the commander was glad to have
an opportunity of filling the places of some of those who
had been killed, and of others who had resigned, by
privates and non-commissioned officers of H.M. 99th and
other regiments, who had volunteered for the service.
Finding it necessary also to have some officer of rank
over the commissariat and military stores, he selected
Deputy-Assistant Commissary-General Cooksley, an ex-
cellent officer, for that duty, and gave him the rank of
lieutenant-colonel in order that he might speak with
authority to the majors commanding the different regi-
ments, who were apt to be troublesome when rations
were issued.

These efforts to improve the discipline of this rather
anomalous force were not allowed to pass without violent
opposition, threatening at one time to pass into open
mutiny. When Lieut.-Colonel Cooksley’s appointment
was made known, and just when the force was ordered
to march against Quinsan, all the majors requested an
interview with the commander, at which they complained
of an officer of the English army being placed over them,
and demanded for themselves the same rank and pay as
the new lieutenant-colonel. This was at once refused, on
which they retired, and soon after sent in their resigna-
tions, with the coo] request that these should be accepted
158 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

at once, but that they should be allowed¢o serve on the
approaching expedition. In answer to this Colonel Gor-
‘don at once accepted their resignations, and refused to
allow them to serve on the expedition ; but the position
in which he was placed was a very critical one. The
force had been ordered to march at daybreak next morn-
ing, the 24th May, but at 8 a.m. only the commander’s
body-guard had fallen in; and the officers who had been
placed in command came to report that none of the
other men would do so.

After this matter had been settled by the officers sub-
mitting to be content with their position as majors,
Colonel Gordon left Sungkiang with 600 artillery and
2300 infantry in order to attack Quinsan, in conjunc-
tion with an Imperialist force under General Ching,
which he had left stockaded before that place, and which,
on his return, he found in some peril. The operations
which now ensued were rather peculiar, and most de-
structive to the Tai-pings, who numbered about 12,000
men. In a strategical point of view, Quinsan was a place
of immense importance, being the key to Soochow, and a
point the possession of which would completely protect
both Sungkiang and Taitsan. No place could have better
suited the requirements of the Ever-Victorious Army
than Quinsan, or enabled them at this time to hold so
large a district of country safe from the inroads of the
Tai-pings ; but there were, to all appearance, serious dif-
ficulties in the way of gaining possession of it. A very
large Rebel force was encamped within its walls, which
have a circumference of about five miles—and stone forts
in its neighbourhood were also held by the Rebels. Its
ditch was more than forty yards wide; the high hill en-
closed within its walls enabled every movement in the
neighbourhood to be seen, and two or three guns placed
SITUATION OF QUINSAN. 159

on the spurs of this hill would have formed a very citadel.
Altogether the position was one which afforded fine scope
for the skill of a scientific assailing commander.

Colonel Gordon, judging from his official report,* and
from other sources of information, seems to have detected
the weak point of this position. The only road between
Quinsan and Soochow is so situated between the Yansing
Lake and large creeks widening out here and there into
small lakes or sheets of water, that it seemed possible to
cut off entirely the communication between these two
cities ; and this road, though in the main good, crosses
very long bridges and follows narrow causeways, some-
times only three or four feet wide, for the space of twenty
or thirty yards, while on the inner side the creeks are
very deep. Accordingly, the steamer Hyson, with its
guns protected by iron mantlets, was employed to cut
this line of communication. Ching, the Imperialist gen-
eral acting in concert, was very anxious that the dis-
ciplined force should attack the east gate, that on the
side of Taitsan; but this Colonel Gordon declined until
he had reconnoitred the country on the other side; and
the result of his investigations was a determination to
attack two stockades and a very strong stone fort which
he found on the road, and on the banks of the canal
between Quinsan and Soochow, eight miles from the
former and twelve from the latter city, at the village of
Chunye.

At dawn of the 30th May, Colonel Gordon started on
this adventure in the Hyson, accompanied by the 4th
Regiment, 350 strong, with field-artillery in boats, and
by about fifty small Imperial gunboats, the whole flotilla
amounting to about eighty boats, with large white sails,
and decorated with various-coloured flags. Some stakes,

* Blue-Book, China, No. 3 (1864), p. 111.
160 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

separating the creek which they came upgfrom the canal
between Quinsan and Soochow, were pulled up by the
Imperialist boats, and a general advance with the steamer
and troops was made. Immediately that the Tai-pings,
who were in great force, saw this, they vacated the
stockades, and, splitting right and left, fled along the
causeway, some to Quinsan and the remainder towards
Soochow, the 4th Regiment being despatched in pursuit
of the former, and the Hyson following up the latter.
It was understood, however, that some bad feeling be-
tween the commander at Chunye and the Tai-ping chief
at Quinsan was the chief cause of their defending the
stockades so badly.

The events which followed sufficiently proved that the
Tai-pings were taken by surprise, and completely con-
fused by the novel mode of warfare which they had to
encounter. The Hyson steamed slowly up the canal
towards Soochow, somewhat impeded by the numerous
boats, abandoned by their owners, which were drifting
about, and occupied, as it advanced, in firing on the clus-
ters of Rebels marching before it along the causeway.
At Taedin a fine. stone fort appeared, but this also was
immediately abandoned on a shell from the steamer hap-
pening to go through one of the embrasures. Though
this boat had on board only about half-a-dozen Europeans
and thirty Chinese gunners, six men were landed to pre-
vent the fort being reoccupied by any of the parties of
Rebels that were coming up behind. Continuing its
course, and always harassing the fleeing troops in front,
the Hyson passed at Siaouedin another stone fort which
had been evacuated ; and then, having headed a party of
about 400 Tai-pings, Captain Davidson had the almost
incredible audacity to take 150 of them prisoners on
board his small craft. Soon after this, four Rebel horse-
A DEMON STEAMBOAT, 161

men rode past the steamer, in the direction of Soochow,
amid a shower of bullets; and when one of them was
struck off his steed, the others waited for him and carried
him off—a fine instance of Chinese courage and fidelity.
The steamer got within a mile of Soochow, and did not
turn till 6 p.m., being very uncertain as to what sort of
reception it might meet with on the way back. The
extraordinary good fortune which had attended this.
movement continued to befriend it. On the way down,
a large force at Siaouedin opened a sharp fire of rifles
upon the Hyson, but they were enfiladed from their posi-
tion by a charge of grape, and some of them were made
prisoners. Even the boat’s steam-whistle seems to have
done good service in frightening the Tai-pings, most of
whom had heard nothing of the kind before; and it
may be imagined how great must have been the effect
on their untutored minds of this fiery dragon coming
shrieking down in the darkness, with the glaring eyes
of its green and blue lights, and its horrible discharges
of grape and shells.

On returning to Chunye, tremendous firing and
cheering were heard, the Imperial gunboats being found
engaged with the stone fort, which in the darkness was
literally sparkling with musketry. It was most fortu-
nate that the steamer came up at this moment, for as
it got to the scene of action a confused mass of men,
but dimly discerned, were seen on the causeway. This
was the garrison of Quinsan, amounting to about
8000 men, attempting to escape to Soochow. On the
steamer blowing its whistle, this dark mass wavered,
yelled, and turned back. Then followed one of those
terrible scenes which are so useful in war, and may
be on the whole so beneficial, but which are often so
painful to witness and to read of. The number of

L
162 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

Tai-pings was so great, and their state of desperation
such, that they could easily have swept Colonel Gor-
don’s small force away; and the Imperialists, being
surrounded by the enemy, were so panic-stricken that
they had commenced to abandon their gunboats when
the Hyson arrived. Hence it was necessary to fire into
the Quinsan garrison, which the steamer accordingly
did, driving back the dense yelling masses, step by step,
with great slaughter, and pursuing them up to the
walls of the city. The shelling went on till half-past
two in the morning, when as many of the garrison
surrendered as could safely be made prisoners of ; and,
at a later hour, an Imperialist and disciplined force,
which had been left at the Hast Gate, entered Quinsan,
and took possession of that place unopposed.

In this engagement the loss of the Tai-pings was
very great indeed. It was evident that between 3000
and 4000 men must have been killed, drowned, or
taken prisoners ; but it is impossible to say how many
more of the 12,000 or 15,000 in Quinsan, or on the
fatal causeway, failed to reach Soochow, and perished
miserably — drowned in creeks, choked in mud, and
killed by the villagers, who, to show their appreciation
of Tai-ping rule, rose en masse against the fugitives.
About 800 prisoners were taken, most of whom entered
the ranks of the Ever-Victorious Army; and 8000
might have been secured, had there been troops to
collect them. In fact, almost the entire garrison of
Quinsan must have been lost to the Rebels, while the
casualties in Colonel Gordon’s force, exclusive of the
Imperialists with whom he acted, were only two killed,
and five drowned.

This almost unparalleled disproportion between the
two losses may readily suggest the idea of a mere
CAPTURE OF QUINSAN. 163

massacre, where superiority of arms on one side ren-
dered the defence on the other a perfect farce; but
such was not the case. It was the selection of the
causeway as the weak point of the enemy, together with
the hazardous, desperate, and totally unlooked-for char-
acter ofthe attack, which made it so wonderful a suc-
cess; and at almost any point up to the occupation
of Quinsan, the state of matters might easily have been
reversed. Had the Rebels stood to their stockades
and forts; had they returned to stone forts which the
Hyson had to leave unoccupied, or held by only a few
men ; had they attacked the steamer on its return to
Taedin, where it had a narrow escape from being taken;
and had the Quinsan garrison not wavered in its fugi-
tive attack when the steam-whistle began to sound,—
then there might have been a very different conclusion
to this bold adventure. This was one of those occasions
which occur pre-eminently in Asiatic warfare, when a
little hesitation on the part of the commander, and a
little suspension of confidence on the part of the troops,
might easily have led to a disaster on the side of the
assailants quite as great as that which, as it turned out, —
befell the assailed.

The importance of Quinsan to the Rebel cause could
not easily be over-estimated. It contained a manufac-
tory for ordnance, shot, and shell, which was conducted
by two Englishmen, whose fate I cannot discover ; and
it afforded a central point communicating by water
with Soochow, Sungkiang, Taitsan, and Chanzu. The
boldness of the attack and the completeness of its
success paralysed the Tai-pings and gave confidence to
the country-people. Moreover, Quinsan afforded an
excellent place for the headquarters of the Ever-Vic-
torious, and one where the reins of discipline could be
164 GORDON’S FIRST VICTORIES.

drawn tighter than at Sungkiang, where mgny Chinese
resided who had been demoralised when serving under
the lax system of General Ward. It can easily be con-
ceived that this anomalous Chinese force was “disciplined”
only to a very limited extent. Not a few of the officers
were what are usually called “ rowdies,” yet exceedingly
jealous of their position and presumed privileges ; while
the Chinese rank-and-file expected to be humoured, and,
though brave enough at times, would, in the matter
of plunder, have outgeneralled Bardolph and Ancient
Pistol. These worthies did not at all like being quar-
tered at Quinsan instead of being restored to their old
location at Sungkiang. When this change of residence
was communicated to the troops, the artillery refused to
fall in, and threatened to blow the European officers to
pieces with the big guns, and the Chinese authorities
with the small ones. This intimation of serious mutiny
was conveyed to Colonel Gordon in a written proclama-
tion. He ordered up the non-commissioned officers,
being convinced that they were at the bottom of the
affair, and inquired of them who wrote the procla-
mation, and why the men would not fall in. They
professed ignorance on these points, and were then told
that one out of every five of them would be shot—a
piece of information which they received with groans.
As it was absolutely necessary to restore discipline, the
commander ordered a corporal, one of the most promi-
nent of the groaners, to be dragged out and shot, which
was immediately done by two of the infantry who were
standing by. The remaining non-commissioned officers
were then put in confinement for an hour, with the
assurance that if the men did not fall in, and if the
name of the writer of the proclamation were not given
up by the time that period elapsed, the arrangement of
ANOTHER MUTINY. 165

shooting every fifth man would be carried out; and this
energetic measure brought them to their senses, the men
falling in and the writer’s name being disclosed.

At the time this fracas occurred, another serious dis-
pute was going on between Colonel Gordon, whose hands
must have been pretty full, and General Ching. This
Imperialist leader had been annoyed at Gordon’s method
of taking Quinsan, because he had previously written to
the Futai, stating that he himself only required guns to
make a breach at the East Gate in order to get in; and
he was also opposed to the disciplined force being estab-
lished at that place. Whether purposely or accidentally,
but most probably the former, some of his gunboats
opened fire with grape and round-shot on 150 men of the
Ever-Victorious under Majors Kirkham and Lowden,
who were co-operating with another Imperialist force
under General Li. Ching at first affected to treat this
contretemps as a joke; and on being rather forcibly in-
formed it was nothing of the kind, he affected ignorance
of the unmistakable green-and-red flag on which his
troops had fired. Gordon wrote to the Futai about
this matter, and then, with a larger force, started for
the neighbourhood where the event had occurred, de-
termined to fight Ching as well as the Rebels, if that
general showed a disposition to make any more such
mistakes. Mr Macartney, however, formerly surgeon in
H.M. 99th Regiment, who was then, as now, in the em-
ploy of the Chinese Government, and had undertaken
charge of the Futai’s arsenal at Sungkiang, was sent up
to arrange matters, and the affair ended in a humble

apology.
CHAPTER X.
BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

A THIRD MUTINY—SITUATION OF SOOCHOW—GORDON’S TROUBLES
—BURGEVINE’S PREVIOUS CAREER—HE JOINS THE TAI-PINGS—
ALARM CAUSED IN SHANGHAI—GORDON’S PROVIDENTIAL ESCAPE
—THE FOREIGN ALLIES DESERT THE REBELS——POLITE INTER-
CHANGES BETWEEN BURGEVINE AND JONES— BURGEVINE AT-
TEMPTS AGAIN TO JOIN THE TAI-PINGS—-HIS SEIZURE BY THE
CHINESE AUTHORITIES — HIS REPORTED ACCIDENTAL DEATH-—
THE DOUBT WHICH RESTS OVER HIS FATE,

No sooner was the fracas with General Ching settled
than another and more serious danger began to manifest
itself in alarming reports concerning the intentions of
Burgevine, formerly commander of the disciplined Chi-
nese. It was known that he was enlisting loose charac-
ters at Shanghai, and was also in close communication
with Foreigners who had originally been in the force,
bat who had left it. Burgevine, however, wrote to
Colonel Gordon, with whom he was on good terms, on
the 21st July, in the following words :—* You may
hear a great many rumours concerning me, but do not
believe any of them. I shall come up and have a long
talk with you. Until then adieu.” This was not very
explicit or reassuring, but on the strength of it Gordon
wrote to the Futai and became surety that Burgevine
would not make any attempt in favour of the Tai-pings.
A THIRD MUTINY. 167

The rumours about their old commander had an unset-
tling effect on the minds of the officers ; and just before
an expedition was about to start for Wokong, there was
a mutiny of the artillery officers, who were annoyed at a
change being made in their commander. On the 26th
July they all joined in a round-robin, refusing to serve
under the new commander, Major Tapp, or to accompany
the expedition. In this case, though Colonel Gordon, as
he afterwards told them, had all the inclination to shoot
one or two of the leaders, he had not the power, as all
the officers of the force would have resented such a pro-
ceeding ; so the course he pursued was to exercise all his
personal influence in collecting any men who would offer
to serve the guns, and in getting these latter started
without the artillery officers. The guns were fortunately
in the boats, and the common artillerymen were quite
willing to go, so the expedition started without the
officers. At dusk, however, a letter came from these
now penitent gentlemen, begging that their conduct
might be overlooked for that one time. Considering all
the circumstances, this had to be done, the more espe-
cially as their place could not effectively be supplied.
Though given to imaginary grievances, the officers of
the force were gallant men, who evinced much ingenuity
and quickness, and were wonderfully sharp in acquiring
a knowledge of the country. One cause of their un-
easiness was a dread of their places being supplied by
officers from the British army; but of this there was
little likelihood at the time, owing to the General Order,
which condemned officers so acting to half-pay. They
would have had less suspicion of their commander
had they known that at this very time he was being
urged in influential quarters, and by well-wishers to
China, to retire from his position and allow the Rebels
168 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

a chance of advance, in order to force the Ghinese autho-
rities to grant terms to the force such as would induce
British officers to serve.*

In order to explain the expeditions which now fol-
lowed, it must be borne in mind that at this period the
great object of the Imperial Government was the reduc-
tion of Soochow, the capital of the province, situated on
the Grand Canal. Looking at the nature of the country
and its system of water-communication, Colonel Gordon
deemed it best to approach it gradually from all sides
and cut its communications, rather than advance to an
immediate attack. Soochow is peculiarly situated with
regard to water-communication, for it stands on the
Grand Canal, and is pretty close to the Taho or Taiho
Lake,t a sheet of shallow water fifty miles from north
to south, and nearly as many in breadth. From the
Grand Canal to this lake there are four entrances open
to steamers. One of these is at Kahpoo, a place ten
miles south of Soochow, and there the Rebels had two
strong stone forts which it was of special importance to
take, not only because they secured a good communi-
cation between the lake and the canal, but because they
commanded the direct road from Soochow to the Tai-ping
cities in the south. The city of Wokong, three miles
south of Kahpoo, was also in possession of the Rebels,
and it was thought best to attack it first.

The force employed consisted of about 2200 men, in-
fantry and artillery, in boats, with the armed steamers
Firefly and Cricket, who captured Kahpoo on the 27th
July. The most exciting part of the affair occurred
early on the 28th July, at a Rebel fort only a few

* Private correspondence.

+ As Tat means “Great” and Ho “Lake” or “Water,” to speak of the
Tai-ho Lake reminds one of the Indian griffin’s “ Boy, bring some ag low,”
but the phrase has become too familiar to be changed in a work of this kind.
SITUATION OF SOOCHOW. 169

hundred yards from Wokong, which had been left un-
occupied. As soon as the Tai-pings, however, saw the
advance of the Ever-Victorious Army, they rushed out
to occupy this fort; and Colonel Gordon pushed out
the 4th and 6th Regiments to cut them off and endea-
vour to get in before them. An exciting race ensued,
and the Tai-pings managed to get in first; but the 6th
Regiment was so little behind that they had immediately
to run out again, with some loss. Leaving this regiment
in occupation, Gordon took other stockades which com-
manded the town, so that every exit from the city was
closed by 10 a.m. After a vain attempt to force a pas-
sage, the garrison surrendered, and about 4000 prisoners
were taken, among whom were many chiefs, including
the second in command—the leader, Yang Wang, a rela-
tive of Chung Wang, having escaped the night before.
Among those captured were a theatrical company who
had just come up from Hangchow, and were sorely
troubled at such a termination of their mimic fights.
The ‘Imperialist general Ching soon arrived, and was
very anxious to get hold of the prisoners; but only
1500, including none of the chiefs, were given him, to
be made soldiers, under a promise that they should re-
ceive good treatment, and these had the option of going
with the disciplined force. However, Gordon soon heard
that five of these prisoners had been beheaded by Ching;
and this, together with his determination to quit the
command on account of the non-payment of claims which
the force had necessarily incurred, determined him to
leave for Shanghai.

At this time the commander of the Ever-Victorious
Army must have had what many people would think
the most pressing inducements to give up the command,
and his army, and its victories. The service he was on
170 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

was not only one of incessant toil, byt of more than
ordinary exposure to danger, as he had often himself to
lead assaults, and, seizing reluctant officers, to march
them into the thick of the fire. Some of these officers
were disaffected towards him, and he was even looked
upon unfavourably by a portion of his own troops. The
Imperialist authorities, especially the redoubtable Ching,
were a constant source of trouble, and the Futai took
no steps to discharge the pressing claims of creditors
against the force. At the same time influential persons
among his countrymen were urging him to resign. But
when he arrived at Shanghai on the 8th August at 8
p.M., and learned that General Burgevine had left for
Soochow with a large party of Foreigners in order to
join the Tai-ping ranks, Gordon gave up his intention of
resigning, and rode up to Quinsan that night in order to
resume his command; because he did not think it credit-
able to leave the Imperialists when they were in so great
a danger; because a change of command at such a crisis
might have been most detrimental to the whole of the
community at Shanghai; and also because he felt he
had pledged himself to the Futai that Burgevine would
not join the Rebels.

As this is the turning-point in Henry Andrea Bur-
gevine’s eventful history, it may be well to say a word
as to his antecedents. Like Ward, he was one of those
American adventurers, who, trained by the circumstances
of their country to love fighting, could find no sufficient
outlet for their restless energies before the great American
war came to their relief. He was a Southerner by birth,
and superior to Ward both in manners and education,
though inferior in coolness and in the choice of means to
an end. The latter filibuster had a nasty side-look, and
a face which boded no good to any one in particular,
_BURGEVINE’S PREVIOUS CAREER. 171

unless it were himself; while the former had a pleasant
expression on his dark countenance. The American
papers say that he was born at Newbern, North Carolina,
in 1836, his father having been a French officer under
Napoleon ; and that, though his early years were ill pro-
vided for, he was an accomplished student, and even in
his youth entertained dreams of being some day able to
build up a great empire in the Hast; and whether that
be the case or not, he certainly entertained such a dream
in China, where it was the cause of his misfortunes. A
much-wandering man, he seems to have turned up in
California of course, in Australia, the Sandwich Islands,
-India where he studied Hindustanee, Jiddah, London, and
other places—being, in fact, one of those nautical gentle-
men who combine a taste for literature with the power
of navigating coasting vessels, and, would fate allow, of
founding great empires. After that, finding a post-office
clerkship and the editing of an American newspaper
rather tame work for him, he found his way again to
China, became Ward’s second in command, and, as noted
before, on the death of that worthy, was put in charge
of the Ever-Victorious Army, quarrelled with the Futai,
struck the patriotic merchant Ta Kee, was dismissed from
his post, applied for redress at Peking, and was not re-
instated.

These latter events had naturally irritated Burgevine’s
soul ; and it is admitted, even by his friends, that, being
weakened by an imperfectly healed wound, he was now
in the habit of taking stimulants to an extent which
at times disordered his brain, or at least that stimu-
lants, whether taken in large quantities or not, had
that effect upon him. There was a double motive for his
action—revenge against the Imperialists, and his dream
of seizing an empire in China; so he entered into com-
172 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

munication with the Moh Wang, now ‘ai-ping chief at
Soochow, and engaged about 150 Foreign rowdies at
Shanghai to enter with him into the service of the Great
Peace. This was a bold enterprise, for it was pretty well
known at this time that the Foreigners in the service of
the Tai-pings had no very delightful time of it; but
Burgevine was a persuasive person, his name had con-
siderable power with the troops on both sides, and it
was believed, not without some grounds, that he could
command the services of many of the officers of Gordon’s
army. As to himself, there is no doubt that his hope
and intention was to get a large body of foreign adven-
turers and disciplined natives into his own hands, then
to throw up the Tai-ping cause, and make an independent
filibustering movement across China in the direction of
Peking, in order to fulfil the dream of his youth. Con-
sidering the state of China at this time, wiser heads than
his might have been carried away by such an idea; but
the Foreign Powers, having treaty-rights with that
country, would never have permitted the success of such
a movement ; and even the Imperial Government would
have been roused to measures which would have de-
feated it. The time for such a project was before the
treaties of 1858.

This movement of Burgevine’s was thus reported on
to Major-General Brown, commanding her Majesty’s
forces in China, by Colonel Hough, on the 4th of
August :—

Burgevine has gone over to the Rebels with some Europeans
collected here; the number varies with the different reports from
100 to 1000, but 300 will probably be nearer the mark. From
Captain Strode’s information Burgevine’s terms with the Euro-
peans are, service one month and money paid down; and other
information states unrestrained licence to pillage every town
BURGEVINE JOINS THE TAI-PINGS, 173

they take, even Shanghai itself. The latter would be an idle
threat even under the present reduced state of the garrison, but
for the alarming defection of Major Gordon’s force, who are all,
it is said, traitorously inclined to side with Burgevine. Names
of traitors are freely given, being those of Major Gordon’s best
officers of the land forces, as well as those commanding steamers.
This, if true, would virtually be giving our siege-train, now with
Major Gordon, into the Rebels’ hands, and to oppose which,
Captain Murray informs me, we have not a gun of equal force.
The Futai told Mr Markham yesterday evening that Burgevine
and 65 Europeans had seized the little steamer Ki-fow under
the walls of Sun-kiang, and taken her into Soochow, and had
been made a Wang of the second class and commander of all
the Rebel forces. The Futai also said that a report had reached
him, of Quang-san [Quinsan], Major Gordon’s headquarters,
having been given up to the Rebels by its garrison. Should this
be true, the worst may be anticipated; Major Gordon a pris-
oner, the siege-train lost, and the speedy advent of the Rebels,
commanded by Burgevine, before this place; for it is idle to
suppose that they would respect the 30-mile radius when they
had no town outside with wealth enough to support their rabble
hordes, which exaggerated reports put down at 800,000, of which
they say 20,000 are disciplined by Frenchmen and Europeans
long resident in Soochow. In the present imperfect knowledge
of affairs, to move out would perhaps be to leave Shanghai open
to the Rebels, who can choose their own route, and whose ad-
vance would only be known by the country people flying before
them and the smoke of burning towns. I trust to hear from
Major Gordon to enable me to act decisively, of which I need
not say I will send you the earliest information.

This shows a very alarming state of matters, and that
Burgevine had not laid his plans without very consider-
able skill. Any one in Colonel Gordon’s place must have
had serious thoughts on that solitary night-ride up to
Quinsan, seeing how much hung upon the disposition of
the officers whom he was to meet at dawn. On reaching
his headquarters no unsatisfactory signs appeared ; but
the commander received reports during the day which
174 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

induced him to send reinforcements to Kghpoo, his most
advanced post, and to return the principal part of his
siege-ammunition to Shanghai. In the evening three
men actually walked into his room and asked for Bur-
gevine, saying they had been engaged by him, and had
been told to wait at the “second station,” which looked
as if neither the Americo-Tai-ping nor his station could
be very far off. This movement of Burgevine made
Gordon’s position an exceedingly difficult and dangerous
one, for in addition to attacks from without he was also
very liable to attacks from within. The ostensible cause
of Burgevine’s dismissal—namely, his assault on the
banker Ta Kee, in order to get money for the force—
had naturally left an impression on the minds of the
men which was favourable to their late commander, and
Colonel Gordon had reason to fear that some European
emissary of the Rebels might find his way into the force,
and stir it up to revolt. In case of such a result happen-
ing, the siege-train was sent back to Taitsan for safe
keeping.

“Tir the first part of August, the Tai-pings, reinforced
by a number of the Europeans who had come up with
Burgevine, made several strenuous but ineffectual attacks
on Gordon’s station at Kahpoo, which covered his posi-
tion at Wokong. Indeed both of these places might
easily have been captured had Burgevine acted ener-
getically; for they were left in charge of Ching, the
Imperialist general co-operating with the Ever-Victorious
Army, and that commander was absent at Shanghai
when the Rebels attacked, about 40,000 in number.
The American adventurer, however, did not direct these
operations, being occupied at Soochow, along with his
lieutenant, Jones, a fellow-countryman, in trying to
arrange about the formation of a Foreign Legion. At
A PROVIDENTIAL ESCAPE. 175

this time Gordon was reinforced by a small Franco-
Chinese force, under Captain Bonnefoi, and by 200
Belooches of her Majesty's East India army, whom
General Brown stationed in Quinsan for the protection
of the heavy artillery.

For some weeks after this Gordon remained on the
defensive, but on the 29th September took Patachiao
without losing many men ; and immediately after, nego-
tiations were opened with him by some of the Europeans
in the service of the Tai-pings. Behind the stockades
which he had taken there was a bridge, 350 yards in
length, with 53 arches, which had been partially cut
through, in order to let the Hyson pass into a lake near
it; and this bridge was the scene of a curious incident
which occurred to Colonel Gordon. He was resting
upon its parapet one evening, smoking a cigar, when
first one rifle or musket bullet, and then a second,
struck the stone upon which he was sitting. These
shots came not from the enemy, but from his own camp,
where they had been fired accidentally. On the second
shot being fired, Colonel Gordon thought it necessary to
descend into his boat and go over to the camp in order
to inquire into this matter; but he had hardly got
half-way across the creek below, when that part of the
bridge on which he had been sitting suddenly fell into
the water; so that the accidental shots which had en-
dangered his life, probably saved it. Between the op-
posing forces there was another, a high bridge, which
became a kind of neutral ground where friendly inter-
course took place between the European officers, many
of whom had formerly been comrades in arms, though
now serving on different sides. In the interviews which
took place on this bridge between the Foreigners on
both sides, it appeared that the Europeans and Ameri-
176 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE,

cans who had taken service with the Tai-pings were
by no means satisfied with their position. The result
was that Colonel Gordon had a private interview with
Burgevine himself, when that gentleman stated that he
was determined to leave the Rebels, but would not
do so unless his officers and men could obtain some
guarantee that they would not be held responsible for
the acts they had done when with the Tai-pings. On
this Colonel Gordon guaranteed that the authorities at
Shanghai would institute no further proceedings against
those men; and offered to take as many of them as he
could into his own force, and to assist the remainder in
leaving the country. At another interview Burgevine
proposed to Gordon to unite with him, and together to
seize Soochow ; to keep both Rebels and Imperialists
out of it, and then to organise an army of 20,000 men,
with which to march on Peking. He said that in Soo-
chow alone there was sufficient money to enable them
to carry out this plan; but was at once informed that
Colonel Gordon would not entertain any such idea.
The situation was complicated by the fact that at this
moment General Ching was making attacks of his own
on the Tai-ping position, and also by the fear that these
proposals for surrender might only be a ruse to cover
secret tampering with the disciplined force. While these
interviews were taking place, severe fighting still went
on, and a desperate attempt of the Rebels to recapture
Wokong was repulsed with great loss on both sides. In
the middle of October, however, Burgevine and the other
Europeans in Rebel employ sent information that they
intended, under pretence of making a sally, to throw
themselves on Gordon’s protection. This accordingly
they did, rushing on board the steamer Hyson as if they
were capturing it, on which thousands of the Tai-ping

 
THE FOREIGN ALLIES DESERT THE TAI-PINGS. 177

troops came out to their assistance, only to be driven
back with volleys of shell and shot from the Hyson’s
artillery, while the steamer turned back and safely
landed the deserters in the besieging camp. When
these men were landed it was found that Burgevine
himself and several other Europeans were not among
them. Morton, their leader, made the excuse that the
Moh Wang appeared to suspect their intention, and so
he had thought it wisest to leave at once, without wait-
ing for his commander. Fearing that Burgevine would
be decapitated in consequence of this movement, Colonel
Gordon at once sent a letter and presents to the Moh
Wang, entreating him to spare Burgevine’s life, and also
returned all the Enfield rifles with which the deserters
had been armed. It is highly honourable to the Tai-
ping chief that after these events he sent Burgevine off
in safety ; and that worthy, after being received in
Gordon’s camp, was sent down to Shanghai. In this
bloodless way the Tai-pings lost the greater number of
the Europeans who were ranked on their side; and
Colonel Gordon must have conducted the affair with
boldness and skill, for the Imperialist authorities, aware
of the negotiations that were going on, suspected even
his loyalty, and he ran the risk of his own officers being
enticed over to the enemy. The majority of the For-
eigners who thus left the Tai-pings were seamen who
had been taken from Soochow to Shanghai, with very
little idea of their ultimate destination. Mr Mayers, the
acting British Vice-Consul at Shanghai, who was sent to
investigate this affair, states in an official letter,* that
at one moment, while offering to surrender, Burgevine
proposed to his Lieutenant, Jones, a plan for entrapping
Gordon, but the more honest nature of his companion
* Blue-Book, China, No. 3 (1864), p. 169.
M
178 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

revolted against such’ treachery. The follgwing extract
from the statement of Mr Jones, regarding an occurrence
which took place immediately before Burgevine’s escape,
will give a curious idea of the relationships which ex-
isted between these adventurers: “At noon I went to
Burgevine, who was lying asleep on board a 32-pounder
gunboat, and asked him whether I should assist him to
get ashore, as many of our officers and men were making
remarks on the condition he was in. On his demanding
the names of those who had made remarks, I declined
giving them, and shortly afterwards again attempted to
remonstrate with him, in company with another officer.
On my again declining to give up names, Burgevine drew
out his four-barrelled pistol, which he cocked and dis-
charged at my head from a distance of about nine inches.
The bullet entered my left cheek and passed upwards.
It has not yet been extracted. I exclaimed, ‘ You have
shot your best friend!’ His answer was, ‘I know I have,
and I wish to God I had killed you!’” The only reply
which Burgevine made to this statement in a letter on
the subject which he published in the Shanghai papers,
is the following remarkably ingenuous one: “Captain
Jones’s account of the affair is substantially correct; and
I feel great pleasure in bearing testimony to his veracity
and candour, whenever any affair with which he is per-
sonally acquainted is concerned.”

It may be well to notice here Burgevine’s further pro-
ceedings and unfortunate fate. After his surrender at
Soochow the Futai delivered him up to the American
Consul, and at the request of Colonel Gordon, that latter
functionary waived proceedings against him on condition
that he would leave the country. For some time he re-
mained residing quietly at Yokohama, in Japan, where
the recalcitrant Daimio, Cho-shiu, who was fighting
BURGEVINE TRIES TO REJOIN THE REBELS. 179

against the Tycoon, and who had heard of the absurd
terror which Burgevine’s name inspired in China, offered
him an important post in his army. While hesitating as
to accepting this offer, the adventurer was prevailed upon
to make a trip to Shanghai, early in 1865, in the steamer
Fei-pang ; and from Shanghai he went down in another
vessel to Amoy, near which place a remnant of the Tai-
pings were still in arms. His return to the coast of China
seems to have been purely an accidental affair, though
extremely improper and imprudent; and on the passage,
when spoken to on the subject of joining the Rebels, a few
of whom still made a stand at the city of Changchow
in Fukien, he expressed his conviction that their game
had been played out, and that neither honour nor profit
were to be got from that quarter. Unfortunately, when
he reached Amoy, he fell into the hands of some Rebel
sympathisers, and whilst in a state of intoxication, was
induced to pledge himself to visit Changchow, and to
give all the assistance in his power to the expiring Tai-
ping cause.* It was the duty of the American Consul
at this port to have immediately arrested the misguided
adventurer on his return to China; but nothing of the
kind was done, and so the Chinese authorities were com-
pelled by the duty which they owed their country to
take the matter into their own hands.

The movements of Burgevine were betrayed to these
authorities by a black servant who accompanied him,
and he was arrested on the 15th May, along with two
companions, armed to the teeth, and proceeding to the
Rebel lines. Being confined in the Yamun of the dis-
trict magistrate, the American Consul now demanded his
rendition, and to avoid a dispute on this point he was
secretly forwarded to Foochow, and there the Consul

* North China Herald, September 14, 1865.
180 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

also demanded his delivery ; but this request was posi-
tively refused, the chief magistrate stating that Bur-
gevine would be sent on to Li, Futai of Kiangsoo, under
whose orders he had formerly acted. Immediately on
intelligence of this affair reaching Peking, Prince Kung
wrote to the American Minister, informing him of
the circumstances, and stating that Burgevine, having
made himself amenable to the laws of China, would be
judged by these laws, and might be executed as a felon,
while three or four other Foreigners who had been taken
along with him would be handed over to the jurisdiction
of their respective Consuls. Dr 8. W. Williams, the act-
ing American Minister at Peking, a gentleman of high
character, and of almost unrivalled knowledge of China,
seemed disposed to accede to this proposal, but requested
his Highness to detain Burgevine in confinement for a
few months, free from all insult and injury, whilst the
Government at Washington was consulted on the sub-
ject. In writing to Mr Seward on this case, Dr Williams
said, “1 am under the strong impression that this man’s
conduct has been a reproach to the fair name of all
Western nations; for all other Foreigners, so far as I
know, who commanded the Imperialists, have acted
honourably in this particular, leaving the service if they
were dissatisfied, and not turning against it. I am mor-
tified that an American should have held this bad posi-
tion.”* Dr Williams further pointed out that, while
the Act of Congress of June 22, 1860, made rebellion
against the Chinese Government a capital offence, and
while there was no doubt whatever of Burgevine’s guilt,
the absence and death of important witnesses would
render it extremely difficult to convict him in an Ameri-
can court. At the same time, it was very desirable to

* American Diplomatic Correspondence for 1865, p. 454.
DEATH OF BURGEVINE, 181

give every assurance to the Chinese Government that no
efforts should be spared to prevent American citizens
from joining the Rebels, or to punish them for so doing.
The case was one of some difficulty, and the Chinese
authorities consented to keep Burgevine a prisoner, but
unharmed, until the Government at Washington decided
what was to be done.

Meanwhile, as they were afraid to leave him on the
sea-coast, lest an attempt at rescue should be made, he
was sent from Foochow into the interior, to be forwarded
overland to the charge of the Governor of Kiangsoo.
What occurred to the unfortunate man after this is
known only from Chinese statements. It was officially
reported that he was drowned, along with ten Chinese,
at Lanchi hien in Chekiang, by the capsizing of a ferry-
boat, owing to a sudden flood in the river. Mr Lewis,
the United States Deputy Consul-General, proceeded to
the spot to investigate the circumstances ; and though
rumours of foul play were prevalent among the Foreign
community, nothing was discovered to disprove the as-
sertions of the Chinese. The adventurer’s body was
identified by a fracture which had been inflicted during
his service in the Imperialist army; but it was too much
decomposed to throw light on the manner of his death,
which is said to have occurred on the 26th June 1865.
The fact was proved of there having been a heavy flood
at that time; but a certain amount of darkness must
ever rest over the circumstances of his death. The
Chinese authorities were under a very great temptation
to get rid of him in some manner which would effectually
preclude his giving further trouble, and which at the
same time would not lead to any embroilment with the
Government of the United States. Dr Williams says
that the official correspondence on this subject gives
182 BURGEVINE’S HISTORY AND FATE.

no idea of the alarm which filled the mings of the high
officers at Peking, when they heard of Burgevine’s at-
tempt to rejoin the Rebels. Beyond this, and a rumour
of a piece of flayed skin having been noticed in his coffin,
I have no reason to suppose that their account of his
death was untrue; and if they did drown him pur-
posely, they saved themselves and the American autho-
rities a good deal of trouble.
CHAPLER Al,

THE FALL OF SOOCHOW, AND THE EXECUTION OF
ITS WANGS.

THE INVESTMENT OF SOOCHOW-— STORMING OF LEEKU— GORDON’S
‘(MAGIC WAND”—DEATH OF CAPTAIN PERRY—DISPOSAL OF THE
BESIEGING FORCES— THE FAITHFUL KINGS APPREHENSIONS—
COMPLETE INVESTMENT OF SOOCHOW—PIRATING OF THE STEAMER
FIREFLY—A DISASTROUS NIGHT-ATTACK—CAPTURE OF THE EAST
GATE STOCKADES—NEGOTIATIONS FOR SURRENDER—MURDER OF
THE MOH WANG—A CHARACTERISTIC LETTER FROM COLONEL
GORDON—THE CAPITULATION OF SOOCHOW—GORDON’S PERILOUS
POSITION—HIS GRIEF AND INDIGNATION—HIS SEARCH FOR GOV-
ERNOR LI—EXECUTION OF THE WANGS—LI’S REASONS FOR THAT
ACT — GORDON REFUSES TO ACT, AND REJECTS AN IMPERIAL
DOUCEUR— IMPERIAL DECREE REGARDING THE FALL OF SOO-
CHOW.

Waite the negotiations were going on for the desertion
of Burgevine and his friends, the Faithful King came
down to the relief of Soochow with a considerable army ;
but, as was his invariable custom in similar circum-
stances, refused to trust himself within the walls of that—
city, and carried on his operations in its immediate
neighbourhood. Colonel Gordon considered the Tai-
pings to be so much weakened by the defection of their
European allies, that he resolved to resume the offensive,
and pushed on towards the South Gate of the city.
Various stockades in that direction were soon taken, and
184 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

successfully defended against desperate atgempts of the
Moh Wang to recapture them. In the fighting here, as
elsewhere, the steamer Hyson did good service. In one
engagement no less than 1300 prisoners were taken, and
as many more of the Tai-pings were drowned in their
efforts to escape. The taking of Wulungchiao and Pata-
chiao rendered any sortie from Soochow to the south
impossible, and also enabled Gordon’s force to operate to
the north, and thus form a junction with other Imperial-
ist troops, under the Futai’s brother, who had advanced
from Kongyin. The force which Gordon had under his
own immediate command was insufficient to enable him
to invest Soochow, yet he was enabled steadily to ad-
vance in the work of doing so, because the positions
which he took could be left in charge of the Futai’s
other troops, as those of General Ching, or of the discip-
lined Chinese under Macartney and Bonnefoi. Thus the
Hiver-Victorious Army gradually fought its way round
Soochow, and left a fortified circle held by its allies en-
compassing that city.

Among the engagements by which this operation was
performed was one on the 1st of November at Leeku, a
strong Rebel position five miles to the north of Soo-
chow. This position was carried by storm by the 4th
and 2d Regiments, aided by some Franco-Chinese. In
almost all these engagements Colonel Gordon was very

: much exposed, for he found it necessary, or at least ex-
pedient, to be constantly in the front, and often to lead
in person. Though brave men, the officers of his force
would sometimes hang back, and their commander had
occasionally to take one by the arm and lead him into
the thick of the fire. He himself seemed to bear a
charmed life, and never carried any arms, even when
foremost in the breach. His only weapon on these occa-
INVESTMENT OF SOOCHOW. 185

sions was a small cane with which he used to direct his
troops, and in the Chinese imagination this cane soon
became magnified into Gordon’s “ magic wand of victory.”
His Celestial followers, finding him almost invariably
victorious and escaping unhurt, though more exposed
than any other man in the force, naturally concluded, in
accordance with their usual ideas, that the little wand
he carried insured protection and success to its owner.
Every one who knows the Chinese character will be
aware that such an idea must have given great encour-
agement to the Ever-Victorious Army, and was of more
service to its commander than could have been any
amount of arms which he himself could possibly have
carried. In this engagement at Leeku Colonel Gordon
had a narrow escape; for one of his captains, Mr George
Perry, was shot dead at his side under rather peculiar cir-
cumstances. Some days previously, Gordon found lying
on the ground a letter in the handwriting of this officer
to a Tai-ping sympathiser in Shanghai, giving information
as to the intended movements of the force. On being
shown this letter, Perry confessed that he had written
it, but declared he thought the information of no import-
ance, and had only intended to send it to Shanghai as a
piece of gossip which might be interesting. On this his
commander said to him, “Very good, Perry. I shall
pass your fault over this time, on condition that, in order
to show your loyalty, you undertake to lead the next
forlorn-hope.” This agreement had been forgotten by
Colonel Gordon when, a few days after, they stood to-
gether on the edge of the ditch in front of the stockades
at Leeku. They were both, in fact, leading a forlorn-
hope; and while standing together, a ball struck Perry
in the mouth, and he fell into Gordon’s arms, where he
almost immediately expired.
186 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

Shortly after, on the 10th November, gnother engage-
ment occurred at Wanti, a place which was so well de-
fended by massive mud-works that the shelling of all the
artillery available scarcely made any impression upon
it. When the place was surrounded by the disciplined
Chinese, the Tai-pings inside rushed out and tried to
escape, which led to much hand-to-hand fighting. The
capture of Wanti nearly completed the investure of Soo-
chow. The Taiho Lake was held by the steamers Hyson
and Tsatlee, on board of which a force of 200 Imperialists
was placed, and which cruised off Moodow, cutting off the
communication between the lake and the Siaou Mun, or
small West Gate of Soochow. The next great water outlet
was closed to the Rebels by 1000 Imperialist soldiers sta-
tioned at Wulungchiao, off the Pan Mun, or South Gate.
The main water and road communication with the south
was also closed by 1500 Imperialists stockaded on the
Grand Canal at Patachiao. A small creek leading from
the South-East Gate was stopped by a fleet of Imperialist
gunboats. General Ching’s force, of about 4000 men,
was encamped on the road to Quinsan, about two miles
outside of the Loh Mun, or East Gate of Soochow. At
Leeku and Wanti Colonel Gordon himself was stationed
with a portion of his force, guarding the canal to Chanzu.
The remainder of his army, together with 2500 Imperial-
ist troops under Ching, and 400 of the Franco-Chinese,
were moved about, and employed as occasion required. Al-
together, 13,500 men were employed in November 1863 in
the investment of Soochow, being arranged as follows :—

 

Imperialists, Gordon’s Force. French Force.
In stockades, : . 7,500 1000 ie
For the field or siege, . 2,500 2100 400
10,000 3100 400

In the neighbourhood, however, there were about
THE FAITHFUL KING'S APPREHENSIONS. 187

25,000 additional Imperialists under the Futai’s brother,
whose centre was at Fushan. The Tai-pings had 40,000
men in Soochow and its suburbs; the city of Wusieh held
some 20,000 more; and the Faithful King had 18,000
men stationed at Mahtanchiao, a place situated between
Wusieh and Soochow, and from which he could assist
either city, and also could attack on the flank any ad-
vance made by the Imperialists on the Grand Canal, the
only great water and road line of communication left to
the Tai-pings.

This able Tai-ping leader seems to have fully under-
stood the perilous position of his cause, but was dis-
tracted between the danger to which Nanking was
exposed, and the risk of losing Hangchow and Soochow.
The following despatches from him, dated near Soochow,
the 10th of November 1863, were intercepted by the
Imperialists, and show how alive he was to the danger-
ous state of the Tai-ping cause at this period :—

To the Chow Wang.

The other day, on the return [from Nanking ?] of the Presi-
dent Li, I wrote you particulars of all he had to say, but have
received no answer, and feel very anxious on this account.
News arrived yesterday from Nanking that all the works in the
neighbourhood of the Kao-chiao Gate and the Shang Fang Gate
had been abandoned, and that the city is hard pressed in the
extreme. J am disturbed beyond measure by this intelligence ;
and, in view of all the President Li has said, I earnestly hope
that you will act in unison with the brethren, and give speedy
thought to the general cause. What is most earnestly to be
wished is, that Nanking may be preserved from harm. Only
so long as the capital is held are our lives our own.

I look to you to act with the brethren, and not again to
allow suspicions to arise. If this is once cherished, the matter
is at an end.

To the Hu Wang, commanding at Chanchu fu.
I write again, because on the 28th October I despatched
188 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

two letters by express messenger, with orders.to deliver them
within a certain time, in which I requested that, with the excep-
tion of those at Chanchu, all the forces might with all speed be
brought together for a combined attack, in order that we might
derive the benefit of conjoint action ; but a length of time has
elapsed, to my great anxiety, without the receipt of an answer.
The news yesterday received from Nanking, to the effect that
the works around the Kao-chiao Gate have been evacuated, has
probably already reached you, as you are nearer to the spot. I
was disturbed and grieved beyond measure by this intelligence,
and at the same time I have no troops whom IJ can dispose. If
you, together with the Wusieh troops, can come and make a com-
bined effort, there will be reason to hope that the siege both of
Nanking and of Soochow may be brokenup. The beleaguerment
of Nanking is, as you are doubtless fully aware, far different
now from what it has been heretofore; and I am most anxious
that you should consent to join with your forces, and also com-
bine with the troops under She Wang. If all unite in sweep-
ing away one division of the Imps., security will accrue on all
sides; and the sooner we clear away this brood the sooner we
shall be able to make a combined effort to relieve Nanking. If,
however, Soochow and Hangchow are endangered, not only is it
useless to talk of raising the siege of Nanking, but Chanchu
and Wusieh will also be as good as lost, and it will be too late
for repentance then. To yourself, who know this so well, it is
not necessary that I should say more.

Gordon’s aim now was to cut the Rebel line of com-
munication, so that the Faithful King might be pre-
vented from going to the aid of the Soochow garrison.
The Imperialist officers co-operating with him were
afraid of thus cutting the Rebels off from any possibility
of retreat; but, with better knowledge of his enemy,
he calculated that when completely surrounded, the Tai-
pings at Soochow would be likely to surrender. One
great reason for this conclusion was information he had
received about dissensions among the Rebel Princes in
Soochow. Of these, the Moh Wang, the most energetic
PIRATING OF THE FIREFLY. 189

and determined, had offended his companion Chiefs,
though not much superior in rank to them, and the
Imperialists had already begun to hold communication
with some of the other Wangs. On hearing that the
steamer Firefly had been captured near Shanghai by
some European Tai-ping sympathisers, Colonel Gordon
resolved to hurry the operations against Soochow, so as
to cut the Grand Canal communication before the Rebels
could make use of the steamer of which they had obtained
possession.* This was done on the 19th November, at
a village called Fusaikwan, where five stockades were
captured without loss on the part of the assailants.
After garrisoning this last post, which completed the
investment of the doomed city, Gordon proceeded to
the East Gate; and being now in possession of all the
exterior defences, he determined to make a vigorous
attack on the north-east angle of the wall which sur-
rounds Soochow. In order to this, however, it was

* The Firefly was sent down to Shanghai under the charge of Captain
Ludlam, who had strict orders to remain there only two hours, and to
return then to Wanti. As General Brown, Commander of her Majesty’s
forces in China, wished to go up to see Colonel Gordon, the steamer was
anchored at Shanghai for a night, during which Ludlam was detained at
the General’s quarters by wet weather, his place on board being taken
by Captain Dolly, besides whom there were on board, of Europeans, Mr
Martin, the mate, Mr Perry, the engineer, and Lieutenant Easton of the
Artillery. At midnight the steamer was boarded by several Foreigners,
headed by a man who calls himself “Lin Lee” (? Lindley), who were con-
ducted on board by Captain Ludlam’s Cantonese servant, and who, suddenly
closing the hatches over Captain Dolly and his companions, took possession
of the vessel. It was taken up to the Faithful King, who is said to have
given £20,000 for it; and White, one of the men engaged in the capture, was
condemned to two years’ imprisonment for this, as an act of piracy, by the
consular court of Shanghai, while his chief accomplice made his escape to Eng-
land. There was also some quarrel among the captors over their ill-gotten
gains, which resulted in one of their number being shot by “Lin Lee” him-
self. The bodies of Dolly, Martin, Perry, and Easton were afterwards found
at Wusieh in a burned and mutilated state. Their captor “Lin Lee,” after
reaching England, published a book on the Tai-pings ; and my reasons for
not noticing that work in the body of this history are given in Appendix V.
190 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

necessary to capture the inner line of ghe outside de-
fences, which was very formidable. Accordingly, a.
night-attack was made on the 27th November, which
resulted in the defeat of Gordon’s force. The position
to be attacked was a stockade situated on a mound
about half a mile distant from the East Gate. The
mound was covered with earthen fortifications, and its
slope was well staked with short bamboos ; while round
it were three ditches from eight to nine feet deep, with
their banks also well staked with sharp bamboos and
iron spikes. Beyond these ditches there was also a long
line of stockades. Gordon’s plan was to surprise this
place by a night-attack, and white turbans were served
out to his troops in order that they might distinguish
each other in the dark. About one o’clock in the morn-
ing the commander himself, accompanied by Majors
Howard and Williams and two companies of his force,
advanced to the outer stockade, leaving the remainder
of his force already fallen in and under orders to ad-
vance at a given signal. Everything seemed quiet, and
the Tai-ping guard gave no signs of being aware of this
movement, so the remainder of the force received orders
to proceed, while the advanced - guard succeeded in
climbing inside the breastwork. The Moh Wang, how-
ever, was quite on the alert and prepared for this night-
attack, having either received information that it was
to be made, or having guessed that such was to be the
case. Scarcely were all the troops up to the front, and
a portion of them engaged in crossing a stockade in
order to support their commander, when the Tai-pings
opened a tremendous fire of grape and musketry on the
whole force. The whole line of stockades held by the
Rebels seemed one line of fire, while the Quinsan artil-
lery were throwing rockets and shell into the Rebel
A DISASTROUS NIGHT-ATTACK. 19I

works. The leading troops pushed gallantly on to the
breastwork, headed by their leader; but the whole of
the troops who had been detailed for service did not
move up, and great confusion took place among them.
Notwithstanding the efforts of the European officers, the
Chinese soldiers showed a remarkable indisposition for
fighting at night, so that Colonel Gordon had ultimately
to retire, leaving numbers of killed and wounded on the
field. Moh Wang, who was in the front stockade, with-
out shoes or stockings, fought this night like a private
soldier, and had about twenty Europeans with him. The
Rebels must have lost tremendously from the fire of the
twenty guns, which played upon them for about three
hours with shot and shell; and the Ever-Victorious
Army had 50 of its rank and file killed and 130 wound-
ed, besides quite a large number of officers killed and
wounded.

On the morning after the night-attack, General Ching
told Gordon that he had had an interview with the Tai-
ping Kung Wang, from which it appeared that all the
Wangs in Soochow, with the exception of the Moh Wang,
together with 35 Tien Chwangs, or expectant princes,
with 30,000 men, were anxious to come over to the
Imperialists. Notwithstanding their recent success, it
was evident to these leaders that the capture of the city
was only a question of time, and they proposed that if
Gordon made another attack on the stockades at the
East Gate, they would shut Moh Wang out of the city,
and so be at liberty to make terms for their own sur-
render. Accordingly, Colonel Gordon determined to
put forth all his powers to take the stockades, and on
the morning of the 29th opened on them a tremendous
fire from his heavy siege-guns and mortars. By this
the Rebel works were so much battered that an advance
192 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

was ordered, and the stockades were taken by assault.
Ditches had to be swam across, breasfworks had to be
mounted, and the Faithful King himself was engaged in
the defence, having arrived that morning, with his body-
guard of 400 men, by a small bridle-path which was still
open from Wusieh. During this attack, Colonel Gordon,
accompanied -by only a few men, found himself cut off
from his force by a large party of the Tai-pings; and
being unable to fall back, he deemed it the safest course
to press desperately onwards, Finding the stockades
on his right almost vacated in the confusion, he pushed
through them, and seized the nearest stone fort. Fortu-
nately this movement was followed up by his force, who
occupied the stockades which he had passed through.
In this day’s fighting also the loss was very heavy, and
among the officers killed in both attacks were, Lieu-
tenant Jones of the Artillery, Captains Maule and
Wiley, and Lieutenant King of the 2d Regiment, Cap-
tains Christie and Agar of the 4th, Lieutenants Carrol,
Williams, and Glanceford, of the 5th, and Privates Up-
church, Foley, and Miller, of the Commander’s European
body-guard. A great number were also wounded, among
whom was the Adjutant-General, Major Kirkham, whose
energetic services could ill be spared.*

* The following General Order was issued by Colonel Gordon at this

time :—
“Low Mun, Soocnow, November 30, 1863.

“The commanding officer congratulates the officers and men of the force
on their gallant conduct of yesterday. The tenacity of the enemy, and the
great strength of their position, have unfortunately caused many casualties
and the loss of many valuable officers and men. The enemy, however, has
now felt our strength, and, although fully prepared and animated with the
presence of their most popular chiefs, have been driven out of a position
which {surpasses in strength any yet taken from them. The loss of the
whole of the stockades on the east side of the city, up to the walls, has
already had its effect, and dissension ‘is now rife in the garrison, who,
hemmed in on all sides, are already in fact negotiating defection.

“The commanding officer feels most deeply for the heavy loss, but is
NEGOTIATIONS FOR SURRENDER. 193

As little more than 5500 men were available for at-
tacking it, Soochow might have held out for some time
longer, and its wall was surrounded by a ditch of ap-
palling width, while to the north of the East Gate there
were lines of stockades as far as the eye could reach ;
but, as has been mentioned, the greater number of the
Chiefs in Soochow were now anxious to surrender. Colo-
nel Gordon and General Ching had an interview with
three of them on the 1st December, and on the 2d the
former officer had some conversation with the Na Wang.
At these and other meetings the Na Wang stated his wish
that Gordon would assault the city, in which case he and
his troops, wearing white turbans, would not assist in its
defence, on the condition that they should be protected
on the entry of the Imperialists.. On this Gordon re-
plied, that if Soochow were taken by assault, it would be
impossible to restrain an undisciplined force such as he
commanded from plundering everywhere and every one.
He added that, if the Wangs were sincere in their wish
to surrender, they had better give over a gate as a
guarantee of their good faith ; and if they could not do
that, their best course would be to vacate the city, or
to fight it out. Meanwhile he agreed to postpone any
further attack, and left General Ching, who had been
formerly a Tai-ping Chief, to arrange the terms of sur-
render.

The Moh Wang’s suspicions were aroused by these
negotiations, and he sent for the other Wangs to speak
with them on the subject. After partaking of dinner,
and offering up prayers, they arranged themselves in
their robes and crowns, and adjourned into the recep-

convinced that the same will not be experienced again. The possession of
the position of yesterday renders the occupation of the city by the Rebels
untenable, and thus victualling the city is lost to them.”

N
194 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

tion-hall, where Moh Wang seated himgelf at the head
of the table, which was on a raised dais. The discussion
between them then seemed to get animated, the Moh
Wang insisting that only Kwangsi and Kwangtung men
were to be trusted—a proposition naturally distasteful
to the other Wangs who belonged to other provinces.
As the discussion grew warmer, Kong Wang rose and
took off his robes; and on Moh Wang asking him the
meaning of this, he drew a small two-edged dagger and
stabbed the latter in the neck and back. Moh Wang
fell forward over the table, and was soon decapitated by
the other Wangs. This was a cowardly assassination of
a brave and intelligent man, who had never despaired in
the midst of his difficulties, and had always been good
to Foreigners, though cruel to his own countrymen.
When he was killed, some letters which Colonel Gordon
had written to him fell out on the floor, and were found
afterwards stained with blood. There is little doubt,
however, that if Na Wang and his associates had not
thus disposed of this chief, they would have run great
risk of being themselves decapitated by him, for he was
aware of their intended treachery: and it is not im-
possible that the Moh Wang himself meditated propos-
ing terms of surrender; for a Frenchman, who was
present at the murder, mentions that this Wang had
directed him to write a letter to Gordon asking for an
interview, with the intention of being present at it in
disguise.

Colonel Gordon’s characteristic letter to this chief
(relating to the release of the Europeans in Soochow,
of which mention has been made in the previous chap-
ter) is of some interest, and reads as follows, so far
as I can make out through the blood with which it is
stained :—
ASSASSINATION OF THE MOH WANG. 195

To their Excellencies
CuunG Wane, Mon Wane.
StockaDEs, PaTacHow,
16th October 1863.

Your EXcELLENCIES,—You must be already aware that I
have on all occasions, when it lay in my power, been merciful
to your soldiers when taken prisoners, and not only been so
myself, but have used every endeavour to prevent the Imperial
authorities from practising any inhumanity. Ask for the truth
of this statement any of the men who were taken at Wokong,
and who some of them must have returned to Soochow, as I
placed no restriction on them whatever.

Having stated the above, I now ask your Excellencies to
cousider the case of Europeans in your service. In every army
each soldier must be actuated with faithful feelings to fight well.
A man made to fight against his will is not only a bad soldier,
but he is a positive danger, causing anxiety to his leaders, and
absorbing a large force to prevent his defection. If there are
many Europeans left in Soochow, I would ask your Excellencies
if it does not seem to you much better to let these men quietly
leave your service if they wish it; you would thereby get rid of
a continual source of suspicion, gain the sympathy of the whole
of the Foreign nations, and feel that your difficulties are all from
without. Your Excellencies may think that decapitation would
soon settle the matter, but you would then be guilty of a crime
which will bear its fruits sooner or later. In this force officers
and men come and go at pleasure, and although it is incon-
venient at times, I am never apprehensive of treason from
within. Your Excellencies may rely on what I say, that should
you behead’ the Europeans who are with you, or retain them
against their free will, you will eventually regret it. The men
have committed no crime, they have done you good service, and
what they have tried to do—viz., escape—is nothing more than
any man, or even animal, will do when placed in a situation he
does not like.

The men could have done you great harm, as you will no
doubt allow; they have not done so, and I consider that
your Excellencies have reaped great benefit from their assist-
ance.

As far as I am personally concerned, it is a matter of indif-
196 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

ference whether the men stay or leave; buj as a man who
wishes to save these unfortunate men, I intercede.

Your Excellencies may depend you will not suffer by letting
these men go; you need not fear their communicating informa-
tion. J knew your force, men and guns, long ago, and therefore
care not to get that information from them. If my entreaties
are unavailing for the menin . . . . yourself by sending
down the wounded, and perform an action never to be regretted.

I write the above with my own hand, as I do not wish to
intrust the matter to a linguist; and trusting you will accede
to my request, I conclude, your Excellencies’ obedient servant,

C. G. GorpDon,
Major Commanding.

Immediately after the death of the Moh Wang there
occurred certain important and painful events which
made an immense noise at the time, which induced
Colonel Gordon temporarily to resign his command, and
which ultimately led to the withdrawal of her Majesty’s
Order in Council, which permitted him to serve under
the Imperial Government. This officer, his coadjutor
General Ching, and Li, the Governor of the province,
held towards each other somewhat indefinite positions.
They all acted quite independently of each other at
times, while on other occasions their functions were
mixed up and confused. The Wangs in Soochow must
have been rather at a loss to know to which of these
three persons it was they were going to surrender.
Gordon was the opponent whom they had most to fear,
for it was he who had done almost all the fighting around
their city, and, at the same time, he was the man on
whose integrity and humanity they could place the
greatest reliance. General Ching had also met them in
the field, and being himself an old Rebel, had been the
principal party engaged in carrying on the negotiations
about their surrender. But behind these two there was
THE CAPITULATION OF SOOCHOW. 197

Li, the Futai, close at hand, and holding a superior posi-
tion. After the most careful examination of all the
accounts available of the occurrence which now took
place, it is difficult for me to determine to whom the
Wangs did surrender. Surrender, however, they did, on
which the following events occurred.

The North and Hast Gates of Soochow having been
given up by the Rebels, and been occupied by the Im-
perialists on the 5th December, Colonel Gordon with-
drew his troops a short way, being anxious to save them
from the demoralisation that would ensue if they were
allowed to plunder the city. And as almost all the
fighting which led to the fall of Soochow had fallen
upon his force, he went to the Futai and demanded two
months’ extra pay for his men as a reward for the ser-
vices they had gone through, as a compensation for
their abstaining from plunder, and as an inducement
for them to push on with him and attack Wusieh, while
the Rebels were dispirited by the fall of Soochow. On
the Futai objecting to this proposal, Colonel Gordon
said that unless it was agreed to he could not under-
take to keep his troops in hand, and would lay down his
own command by 3 o’clock p.m. Till that hour arrived
he went into the city to the house of the Na Wang,
where he met all the other princes, who informed him
that everything in regard to their surrender was going
on properly, and that they were quite satisfied. Colonel
Gordon then went to the Moh Wang’s palace, and tried
to get the body of that chief buried, but none of the
people near would touch it. Returning to his own force,
he found General Ching with an offer from the Futai to
give the Ever-Victorious Army one month's extra pay.
On this the men made an attempt to march down upon
the Futai; but this disturbance was soon quelled, Gor-
198 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

don determining to remain for the preseft in command,
and, fearing to trust his force in the neighbourhood of
Soochow, started it off next morning for Quinsan.

On the 5th, the day when Colonel Gordon went in to
see the Wangs, General Ching informed him that the
Futai had extended mercy to them all; and on the 6th
the former officer again went into Soochow to the Na
Wang’s house, reaching it about half an hour before noon,
when the Wangs were to go out to the Futai and the city
was to be given over. Atthe interview which then took
place Na Wang was in very good spirits. He said that
everything had been satisfactorily arranged, and pro-
mised Colonel Gordon 1000 of his men for soldiers.
The other Wangs, who seemed all unarmed, went out
laughing and talking. Going down after this to the East
Gate, Gordon saw a large force of Imperialists entering
the city, yelling and firing off their muskets into the
air, and remonstrated with them for this, as such con-
duct was likely to frighten the Rebels and cause some
misunderstanding. Immediately after General Ching
came into the gate, and on unexpectedly seeing his
English ally, became much agitated, and looked very
pale. On being asked as to the result of the interview
between the Wangs and the Futai, Ching hesitated and
equivocated so much that Colonel Gordon feared some-
thing had gone wrong, but could get no definite infor-
mation on the subject. The latter then determined to
go to the Na Wang’s palace, in order to protect it and
the family of that chief from the Imperialist soldiers
who had begun to plunder. On arriving at the palace
he found that it had been already gutted, and was ac-
costed by the Na Wang’s uncle, who asked him to come
to his house and to conduct there the females of the Na
Wang’s family. Matters now began to look very threat-
GORDON’S DANGEROUS POSITION. 199

ening; and being unarmed, and accompanied only by
his Chinese interpreter, Gordon hesitated ; but the en-
treaties of the uncle were so great that he determined to
escort the helpless females, and then to go out for some
of his own troops in order to put a check on the Im-
perialist plunderers. When he got, however, down to
the house. of the Na Wang’s uncle, he was surrounded
by some five or six hundred armed Tai-pings, who
closed upon him the doors of the courtyard which he
had entered, and even refused to allow him to send his
interpreter for assistance.

In order to understand the extraordinary and perilous
position in which Colonel Gordon was thus placed, it
must be borne in mind that by this time the Futai
had executed the principal Wangs who had gone out
to surrender to him, and had given up the city to be
plundered by his troops. Thus, quite unintentionally,
Gordon was made to act the part of a hostage for the
safety of the Tai-ping Chiefs at the very moment they
were being put to a violent death, and was left unarmed
and alone in the midst of their infuriated followers
when the conduct of the Imperialist soldiers betrayed to
the Tai-pings in Soochow the true state of the case. I
do not suppose that this result was intended by the Futai,
who had some reason to suppose that before this Gordon
would have left the city; but, as matters turned out, itis
a wonder that the latter escaped a death of torture. He
was kept, powerless, in the palace of the Na Wang’s uncle
from the afternoon of the 6th till the morning of the
7th, surrounded by Tai-pings, who knew that, contrary to
agreement, the Imperialist soldiers were plundering and
probably murdering in Soochow, and who must have sus-
pected that some evil fate had befallen their Chiefs who
had gone out to surrender to the Futai. It would have
200 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

been by no means extraordinary if, yo these circum-
stances, they had put Colonel Gordon to death, and they
were probably prevented from doing so only by the
hope that his presence might afford them safety. At
two in the morning he persuaded them to allow his in-
terpreter to take a letter to his boat, which was stationed
at the South Gate, to order the steamers of. his force
to seize the Futai and to keep him prisoner until the
Wangs were given up, for at this time it was not known
by Gordon that these latter had been executed. About _
3 A.M. a Rebel guide who had started with the inter-
preter to show the way, returned with the information
that a party of Imperialists had attacked the messenger,
had left him wounded, and had torn up the letters. After
this the Tai-pings allowed the prisoner to go out in
search of his interpreter, and so Colonel Gordon reached
the South Gate, where he was taken prisoner by some
Imperialist soldiers for being in the suspicious company
of the two long-haired Rebels who had accompanied
him to show the way. Escaping from these, he got
round to the East Gate at daybreak, where he found his
body-guard with Major Brookes, and sent them at once
to the palace of the Na Wang’s uncle for the protection
of the Tai-pings assembled there. While waiting for
his steamers at this gate, he prevented the further
ingress of Imperialist soldiers, and despatched Captain
Bonnefoi, who came up with the Franco-Chinese, into the
city to prevent massacre. Shortly after General Ching
appeared and attempted to address him, but after what
had occurred Gordon refused to hold any intercourse
with him, and drove him away. A Major Bailey, an
artillery officer, who had been placed under Ching, then
came to explain matters ; but even he seemed afraid to
mention what had actually occurred. When asked if
THE EXECUTION OF THE WANGS. 201

the Wangs had been executed or were still prisoners, he
said that he did not know, but that he would bring the
Na Wang’s son, whom he had in his tent. This youth was
the first to tell Gordon of the execution of the Wangs, on
which the Colonel immediately crossed a creek and found
on the other side eight of their headless bodies, together
with the head of the Na Wang. The bodies were gashed
in a frightful way, having been cut down the middle.
On witnessing this sight Colonel Gordon’s grief and
indignation knew no bounds. ‘Though he had not
actually guaranteed the safety of the Rebel Chiefs, yet
he had assisted in inducing them to surrender, on the
supposition that the Futai would treat them in an
honourable and humane manner. His first impulse,
when his two steamers came in sight, was to obtain
hold of the Futai and inflict summary justice on that
high official. General Ching, however, gave timely
warning of Gordon’s incensed state, and Li very wisely
hurried into the city, thus avoiding a meeting: For
some days after this Gordon’s anxiety to meet with the
Futai was only equalled by that of the Futai to keep
out of his way, and this was the only period of his
campaign during which the Commander of the Ever-
Victorious Army burdened himself with carrying arms.
When he reached the Futai’s boat, which he did very
soon, he found it empty, and had to content himself
with leaving a letter upbraiding Li for his treachery.
After this Colonel Gordon departed in his steamer for
Quinsan, taking with him the Na Wang’s son and the
head of that unfortunate Chief. He had ordered up his
force to assist him in seizing the Futai, but met them
on the way down and brought them back to their quar-
ters, where next morning he assembled the officers at
headquarters and read to them with great agitation an
202 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

account of what had occurred at Sogghow, concluding
with the statement that, as a British officer, he could not
serve under the Futai any more unless the Peking Gov-
ernment should take steps to punish such treachery. At
the same time he added that, as he did not wish the
force to be suddenly disbanded, he would hand it over
to the guidance of Major-General Brown, commanding
H.B.M. troops in China.

We must now return to the fate of the Tai-ping
Wangs, and to the reasons which induced the Futai to
execute them as he did. On the first view, his conduct
appears inexcusable, and he is specially to be reprobated
for the use he seems to have made of Colonel Gordon
in inducing the Chiefs to surrender, as also for the
great danger to which he exposed that officer; but his
action in the matter was not so bad as at first ap-
peared, and can be palliated, if not entirely excused.
Three vindications of the Futai have been put for-
ward—one by himself; one by Prince Kung, the head
of the Foreign Board at Peking; a third by a body of
Chinese who called themselves “The Soochow Com-
mittee for the Protection of the Defenceless,”—and
all these are interesting as illustrative of Chinese
ideas. According to this side of the question, the Tai-
ping Chiefs surrendered on the simple condition that
their lives would be spared, and from the moment of
their submission became subjects of the Empire amen-
able to all its laws. But when they came out to the
Futai they had not yet shaved their heads ; they still
wore their arms, and their “general bearing was marked
by extreme ferocity,” being rather that of men who had
terms to dictate than of penitent insurgents who had
just been allowed to participate in an act of clemency.
They insisted that the guardianship of Soochow should
THE FUTAI’S VINDICATION. 203

be left in their hands, that all the soldiers then under
their command should be placed at their disposal, and
declared that, if these conditions were not complied with,
they would not return to their allegiance. They also re-
fused to disband their followers ; stated their intention
of holding three of the city gates which were strongly
fortified positions, and demanded pay for their troops.
Such a menacing and intimidating attitude was wholly
unexpected, and could not be met by breaking off nego-
tiations, or permitting the Wangs to return in safety to
the city. To have allowed them to do so, or even to
have given them the slightest warning of noncompliance
with their demands, would have resulted in an immediate
catastrophe. “Ifthe Wangs,” says Prince Kung, “had
not been promptly beheaded, not only would the Imperial
soldiers in the city have been slaughtered to a man, but
the enormous force under the command of these Chiefs
would still have remained within the Rebel ranks, and a
subsequent and much greater slaughter would have been
unavoidable ; and violence would thus have been done
to the beneficent principle of Heaven and Earth, which
delights to create, and is opposed to destruction.”

There is something peculiarly Chinese in the argu-
ment that the Wangs, having once submitted, were
bound to be obedient to the Futai, and so were liable
to be put to death for their insolent rebellious conduct
towards him; but, passing that, the other portion of
the excuse put forward seems sufficient if it could
only be satisfactorily proved that the Wangs really did
make the demands imputed to them. There is no
reason, however, to suppose that this portion of the
Futai’s statement is untrue; on the contrary, we may
assume the truth of it, because on no previous occasion

had he been guilty of treachery to Tai-ping Chiefs
204 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

who surrendered to him, and he might have turned
the Na Wang to very good use. Assuming, then, that
the Wangs acted as alleged, what was the Futai to
do? At Taitsan, as we have previously mentioned, the
Tai-pings had once already cheated the Futai, and man-
aged to murder a number of his troops under cover
of a proposed surrender. Had he refused to comply
with their demands and allowed them to re-enter Soo-
chow, the almost certain result would have been the
immediate massacre of the Imperialists who had entered
the city, together with an attack on his troops outside
the walls, who, scattered, unprepared, and unsupported
by Gordon’s force, which had gone to Quinsan, would
have been easily cut up and dispersed. To have arrested
them and kept them in confinement would have been a
troublesome operation, which might have given the other
Chiefs warning of what was going on and allowed them
time to close the city gates, and so cut off the Imperial-
ists inside the city from those who were without. Li
was in a very difficult and critical position, which imper-
atively demanded sudden unpremeditated action ; and
though no doubt it would have been more honourable
for him to have made the Wangs prisoners, he cannot, in
the circumstances, be with justice severely censured for
having ordered the Tai-ping Chiefs who were in his power,
but who defied his authority, to be immediately killed. It
is also certain that Colonel Gordon need not have been in
a hurry to consider himself as at all responsible for this
almost necessary act, because in a letter to him (among
his correspondence relating to these affairs) from the
Futai, dated the 21st day of the 9th moon of the 2d year
of Tung-che, or the 2d November 1863, I find the follow-
ing noteworthy passage, which shows that the Governor
did not wish Gordon to interfere at all in regard to the
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF GORDON’S SERVICES. 205

capitulation of the Soochow Chiefs: “ With respect to
Moh Wang and other Rebel leaders’ proposal, I am
quite satisfied that you have determined in no way to
interfere. Let Ching look after their treacherous and
cunning management.”

The Chiefs executed by Li were the Wangs Na, Kong,
Sing, Pe; and the Tien-chwangs Chang, Fan, Wan,
and Wong.

On the 11th December Major-General Brown came
up from Shanghai, saw the Futai, and explained to him
that Gordon’s force would not act any more until the
above matter had been decided on at Peking. Gordon
in the meanwhile remained quiet with his force at
Quinsan, and on the 29th December Li Adong came
to say that the Futai had received an Imperial decree
relating to Gordon, and wished to send a Mandarin to
him with it, and also with various presents. The pre-
sents Colonel Gordon indignantly refused, and he also
sent back 10,000 taels, or about £3500, which the
Emperor proffered in acknowledgment of his services
before Soochow. The decree and the answer to it were
as follows :—

ImpPERIAL DECREE.

On the 14th December 1863 the following decree was
issued to the Inner Council :—

Ii memorialises, announcing that, having led his forces to
the attack of Soochow, he has retaken the city. The perusal of
his report has afforded Us joy and satisfaction indeed !

Gordon, as a Tsung-Ping of the province of Kiangsoo, in
command of his auxiliary force, has displayed thorough strategy
and skill, and has put forth most distinguished exertions.

We ordain that a medal of distinction of. the highest class
be conferred upon him; and further, that he receive a donation
of 10,000 taels, in token of Our approbation. Respect this !
206 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

On the same day the following,private decree was
issued :—

Li is enjoined to communicate Our decree of approval and
praise to Gordon for the great bravery and exertions which
attended the recapture of Soochow. The donation of 10,000
taels is to be provided and sent to him by Li. Foreign nations
already possess orders of merit under the name of “stars.” Let,
therefore, the decoration of the first class which WE have con-
ferred upon Gordon be arranged in accordance with this system.
Respect this !

To this the following answer was returned :—

Major Gordon receives the approbation of his Majesty the
Emperor with every gratification, but regrets most sincerely
that, owing to the circumstances which occurred since the
capture of Soochow, he is unable to receive any mark of his
Majesty the Emperor’s recognition, and therefore respectfully
begs his Majesty to receive his thanks for his intended kind-
ness, and to allow him to decline the same.

At Peking the capture of Soochow was heard of
with great satisfaction, and the Emperor acknowledged
in the following handsome decree the services of the
various high officers engaged in that affair :-—

The Grand Secretariat has received the following decree :—

Li Hung-chang (Governor of Kiangsoo) reports that the
army under his command has captured the city Soochow and
exterminated [the Rebels within its walls]. The Rebels had
been reduced to great extremity; and those of them who were
desirous of returning to their allegiance, together with the
Imperial troops, entered the city, destroyed the Rebel army, and
so recaptured the province of Kiangsoo.

The reading of this report has afforded his Majesty sincere
delight and gratification.

Soochow, the capital of the province of Kiangsoo, was four
years ago captured by the Rebels, and has remained in their
hands ever since. The army, acting under orders from Li
Hung-chang, captured in succession the lines of Rebel works
outside four gates of the city, and [so] struck terror into the
IMPERIAL DECREE. 207

enemy in the city that urgent offers of returning to allegiance
were made.

On the 30th November the Chung Wang, seeing that the
attacks of the Imperial troops were daily becoming more vigor-
ous, and that the Rebels in the city were in a state of disorgan-
isation, fled under cover of night with more than 10,000 of his
death-deserving adherents, handing over the city to the old
Rebel Moh Wang (Tan Show-kuang), with orders to defend it
to the death.

On the 3d and 4th of December the naval and military
forces under Cheng Hsio-chi [General Ching], Li Chow-pin, and
Huang I-sheng attacked the different gates of the city, keeping
up day and night an incessant attack, which became more
vigorous the longer it lasted. Gordon also established himself
close to the city walls and opened a cannonade against them.

On the 4th of December the Moh Wang ascended the walls
to direct the defence; when at the head of his men, and in the
act of issuing orders, a Rebel leader named Kao Ying-kuan,
who with others had entered into a conspiracy with a Rebel
officer named Wang Yu Wei against him, took him off his
guard and stabbed him to death. After killing more than a
thousand of Moh Wang’s associates, they threw open the gates
and came out to give in their allegiance. Cheng Hsio-chi, with
the troops under his command, entered the city, and having
posted his soldiers, searched out and killed above a thousand of
the surviving Rebels. Li Chow-pin attacked and killed great
numbers who were escaping by the Pan Mun, and set at liberty
several thousands of prisoners.

. The recapture of the provincial capital was thus effected.

His Majesty directs Li Hung-chang to take advantage of
this victory to march with his troops upon Chanchu, which
city having been captured, he will join his forces with those
before Nanking, sweep that place clear of Rebels [lit., sweep the
dens and take possession of the pools], and free the river of
their presence.

His Majesty commands the Board of War to confer suitable
honours on Tseng Kwo-fan, Minister of State and Governor-
General of the Two Kiang, who sent a contingent to assist in
the recapture of this noted city.

If Hung-chang, since he entered office as Governor of Kiang-
208 THE FALL OF SOOCHOW.

soo, has displayed great prudence and calculation, and his
skilful tactics have been completely successful he has again
and again captured cities and gained honours on the field of
battle; and now the recapture of Soochow by his troops renders
him still more worthy of praise ; as a mark of his sincere ap-
probation, his Majesty is pleased to confer upon him the hono-
rary title of “Guardian of the Heir-Apparent,” and to present
him with a yellow robe.

Huang I-sheng and Li Chow-pin, in addition to receiving
the hereditary rank of Yun chi Yu [a title with fourth-rank
button attached], are recommended to the notice of the Board
of War. Cheng Hsio-chi receives the same rank as the above,
and in addition is presented with a yellow robe.

Gordon, specially appointed a General in the army of Kiang-
soo, was in command of troops who assisted in these operations ;
his Majesty, in order to evince his approval of the profound
skill and great zeal displayed by him, orders him to receive a
military decoration of the first rank and a sum of 10,000 taels.
Sketch of Country ravaged by Rebels. March 1864.

 

lly,

  
 

>... _._, Line of March of the Rebels in their attempt
to raise the stege of Chanchutw.

es elpey cee —>..__..,Line of March of the Quinsan Force to repel
the Rebel advance.

x April 4.1863.
CHAPTER XII.

GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

IMPERIALIST SUCCESSES—INACTIVITY OF THE EVER-VICTORIOUS ARMY
— GORDON’S REASONS FOR RETAKING THE FIELD — MR HART'S
REPORT ON THE SOOCHOW “ MASSACRE’’—SIR FREDERICK BRUCE
APPROVES OF THE RESUMPTION OF OPERATIONS—A LETTER FROM
HIM — GORDON RETAKES THE FIELD — STATE OF THE COUNTRY
OCCUPIED BY REBELS — EVACUATION OF YESING AND LIYANG —
SEVERE REPULSE AT KINTANG— COLONEL GORDON WOUNDED —
TAI-PING ADVANCE TOWARDS QUINSAN—GORDON SUFFERS A DISAS-
TROUS REPULSE AT WAISOO—FATE OF HIS CAPTURED OFFICERS
—-IMPERIALIST SUCCESSES IN CHEKIANG — DEATH OF GENERAL
CHING—LI’S MEMORIAL OF HIM—TAKING OF HANGCHOW—CAP-
TURE OF WAISOO—CRUELTY OF THE VILLAGERS—THE REBELLION
NEAR ITS END—DEATH OF MAJOR TAPP—REPULSE AT CHANCHU
—A TAIPING LETTER— STORMING OF CHANCHU-— DEATH OF
THE HU WANG—CLOSE OF THE SERVICES OF THE E. V. A.

Arter the taking of Soochow, the only cities in the pro-
vince of Kiangsoo which remained in Rebel occupation
were Yesing, Liyang, Chanchu fu, Tayan, Chuyang, and
Kintang. The whole of the guns and munition cap-
tured at Soochow were given over to General Ching,
who had thus plenty of artillery under Major Bailey, one
of Gordon’s old officers. The first use he made of his
strengthened force was to start with 8000 men to
attack a strong fort, which was still held by Rebels,
eighteen miles south of Soochow, and without difficulty
drove them out of it back on Kashing fu. Tan, the
Oo
210 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

Futai’s brother, also carried on some successfml operations
to the north of Soochow, and managed to recover the
steamer Firefly, which had been pirated at Shanghai.

Meanwhile the Ever-Victorious Army was lying idle
in garrison at Quinsan. A great many of its officers
and men were lying wounded, and various sums of
money were to be paid as compensation to these vic-
tims of the recent campaign. About 20,000 taels were
expended by the Futai in gifts to the wounded, besides
the extra month’s pay which he had promised on account
of the taking of Soochow. The enforced rest, however,
did not agree with the temper of this irregular force.
“ The officers,” Colonel Schmidt writes, “ did everything
to honour Colonel Gordon, and show in how high esteem
they held him ; but they were very jealous of each other,
and during January quarrelled constantly with each
other over the question as to who should succeed to the
command in the event of his leaving.” Though the fall
of Soochow had given the Tai-pings a great blow, they
were by no means completely vanquished even in the
province of Kiangsoo ; and European rowdies began
again to show themselves, perpetrating at this time seve-
ral cruel murders. It was also rumoured that Foreigners
were again joining the Tai-ping ranks; Rebel sympa-
thisers began to resume their work, and there was even
danger that a portion of the Ever-Victorious Army, dis-
gusted with inactivity, might transfer their allegiance to
the Rebel cause.

On considering these facts, Colonel Gordon came to
the conclusion that, in existing circumstances, it would
be best for him to resume offensive operations. The
nature of his force did not allow of its being kept
inactive, and it could not be managed properly if only
engaged in defending Shanghai. Its dissolution, in the
REASONS FOR RETAKING THE FIELD. 211

unsettled state of the province, would have involved
great cruelty to the people of Kiangsoo, who, on the
faith of the protection which it afforded, had com-
menced to reoccupy their cities and resume the culti-
vation of their fields. Moreover, in the then condition
of the Ever-Victorious Army, there was good hope that
the province could be cleared of Rebels in two months,
and reduced to a state of order and peace ; whereas,
if the army were dissolved or kept in a state of inac-
tivity at Shanghai, a year would probably elapse before
such a consummation could be arrived at. As to the
conduct of the Futai, that officer had been warned to
consult Colonel Gordon before ordering executions.
Even if the Chinese Government had removed him, that
would not have much mended matters, as his successor
would probably have been quite as objectionable, if not
more so, and a willing instrument in any plan for aveng-
ing his predecessor’s disgrace. In fact, the removal of
Li from his high position at the dictation of Foreigners,
was an event to be avoided, because it would have been a
serious blow to the independence of the Chinese Empire,
and would have caused Tseng Kwo-fan and other power-
ful Mandarins to disregard Imperial edicts. There was
also the danger of the force being reconstituted by Li,
and placed under some other European, in which case the
British Government would have had no control over it.
Taking all these circumstances into consideration, Colonel
Gordon resolved to sacrifice his own personal feelings,
which urged him to retire ; and his indignation at the
massacre of the Wangs must have somewhat abated
from its original intensity when he learned all the cir-
cumstances of the case.

This view of Gordon’s duty was taken very strongly
by Mr Robert Hart, the head of the Imperial Maritime
212 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

Customs, a gentleman who had then, and still retains,
the confidence and high respect both of the Chinese
Government and of the Foreign community. Mr Hart
made a full investigation into the circumstances of the
“Soochow Massacre,”* and found that “the taking of
the great city of Soochow had been followed by no more
bloodshed, and by no more questionable act, than the
beheading of about ten Rebel leaders.” He came to the
conclusion that “ there was no act of premeditated treach-
ery,” and that the Futai suddenly and unexpectedly
found himself placed in a dilemma, from which he saw
no other way of extricating himself with safety to gene-
ral interests than by acting as he did. He also threw
doubt upon the supposition that it was any feeling of
confidence in Gordon which induced the Wangs to sur-
render, and noted several facts which went to prove that
it was the hopes held out by General Ching on which
alone they relied. On the general subject of Gordon’s
position and prospects, Mr Hart wrote: “ Disaffected
people—rowdy Foreigners and lawless Chinese—have
been immensely delighted with the inaction of the last
two months. Merchants fear to return to Soochow, not
knowing but that Gordon in his wrath may with his
men join the Rebels, and their continuance at Shanghai
is delightful to the owners of land and houses. The
Rebels themselves don’t know what to make of the occur-
rence, and their expiring energies are again fanned into
a flame. His appearance in the field will have imme-
diate results ; rowdies will commence to see that their
game is hopeless, and that they had better leave China;
Chinese traders will again flock back to Soochow; and
the Rebels will again lose heart. Chanchu fu will

*See his letter to Sir Frederick Bruce, Blue-Book, China, No. 7
(1864), p. 25.
MR HART ON THE SOOCHOW “MASSACRE.” 213

soon fall, and that will be followed very probably by the
capitulation of Hangchow, Wuchu, and Keahing, and
the other two or three small cities still held by the
Tai-pings in this province and in Chekiang. Whether
a stand will be made or not at Nanking, Gordon
thinks very problematical, but he is rather of opinion
that it will not fight.* The destiny of China is at the
present moment in the hands of Gordon more than of
any other man, and if he is encouraged to act vigorously,
the knotty question of ‘ Tai-pingdom’ versus ‘ Union in
the Cause of Law and Order, + will be solved before the
end of May, and quiet will at length be restored to this
unfortunate and sorely-tried country. . . . Personally,
Gordon’s wish is to leave the force as soon as he can.
Now that Soochow has fallen, there is nothing more that
he can do, whether to add to his own reputation, or to
retrieve that of British officers generally, tarnished by
Holland’s defeat at Taitsan. He has little or nothing
personally to gain from future successes, and as he has
himself to lead in all critical moments, and is con-
stantly exposed to danger, he has before him the not
very improbable contingency of being hit sooner or later.
But he lays aside his personal feelings ; and seeing well
that, if he were now to leave the force, it would in all
probability go at once to the Rebels, or cause some other
disaster, he consents to remain with it for a time.”

Some time before this it had been decided that the
policy of Britain in China was to support the Imperial-
ist cause, and generally to favour the speediest possible
suppression of the Tai-pings. This was a wise and
humane policy, though it was foolishly accompanied by
absurd professions of neutrality, which sometimes misled

* As turned out to be the case,
+ The title of the reigning Emperor.
214 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

the latter, and afforded Colonel Sykes and gther Rebel
sympathisers an appearance of legitimate grounds of
complaint ; and it was adopted from an enlightened
regard to our own interests, and not from any affection
for the Imperialists or dislike to the Rebels. In accord-
ance with it Sir Frederick Bruce also gave his approval
and support to Gordon in resuming operations. He got
the Chinese Government to promise that, when employ-
ing a Foreign officer, the rules of warfare as practised
among Foreign nations would be strictly observed. To
Colonel Gordon he wrote on the 12th March 1864 :—

My concurrence in the step you have taken is founded in no
small measure on my knowledge of the high motives which have
guided you while in command of the Chinese force, of the dis-
interested conduct you have observed in pecuniary questions,
and of the influence in favour of humanity you exercised in
rescuing Burgevine and his misguided associates from Soochow.
I am aware of the perseverance with which, in the face of seri-
ous obstacles and much discouragement, you have steadily pur-
_ sued the pacification of the province of Kiangsoo ; in relieving it
from being the battle-field of the insurrection, and in restoring to
its suffering inhabitants the enjoyments of their homes and the
uninterrupted exercise of their industry, you may console your-
self with the assurance that you are rendering a service to true
humanity, as well as to great material interests. It would be a
serious calamity, and addition to our embarrassments in China,
were you compelled to leave your work incomplete, and were a
sudden dissolution or dispersion of the Chinese force to lead to
the recurrence of that state of danger and anxiety from which,
during the last two years, Shanghai has suffered. . . . I
approve of your not awaiting the result of the inquiry into the
Futai’s proceedings at Soochow, provided you take care that
your efforts in favour of humanity are not in future defeated by
the Chinese authorities.*

In a more private, but still semi-official letter, Sir
Frederick entered into his reasons for pursuing this
* Blue-Book, China, No. 7 (1864), p. 22.
LETTER FROM SIR FREDERICK BRUCE. 215

course ; and I give it here on account of the clear way in
which it describes the position, and also as a refutation of
the charges of laziness and of want of ability which have
sometimes been brought against this British Minister :—

Prxine, March 3, 1864.

My prar Masor Gorpon,—I only received yesterday your
letter telling me that you had again taken the field. I have not
yet seen the Governor's proclamation, but I have obtained a
positive promise in writing from this Government that, in cases
of capitulations where you are present, nothing is to be done
without your consent; and I will inform the Prince of Kung
that it is upon the faith of this engagement that you are autho-
vised to act. If it is observed, scenes like that at Soochow will
not be repeated, and the interests of humanity will have the-
benefit of you as a protector, instead of being committed to the
unchecked mercies of Chinese officials.

I did not ask for the Governor’s dismissal; I confined myself
in the first instance to asking for an inquiry, to which he was
entitled before being punished, and to supporting you in the
course you had taken. If he has been generally successful as
Governor, it is not to be expected that this Government would
venture to remove him for an act with respect to which they
are more impressed by the extenuating circumstances than by
the treachery. In the decree condemning Shung Pow to death,
one of the chief charges against him was that he had pardoned
some Rebel leaders who a year afterwards rose again in insur-
rection. If it be true that the Chiefs of Soochow insisted upon
a quasi-independent command, which would virtually have left
Soochow in their power, and would have enabled them to take
advantage of any favourable circumstances to begin again their
career of pillage, I can understand that Governor Li shrank
from the responsibility of granting such terms to them, and pre-
ferred treating them as contumacious, and setting the Govern-
ment at defiance by their attitude and by their demands. Such
a proceeding, though abhorrent to our ideas, can hardly be
termed a gross and deliberate act of treachery.

It is impossible for us to change suddenly the ideas and
conduct of the Chinese; and the Taitsan affair showed that the
Tai-pings were not one whit more advanced in good faith than
216 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

the Imperialists. But the interests of trade and of the popula-
tion of China demand the restoration of peace axfl tranquillity,
and we do a good act in assisting the Government with that
view. If this insurrection continues in force in the seaboard
provinces, I see a great danger not far off arising from filibus-
ters and corsairs.

Burgevine is a Southerner; the trading interests of Ame-
rica in China are Northern, and Burgevine attributes his treat-
ment to the British authorities at Shanghai. It would not
surprise me if he and the Alabama, &c., were to make common
cause with the insurgents, and then, you may depend upon it,
they would directly attack the Foreign settlements, where most
plunder is to be had. You will do well to urge the Governor
to take measures, either by steamers or by batteries, to prevent
lorchas or armed vessels going up the Yangtsze river. It might
be easy for a force of these adventurers to raise the siege of
Nanking, and then advance again on the province of Kiangsoo.
It will depend much on his future conduct, and on the readiness
he shows to adopt good suggestions, how far I press the affair of
Soochow. I am not implacable where offences are not repeated.

I beg you to do nothing rash under the pressure of excite-
ment, and, above all, to avoid publishing in newspapers accounts
of your differences with the Chinese authorities. We have sup-
ported this Government from motives of interest, not from sen-
timent; and as our interests remain the same, we must endeay-
our to get over our difficulties without taking any step which
would neutralise all the results of the policy we have hitherto
pursued, and which you have carried out so successfully. In
the resolution you have now come to, you are acting wisely and
rightly, and you may depend upon my lightening your respon-
sibility by giving you the most cordial official support. For-
tunately I have not committed myself with respect to Li, so far
as to make it difficult for me to be friends with him, provided
he gives rise to no more scandals, and deals with Foreigners and
Foreign interests so as not to give grounds for complaint. If
you think it expedient you may hint this to him.

The objects we ought to keep in view are to restore order
in Kiangsoo and Chekiang, to cut off the insurgents from com-
munication with filibusters, and to reduce gradually the dis-
ciplined corps, so that it may not become a source of danger.
GORDON RETAKES THE FIELD. 217

If the Chinese will put down piracy, and stop vessels not con-
forming to the regulations limiting arms, &c., I will direct the
gunboats to support them. But vessels under Foreign flags can
onlybe searched by a Chinese authority; and all we can do is
to support him if he is resisted in trying to search—Yours
faithfully,

FREDERICK W. A. Bruce.

When Colonel Gordon determined on retaking the field
there were two districts occupied by the Rebels—one to
the south of the Taiho Lake, including Hangchow, Ka-
shing fu, and several other towns; the other to the north,
containing Nanking, Tayan, Kintang, and Chuying—the
two being about fifty miles distant from each. other, and
communicating through Yesing and Liyang. Immedi-
ately after the fall of Soochow, the Tai-ping posts in its
vicinity—such as Wusieh and Pingwang in Kiangsoo, and
Pinghoo, Haiyuen, Kanshu, and Haining, in Chekiang—
were either evacuated or surrendered to the Futai, his
treatment of the Wangs having had apparently no effect
in preventing Rebel chiefs from submitting to his mercy.
Hence it appeared to Gordon that his best plan would
be to attack Yesing and Liyang, so as to separate the two
Rebel districts from each other, and leave those of the
south to be dealt with by Captain d’Aiguibelle, an officer
in the French service, who, with Franco-Chinese, was
associated with a Mandarin force; while in the north
Tseng Kwo-fan and his brothers could proceed, undis-
turbed, with the reduction of Nanking. In order to ac-
complish this work, he had to go a considerable distance
from Quinsan, the basis of his operations, and so found it
necessary to burden his force with commissariat supplies.

Leaving Colonel Morant and 200 men as a garrison at
Quinsan, he started with his whole force in bitterly cold
and snowy weather; but, delaying at Wusieh, did not
218 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

leave that place till the 27th. The country between
Wusieh and Yesing was almost destitute of people, and
the few to be found were in the last stages of starvation:
—a fact which shows strikingly the result of Tai-ping
rule; for since 1860 no Imperialists had been in that part
of the province, and no fighting had been carried on
there. On advancing with a small party to reconnoitre
Yesing, Colonel Gordon found it was a small walled
city, two miles in circumference, with a broad ditch and
small lakes on its east and west sides. The reconnoitring
party was driven away by a very accurate fire of a 12-
pounder gun at the North Gate. The result was that he
resolved to cross the lake at the east side—from which
direction the Hyson was expected—to take possession of
the village at the south-east angle, and then, by taking.
the stockades on the south side, to cut off communica-
tion with Liyang, the next Rebel city. When this was
done, as it was without much difficulty, the village re-
ferred to was found full of the most miserable objects,
dead and alive, of both sexes and of all ages. Those
who still remained in life had been driven to eat human
flesh, and the unburied bodies of the dead were in a con-
dition which showed that much of this revolting food
had been consumed. And this, it should be noted, was
under the walls of a city near which there had been no
Imperialists for more than four years. After the stock-
ades in front of the East Gate were taken, the mass of the
Rebels quitted Yesing by night, and it surrendered next
day. As the troops were thus deprived of an oppor-
tunity of looting, and were rather dissatisfied at being
brought on a perilous march into the Tai-ping country
instead of being sent up to Nanking, they showed some
symptoms of insubordination, which had to be severely
repressed, one of their number being taken out and shot.
SURRENDER OF LIYANG. 219

The starving villagers, however, were allowed to pillage
in a small way, and so got enough rice to support them
for some time.

Moving on against Liyang, he found the Rebel chiefs
so much out of heart that they at once surrendered it to
him. In that neighbourhood, also, nothing but misery
and devastation prevailed; and even some of his own
_ troops had to suffer from hunger for a few days, as no

food could be obtained except what they had brought
with them. “Hundreds of dead bodies,” writes one of
his officers, “ were strewn along the roads—people who
died from starvation; and even the few who were yet
alive watched one of their comrades dying, so as to ob-
tain some food off his dead body. Major Gordon gave as
much food to these poor creatures as he could spare, but
it was not sufficient to satisfy them all.” Liyang was
found to have a population of 20,000, and permission
was given to all the Rebels who chose to do so, to leave
the city with their effects. One thousand of the Tai-ping
soldiers were enlisted into the Ever-Victorious Army,
and were formed into a separate regiment. This city
was three miles in circumference, with a formidable
ditch, and a stronger system of stockades round it than
any which Colonel Gordon had before met. It was well
stocked with provisions, which were given to the starv-
ing people of the neighbourhood, who had not even rice '
for seed when the place was surrendered; but twenty-five
gunboats were here taken and joined to Gordon’s flotilla.
When the commander was going into the town, he was
called back by some Rebels to a large boat where the
mother of the She Wang, or Attendant King, his wife,
and his son, a child of seven years old, were kept pris-
oners. The Rebels wanted to kill them, because this
King, who had originally been a butcher, had been cruel
220 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

to them in many ways, having shortly before burned a
man to death for meditating treachery, and had been
encouraged in his cruelty by his venerable mother, who
upon her capture behaved in a very violent and obstre-

perous manner. These people were all sent to Quinsan, _

and from thence safely forwarded to the Attendant King.

After sending a letter to Kintang offering terms of
surrender, to which no answer was returned, Colonel
Gordon on the 15th March reconnoitred the route lead-
ing to that place, as the Hyson had been unable to find
any navigable route to it ; and next day, in spite of heavy
rains, he marched towards it with the 1st, 2d, and 5th
Regiments, and a large force of artillery mounted on
gunboats, leaving the newly-raised regiment and the re-
mainder of his force for the protection of Liyang. On
the 17th he advanced personally within a mile of the
walls, and sent in a letter offering the garrison their lives
and property if they would surrender. About the same
time he received a letter from the Futai, announcing
that the steamer Tsatlee* had been seized by rowdies
at Shanghai, and taken up to the Rebels, and asking
him to come back to attack Chanchu fu, where the
Rebels had defeated the Imperialists, and had been
threatening an advance. The weather was so wet at
this time that the troops could only be moved with
great difficulty ; but on the 20th March they took up a
position at about 1200 yards from the walls of Kintang,
which were not surrounded by stockades, and which, con-
trary to the usual custom of the Tai-pings, were not

* The Foreigners who pirated this steamer were to have received £20,000
from the Rebels for doing so, but in their ignorance they ran her into the
possession of the Imperialist force under General Ching at Kashing fu.
The ringleaders were tried at Shanghai, and Morris, one of their number,
who had also been engaged in the capture of the Firefly, was sentenced to
ten years’ penal servitude.
REPULSE AT KINTANG. 221

adorned with defiant flags. The want of flags, how-
ever, was a mere ruse on the part of the Tai-pings, who
were prepared to make, and did make, a most desperate
resistance. The north-east angle of the wall, on which
an enfilade fire could be brought, having been fixed on
as the best point of attack, the troops were moved up to
their several stations next day, and the heavy boats with
artillery were placed near the wall under cover of night.

At 9 a.m. on the 21st March everything was ready for
opening fire, when despatches were received from the
Futai, announcing that a large force of 7000 Rebels, com-
manded by Chung Wang’s son, had left Chanchu fu,
turned the flank of the Imperialists, were threatening
Wusieh, had captured Fushan, and were besieging Chan-
zu, only thirty miles from Quinsan, the headquarters and
depot of the Ever-Victorious Army. This was startling
intelligence for Colonel Gordon ; but he thought that if
he retired without attacking Kintang the Rebels would
be much encouraged, whereas, if he took that place, he
could, by advancing on Chanchu, compel the Hu Wang,
who commanded there, to order back his expeditionary
force.

Fire was accordingly opened, and after three hours a
very fair breach was made in the walls, the Rebels not
showing much fight ; but whenever the storming-parties
for the assault appeared, and were pushed in boats across
the creek beneath the walls, the Tai-pings crowded to
the breach in a most determined manner, and swarmed
on the parapet, throwing powder-bags, stinkpots, and
every species of missile into the boats, which had in
consequence to retire and reland the troops. When the
artillery fire was reopened on the breach the defenders
disappeared, and the troops again being got into order,
were pushed over a stone bridge which was found stand-
222 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

ing in the neighbourhood. The second storming-party,
however, was also repulsed, and Major Kirkham, who led
it, was severely wounded. Colonel Gordon himself, who
took part in the assault, was shot through the leg; but
silencing one of his body-guard, who cried out that the
commander was hit, he stood giving orders until he
fainted from loss of blood, and was-carried back to his
boat. This was the first and only time that Gordon was
wounded during his fourteen months of fighting ; and the
wonder only is, exposed as he constantly was, that he
escaped so lightly. The sergeant-major of the 1st Regi-
ment, which had come up the day before, mounted the
breach with his regimental flag, but this was wrested from
him. Notwithstanding the losses which the stormers had
sustained, Major Brown, Colonel Gordon’s aide-de-camp,
and brother of the General commanding her Majesty’s
forces in China, headed a third assault, and bore his
commander's flag up the breach; but the attack failed,
and he too was wounded, and had to be carried back.
On this Colonel Gordon, having no fresh regiments on
hand with which to make a renewed effort, determined
on withdrawing his force, which was effected without
further loss, the troops resuming the positions they had
occupied previous to the assault. During this unsuc-
cessful affair not less than 100 of the rank-and-file of
the assailants were killed and wounded ; 15 officers were
wounded, and 2 officers, Major Taite and Captain Ban-
ning, were killed.

During the night frequent attempts were made by the
Rebels to set fire to the boats; they also came out and
attacked sentries, and even crept up on their bellies and
threw powder-bags, with slow matches attached, into the
tents, which caused great confusion. The whole of the
troops were glad when it became light enough to move
ADVANCE ON THE REBEL LINE. 223

away, which was effected with order and without further
loss, though the Tai-pings made several attempts at
molestation.

On the 24th the whole force was again concentrated
at Liyang, where Colonel Gordon received further disas-
trous intelligence, being apprised that the Faithful King
was himself in possession of Fushan. Immediately on
learning this, though unable to stand, owing to his wound,
he left the greater portion of his force in garrison at Liyang,
under General Li Adong, and himself started for Wusieh,
along with the Light Artillery, the 4th Regiment, which
was only 400 strong, and 600 Liyang men, who a few
days before had been Tai-pings. One scarcely knows
here whether most to admire the pluck, or to wonder
at the confidence, of the wounded commander. How-
ever, on reaching Wusieh on the morning of the 25th, he
received despatches conveying the gratifying intelligence
that the enemy had been driven back from that place,
that though Fushan had been retaken, Chanzu continued
to hold out, and that the Imperialists still held the stock-
ades at Chanchu. Advancing the same day about ten
miles to the south-west of Kongyin, he drove parties of
Rebels before him, and cut off the retreat of the Chung
Wang’s son, who had suffered a repulse at; Chanzu, and
was attempting to return to Chanchu, by the way he had
gone.

Colonel Gordon’s wound and weakness seemed only to
have increased his eagerness to be at the Rebels; for
on the 26th he pushed on, with only his Light Artillery
and 400 of his Rifles, through a district where the houses
had been burned and the people butchered in every direc-
tion by the Tai-pings. At dusk they drove a Rebel force
away from three burning villages, and then halted for
the night, which was spent in considerable anxiety, as
224 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

during nearly the whole of it the enemyewere engaged
in firing on the sentries, and trying to ride through the
lines of the small disciplined force.. The next morning
Gordon, who had to direct operations reclining in his
boat, drove the Rebels out of the village they held in
front of his position, but had immediately to retire before
a larger body of them which came down on his boats.
Nearly 100 of these latter, however, were cut off from
their companions, and bayoneted by the disciplined
Chinese, while another body of them were forced over
a bridge under fire of a howitzer. These operations
brought Gordon’s troops up to the foot of a range of
hills near Chowchang, over which the Rebels were
driven towards Waisoo; but finding that, if he con-
tinued to attack the Rebels in that direction, he would
drive them into a new district of country which they
had not visited, and on to Chanzu, he stopped to con-
centrate his troops, and determined to operate against
the left of the Rebel line, so as to drive the enemy on
Kongyin. In these rapid operations Gordon had a
special object, which justified the risk he ran, and the
exertions he demanded from his troops. The Tai-pings,
who had issued out of Chanchu, had taken a bend
towards the shore of the Yangtsze, with the hope of
obtaining possession of Quinsan; and Gordon sought to
compel them to abandon that design by attacking their
line not at its extremities, but at its centre, so causing
them to contract like a broken-backed snake. Finding
their centre to be at Waisoo, he waited a day or two till
reinforced by the Liyang men, and then advanced on
Waisoo, being himself with the artillery in boats, whilst
Colonels Howard and Rhode proceeded by land, being
ordered to incline to the right before they reached the
Rebel stockades, where they would join the boats.
A DISASTROUS CHECK. 225

Colonel Gordon and his artillery went on till they
came close to the enemy’s position, but there found
neither the infantry nor any signs of their appearance.
The consequence was that the boats were very nearly
destroyed by the Tai-pings, who came out to the attack ;
for the banks of the creek were too high to allow of the
guns being used, and it was with great difficulty that a
retreat was effected to the encampment from which he
had set.out. Arriving there, everything was found in
confusion ; boats were leaving, men were fleeing, and
naked persons were swimming the creek in their anxiety
to escape from danger.

It turned out that his infantry had been repulsed, and
had met with a very severe loss indeed. When they
went out in the morning Colonel Rhode pushed on his
regiment to the village of Waisoo, where there was a
Tai-ping camp, strongly intrenched and stockaded. In-
stead of carrying this place at the point of the bayonet,
he injudiciously halted before it for an hour, while he
and Colonel Howard distributed their men by companies
in several directions. This was perceived by the Tai-
pings who swarmed among the neighbouring hills, from
whence they could see how small a force was opposed to
them, and in the valleys of which they had a consider-
able force of cavalry concealed. By degrees the Rebels
worked down between Rhode and Howard. Soon they
came rushing on in thousands, and the cavalry issued
out of their hiding-places and attacked on both flanks.
On seeing themselves thus hemmed in, the 6th, or newly-
raised Liyang Regiment, was seized with panic, broke
through the Rebel ranks behind, and threw themselves
upon Colonel Howard’s regiment, which was thus thrown
into confusion, and began to retire gradually. The Tai-
pings pressed on in thousands from every side, and their

P
226 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

horsemen charged into the disciplined Chinese, armed
with a sword in each hand, and cutting down their ene-
mies right and left. The result was that the 4th, the
best regiment in the Ever- Victorious Army, and the
600 Liyang men took to flight. All attempts to rally
them were made in vain; it was a race for life over
three miles up to Lukachow, where the pursuers were
checked by the reserve at the camp. About 400 men
were either killed or taken prisoners, and the officers
suffered especially. Colonel Rhode, who was in front
of the whole affair, was fortunate enough to catch a
Rebel pony, otherwise he could hardly have managed to
escape. Captains Gibbon, Chirikoff, and Hughes, with
Lieutenants Polkson, Graves, Pratt, and Dowling, were
either killed in the fight, or taken prisoners and then
murdered. None of the bodies could be recovered at
the time, and great anxiety was felt as to the fate of
those who had been taken prisoners, but all their bodies
were afterwards found, decapitated and otherwise muti-
lated. It was not to be expected that the Tai-pings
would spare those taken in arms against them, when the
country villages around were full of young women and
children whose throats the Rebels had cut, and whose
bodies they had split open. This was by far the most
disastrous affair which had ever happened to Colonel
Gordon, and he was much incensed at the surviving
officers for not having kept proper reserves and looked
better after their flanks—which culpable neglect was the
main cause of their being surrounded and defeated by a
mere rabble, armed for the most part only with spears

and knives. The Liyang Regiment fought very bravely,

and so did the 4th, for some time. If the men had been
formed into square, which they knew well enough how
to do, they might easily have repulsed their assailants,
IMPERIALIST SUCCESSES IN CHEKIANG. 227

notwithstanding the determination and strategy which
these latter showed ; but no attempt was made by the
officers to form square until it was too late, and so the
force was taken at a great disadvantage.

After this repulse Colonel Gordon withdrew his men
on the 31st March to Siangchow, about thirteen miles
north of Wusieh, and sent down his wounded to Quin-
san. He also ordered up the 3d Regiment, and occupied
himself in bringing his demoralised troops again into
order until the 3d April, when he went up and encamped
about two miles from Waisoo, where he met the Futai,
who had come from Soochow with 6000 Imperialists.

While these events were going on to the north of the
Taiho Lake, General Ching had been operating at Ka-
shing fu to the south; and Tso, Chetai, along with the
Franco-Chinese, had been engaged investing Hangchow.
The former of these Imperialist generals carried the
stockades in front of Kashing fu on the 17th March,
after a sharp resistance, but found that the Rebels had
constructed a series of small forts about 150 yards out-
side the walls of the city, which rendered further pro-
gress very difficult, though he got excellent information
as to what was going on inside from spies whom he had
previously sent to join the Rebels, and who were con-
stantly coming out to him. At night he carried two
of these forts, and established batteries under the charge
of Colonel Bailey, whom Gordon had given for instruc-
tion in the use of artillery. On the 19th he stormed
twice without success, and on the 20th the fire of the
heavy guns was reopened and another assault given,
when the Rebels gave way and the place was captured.
On this occasion the Ting Wang and Yung Wang were
killed—the one by a shell, and ‘the other by the Impe-
228 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

rialists. Ting Wang had walled up tha,gateways just
previous to the attack, which prevented any of his men
escaping, and led to a desperate resistance. Ching, the
Imperial commander, was wounded in the head by a
bullet (from the effects of which he died on the 15th
April) as he was trying the depth of the water in the
ditch just before the assault commenced ; and this, to-
gether with the determined character of the resistance,
led the Imperialist soldiers to give no mercy.

The death and previous services of this General were
noticed at length in a report to the Emperor by Li
Hung-chang, dated 12th May 1864, and I give the fol-
lowing abridged translation of that document, because
it is so strikingly illustrative of Chinese ideas and cus-
toms, and affords such a contrast to our own cold official
way of acknowledging military services :—

Ching, the Tsung-Ping of Nanchang, was formerly presented
with the hereditary rank of Shao-pei [Yun chi Wei]. He was
subsequently made Patulu [a Manchu distinction]. Fiercely he
attacked the city of Kashing, where he was wounded in the
head by a ball which pierced his brain. He fainted, but was
afterwards restored to consciousness and borne back [to Soo-
chow] to be put under medical treatment. He himself knew
that his wound was desperate, but he refused to take medicine.
I over and over again exhorted him to submit to treatment, and
T called in doctors who professed to cure both internal and ex-
ternal maladies, so that he at last consented to put himself in
their hands. His mind and speech thus soon became clear.
T left Soochow on the 7th April for the purpose of following
up the Rebels, but at the moment of starting I visited him.
He said that although the Rebels had been defeated, their
strength was still not to be despised, and he told me to order
the officers to be careful in battle. He also remarked that brave
men were not easily obtained, and bitterly regretted his own
fate, by which he was prevented from following up his duty
to the country in exterminating the Rebels. He sobbed and
sighed, and tears came into his eyes while he was speaking to
DEATH OF GENERAL CHING. 229

me. I, on the other hand, bade him be of good courage, and
told him that he would thus hasten his recovery, and that
it was not necessary for him to grieve and be anxious. When
I departed I left directions that the local Mandarins should
visit him from time to time. While I was at Kongyin attack-
ing the Rebels there, a report suddenly reached me that Ching
was gradually sinking. His senses had not, however, deserted
him. On the 14th April he called his servant, and ordered
him to bring the Yellow Jacket presented to him by your
Majesty, and assist him to put it on. He then bowed his head
towards your Majesty’s palace, and walked round his room.
Seeing tea on the table, he took up a cupful and attempted to
drink, but the fluid could not pass down his throat. By this
he was much moved, and wept. “He ordered Han Chu, a Chi-
chao who had the superintendence of the camp, to mouut a
horse and come to me, to beg that I would carefully follow
out my design of destroying the Rebels. He further said that
he knew he could not see me again in the provincial city.
There was not a particle of selfishness in his recommendations.
At the time when he felt death approaching, he bemoaned the
unfinished state of the work he had cut out for himself. He
felt that he had not returned the favours heaped on him by your
Majesty. The fluid of his brain continued to run out of the
wound, and on the 15th April, at twelve o’clock at night, he
died. I was excessively grieved. All the military officers cried
bitterly. Every one, whether belonging to Kiangsoo or to
Chekiang, whether Mandarins or scholars or common people,
lamented his death.

I then examined into Ching’s previous history, and I dis-
covered that he came from Tungchen hien, in the province
of Nganhwui, whence,-during the Rebel troubles, he was taken
as a prisoner. The Four-Eyed Dog, Ying, placed great con-
fidence in him. Ching, because he saw that the Rebels op-
pressed the people, at length made an attempt to get away
from them. The Rebels, however, managed to secure him again,
-and shut him up so that he could not escape. In the fourth
month of the eleventh year of the Emperor, whose style was
Hien-fung, Tseng Kwo-tsun, the Futai of Chekiang, led his sol-
diers to Nganking. Ching, without mentioning the affair to
anybody, came over to the camp occupied by Tseng Chun-kan
230 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

[Tseng Kwo-tsun’s brother], and surrendered gimself. He was
instantly recognised as a superior man, and one far above the
general run of Rebel officers who had joined the camp, and was
sent with the expedition which recovered Nganking, where his
bravery was most conspicuous. The Governor-General, Tseng
Kwo-fan, reported the affair to your Majesty, and pledged him-
self for Ching’s worth. At the same time I myself was at
Neganking, and constantly heard of Ching’s exploits, as well as
of his wisdom, daring, and varied ability. Shortly afterwards,
when your Majesty ordered me to hurry to Shanghai, I begged
Tseng Kwo-fan to allow me to carry with me Ching’s two
camps. . . .

When Soochow fell, Kow Ywen-kuan (who was the chief man
amongst the Rebel Wangs who submitted to us), with eight
others, proposed to divide the city into two parts. At this time
these fellows had about 200,000 men under their command,
and they thought that they could altogether neutralise any effort
we might make. If this demand had been granted, and if, sub-
sequently, the slightest opposition had been made to their wishes,
they would have had “my head in chancery” in no time. But
Ching told me, that as he had formerly been among the Rebels,
he well knew their mode of thought, and that as their crimes
had been outrageous, their punishment ought to be propor-
tionately severe. “Cut off,” said he, “the heads of their leaders,
and their myriads of followers will instantly subside into insig-
nificance. You will thus secure the tranquillity of the city.” I
therefore immediately ordered the execution of the Wangs, and
restored tranquillity to their followers. Thus were the mighty
difficulties which at first presented themselves at once solved.
He was able to calculate beforehand, and he was also able to
act with decision. Among the leaders of modern times there
were few like him. When Gordon heard of his death he wept.
and groaned. He had seen with his own eyes how excellent he
was as a general. Indeed, so highly did Gordon value him that
he begged me to give him as a keepsake the two banners which
Ching used to carry into battle, that he might bear them to his
own country, and thus preserve the memory of one he loved so
well. Ching possessed a mind of no ordinary depth and capa-
city. His plans and their subsequent execution were most
clearly and minutely considered. His own countrymen and

44
LIS REPORT ON GENERAL CHING. 231

Foreigners alike admired him; and had Heaven vouchsafed to
him many years of life, it would have been seen that his labours
were not finished at the period of his actual death.

Now, since it was in the service of the country that he lost
his life, is it not right that I should beg your Majesty to mani-
fest your favour towards him in the manner due to a Ti-Tu who
dies on the field of battle? I also beg your Majesty to give
him a posthumous rank, and to cause the story of his life to be
inscribed on the records of this dynasty. Moreover, I would
suggest that at Nganking fu, Soochow fu, and Kashing fu com-
memorative temples be raised to his exclusive honour, so as
to celebrate his faithfulness. If your Majesty be pleased to do
this, it will be a proof of your extraordinary favour.

I would further inform your Majesty that at the time of
writing the above despatch, I received the Imperial edict, dated
the 4th April, relative to the gifts to be presented to Ching,
on account of the conquest of Kashing—viz., a white jade
feather ornament, a white jade thumb-ring, a jade-handled
knife, and a pair of pouches. I reverently ordered these pre-
sents to be carried to Soochow, and presented to Ching’s family,
to be placed before his coffin to solace his noble soul.

The Franco-Chinese, under D’Aiguibelle, having arrived
at Hangchow in February, made an attack, in combina-
tion with the Imperialists under Tso, on the Rebel stock-
ades outside the city, and carried about a dozen of them
early in March. After erecting a battery and breaching
the South Gate, they assaulted on the 9th of the month,
but were repulsed ; and also made another ineffectual
attempt on the 12th March, when a number of their
officers were wounded. The point of attack was badly
chosen, because the gate was placed in bastions pro-
jecting from the rampart, so when the front wall was
breached, there still remained another to be attacked
behind. This place might have held out much longer
had not Tsah, formerly a Tai-ping with the title of Wai
Wang, threatened its communications, and led the Rebels
to vacate it on the 21st. Li, Futai, considered this eva-
232 ~ GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

cuation as a consequence of the taking gf Kashing fu ;
but not so did Tso, who, being Chetai of Chekiang, did
not much like General Ching, a Kiangsoo official, taking
a city in his province. Immediately after this the Rebels
evacuated Huhang, and fell back on Wuchu fu, close to
the south-west corner of the Taiho Lake. Thus they
were cleared almost entirely out of the district to the
south of that immense sheet of water ; but small parties
of them took refuge in the uninhabited mountains which
formed the boundary between the provinces of Chekiang
and Nganhwui, and which run up by Kuanteche and
Liyang all the way from Hangchow to Nanking; for
the Imperialists did not care to follow them into the
fastnesses of those sterile hills, where starvation awaited
them.

We must now return to Colonel. Gordon, who had
nearly recovered from his wound, and had put his
augmented force in movement in the neighbourhood
of Waisoo on the 6th April. The Tai-pings who had
so lately repulsed his force were in a rather dangerous
position ; for behind them, on the north, beyond a range
of hills, was the river Yangtsze, held by Imperial fleets ;
on the east was General Kwo Sung-ling, with a large
force of Imperialists ; on the south-east, the disciplined
Chinese; on the south and west were also large Im-
perialist forces; while to the north-west Kongyin was
held by the Imperialists. Between the latter place
and the Rebel stockades at Waisoo the road to Tayan
passed ; and now the Imperialists held no force upon
it, but had broken all its bridges past Kongyin, and
had arranged so that the Rebels would imagine this road
to be still open for retreat. As his men were rather
timid after their recent loss, Colonel Gordon advanced
CAPTURE OF WAISOO. 233

with the greatest caution towards Waisoo on the 11th
April, and found that town surrounded by strong stock-
ades and breastworks. Having opened a fire from the
24-pounder howitzers, he moved the 4th Regiment and
two mounted guns to the north of the Rebel posi-
tion, which was its weakest side. This disconcerted
the Tai-pings, who had expected to be attacked only
from the south—the direction from which the howitzers
were firing. The stockades on the north were taken
with very little fighting ; and on finding this, the Rebels
suddenly vacated the town, and after a little desultory
skirmishing began to retreat from the neighbourhood.
Lis Imperialist soldiers then followed them up, and
drove them in every direction over the country towards
Tayan. Waisoo was found full of rice, which had been
collected from the surrounding country. In it were
discovered the bodies of upwards of 150 of the Liyang
men who had been taken prisoners in the affair of the
31st March, and the mutilated corpses of the seven un-
fortunate European officers were buried with military
honours.

Next day, when Colonel Gordon followed up the
Rebels in the direction of Kongyin, the villagers of the
country turned out to his assistance, armed with every
sort of weapon, and showed no mercy to the Rebels,
who suffered fearfully among the creeks which abounded,
and whose parties were cut up in every direction. It
would have been difficult even for a disciplined force to
have withstood the attacks of these infuriated peasants,
whose houses had been burnt, and whose relatives had
been wantonly murdered, by the Tai-ping marauders.
Several Chiefs and a great number of ponies were taken.
All the Cantonese, Hupeh, and Kwangsi Rebels who
were taken were immediately executed. Of the expe-
234 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

ditionary force barely 1000 escaped back to Tayan and
Chanchu.

Colonel Gordon then collected his entire force, which
at this time numbered about 3000 men, and advanced
to assist Futai Li and the Imperialist: troops who were
engaged in besieging Chanchu fu. At this time the Re-
bellion was very near its last gasp ; for in Chekiang the
Tai-pings held only the cities of Wuchu and Chang-ching;
in Kiangsoo they had only Nanking, Tayan, and Chan-
chu; in Kiangsi their footing was confined to three
towns held by the Che Wang; and in the remainder of
China they made no appearance at all. Hence it seemed
practicable as well as important to prevent them mak-
ing their escape from Chanchu to ravage fresh districts ;
and Gordon pressed the importance of this upon the
Futai, who was noways unwilling to invest the city on
all sides, because the garrison, commanded by the Hu
Wang and Tso Wang, were mostly Cantonese—desperate
old Rebels to whom he was not disposed to show any
mercy. The Futai was also very angry with his military
Mandarins for having effected nothing against this place
though they had been before it since January, and urged
on matters by threatening to degrade them if they did
not make sharp progress in the siege.

In the preliminary fighting among the stockades before
Chanchu, Colonel Gordon lost his best artillery officer,
and himself ran a great risk. About midnight on the
25th April, he, along with Major Tapp, was superintend-
ing a fatigue party of Imperialists engaged in construct-
ing a battery, who were supported by a strong In-
perialist picket on each side, and by a covering party
in rear. This work was nearly completed, when sud-
denly, without any intelligible reason, the picket on
the left fired into the battery. On this the covering
DEATH OF MAJOR TAPP. 235

party fell back on a bank behind, and also opened fire
upon the battery, seeing which, the left picket again
fired into it. Roused by this midnight disturbance, the
Tai-pings also directed their guns upon the same point ;
so the astonished party in the battery had to stand a
rear and flank fire from their own troops, and a front
one from the enemy. Colonel Gordon, with his usual
good fortune, escaped untouched, and soon managed to
find a little shelter among some ruins ; but his companion
was shot in the stomach, and died in about ten minutes,
while of the handful of sappers in the battery there were
several killed and five wounded. It is difficult to believe
that this affair was altogether an accident. The troops
before Chanchu were not very eager to push on the siege,
because they knew that they would meet with a desper-
ate resistance, and that the taking of that place would
end the campaign ; so it is not impossible that some of
them may have desired to try whether or not Gordon
actually bore a charmed life.

Major Tapp, who was thus killed, had been a warrant
officer in the Royal Navy, and was permitted.to purchase
his discharge in order to enter the force in 1862. He
was a singularly energetic as well as brave officer, and
had more influence over the men than any other of the
regimental commanders, so his loss was greatly felt.
Another fact worthy of notice in the preliminary fight-
ing was, that a number of the Tai-pings who escaped to
the city wall when their stockades outside were taken
by the Imperialists, were drawn up by ropes to the top
of the parapet by their friends inside, and were there
and then decapitated pour encourager les autres who
might be meditating on the expediency of evacuating
any other stockades.

The Futai was very anxious to take Chanchu with
236 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

his unaided Chinese troops, and ordered Cglonel Bailey,
who was directing the late General Ching’s artillery, to
breach the wall between the South and West Gates on
the 26th April. Gordon’s artillery was then ordered to
open fire on the town, in order to distract the attention
of the garrison, and an assault was made by the Im-
perialists alone, who were repulsed with great loss. On
the 27th Gordon had completed his batteries and opened
fire on the south-east angle of the wall, laying under
cover of this fire a pontoon bridge across the ditch,
which was sixty feet broad and eight in depth. He had
arranged that a fresh body of Imperialists should assault
at the same time as he did at his point; and so at 1
p.M. he advanced two regiments as a storming party.
On this the Rebels manned the walls in great numbers,
and their leader, Hu Wang, was seen encouraging them
in person. The resistance was so desperate that, though
ten or twelve of the officers mounted the breach, they
were driven back, and the column had to be recalled.
It appeared that, owing to some mishap about their
bridges, the. Imperialists had not stormed at the time
which had been agreed on, so the whole force of the
Tai-pings had been at liberty to meet the disciplined
Chinese; but the Futai sent round to Gordon asking
him to renew the assault, and a combined movement
was then made on the two points which had been
breached. Again, however, both the Imperialists and
the Ever-Victorious Army were repulsed; the Tai-
pings inside being desperate, owing, doubtless, to Lf’s
refusal to show mercy to the Kwangtung and Kwangsi
men amongst them. Though Gordon’s officers got up
on this occasion to the crest of the breach—Colonels
Cawte, Howard, and Chapman, and Captain Winstanley
greatly distinguishing themselves—yet the men hung
REPULSE AT CHANCHU. 237

back; a retreat had to be ordered, and even the pontoons
were abandoned. On this occasion the Tai-pings fought
with the greatest determination, and were utterly re-
gardless of their own lives. When they mounted the
wall the artillery was played on them with shell and
canister at a distance of only 120 yards; but no sooner
was one party of them blown away from the breach
than another replaced it, brandishing spears and shout-
ing defiance. On the other hand, the disciplined Chinese
were not very anxious to take the last town they were
likely to have to attack ; and though usually indifferent
enough as to their own lives, yet, having got some plun-
der since leaving Quinsan, and not having had any
opportunity of disposing of it, they did not like the idea
of being shot before enjoying their little treasures. The
loss among the officers, now much reduced in number
by the affairs of Kintang and Waisoo, was very severe,
nineteen being wounded, while there were killed, Colonel
Morton, Captains Rhode, Hammond, Donald, and Smith,
and Lieutenants Brown, Gibb, Chowrie, Robinson, and
Williams. .
Being unwilling to expose his officers to much more
of such disastrous work, Colonel Gordon instructed the
Futai’s Mandarins how to approach the wall by trenches,
and found that they readily took up the plan and
executed it very well. While these were making, the
Rebels in some stockades at the East Gate came over to
the Imperialists and were pardoned. The Futai hung up
proclamations large enough to be read from the walls,
offering pardon to any one, except the Hu Wang, who
might give up the city. This brought down deserters
in dozens over the breaches every day, in spite of all
their Chief’s efforts to prevent them. The Cantonese
Rebels in Chanchu were peculiarly obnoxious both to the
238 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

authorities and to the people of the district, for they
were purely marauders of the worst kind; while some of
the other Tai-ping soldiers, and especially those drawn
from Kiangsoo, were only unfortunate peasants com-
pelled by threats of torture and death to fight under the
banner of the Great Peace. To all such it was desired
to show mercy; and on the 5th May the chiefs of one-
half the garrison sent out a letter to Colonel Gordon,
offering to give up the city if he would send his troops
to the breach that night and make a false attack on two
of the gates; but as there was much risk in this plan
he declined to follow it, and these Rebels came over
as they could escape, sometimes to the number of 300
daily.

The following is a translation of the letter which the .
Rebels sent to Gordon on this occasion ; it is curiously
illustrative of the existing state of matters, and of one
of the means by which he made such rapid progress
in clearing the country :—

We received your letter telling us to be on the look-out for
you during the third watch on the night of the 27th.

Accordingly we procured strips of white cloth, made a fire
in the city, threw fireballs and rockets from the wall; but up to
the fourth watch saw nothing of you, neither was the floating
bridge laid down.

Consequently we were in a great fright ; and the white cloth
being discovered, we were reported to Hwang, who would
have beheaded us had not other officers interceded on our
behalf.

Tn the event of your carrying out your plan, we shall be
distinguished by wearing white bands, or by having the left
arm out of the sleeves.

Should you intend coming to-night, hang up two lamps at
the East Gate as a signal, then send troops to the North and
West Gates to make false attacks, whilst another body lie
in ambush near the South Gate, and also open fire on the
STORMING OF CHANCHU. 239

new city. The Rebels will rush to defend the North and West
Gates, and on our throwing two fireballs you should instantly
scale the walls. Our party are on guard during the fifth watch,
and will assist you, our cry being “Death to the Rebels!”
Should you not come, hoist one lamp at the East Gate.

No future time [for your attack] need be fixed, as we can be
guided by your signals. We are talked about as being traitors,
and should anything be proved against us, 2000 of us would
lose our lives. Our movements will be regulated by what is
going on outside the city; and after the place falls we shall
collect at the East Gate and await your Excellency.

You must have no misgivings as to our sincerity. May
Heaven and Earth conspire against us if we be found liars !
Pray keep our communications quiet, lest any one coming into
the city betray us.

Futai Li discovered that Chanchu had been taken by
the Faithful King on the 11th May 1860, and deter-
mined to celebrate the anniversary of that day by a new
attack, in which it was intended that the Victorious
Army should have only a subordinate place. It is pro-
bable that the Rebels had become dispirited by this time,
and they seem to have been taken by surprise, so no
great resistance was made. The breaches had been
planted with spikes and broken glass, but a heavy fire,
bringing down masses of the wall, did much to cover
these impediments ; and the Imperialist soldiers of Gen-
eral Wang at one point, and of General Kwo Sung-lin at
another, crossed the bridges over the ditch, and climbing
up the ruins in perfect silence, soon crowned the ram-
part, where they met with a desperate resistance. The
consequence was that Kwo Sung-lin’s column began to
give way in confusion; but at this critical moment
Colonel Gordon himself, followed by his 1st Regiment
and 200 volunteers from his other corps, rushed to its
support over the bridges and up the breach. The Im-
perialists were rallied, the defenders of the breach were
240 GORDON’S FURTHER OPERATIONS.

swept away at the point of the bayongt; and, Wang
carrying his point about the same moment, the besieg-
ing soldiers began to swarm in thousands into the city.
After this the struggle was short. “Cockeye,” the Hu
Wang, who did not seem to have expected the attack,
came up in hot haste with a large body of troops, but
they were thrown into confusion, and he himself was
taken prisoner, resisting to the last. The other chiefs
also made rallies, and at one moment a panic seized the
Imperialists, but soon the place was entered on all sides,
and resistance entirely ceased.

The garrison of Chanchu fu was found to number
about 20,000, and of these only 1500 were killed at the
capture. All the Cantonese among the prisoners were
executed, including the famous “Cockeye.” This Wang,
who had ravaged Soochow some years before, and who re-
fused to make submission to Li when brought before that
Futai, was simply beheaded, as he well deserved to be.
He was a native of Kwangsi, a very early adherent of
the Tien Wang, and in personal appearance was strongly
made, but with rather small features. The city proved
to be in a very impoverished, dilapidated state, but con-
tained rice sufficient to have supported its defenders for
two years; and very little plunder was found in it,
either for the nan soldiers or for the Ever- Vic-
torious Army, had
fought its last battle, and was to be dissolved, owing
partly to the withdrawal of that Order of her Majesty in
Council which permitted British officers to take service
under the Chinese Government.

                               
CHAPTER XIII.

THE DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE, AND A
REVIEW OF ITS RESULTS.

EXPULSION OF THE TAI-PINGS FROM KIANGNAN—RECALL OF H.M.
ORDER PERMITTING BRITISH OFFICERS TO SERVE THE EMPEROR—
GORDON DETERMINES, ON HIS OWN RESPONSIBILITY, TO DISSOLVE
HIS FORCE—APPRECIATION OF HIS CONDUCT BY THE CHINESE—
GRATUITIES TO WOUNDED OFFICERS—DISSOLUTION OF THE EVER-
VICTORIOUS ARMY—DISTINCTIONS CONFERRED ON GORDON—IM-
PERIAL DECREE RECOGNISING HIS SERVICES — ANXIETY OF SIR
HARRY PARKES—-LETTER FROM GOVERNOR LI, CLAIMING A CHIEF
SHARE IN THE OVERTHROW OF THE TAI-PINGS — ADDRESS TO
COLONEL GORDON FROM THE MERCHANTS OF SHANGHAI—THE
DIFFICULTIES GORDON HAD TO ENCOUNTER — OPINION OF THE
‘TIMES ’—AN ESTIMATE OF THE MILITARY RESULTS OF HIS CAM-
PAIGN—THE POLITICAL EFFECTS OF HIS ACTION—-THE IMPERIAL
MARITIME CUSTOMS AND THE LAY-OSBORN FLEET—-MR_ LAY’S
ATTEMPT TO MAKE HIMSELF AN IMPERIUM IN IMPERIO — HIS
FAILURE, AND DISMISSAL FROM THE CHINESE SERVICE—HIS USE
OF SIR F. BRUCE’S PRIVATE LETTERS—APPOINTMENT OF MR HART
—THE GENERAL EFFECTS OF GORDON’S ACTION DISCUSSED.

THE causes which now led to the dissolution of the Ever-
Victorious Army were twofold—one set relating to the ~
very success which it had achieved, and the other to a
change in the position of British officers serving the
Chinese Government. After the taking of Chanchu fu
little more remained for it to accomplish except at Nan-
king, where it was not wanted either by the General-
Q
242 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

issimo, Tseng Kwo-fan, or by his Lieytenant, Tseng
Kwo-tsun. Kinfang had surrendered a few days pre-
viously, and Tanyan was given up on the 13th May by
a portion of its garrison who murdered their leader.
The Rebels held only the city of Wuchu to the south of
the Taiho Lake, and Nanking far to the north of it,
where they were closely besieged. In Kiangnan the
Tai-ping movement was almost at an end, and the
ordinary troops of the Futai, provided as they were with
39,000 stand of European arms, with heavy artillery,
and with a large supply of ammunition, were quite able
to prevent its again making head, or threatening the
consular port of Shanghai. In these circumstances it
became a serious question to Governor Li, whether, in
the impoverished state of his revenue, he ought to con-
tinue in existence so expensive a force as that which
Gordon commanded. It had done its work admirably
indeed, but with the completion of that work its razson
Wétre had ceased. At the same time the withdrawal
of Colonel Gordon from his command afforded another
set of reasons for the dissolution of the force. The great
outcry raised by Tai-ping sympathisers, both in China
and at home, regarding the execution of the Soochow
Wangs had not been without effect on her Majesty’s
Government and on public opinion in this country.
False reports had been industriously disseminated of
there having been a general massacre of the Rebels who
surrendered in that city; and the facts were not known,
which, as I have pointed out, had partially justified the
execution of nine persons which actually took place.
Hence it is no wonder that the British Government
should have decided on recalling, as it did on the 1st of
1864, the Order in Council which permitted Colonel
Gordon to take service under the Chinese Government,
REASONS FOR DISSOLVING THE FORCE, 243

and that the War Office determined to withdraw ex-
plicitly from that officer all leave and licence to serve
the Emperor as he had been doing. There was, in my
opinion, no necessity for such action, and the conse-
quences might have been seriously hurtful both to the
people of China and to our interests there, had Gordon
not resumed active operations in March, or had he not
assailed the Tai-pings with so much swiftness and suc-
cess; but, as it providentially turned out, his work had
just been accomplished at the moment when he was
called upon to retire from the field of his victories.

A new responsibility now devolved on the Commander
of the Ever-Victorious Army, for the Futai requested
him to decide on what should be done with that force,
intimating at the same time that he had difficulty in
meeting the heavy monthly expenditure which it in-
volved, and that he entertained fears of the ability of
the Mandarins to deal with it should Colonel Gordon
leave. To disband the force was so important a step
that, could the opinion of the British Minister and of the
General commanding in China have been soon obtained,
Colonel Gordon would have waited to consult them; but
considering the time that must have necessarily elapsed
before he could have heard from these authorities, he
determined to act on his own responsibility, as he had
previously done in resuming operations. On maturely
considering the whole subject, it appeared to him to be
highly dangerous to leave the Ever-Victorious Army in
existence ; because a force constituted as it was might,
under some other leadership, turn against the Imperial
authorities at any moment and join the Rebels, or -be-
come the nucleus of a third party in China. It clearly
had been Burgevine’s wish to form such a party, of
which he himself might be the head; arid if the dis-
244 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

ciplined force happened to pass into the hgnds of such a
chief, it would very likely be employed for a like pur-
pose.

Having determined that it would be best to dissolve
his force, Colonel Gordon judged that no time should be
lost in doing so. The last arduous campaign of three
months, with its severe losses, had somewhat dispirited
the men, and the officers were ready to leave if they
received gratuities; whereas, if they were kept on in
inactivity for some weeks, they would probably have
been anxious again to take the field. On this being
represented to him, the Futai agreed to pay a gratuity to
the officers and men, and intimated through Commis-
sioner Hart his wish to reward the labours of Colonel
Gordon by a large sum of money. This the latter
thought proper to decline, as he had done the 10,000
taels previously awarded him by the Imperial Govern-
ment, and this self-denial was not without good effect on
the minds of the Chinese authorities. Up to this time
they had found the Foreigners with whom they came in
contact eagerly seeking after money whether services
had been rendered or not, and they had naturally come
to the conclusion that personal aggrandisement, in the
shape of dollars, was the ruling motive with all our
countrymen. In Gordon, however, they discerned a
man of quite a different stamp. Confining his personal
expenditure to the smallest limits, he had spent all his
pay and even some of his own private funds in promot-
ing the efficiency of his force; he had spared himself no
labour or trouble, had shirked no danger, and yet refused
any monetary reward. Latterly the Futai showed that
he was capable of understanding and appreciating this
disinterested conduct, and so Colonel Gordon experi-
enced no difficulty in obtaining the sum which he
DISSOLUTION OF THE FORCE. 245

thought necessary as a reward to his troops before dis-
banding them, and the whole details of the arrangement
were left entirely in his hands.

Colonels of regiments and the wounded officers of the
force received each 4000 Mexican dollars, or about £900;
and other officers sums in proportion. Captain Sham-
roffel, a Prussian, who had lost both his eyes before Soo-
chow, got £1600; while the unwounded men of the rank-
and-file received, in addition to a month’s pay, a small
sum proportionate to the distance they had to travel to
their homes. As the whole force had been paid at a
very high rate throughout its career, this could not be
considered illiberal on the part of a Government so
deeply involved in debt as the Chinese then was.

The force arrived at Quinsan on the 16th May, and
by the 1st of June its Commander had paid off all the
officers and men, and sent the former to Shanghai, the
latter to their respective homes, returning, at the same
time, all arms and ammunition to the Imperial stores.
He left, however, a few officers of artillery and some men
with the Futai, to strengthen him in that branch, and
recommended that a camp of instruction should be
formed at some place near Shanghai where native troops
might be drilled by British officers. Great caution was
necessary in every step of these proceedings ; and before
the work was effected some mutinous disposition was
shown, which might have become serious under a less
determined officer. It now only remained for Colonel
Gordon to take leave of Futai Li previous to his depar-
ture. The latter received him with the highest marks of
respect and regard, and expressed himself in a manner
which proved. that his intercourse with an officer of so
chivalrous a spirit had had much effect in inclining him
to look upon Foreigners with respect. The Peking
246 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

Government also departed in a remarkablg manner from
its old traditions in acknowledging his services. It pub-
licly admitted that it was under great obligations to
this Foreigner, conferred upon him the rank of Ti-Tu,
and presented to him a banner and the Order of the Star,
along with the distinction of the Yellow Jacket, which,
in the estimation of the Chinese, is one of the highest
marks of Imperial favour. The following correspon-
dence will also show that the Emperor specially re-
commended Colonel Gordon to the British Govern-
ment :—
Honexone, July 12, 1864.

My Lorp,—I enclose translation of a despatch from Prince
Kung, containing the decree published by the Emperor, acknow-
ledging the services of Lieutenant-Colonel Gordon, Royal Engi-
neers, and requesting that her Majesty’s Government be pleased
to recognise them. This step has been spontaneously taken.

Lieutenant -Colonel Gordon well deserves her Majesty’s fa-
vour; for, independently of the skill and courage he has shown,
his disinterestedness has elevated our national character in the
eyes of the Chinese. Not only has he refused any pecuniary
reward, but he has spent more than his pay in contributing to
the comfort of the officers who served under him, and in assuag-
ing the distress of the starving population whom he relieved
from the yoke of their oppressors. Indeed, the feeling that im-
pelled him to resume operations after the fall of Soochow was
one of the purest humanity. He sought to save the people of
the districts that had been recovered from a repetition of the
misery entailed upon them by this cruel civil war—I have, &c.

FREDERICK W. A. BRUCE.
The Eart Rossetti, K,G.

The Prince of Kung makes a communication to Sir Frederick
W. A. Bruce :—

Some time has elapsed since his Excellency the British
Minister, profoundly animated by the feeling of friendliness to-
wards China entertained by the British Government, did, in
view of the fact that rebellion was still rife in Kiangsoo, authorise
Gordon and other officers of the British army to co-operate heart
IMPERIAL RECOGNITION OF GORDON’S SERVICES. 247

and hand with the Forces of the Chinese Government against
the Rebels.

On the 11th of the 5th moon of the 3d year of Tung-che
[14th June 1864], Li, the Governor of Kiangsoo, in a memorial
reporting a series of distinguished services rendered in action by
Gordon now a Tsung-Ping, with the title of Ti-Tu, together with
the particulars of his conduct and discipline of the Ever-Vic-
torious Army, requested his Majesty the Emperor to be pleased
to commend him; and on the same day the Grand Secretariat
had the honour to receive the following decree :—

“On the occasion of the recovery of Chanchu WE issued
a decree conferring on Gordon, Provisional General of Division
of the Army of Kiangsoo, for his co-operation with the force he
commanded, the title of Ti-Tu [Commander-in-Chief of a pro-
vincial army]; and WE further presented him with banners and
decorations of honour. This was to distinguish his extraordinary
merit, and Li Hung-chang was to address Us again whenever he
[Gordon] should have brought the Ever-Victorious Battalions
under his command into a satisfactory state of drill and dis-
cipline, and to request Us to signify Our approval of his conduct
in laudatory terms. Ii Hung-chang now writes to say that,
both as regards its movements and its discipline, the Ever-Vic-
torious Battalion under Gordon is in a very satisfactory state,
and to request Us to signify Our pleasure accordingly.

“ Since the spring of last year Gordon has distinguished him-
self in a series of actions with the Ever-Victorious Force under
his command; he has co-operated with the Forces of Govern-
ment [with such effect that] Fushan has been recovered, the
siege of Chanzu has been raised, and the sub-prefectural city
of Taitsan, with the district cities of Quinsan and Wokong,
have also been retaken, as well as the provincial capital of Soo-
chow. This year he has retaken Ihing and Liyang; he has
driven off the Rebels who had worked their way to Yangshé,
and he has recaptured Chanchu. He has now brought the.
Ever-Victorious Force to such a degree of improvement that it
will prove a body of enduring utility. Not only has he shown
himself throughout both brave and energetic, but his thorough
appreciation of that important question, a friendly understand.
ing between China and Foreign nations, is also deserving of the
highest praise.
248 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

“ We command that Gordon be rewarded with a yellow riding-
jacket * to be worn on his person, and a peacock’s feather to be
carried on his cap ; also that there be bestowed on him four suits
of the uniform proper to his rank of Ti-Tu, in token of Our favour
and desire to do him honour. Respect this.”

A copy of the aboye having been reverently made and for-
warded to the Tsung-li Yamun, the Prince and the Ministers,
members of it, have to observe that General Gordon, ever since
he began to co-operate with the Forces of the Chinese Govern-
ment against the Rebels, has been alike remarkable for his
courage and intelligence, and displayed extraordinary energy.
But the fact that he was further able to improve the drill and
discipline of the Ever-Victorious Force shows him to be in very
eminent degree both able and respectable, while his success in
supporting the friendly policy of the British Government, whose
subject he is, entitles him to the admission that he has not
shown himself unworthy of the language ever held by the British
Minister regarding him.

In respectful obedience to the will of his Imperial Majesty,
the Yamun is preparing the uniforms and other articles for trans-
mission to him. The banners and decorations will be cared for
by Li, the Governor of Kiangsoo.

Meanwhile it becomes the duty of the Prince to address the
British Minister, that his Excellency may bring these things
to the notice of her Majesty the Queen of England, in evidence
of the desire of the Chinese Government, by its consideration
of [Colonel Gordon’s] merits, and its bestowal of rewards, to
strengthen the entente cordiale.

General Gordon’s title, Ti-Tu, gives him the highest rank in
the Chinese Army; but the Prince trusts that if, on his return
home, it be possible for the British Government to bestow‘ pro-
motion or reward on General Gordon, the British Minister will
bring the matter forward, that all may know that his achieve-
ments and his character are equally deserving of praise.

June 16, 1864.

The dissolution of the Ever-Victorious Army was
viewed with some concern by Sir Harry Parkes, who

* The Yellow Jacket is a high distinction conferred only rarely on Chi-
nese officers.
LETTER FROM LI, FUTAI. 249

thought that he, as Consul at Shanghai, or at least that
the British Minister, ought to have been consulted on
the subject. Accordingly he wrote somewhat sharply
to Li, Futai, upon the subject, complaining that Shanghai
might be again exposed to Tai-ping assaults, and re-
ceived from Li a letter dated the 23d May 1864, from
which I make the following extracts, without changing
the rather peculiar English of the native Chinese inter-
preter who penned it, as they serve to illustrate the
Futai’s own view of his share in the victories of the
preceding year; and this view, whether correct or not,
should be taken into account before commenting on the
general subject of Gordon’s achievements :—

When the force was first raised by Colonel Ward it num-
bered less than 1000 men, which number was gradually added
to till it reached several thousand. It went on like this till
1862, when, in consequence of the failure of the Nanking expe-
dition, and the defection of Burgevine, I settled that it should
be weeded out, and 3000 only retained. The command then
passed into the hands of Holland and Gordon, who being will-
ing to consult me, the force, with the co-operation of some tens
of thousands of the Imperial army, kept the field for a year or
so, and finally achieved the glorious capture of Soochow.

During this time a large number of the old soldiers deserted,
tired by their long service, and the bravest of the force were dis-
abled by death or wounds; and as the vacancies have been sup-
plied in many cases by Rebels who had newly come over, the
force could not be expected to perform as well in future, should
it be necessary to employ it. Colonel Gordon, accordingly, de-
siring to return to England, proposed that the force should be
disbanded, that the revenues may be relieved of the expenses of
its support, and his future reputation be secured. .

The measure being a felicitous idea of Colonel Gordon’s, and
not an underhand project of mine. However, as the force has
been a long time in the field, I am unwilling to disband it with-
out notice, and I propose to retain the artillery corps, numbering
600, 300 picked men of infantry, and the complement of the
250 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

Hyson, being one-third of the whole force, I also give the
Foreign officers I dismiss considerable gratifications, in con-
sideration of their service; and I shall similarly see the privates
properly rewarded. The measures, therefore, which have been
quietly considered by Colonel Gordon and myself on the spot,
would appear sound, and the reduction practicable, as far as the

force itself is concerned.

You refer in your letter to the three attacks on Shanghai
before 1861, which occurred before my arrival at Shanghai;
but, though not present, I think you must have heard of the
progress of the campaign since 1862—-how at the commence-
ment of the summer of which year I arrived in Shanghai with
6000 infantry only, the whole country, save some three miles
E. and W. of the river, being infested with Rebel armies 100,000
strong. Army replaced army. Kading and Tsipoo, which had
been recovered, were lost ; and although we were most fortunate
in the protection afforded the place, and great assistance was
given by your officers and men, it was not till I took the field
in person, and by my victories slaughtered some 10,000 of the
Rebels, and abated their pride, that Shanghai could spread out,
or even be considered safe itself. Reinforcements then coming
down, and my army having been at length brought up to some
strength, I divided my force, and despatched it E. and W.—the
eastern division, under General Ching, numbering 20,000 men,
acting with Gordon’s force, and capturing Wokong, Chanzu,
Taitsan, and Quinsan, and clearing the way to Soochow; the
western division, under Generals Li Lin and Kwo, numbering
some 20,000, proceeding west, and capturing Kongyin, Wusieh,
clearing the way to Chanchu. A third army, under Pau, Futai,
after clearing out Nanhui, Kinsan, and Pootung generally, event-
ually recovered Pingwang, Pinghui, and Chapu.

This year General Ching recovered the prefectural city of
Kashing; and I, in person, with some 40,000 men, with
Gordon’s assistance, recovered Chanchu, and Colonel Gordon,
an eyewitness, can testify to the bravery of both. Such is
the brief history of the campaign—how the Imperial army,
sometimes co-operating with Gordon’s force, sometimes acting
by itself, has achieved complete success.

T have entered thus into the details that the position may

be clear to you.
CHINA VINDICATES ITSELF. 251

Again, as although the Rebels are now twice as formidable
as they were in 1854—though they fight desperately, whether in
attack or when defending themselves—my troops have been a
match for them, they [¢.e., “my troops”] should not be named
in the same day with the old Imperial forces. I would point
out that even when Burgevine’s tribe gave them [the Rebels]
every aid in their power, when they purchased steamers at
exorbitant rates, my troops burnt the first at Kachiao, the second
at Penmin, and the third at Kashing, besides capturing in-
numerable Foreign muskets and guns in every victory, whereas
now the Rebels are reduced to the depths of poverty, and it is
not expecting too much to look forward to the speedy capture
of Nankin and Hoochow | Wuchu], to assist in reducing which
I am sending a considerable force.

The eastern frontier—Pingwang, the Taiho Lake, and Ka-
shing—[being] held by 10,000 odd men, there is no fear of
the Hoochow Rebels breaking out; and the western frontier—
Changchow, Tinghu, Chinshan, Piao Yang, and Kiu Yang—
being held by 30,000 odd men, an eruption of the Nanking
Rebels is not to be apprehended. At Soochow, again, my own
force, amounting, between soldiers and marines, to 10,000 odd
men, is stationed ready to march at a moment’s notice, and
there is not a single spot left open, not an inch uncovered.
Shanghai, therefore, as it is a long way behind all these, and
its approaches are guarded by victorious troops, can repose
calmly; and when you consider that, although in 1862 I had
but the one city of Shanghai and some three miles round, I
was able to make head against the Rebels, till now Soochow
and Chanchu are clear of them, and they possess two places,
only both many hundred li from Shanghai, and the country is
held by first-class troops, you will have, I think, little cause
for apprehension; and it certainly appears to me that the meas-
ures you say in your letter should be taken to secure the future
peace and tranquillity of Shanghai may be seen in operation,
and it would be taking a very one-sided view to say that
Gordon’s force is the only one on which reliance could be
placed, and that the tens of thousands of tried Imperial troops
are not sufficient. I refer you, however, to Gordon, who is
well acquainted with the matter from having been present with
the army, while I repeat, I do not intend to disband the force
252 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

=

entirely, but I shall retain a certain numbey for the sake of their
name and reputation.

Again, I saw in the newspaper of the 1st day of the 3d
moon that the Queen of England had ordered her decree of
1862 to be cancelled, and prohibited her officers, whether naval
or military, drilling or commanding troops for the Chinese Gov-
ernment. If this (as I suppose it is) be so, I presume it would
be impossible for your high authorities, military or civil, whether
at Peking or Shanghai, to act in defiance of it; and, if Gordon
wishes to reduce the force, it is impossible for me to insist on
retaining it, and force British officers to command it.

I have given the greatest attention to the various considera-
tions now urged by you, as my responsibility is very great, and
I have no one to share it with me. I desire greatly that we
should act together and co-operate in anything that may occur.
I certainly would not run into danger by obstinate adherence
to my own views; but, knowing both the state of the force and
the position of the Rebellion, it is well to take advantage of
Colonel Gordon’s retirement to arrange the reduction of the
force, and I trust you will calmly review the matter.

One other important document regarding Colonel
Gordon deserves a place in these pages. The Foreign
community in Shanghai was a good deal divided as to
the expediency of giving aid to the Imperialists and of
putting down the Rebellion; but there was only one
opinion among them as to the admirable manner in
which the young British officer who had taken command
of the Ever-Victorious Army had performed his share of
that work ; and on his departure from China, towards
the end of 1864, they presented him with the following
expression of their opinions and feelings on the sub-
ject :—

To Lieut.-Colonel Gorpon, R.E.,

&. &. &e. ;
SuHanenar, Vow. 24, 1864.

Sir,—On the eve of your departure for your native country,
we the undersigned, mostly fellow-countrymen of your own, but
ADDRESS FROM THE MERCHANTS OF SHANGHAI, 253

also representing various other nationalities, desire to express to
you our earnest wishes for a successful voyage and happy return
to your friends and the land of your birth. Your career during
the last two years of your residence in the East has been, so far
as we know, without a parallel in the history of the intercourse
of foreign nations with China; and, without entering at all
upon the political bearings of the great question with which
your name must ever remain so intimately connected, we feel
that we should be alike wanting towards you and towards our-
selves were we to pass by this opportunity without expressing
our appreciation and admiration of the line of conduct which
you personally have pursued. In a position of unequalled
difficulty, and surrounded by complications of every possible
nature, you have succeeded in offering to the eyes of the Chinese
nation, no less by your loyal and, throughout, disinterested line
of action, than by your conspicuous gallantry and talent for.
organisation and command, the example of a foreign officer
serving the Government of this country with honourable fidelity
and undeviating self-respect. It is by such examples that we
may trust to see many of the prejudices which warp the Chinese
mind as regards foreigners removed, and from such experience
that we may look forward with hope to the day when, not only
in the art of war, but in the more peaceful occupations of com-
merce and civilisation, the Chinese Government may see fit to
level the barriers hitherto existing, and to identify itself more
and more with that progressive course of action which, though
springing from the West, must prove ultimately of equal benefit
to the countries of the East. Once more wishing you a prosper-
ous voyage and a long career of usefulness and success, we
_ Temain, Sir, your obedient servants,

(Signed) JARDINE, MATHESON, & Co.
Dent & Co.
RusseLL & Co.
Smitu, Kennrepy, & Co.

And about fifty other firms or private individuals.
254 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

To Messrs JARDINE, Matueson, & Co., Dgnt & Co., RUSSELL
& Co., Smiru, Kennepy, & Co, Auc. Harp & Co,
Linpsay & Co., &c. &e. &e.

SHaneuat, Wov. 25, 1864,

GENTLEMEN,—I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt
of your handsome letter of this day’s date, and to express to you
the great satisfaction which I feel at the honourable mention
you have made therein of my services in China. It will always
be a matter of gratification to me to have received your approval ;
and, deeply impressed with the honour you have paid me, I have
the honour to be, Gentlemen, yours obediently,

C. G. Gorpon,
Capt. R.E., and Brevet Lieut.-Colonel.

Before dismissing the subject of the Ever-Victorious
Army, I may be allowed to make a few observations
upon the military results which it actually effected, and
upon its political relationships ; for a right understand-
ing of these matters is absolutely essential to a general
knowledge of the history of the suppression of the Tai-
‘ping Rebellion, and more especially to correct the errone-
ous supposition that the Chinese Government was in any
very great need of our assistance to that end.

As to the military question, it is impossible to consider
Colonel Gordon’s operations without admiration of his
energy and genius. On assuming command of the force,
he found it defeated, disheartened, and in a chaotic con-
dition. Almost the entire province of Kiangsoo, with a
considerable portion of Chekiang—an enormous district
of country with vast tea and silk districts—was in the
hands of the Tai-pings, who had not only procured arms
in abundance from Shanghai and Ningpo, but were also
engaging Foreign rowdies to fight for them. More-
over, the disciplined force, of which he assumed com-
mand, was almost as ready to take one side as the other ;
and its officers were in a state of disaffection, owing to
MILITARY RESULTS OF THE CAMPAIGN. 255

the supercession of their former leader, Burgevine, by
a British officer, avd to the limits within which their
plundering propensities were soon confined. Yet on
these men Colonel Gordon was obliged to rely for assist-
ance in carrying out his plans; and he had often to
place in them a dangerous confidence. Difficulty after
difficulty arose between him and his own troops, all of
which had to be conquered by his almost unaided tact
and judgment. On the other hand, the Chinese au-
thorities caused at first a great deal of unnecessary
trouble; and in some very critical moments he was
quite uncertain whether the course he pursued would
receive the approval of his own Government. Finally,
the country in which he had to operate was unknown
to him: it was peculiarly unsuited for military move-
ments, owing to an absence of roads and to the manner
in which it was intersected by canals, streams, and
creeks of most varied dimensions; and, being fright-
fully devastated, it could afford no commissariat sup-
plies, while during part of the year it was extremely
unhealthy, with its moist fields and stagnant waters
steaming under a blazing sun.

Notwithstanding these disadvantages, Colonel Gor-
don fought for more than a year with not far from un-
interrupted success. Both his officers and men became
devoted to him, and conducted themselves with a regu-
larity and propriety which were quite astonishing, con-
sidering the perils to which they were exposed and the
temptations which they had to resist. By leading in
person in critical moments he shamed the more back-
ward of them, and endeared himself to all by the unselfish
manner in which he laboured for their benefit, not neglect-
ing to look after the most minute details connected with
their comfort. Even his enemy, the Tai-pings, who found
256 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

in him so formidable an adversary, could not but admire
the humanity he displayed in all his dealings with them,
and which led him to run many risks in protecting those
who surrendered, and in trying to prevent useless fight-
ing. During the latter months of his command, the
body-guard which he had for his own protection, and in
whose power he often completely lay, separated from
his force, was almost entirely composed of Tai-ping
soldiers who had surrendered to him. Quite as remark-
able were his sleepless activity, the manner in which
he obtained information though himself ignorant of
Chinese, his habit of reconnoitring the country by night
almost unattended, and the rapidity with which he
moved his troops from point to point. “ By his activity
and genius,” says an article in the ‘Cornhill Magazine’
of November 1864, written by a gentleman who had
personal opportunities of judging, though unconnected
with his army, “the three thousand men compos-
ing his force seemed multiplied tenfold ; and those
who, in China, followed the daily accounts of his
movements were astounded with the rapidity with
which, in a difficult country, under a scorching sun, and
with every obstacle that absence of commissariat or an
organised transport system could throw in his way, he
circled from east to west, from north to south, of the
devoted city; now suddenly swooping down upon a
line of external fortifications, now falling upon and
utterly routing a relieving army of enormous numbers
brought up to attack him in rear, and at another time
forcing his steamers through all impediments under
the very walls of Soochow, and seizing a position which,
if properly defended, might have withstood an army
with success.” “ Never,” said the London ‘ Times,’ when
reviewing his career in China, “did soldier of fortune
THE ‘TIMES’ ON COLONEL GORDON, 257

deport himself with a nicer sense of military honour,
with more gallantry against the resisting, and with more
mercy towards the vanquished, with more disinterested
neglect of opportunities of personal advantage, or with
more entire devotion to the objects and desires of his own
Government, than this officer, who, after all his victories,
has just laid down his sword. A history of operations
among cities of uncouth names, and in provinces the
geography of which is unknown except to special stu-
dents, would be tedious and uninstructive. The result of
Colonel Gordon’s operations, however, is this: He found
the richest and most fertile districts of China in the
hands of the most savage brigands. The silk districts
were the scenes of their cruelty and riot, and the great
historical cities of Hangchow and Soochow were rapidly
following the fate of Nanking, and were becoming deso-
late ruins in their possession. Gordon has cut the
Rebellion in half, has recovered the great cities, has
isolated and utterly discouraged the fragments of the
brigand power, and has left the marauders nothing but
a few tracts of devastated country and their stronghold
at Nanking. All this he has effected, first by the power
of his arms, and afterwards still more rapidly by the
terror of his name.”*

I have said so much, against Colonel Gordon’s own
wishes, because so much has been said on the subject
and must be repeated here in order to explain the actual
course of recent events in China; but when we come to
look carefully at the sweeping statement that it was
Colonel Gordon who put an end to the Tai-ping Rebel-
lion, truth compels me to pause. Though perhaps Li,
Futai, in the despatch quoted above, takes a good deal
too much credit to himself for his share in the operations

* Leading article in the ‘ Times’ of 5th August 1864,
R
258 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

in Kiangsoo, yet there is no doubt that. Gordon and his
force, unaided, could not have cleared the province.
While the brunt of the fighting fell upon him, he
required Imperialists to hold the places which he took ;
and their forces, under General Ching and others, fought
along with him so as greatly to contribute to his success.
And it must be remembered, which is of far more im-
portance, that it was the Imperialist victories of Tseng
Kwo-fan and his generals which drove the Tai-pings
into the seaboard districts of Kiangsoo and Chekiang.
The Imperialists appear to have calculated upon the
Allies preserving for them the cities of Shanghai and
Ningpo. Had they not done so, they would probably
have adopted a different course. Our countrymen,
alarmed at the proximity of the Rebels to their rich
trading settlements, seemed to have imagined that this
betokened a general triumph of the Tai-ping cause in
China, but nothing could have been further from the
real state of the case. There is no doubt that, had the
Tai-pings been allowed to take Shanghai and Ningpo,
and so to obtain Foreign steamers, arms, and recruits to
almost an indefinite extent, they would have given an
immense deal more trouble than they did to the Chinese
Government ; but to have allowed them to do so, would
have been to ignore our own treaty obligations to that
Government. Hence the Imperialists had a twofold
reason for making no great efforts to prevent the
advance of the Rebels towards these two consular ports.
They calculated that both our interests and our duty
would lead us to hold these ports against the Tai-pings,
and they calculated rightly. What they might have
done in other circumstances is a matter of speculation ;
but it is quite clear, judged both by the situation and
by the results, that their allowing the Tai-pings to
IMPERIAL MARITIME CUSTOMS. 259

advance as these did was no proof whatever of their
inability to deal with the Rebellion effectually in their
own slow and systematic way.

Turning to the political aspect of Colonel Gordon’s
action, the question arises, whether it was not giving the
Imperialists aid on too easy terms, and was not calcu-
lated to foster some of the vices of their administration ?
This point is of the more importance, because at the
same period a vigorous attempt was being made by
Mr H. N. Lay and Captain Osborn to provide the
Chinese Government with a European-manned naval
force on terms which they thought would work a bene-
ficial revolution in the state of the empire ; and it is
necessary to refer briefly to that subject, because of an
erroneous supposition which has been entertained, that
Colonel Gordon’s service with the Chinese was a main
cause of the failure of that scheme.

The Imperial maritime customs and the Lay-Osborn
fleet form a distinct chapter in the recent history of
China, but one closely connected with the main subject
of this book. Partly from the corrupt tendencies of
Mandarins, and paz-iy 2rer. the bullying propensities of
Foreign merchantz, she Chinese Government found great
difficulty in levyinz its maricime customs. To remedy
the evils which tous arose, a Foreign Inspectorate was
established 2t Ssang*a:. about twenty years ago, for the
purpose of arrestin =. az Lori Elgin phrased it, “a system
of irregularity and fraud im the collection of duties at
that port, whi: was introducing confusion into all busi-
ness transactions there, and converting the payment of
duties into 2 zambling speculation, in which the violent
and unscrupulous carried off all the prizes.” Out of this
there arose a custom: service, chiefly composed of Eng-
lishmen, Frenchmen, and Americans, paid by the Chinese
260 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

Government, to collect its maritime revenue. The object
of such an arrangement was very obvious. Respectable
Foreign merchants in China greatly prefer a fixed rate of
duty, rigidly enforced by their own countrymen, to slid-
ing duties, the amount of which depends on the weakness
and venality of local Mandarins, and the unscrupulous-
ness of competitors in trade.

In 1859 and 1860 the inspectorship of this service
was in the hands of Mr Horatio Nelson Lay, a gentleman
who had previously been an interpreter in the consular
service, having gone out to China at an early age.
When Mr Lay returned to England on a visit in 1861,
his place of inspector was taken conjointly by Mr Fitz-
roy and Mr Robert Hart, but practically by the latter
gentleman, who had also been in the consular service,
and was well acquainted with Chinese. The change thus
made was exceedingly acceptable to the Foreign com-
munity in China; and at the invitation of Sir Frederick
Bruce, Mr Hart was invited up to Peking, where, as Sir
Frederick says in an official despatch, “ by his tact, good
sense, and modesty, he obtained access to the Prince of
Kung, and turned to useful account the favourable im-
pression he made upon his Royal Highness and his
advisers.” One of the results of this visit was, that Mr
Hart persuaded the Imperial Government to sanction the
purchase on its account in England of some war-vessels,
to be used for the protection of its revenue, for the sup-
pression of piracy, or even, if expedient, against the
Rebels at Nanking. On a general authorisation to effect
this being sent to Mr Lay, that gentleman seems to have .
conceived a magnificent scheme for regenerating China
and exalting himself. It is difficult to understand how
any person of ordinary common sense could have sup-
posed that the Imperial Government would agree to the
THE LAY-OSBORN FLEET. 261

project on which Mr Lay entered ; but he himself seems to
have foreseen no difficulties in the way. Having simply
received orders to purchase some steam-vessels for the
Chinese Government, and to make the arrangements for
the employment in them of a certain number of Euro-
pean officers and men, he, a subordinate official, arranged
that Captain Osborn, the commander of the squadron,
should receive no orders except directly from the Em-
peror, that these orders should only be conveyed through
Mr Lay, and that Mr Lay should only convey such of
them as he thought proper. Thus he would have placed
himself in a position not only independent of the Empe-
ror’s viceroys, but practically independent of the Emperor
himself, and also of the British Government.*

On this singular understanding seven expensive ves-
sels were actually fitted out and despatched to China
under the command of the well-known Captain Sherard
Osborn, C.B., of the Royal Navy; but, of course, when Mr
Lay and the fleet reached Shanghai, the Imperial Govern-
ment refused to ratify the arrangement. Still entirely
misunderstanding his own position, and over-estimating
his influence, Mr Lay went up to Peking, demanded a

* The thing is so incredible that it is necessary to quote the precise words
of the agreement, as given in the Blue-Book, China, No. 2 (1864), p. 7 :—

“Osborn undertakes to act upon all orders of the Emperor which may be
conveyed direct to Lay, and Osborn engages not to attend to any orders
conveyed through any other channel.

“Lay, upon his part, engages to refuse to be the medium of any orders
of the reasonableness of which he is not satisfied.

“In the event of the death of either Lay or Osborn, these conditions,
which are entered into with the authority of the Emperor of China, are not,
it is understood, in either case to be departed from.”

This last stipulation is really comical ; for the death of Lay would have
left Osborn still bound to receive orders from‘no one else, and consequently
would have obliged him to cast anchor and remain where he happened to
be at the time, until he himself or the four years of the engagement expired.
262 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

palace to reside in such as the Emperor allgws to princes
of the blood, and insisted on the arrangement he made
being carried out. Prince Kung, however, refused to
have an interview with him, and the members of the
Foreign Board who admitted him to their presence
would not give him what he considered satisfaction.
The result was, that the vessels were sent back to this
country to be sold on account of the Chinese Government;
and all the monetary obligations entered into with the
officers of the fleet were honourably fulfilled. The whole
affair cost the Chinese about half a million sterling, and
would have cost them more had not Sir Frederick Bruce,
ashamed of the transaction, and of the way in which her
Majesty’s Government had been mixed up with it, agreed
to repay the expenses of the fleet returning home out of
the indemnity-money which was being paid, by China to
Great Britain on account of the last war, out of the Im-
perial customs. This arrangement was almost incum-
bent upon Sir Frederick, because he had objected on
political grounds to so powerful a squadron being left in
the hands of the Chinese, and it received the sanction of
the home Government.

After this fiasco Mr Lay seems to have gone down to
Shanghai, still labouring under the impression that he
was a dutiful servant and invaluable agent of the Chinese
Government, but was soon undeceived by a despatch
from the Prince of Kung, dismissing him from the post
of Inspector-General of Customs, and directing him to
hand over all his accounts to Mr Hart. The Prince
observed on this occasion, that if Mr Lay had been a
Chinese subject, he would have been punished for his con-
duct in uselessly wasting public money; but, despite that,
he was treated very Jeniently, for the Government allowed
him £1000 a-month for the expenses of his establishment
MR LAY’S AMBITION. 263

at Peking; they continued his salary at the rate of
£8000 a-year for several months beyond the period which
he required to make up his accounts, and they also gave
him a gratification of £2000 to pay his expenses to Eng-
land, though it had been expressly understood from the
outset that he held his appointment only at the will of
the Government, and might at any moment be dismissed
without reason given or pension allowed.

Sir Frederick Bruce wrote home a very able de-
spatch on this subject,* in which he said, “The Chinese
Government comprehended the scope and bearing of
this scheme, and look upon it as an insidious attempt
to take the administration out of their hands. They
are profoundly irritated, not only because of the em-
barrassments in which they are involved by his [Lay’s]
having exceeded his authority, but on account of the
position he thus sought to create for himself. They
attribute his conduct to personal motives, and their
confidence in the good faith of Foreign agents has been
most seriously shaken.” In answer to this and other
observations, Mr Lay published a pamphlet in the end
of 1864, misentitled ‘Our Interests in China,’ in which
he violently attacked the British Minister, and garnished
his pages with amusing quotations from some letters
which Sir Frederick had written in the confidence of
private intercourse. The pamphlet, however, makes no
alteration in the case as I have stated it above, and
there can hardly be a question, except perhaps in the
mind of Mr Lay himself, that Lay’s scheme failed from
its own prodigiousness, and could only have been ac-
cepted by a government which was prepared to abdicate
altogether,—which was very far indeed from being the
position of that of China. Perhaps never was there a

* Blue-Book, China, No. 2 (1864), p. 22.
264 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

finer repetition of the old fable of the fly which had
settled on the axletree of a carriage, exclaiming, “ Behold
what a dust I make!” The course of events had exalted
Mr Lay into a position for which he had no very special
qualifications, and he seems to have supposed that he
had done it all, and was the pivot round which every-
thing in China turned. Had there been no Colonel
Gordon in the world, and had the Chinese Government
been in circumstances a hundred times more alarming
than those which existed at this period—when it had
made peace with Foreign nations, and the Emperor's
viceroys had swept the Tai-pings out of the Yangtsze
valley—it would scarcely have dreamed of accepting
the degradation which this scheme implied.

At the same time, there was something of importance
in the ideas which Mr Lay thus abused. The. possession
of a small efficient force, well drilled in the European
fashion, and provided with European artillery and small
arms, would have enabled the Chinese Government to
have dealt much more effectually than it had hitherto
been doing with rebellion in all parts of its domain.
Such a force could only have been obtained by employ-
ing European officers of good character, and these
would not have entered such a service without suf-
ficient guarantees as to the period and the manner of
their employment. Hence it may very reasonably be
asked, whether Colonel Gordon, giving his valuable ser-
vices in the generous way he did to the Chinese Govern-
ment, did not spoil a great opportunity of inducing it
to establish such a force, and lead the Chinese to imagine
that if ever they fell into similar difficulties by their
own mismanagement, they could calculate on receiving
Foreign aid on their own terms? This is not a subject
to dogmatise upon ; but it seems to me that his action
GENERAL EFFECTS OF GORDON’S ACTION. 265

had no evil effects in that respect: because, firstly, the
Peking Government was not in such straits as to stand
greatly in need of Foreign aid; secondly, it was not
prepared to carry out any great reform in its military
system ; thirdly, it was not in a position to make so
great a change in the customs of the country; and,
fourthly, it would hardly have been decent in us to
have taken advantage of its temporary distress to force
upon it such a measure.

On the first of these heads enough has been already
said to show that though the Peking Government was
willing to accept Foreign aid for a special purpose, it
had got the upper-hand, and without that aid would
have put down the Rebellion sooner or later. As to the
second, all our officials who have been thrown into con-
tact with the higher Mandarins of late years, will ac-
knowledge that there never was any abasement in the
demeanour of these officers, and that we frequently
offered assistance before it was asked for. Though the
Chinese Government was rapidly increasing in know-
ledge of Foreign affairs, and gradually adapting itself to
changed circumstances, yet it had never displayed any
wish to advance beyond the point of having a certain
number of its troops accustomed to Foreign drill and
the use of Foreign arms. And even if the Government
had heen exceedingly desirous to make a change in its
military system, by establishing a small efficient army
which it could employ in any part of the empire, it
could not have done so in face of the opposition of T'seng
Kwo-fan and the other generals who for many years
had been successfully opposed to the Rebels. I daresay
the Tartar section of Peking officialdom would have been
not averse to a military reform which might have been
a formidable counterbalance to the growing influence
266 DISSOLUTION OF GORDON’S FORCE.

and power of Tseng Kwo-fan, Tseng Kwotsung, Li, and
other purely Chinese Mandarins in the south and centre
of the country; but these latter would have had the
support of the people in their opposition to such an in-
novation. Any departure from the old time-honoured
system of leaving the government of every district very
much in its own hands is opposed to Chinese sentiment,
and a rash introduction of much additional interference
from Peking would have been viewed by the masses of
China as an interference with their rights of self-govern-
ment, and, in point of fact, as something very like that
intolerable Tartar domination which Sir Frederick Bruce
and Colonel Gordon have been so erroneously accused of
upholding. Lastly, it may be asked, with what face
could we, after our treatment of China, and when the
Rebels were drawing their chief strength from a section
of our traders, have taken advantage of a temporary dis-
tress on the part of the Government to gain its consent
to measures to which it was averse? It may be said, that
we might have done nothing, that it was our duty to
observe strict neutrality ; but to have really done this,
and to have acted up to treaty obligations, it would have
been necessary to have undertaken the almost impossible
task of preventing British subjects from joining the Tai-
pings, and from supplying them with munitions of war.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

RUDIMENTARY STATE OF MEDICAL SCIENCE IN CHINA— ASSISTANT-
SURGEON MOFFITT’S SERVICES TO GORDON’S FORCE—CAPACITY OF
THE CHINESE AS SOLDIERS — MALARIA — ORGANISATION OF THE
MEDICAL DEPARTMENT—HOSPITAL TABLES OF DISEASE—EFFECTS
AND CURE OF OPIUM-SMOKING—DYSENTERY—TABLE OF WOUNDS
RECEIVED IN ACTION——CASES OF WOUNDS.

Iv was a matter of great importance to introduce Euro-
pean medical arrangements into the force of disciplined
Chinese which Colonel Gordon commanded. The Impe-
rial army was not less defective in that respect than it
was as regards drill or the use of arms; and medical
science among the Chinese is still in a very rudimentary
state. Surgery especially may be said to be almost en-
tirely unknown amongst them in all its branches, owing
to their prejudice against dissection of the dead; and
their ideas as to the interior of the human body are of
the most fanciful kind. It is also not usual for Chinese
armies to trouble themselves much about soldiers who
are seriously disabled ; and the story goes that when,
after the Convention of Peking, the Mandarins were
offered back the wounded prisoners who had been taken
by our troops, they showed a disposition to refuse the
268 MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

offer, saying in effect, “Keep them; wha, should we do
with them ?”

In setting to the Chinese an example in regard to this
important matter, the commander of the Ever-Victorious
Army found an able and zealous coadjutor in Mr A.
Moffitt, an assistant-surgeon of H.M. 67th Regiment,
who was made his principal medical officer. In noticing
the services of this gentleman, the ‘Lancet’ of the 11th
August 1866 said that “it is impossible to over-estimate
the good done by Dr Moffitt, not only to the force in
which he served with so much distinction, but to the re-
putation of his profession and country.” Colonel Gordon
also has always been ready to testify that the confidence
felt by all ranks of his force in the surgical skill of the
principal medical officer was of signal service in nerving
their minds for any enterprise, however hazardous. One
result of Mr Moffitt’s fame as an operator was that he
was called in to treat Yang, a Ti-Tu or native general,
who was wounded in the chest, and given up for lost by
his own countrymen; and his success in this case being
brought to the notice of the Governor of the province,
was specially reported to the Imperial Government, and
Li himself immediately sought to obtain the medical ser-
vices of Dr Wong Fung, a Chinese who had taken a
medical degree in the University of Edinburgh. It may
also be noted that, besides having frequently to be
under fire, Mr Moffitt did good service on some occa-
sions in leading the troops. He has reported so fully
on the medical aspects of the force in which he served,
that I have little more to do than to condense his
remarks.

As the Chinese would be less expensive, and not less
efficient, than English soldiers for service in India, it is
of importance to note their physical characteristics. The
THE CHINESE AS SOLDIERS. 269

old notion is pretty well got rid of, that they are at all a
cowardly people when properly paid and efficiently led ;
while the regularity and order of their habits, which
dispose them to peace in ordinary times, give place to
a daring bordering upon recklessness in time of war.
Their intelligence and capacity for remembering facts
make them well fitted for use in modern warfare, as do
also the coolness and calmness of their disposition. Phy-
sically they are on an average not so strong as Euro-
peans, but considerably more so than most of the other
races of the Hast ; and on a cheap diet of rice, vegetables,
salt fish, and pork, they can go through a vast amount
of fatigue, whether in a temperate climate or in a tropi-
cal one, where Europeans are ill-fitted for exertion.
Their wants are few; they have no caste prejudices,
and hardly any appetite for intoxicating liquors. Being
of a lymphatic or lymphatic-bilious temperament, they
enjoy a remarkable immunity from inflammatory disease,
and the tubercular diathesis is little known amongst
them. The portion of Kiangsoo in which Colonel Gor-
don’s force operated is rather malarious, being a flat
which would now be a vast swamp and marsh, growing
reeds and aquatic plants, were it not for the labours of
a most thrifty people, who have rendered it capable of
supporting a dense population. Through the summer
months a vast evaporating surface is exposed to the
sun, and the consequent decomposition of vegetable
matter becomes a fertile source of miasmatic disease.
Mr Moffitt seems to think that the houses of Kiangnan,
being situated on the plain, and having dark unventi-
lated rooms with low ground-floors, are peculiarly un-
suited for a malarious district; but this view I am dis-
posed to question. The miasma from the paddy-fields,
which is so destructive to human life, rolls upwards, but
270 MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

never descends, and the Chinese guard thgmselves against
it by having their houses on the same level as the rice-
fields, or, if higher up, carefully protected by walls, trees,
and bamboos. During hot weather the Kuropean in
China naturally prefers the highest and most airy posi-
tion he can find to sleep in; but, while thus avoiding
the discomfort of stewing in a close apartment below,
he is borne on a poisonous air into the other world, or
awakes to find his constitution impaired for life.

At the time of Colonel Gordon’s taking command of
the disciplined Chinese, the medical department was
scarcely entitled to that name, and Mr Moffitt, assisted
by two other medical officers, proceeded to organise a
stationary hospital and a field establishment. The
former was first placed in Sungkiang ; but on the cap-
ture of Quinsan, was transferred to and retained there,
being placed in a situation where the wounded could be
conveyed to it by boats. Bed-frames found in the city,
with bottoms worked of cocoa-nut fibre, were found suf-
ficient for the invalids without the use of mattresses,
and the staff of attendants was managed by a young
Chinaman who had received a European education.
Of this ward-master Mr Moffitt remarks, curiously
enough, “From his knowledge of the Classics he soon
became a most expert compounder of medicines, in
which capacity he was invaluable.” The field estab-
lishment consisted of one Chinese non-commissioned
officer and six coolie orderlies, who had to attend to
the medical officers on the field, together with one com-
missioned officer and eight men from each regiment,
whose sole duty was to carry back the wounded of
their respective regiments to the hospital tent or boat—
an arrangement which caused a kind of rivalry to spring
up between the different corps, it being considered dis-
ORGANISATION OF MEDICAL ESTABLISHMENT. 271

honourable if the wounded of a regiment were not
quickly carried back. Two large covered boats usually
constituted the field hospital, and from these the wounded
were sent easily and comfortably to Quinsan in Chinese
gunboats from thirty to forty feet long, and covered.
with a canvass awning. Thus they were landed very
quickly at the stationary hospital, nothing the worse of
the journey, so that, suppuration not having had time
to set in, the first dressing did not require removal
until the patients were quiet and settled in their beds.
The annual average strength of the force was 3000
Chinese and 120 Foreigners. Among the former the
admissions from all diseases and from wounds not re-
ceived in action were 4166, and the deaths 87, for

the year commencing 1st April 1863, as the following
table shows :—

 

 

 

 

 

Diseases. Admissions.| Deaths. Diseases. Admissions.} Deaths.
Ophthalmia,. . . 6 0 ||Scabies, . . . . 66 0
Dysenteria, . . . 54 7 ||Maniag . . . 1 0
Diarrhea, . . . 690 9 Bronchitis, . . . 25 0
Cholera, . . . . 2 2 Dyspepsia, . . 6 1
Febris inter., . . 1755 8 Hemorhois, . . 3 0

» emit, . . | 1247 48 || Pleg. and ulcus, . 99 2
3 CONt,y « « 67 8 oA gq { Contusio, . 87 2
Rheumat. ac., . . 1 0 ||33 4 Vulnus incis. 40 0
Syph. prim., . . 6 0 |/a32 ( Combustio, 11 0
Totals, . . .| 4166 8&7

 

 

 

 

 

 

From this and other tables it appears that six-sevenths
of the whole admissions, and over eleven-twelfths of the
whole deaths, arose from miasmatic diseases; while

‘the immunity from tuberculous and hepatic, with other
constitutional and local affections, was greater than is
usual in any other country. Intermittent and remittent
fevers were by far the most fatal diseases ; but it is
remarkable that in the crowded cities of China, where
272 MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

there is almost no drainage and no sypervision of the
removal of filth, epidemics should be so rare. The
intermittent fever often yielded easily to antiperiodic
remedies, but when it passed into the remittent form it
frequently became fatal. At the commencement its
most prominent symptom was a burning gastric pain,
followed by vomiting and total loss of appetite. In
cases about to terminate fatally headache and vertigo
became violent, forbidding the use of quinine, and the
disease assumed a typhoid character. Purgatives were
always found to give relief, and the other medicines
which proved most useful in these cases were calomel,
combined with jalap or Dover’s and James’s powders.
The diarrheea which was so common had three distinct
varieties, connected respectively with indigestion, fever,
and the use of opium. The first of these arose chiefly
from improper food and want of occupation ; the second
was merely fever in course of elimination through the
mucous membrane of the bowels; and the third af-
flicted those whose constitutions had been debilitated
by the excessive use of opium. The latter form of
diarrhoea usually appears only in the hot season, and
sooner or later attacks those who give themselves up to
a regular practice of smoking opium. There was no
pain or fever with it, but general debility, wasting of
tissue, loathing of food, and depression of spirits. It
was found very difficult to induce the patients to give
up opium-smoking, the craving for it being often be-
yond control, and it was necessary to administer the
drug for some time in another way. Dover’s powders
and tonics were of much use; but I believe, from the
experience of German missionaries in the south of
China, that camphor is of still more. Contrary to In-
dian experience, ipecacuanha was not found of great
DISEASES OF THE FORCE. 273

value in the treatment of dysentery, which was for the
most part of sub-acute character ; and its subjects were
usually debilitated by previous fever or diarrhea: but
here, again, my own experience and observation in
China induce me to question the results arrived at in
regard to the use of this medicine, which I consider to
be the most valuable of all for treatment of dysentery
whether acute or chronic.

The following table classifies the wounds received in
action, for the fourteen months from 1st April 1863 to
1st May 1864, by the 3000 Chinese and 120 Foreign-
ers who on an average constituted the force; but of
course this does not include the number of those killed
in action :—

 

 

 

 

CHINESE. FOREIGNERS.
Recion oF BoDy WOUNDED.

' Total Wounds| Deaths from |Total Wounds| Deaths from

admitted into} Wounds and |admitted into} Wounds and

Hospital. | Operations. | Hospital. Operations.
Wounds ofthe head, . . . a) 8 9 1
5 gy fate, ks 73 5 3 0
s6 gi Meck; « s « 55 6 2 1
¥ »» chest,-. . . 39 12 7 2
6 >», abdomen, . . 23 4 1 i
55 » back and spine, 17 4 2 0

35 x» peritoneum and
genital organs, 26 1 1 0
and pelvis,

5 »» Shoulder, . . 69 1 2 0
55 45 arm, «© « » 70 5 3 0
9 », forearm, . . 32 1 4 0
3 >» hands ... 73 2 7 0
i » fingers, . . . 12 0 4 0
sa see Elis ga 40 7 17 3
x3 »> leg, oi Gs 120 5 8 0
foot, a 9 123 4 0 0
Wounds opening large joints, 0 0 2 2
», injuring large arteries, 0 0 1 1
Total . 2. 864 65 73 11

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The proportion of soldiers rendered unfit for service
was very small as compared with the number of those
8
274. MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

disabled in European warfare, because, owing to the
nature of the firearms used by the Tai-pings, the
bullets went at a low velocity, and seldom caused much
laceration or disorganisation of the parts struck. In
cases where the wounds were caused by European arms,
it usually happened that when a limb was struck the
missile passed completely through it, leaving a large
track, lacerating and destroying the muscles and shat-
tering the bones; while the bullets from Chinese match-
locks and gingalls, going with a low velocity, passed
very often between the muscles, leaving only a small
track with scarcely any destruction of tissue, and either
lodged against the bone or glanced aside from it without
causing fracture,

Among the more interesting cases of wounds the
following may be mentioned :—

In the assault on the city Taitsan, Private Wong Ta-sin
received a matchlock-bullet on the forehead, which in-
flicted a large scalp-wound and caused a fissured fracture
of the bone in the shape of the letter V, with a slight
depression of the apex; but he was so busily engaged
in collecting loot in the captured city that he did not
report himself wounded until the second day after re-
ceiving the injury, and though then ordered to remain
in bed, he returned to duty in the afternoon and marched
with his regiment for three successive days. This wound
healed without a bad symptom, greatly to the gratifica-
tion of the patient, who took no small amount of credit
to himself for his foresight.

At the night-attack on the intrenchments before
Soochow on the 29th September 1863, Major Kirkham
was struck by a bullet over the anterior part of the left
parietal bone, about two inches from the sagittal suture,
so that the bone was fractured with quite a perceptible
CASES OF WOUNDS, 275

depression. For four days he remained in a half-stupe-
fied, sleepy state, without any pain or suffering, and
after recovering from this, could not speak, owing to
partial paralysis of the right side of his face. When
consciousness returned he made signs for a pencil and
paper, and succeeded in writing what he wanted, but
left out several words in the sentence and letters in the
words. At the same time the pain of his wound began
to make itself felt ; but under ordinary treatment the
paralysis completely disappeared, and at the end of six
weeks he was able to resume his duties, with only a
slight hesitation of speech and a little excitability of
temper. The same officer was struck at Kintang by a
musket-bullet, which entered his chest about its centre,
and, passing upwards, fractured the upper margin of the
scapula and lodged under the skin on the back of the
shoulder, but without injuring the lung or being attended
with fatal consequences. .

Captain Martin was struck on the head by a bullet
at the assault of Chanchu, which caused a comminuted
fracture of the occipital bone and depressed the frag-
ments. When brought to the hospital two days after
the injury, he was in a comatose state; and an incision
being made through the scalp- wound, and all frag-
ments of bone being removed by means of an elevator
and forceps, the dura mater rose and seemed uninjured.
During the operation the patient manifested little sense
of pain, but when the wound was washed he suddenly
recovered his senses, and began vociferating furiously.
By simply dressing with lint and water, and slightly
touching his mouth with calomel, he was able to resume
duty on the twenty-first day after the operation, with the
wound almost closed.

Captain Shamroffel, a young Prussian, received a small
276 MEDICAL ARRANGEMENTS OF GORDON’S FORCE.

bullet in the face, which entered immedigtely behind the
orbital margin of the external junction of the frontal
and malar bones, and, passing through the globes of
both eyes, completely destroying them, made its exit
at a corresponding point on the other side of his face.
No time was lost in getting the patient under the
influence of mercury, and the inflammation was confined
to the membranes of his eyes. The brain was not
affected ; and in spite of the extensive course taken by
the bullet, no important part was injured except the
eyeballs, which, as the inflammation subsided, gradually
receded within the orbits, so as to be covered by the
eyelids. On'the breaking up of the force this man was
compensated by the Chinese Government with £1600.
Another European was struck by a bullet on the face,
which entered at the angle of the inferior maxilla, and.
went out about the position of the mental foramen on
the other side, shattering in its course the whole of the
horizontal ramus and mental process of the maxilla. Of
course he could not swallow anything for several days ;
but when the wound took on a healthy action, hard
tissue was thrown out to replace the bone which had
been removed ; and a gutta percha mould being used to
give the parts a proper shape, the patient made a good
recovery, with very little deformity.

One Chinese private, when lying on his stomach
watching the enemy over a mound, received a bullet,
which entered the face on the right side of the nose,
penetrated the palate near the centre, passed through
the base of the tongue, and finally lodged under the
skin of the back close to the second dorsal vertebra,
where it was extracted ; but no bad symptoms followed
this extensive wound, and it healed without difficulty
or deformity, except leaving a small opening in the
CASES OF WOUNDS. 277

palate. I remember myself once seeing a Chinaman
who had received a bullet in his right eye, which came
out under the left jaw, shattering his palate considerably ;
and yet when the splinters of bone were picked out he
did not even wink, nor was it necessary for any one to
hold his head during the operation.

In the case of General Yang, which has already
been alluded to, the bullet had entered the side of the
chest between the second and third ribs, and, passing
through the lungs, had lodged in the muscles forming
the posterior fold of the axilla. The removal of the
bullet by incision greatly delighted the patient and his
friends, for Chinese doctors never venture*on such an
operation ; and the effusion which took place into the
cavity of the chest was relieved after a fortnight by a
copious expectoration of a pinkish-coloured pus which
lasted for two days. At the end of four weeks he was
able to walk about, and some time afterwards resumed
his command, and was also married.
PART IV.

THE END OF THE TAI-PINGS
CHAPTER AY,

A VISIT TO TSENG KWO-FAN—SKETCHES OF NATIVE
AND ENGLISH OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

TSENG KWO-TSUN—VIEW OF NANKING AND THE IMPERIALIST LINES
—APPEARANCE OF TSENG KWO-FAN—GORDON’S CONVERSATION
WITH HIM—GENERALS PAOU AND PING——-CHINESE MANDARINS—
MANDARIN BUTTONS—KI YING’S HISTORY—HIS ODE ON LEAVING
CANTON—-HIS TREATMENT BY LORD ELGIN, AND HIS FATE—YEH
AND PIH KWEI—KWEILIANG AND HWASHANA—SANKOLINSIN—SU
SHU-EN AND THE PRINCES OF I AND CHING—-SHUNG POW—PRINCE
KUNG—WAN SEE-ANG, THE PRESENT PREMIER OF CHINA—LI HUNG
CHANG—TSENG KWO-FAN, GENERALISSIMO OF ALL THE CHINESE
FORCES—SIR JOHN BOWRING—-LORD ELGIN—SIR FREDERICK BRUCE
—SIR R. ALCOCK—MR WADE, SIR HARRY PARKES, AND MR LAY—
MR T. T. MEADOWS—ADMIRAL HOPE AND CAPTAIN DEW—GENERALS
STAVELEY AND BROWN—COLONEL GORDON AND MR HART.

In June 1864, after the dissolution of his force, Colonel
Gordon paid a visit to ‘Tseng Kwo-fan at Nganking,
and had some interesting and important conversation
with him regarding military matters in China. On
reaching Nanking on his way up the Yangtsze, the
Colonel first met with the great man’s brother, Tseng
Kwo-tsun, the Governor of Chekiang, who commanded
all the troops round the Rebel capital, and who was re-
siding on one of the hills behind Porcelain Tower Hill.
This Mandarin was about forty years of age, pleasant
and active, and was at the time particularly engaged in
282 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

mining operations. Few of his troopg were armed with
muskets; and when asked why he did not get more of
these weapons from Futai Li, he said his men did not
know how to use them, and that he-soon would be able
to take the city by famine, for the Rebels were very
badly off, and some months before had sent out 3000
women and children, whom he had taken charge of and
lodged in a stockade, allowing the country people to take
any of the females as wives who were willing to go. On
examining the works round Nanking, Colonel Gordon was
struck by the extraordinary perseverance which the Im-
perialists must have exercised. One very large stone fort
had been taken by constructing stockades and breast-
works all round it, thus isolating it, and causing the
Rebels such annoyance that they had to evacuate.
From the summit of the hill above the Porcelain Tower
a fine view of Nanking was obtained, and its palaces
were plainly distinguishable. Inside the walls were
large empty spaces and no stockades. For miles the
rampart was deserted, with only here and there a single
man visible, miles from any support ; not a flag was seen
flying, and a deathlike stillness seemed to overhang the
city. The wall was about forty feet in height, and about
thirty in thickness ; and in some places the Imperial
stockades were within a hundred yards of it. Half-a-
dozen Tai-pings were observed to be lowered from the
wall by a rope, and immediately began gathering a spe-
cies of lentil which grew outside, without being molested
when doing so by the Imperialist soldiers, who were not
more than eighty yards distant. From this hill the Im-
perial lines also were seen stretching for miles, consisting
of a double line of breastworks connecting round mud-
forts, of which there were one hundred and forty, at a
distance of about 600 yards from each other, and each
A VISIT TO TSENG KWO-FAN. 283

of which contained 500 men. In some places the forts
were much closer together, and the breastwork was of
triple or even quadruple construction. The stockades
were surrounded with the shops of small sutlers ; nomen
appeared to be on the look-out, and a free-and-easy picnic
style pervaded the whole force. One of their mines, being
constructed to lead under the wall, was fifteen feet below
the surface of the ground, and 150 yards in length.
Proceeding up to Neanking, Colonel Gordon was re-
ceived by Tseng Kwo-fan, whom he found to be a man
of low stature, with a black straggling beard and mus-
tache, a careless dress, and a very ancient hat. The con-
versation soon turned on the inefficient manner in which
the Imperial troops at Nanking were armed, and Colonel
Gordon went on to make some representations which he
thought it expedient for the good of China to be laid
before the Generalissimo. After explaining the reasons
which had induced him to dissolve the Ever-Victorious
Army, he pointed out the importance of the Imperialists
avoiding the employment of the low class of Foreigners
whom they had hitherto used for strengthening their
military force, and also of getting rid of the presence of
European troops at the open ports. He urged the crea-
tion of an Imperial Force, which could be moved any-
where within the Empire; the regular payment of the
men who composed it, and their instruction in their own
language, under native officers, in the use of foreign
arms. Ten thousand men so trained would suffice for
a very large district of country, and the existence of
such a force would prevent rebellion springing up. He
strongly recommended that some steps in that direction
should be taken at once; that men and officers should
be carefully selected for the purpose; and that the latter
should be made to understand that they should suffer
284 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

extreme penalties if they did not properly attend to
their duty, while they should receive every encourage-
ment if they made themselves efficient.

Tseng Kwo-fan listened very attentively while these
remarks were being translated to him, and took with a
certain degree of interest a memorandum in which they
were embodied. He seemed a man who did not commit
himself to opinions without a considerable amount of
thought. He was surprised to hear that the Japanese
were almost as far advanced in knowledge of artillery as
are the Western nations, and asked several questions
about Japan with some concern. His own position,
however, was one of no small difficulty as regarded mili-
tary reform. There were forty Ti-Tus, or provincial
generals, at Nanking, who did not wish any change, and
he could not do much in defiance of all these. One re-
sult of this interview was, that Tseng was so far gained
over as to give his support in the matter of military re-
form to Futai Li, who at this time was in the habit of
nightly studying military Foreign works, and was pre-
paring for Peking a treatise on European artillery.

On his way down the river, Colonel Gordon met Paou
Chiaou, an Imperialist General of high reputation, who
pursued the Faithful King in 1861, and also Tseng
Kwo-fan’s right-hand man, Ping Lu-lin, a very high
Mandarin, who was Secretary to the Board of War.
Paou had a floating flower-garden alongside of his boat,
and both these Generals seemed well aware of the
capabilities which the Ever-Victorious Army had dis-
played. From what he learned on this visit, Gordon
was convinced that Nanking would fall very soon, and
that, though the Tai-pings there might escape from it by
a vigorous sally, there was no place of safety for them to
go to. He was also convinced that Paou Chiaou, with his
CHINESE MANDARINS, 285

army, would soon be able to surround and dispose of the
Rebel remnant still left at that time in Kwangsi. He
thought a longer time would be necessary to reduce the
cities of Wuchu and Changching in Chekiang, which
were still held by the Tai-pings, but that there was no
fear of their giving any trouble in that neighbourhood
beyond the walls of those cities. In Nganwhui he
could learn of only one town, Kuante, which still held
out against the Imperialists; and the whole aspect of
affairs seemed to indicate that the final suppression of
the Great Rebellion was exceedingly close at hand.

Perhaps it may not be out of place to give a short
account, in connection with this visit, of some of the
great Celestial officers who, during recent years, have
been brought prominently in contact with Foreigners.
The word “ Mandarin” is not Chinese, being from the
Portuguese mandar, to command, and is used by us to
denote a class of persons in China which includes civil
officials, military officers, literati, and, in general, what
may be considered the nobility of the Empire. Though
the reigning family are Manchu Tartars, and the mem-
bers of that family are ennobled by birth, and when at
all fit are readily advanced to high posts, yet the great
bulk of Celestial officialdom is composed of native Chin-
ese, taken by competitive examination from all ranks of
the people excepting those of barbers and play-actors.
Hereditary titles are conferred on distinguished members
of this service, but the honorary rank which these denote
is not very highly esteemed in China when there is no
connection with the Imperial family. To be in the
“Middle Kingdom,” what we call a “Mandarin,” is to
reach a position which gives the command of intellectual
286 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

fame, of wealth, and of political powg. The Chinese, in
theory at least, and in practice to a greater extent than
the people of any other nation, are exceedingly averse to
any separation between these three kinds of eminence.
They hold that none but able men are entitled to possess
wealth or political power, or to be otherwise elevated
above the toiling millions of mankind. It must not be
supposed, however, that admission into the governing
classes depends in China on a “system of competitive
examination” anything like what is suggested to us in
England by such a phrase. The Chinese would regard
our competitive examinations, with their minute details
of learning, as ill fitted to aid in the selection of eminent
men, and suitable only for testing ordinary schoolmasters.
They lay stress almost entirely upon acquaintance with
first principles, moral and political, especially as developed
in the Classics, holding that a power of dealing with these
marks the man who is best fitted, when the occasion
comes, for dealing with all the problems of life; but in
advancing men from the lower to the higher ranks of
officialdom, judgment is chiefly based upon the tact and
success which has been displayed in practical matters.
There is a Red-book published periodically at Peking,
giving the rank and occupations of all the Mandarins,
who are divided, with reference to the latter point, into
literary, civil, and military. This arrangement, however,
does not affect their rank. As regards that there are
nine classes, of which the first two have red buttons of
different descriptions, the next two blue ones, and the
remainder glass or gilt ones, in the lowest class of all
there being a subdivision who bear the title of “ Not yet
entered the stream.” If we applied this system to Eng-
land, it may be roughly said that the Premier, the Lord
Chancellor, the Foreign Secretary, and the Commander-
KI YING. 287

in-Chief, would be found wearing ruby buttons of the
first class, the other Cabinet Ministers would have red
coral ones, and on the caps of the Under-Secretaries of
State would be seen sapphires.

It is not necessary for me to touch on the character-
istics of Commissioner Lin, Muh Chan-gah, and other
Mandarins who appeared in connection with the Opium
war and the treaty of Nanking; but Ki Ying, who was
noted at that period, reappeared in the time of Lord
Elgin’s Embassy, and comes in for notice. Perhaps
never Chinese official had a more checkered career ; for
from 1817, when he became junior Vice-President of the
Board of Revenue, to 1859, when he was condemned to
strangulate himself, he was incessantly being either ad-
vanced to very high posts or degraded to very low ones,
and to the latter sometimes at his own request. In
August 1842 he concluded, as chief representative of his
Government, the first treaty of China with England, and
for some years afterwards held the post at Canton of
Imperial Commissioner for Foreign Affairs. Being re-
placed by Yeh Ming-chin, he returned to Peking in
1848, having composed an ode to the officials, literati,
and gentry of the “City of Rams,” of which the follow-
ing is the concluding stanza :—

During all these revolutions of the stars, and descents of the
night-dews, silken [¢. e., grey] hairs have encroached upon my
brow.

When I rein in my horse upon the mountain-path, I fear and
tremble exceedingly ; ;

My thoughts are anxiously busied about my plants, the people;
I would wrap my cloak round them.

Ihave served till I am grey, yet how dare I pluck out the
sign of office from my cap ?

No! though profitless as the stubble, I am still ready to put
forward my counsels for securing peace to this realm.
288 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

Though valueless as the mallow-flower, I cannot forget the
gratitude I owe to the State.

After holding some high offices at Peking, and being
occasionally reproved, Ki Ying had a terrible fall in
1850 on the death of the Emperor Tao-kwang, and
the accession of Hien-fung, when, for reasons not
very intelligible, he was suddenly degraded from the
Presidentship of the Civil Board and the Commandant-
ship of the Peking gendarmerie to the condition of a
simple Bannerman, or full private in the Imperial stand-
ing Tartar army. One of the reasons assigned for this
tremendous descent was. an alleged favourable tendency
towards Foreigners, and an assumed connection with
Christians. This latter supposition gave rise to a curious
literary forgery, perpetrated at Foochow in 1850, where
a work was published purporting to be a collection of Ki
Ying’s writings, and containing a prayer to the God of
the Christians. There is an engraving of him in Dr
Williams's ‘Middle Kingdom,’ which correctly represents
his very curious head and face; but Mr Wade says, that
in his demeanour “there was a combination of dignity
and courtesy which more than balanced the deficiencies
of a by no means attractive exterior.”

Though Ki Ying was far in advance of the Mandarins
of his time, he entertained some amusing ideas as to the
means which should be employed for “soothing and
bridling the Barbarians.” He thought that they should
be treated with a mixture of patronage and conciliation.
When Canton was taken in the end of 1857 by our
troops, a memorial to the Emperor on this subject by
Ki Ying was found among Commissioner Yeh’s archives,
in which he analysed the character of Foreigners, and
complained especially of their incessant restlessness, for
which, he argued, allowance ought to be made. “Bred
SOOTHING THE BARBARIAN. 289

and born,” he wrote, “in the Foreign regions beyond,
there is much in the administration of the Celestial
Dynasty that is not perfectly comprehensible to the
Barbarians, and they are continually putting forced
constructions on things of which it is difficult to explain
to them the real nature.” In proceeding to characterise
us as uncivilised, blindly unintelligent in the styles and
modes of address, and incapable of appreciating forms of
communication which duly place the superior above and
the inferior below, it is evident that he is expressing his
own feelings as well as those of every Chinaman, except
persons of the lowest classes, who comes in contact with
us; and perhaps something might be said in favour of
that Celestial view of British bluntness and unceremoni-
ousness. Ki Ying further explains to the Emperor that
-we must be judiciously directed, but without explanation
of the “reason why,” as evidently, in his opinion, we are
not quite capable of entering into such matters. He
also notes our habit of combining feasting with business.
“The meal,” he remarks, “which the Barbarians eat
together, they call Ta tsan [great dinner]. It is a prac-
tice they delight in to assemble a number of people at
a great entertainment, at which they eat and drink to-
gether. When your slave has conferred favour upon
[has given a dinner to] the Barbarians at the Bogue or
Macao, their Chiefs or leaders have come to the number
of twenty or thirty; and when, in process of time, your
slave has chanced to go to Barbarian residences or Bar-
barian ships, they have in their turn seated themselves
round him in attendance upon him, striving who should
be foremost in offering him meat and drink. To gain
their good-will he could not do otherwise than share

their cup and spoon.”
After his fall in 1850, this Mandarin lived mostly in

T
290 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

retirement until 1858, when, being appointed an Im-
perial Commissioner, he was sent down to Tientsin, with
the expectation that he might be able to induce Lord
Elgin to give up demanding some of the most important
stipulations in the proposed new treaty between Eng-
land and China. At this time there was something pa-
thetic both in his appearance and in his position. Much
broken by his seventy-two years of age, very blind, and
scarcely able to walk or even stand, he was placed in a
most unfortunate dilemma, between the firmness of the
British Plenipotentiary and the obstinacy of the Chinese
Government. It was evident that some heavy penalty
hung over him in the event of his being unable to make
Lord Elgin give way. With tears in his eyes he spoke
of himself as the “friend of two generations” of Chinese
and Foreigners, and complained much of what he had
undergone as a suspected traitor in Foreign interests.
For his devotion to these his sons had been impris-
oned, he had contemplated suicide ; and he had been sent
down to Tientsin because his name had been mentioned
in a recent despatch of Lord Elgin’s. The contemptuous
manner in which this poor old man was treated by Lord
Elgin and Mr Lay at this time may have been a neces-
sity of the position, for Ki Ying’s business there was
evidently to procrastinate and delude; but it is much
to be regretted that her Majesty’s representative, whose
career in China was otherwise so unexceptionable, should
have found it or thought it necessary to act towards
him as he did. Probably had he shown for him more
respect and nominal deference in the presence of Kwei-
liang and Hwashana, the two other Commissioners, the
Chinese authorities would not have been so cruel to Ki
Ying as they were on his return, unsuccessful, to Peking.
They probably concluded that he had vastly overrated
YEH MING-CHIN. 201

his influence with Englishmen; and the consequence was
that the “friend of two generations,” though a member
of the Imperial family, had “the silken cord” sent to
him, and ended his checkered but brilliant career by
private strangulation in a dungeon.

The next high Mandarin who was brought prominently
before the notice of this country was Yeh Ming-chin,
the son of a village apothecary, who was Governor-
General of the Two Kwang, and Imperial Commissioner
for Foreign Affairs at Canton at the outbreak of the
lorcha Arrow affair, which led to the war with China in
1857-58, and to the treaty of Tientsin. Yeh’s resem-
blance to Henry the Eighth of England, and his conver-
sation on his passage to Calcutta, where he died a
prisoner in 1859, were fully reported to the British
public by Mr Wingrove Cooke of the ‘Times.’ It is not
known, however, in this country, that when his body
was brought back to Canton it was received with extra-
ordinary marks of respect and affection, both by the
officials and the people of that city, They owed him
special gratitude for the decisive manner in which he
had acted against the Rebels in 1856, which cleared the
Province of these dreadful marauders, and which has
been unreasonably held up only as a proof of his brutal-
ity and cruelty. The times in which he lived, and the
position in which he was placed, required him to act
with stern determination ; and it is difficult to see how
he could have done otherwise than he did, in resisting
our demands in 1856-57. The temper of the Peking
Government and of the people of Kwangtung was such,
that to have ceded these demands would have been for
Yeh to have sealed his own destruction. Moreover, it
must be remembered that the British House of Com-
mons, after a long debate, homologated Yeh’s. interpre-
292 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

tation of the treaty of Nanking; and thet at the very
time we made war on China, nominally because of his
violating two unimportant and very doubtful stipula-
tions in the treaty, we were openly and unquestionably
violating it on more important points, by carrying and
forcing on the opium traffic, and by engaging in trade
at other ports than those which the treaty opened.

On the capture of Canton and its occupation by our
troops, Englishmen were brought into close intercourse
with Pih Kwei, the Governor of Kwangtung, who was
conjoined with the French and English Commissioners
in the government of the provincial city. Kweiliang, and
Hwashana, who negotiated with Lord Elgin the treaty
of Tientsin, were both Manchus of high standing; the
former being one of the four Chief Secretaries of State,
and the latter President of the Civil Board, the most
important tribunal of the empire. Mr Oliphant has
‘described Kweiliang as a venerable man of placid and
benevolent expression, with a countenance full of intel-
ligence, with manners polished and dignified, and with
the bearing of a perfect gentleman. Dr Rennie,* how-
ever, states that notwithstanding these characteristics,
this eminent statesman was treated with much dis-
courtesy at Tientsin in 1858 by Mr H. N. Lay, who was
then interpreter to Lord Elgin’s Embassy, and that this
was the chief cause of Sankolinsin’s aversion to carrying
out the treaty of that year.

Rather unpleasant recollections are connected with the
next high Chinese officials who were brought prominently
in contact with foreign affairs. Sankolinsin, the Mongol
Prince, whose history I have elsewhere noticed,t was
the most influential person in delaying the ratification of

* ‘Peking and the Pekingese,’ vol. ii. p. 288,
+ See ante, p. 51.
SANKOLINSIN. 293

the Tientsin treaty. He commanded the Chinese troops
during our most disastrous attack upon the Taku forts in
1859, when these forts were taken in 1860, and when
Sir Harry Parkes and others were taken prisoners during
Lord Elgin’s advance upon Peking. This prince was an
honourable and patriotic soldier, much respected by the
Chinese, and not disliked by Foreigners, despite the pain-
ful circumstances connected with the murder of the pris-
oners. When this subject was inquired into, he distinct-
ly denied knowing anything whatever about them or
about their fate beyond having ordered some of them to
be sent into the capital. Nearly three years ago he him-
self was murdered, though Generalissimo of all the Impe-
rial forces, when operating against the Nien-fei Rebels in
Shantung. These plunderers were very active horsemen,
and, at a critical moment, Sankolinsin’s troops falling
back and deserting him, he was seized by the enemy,
and immediately cut into minute pieces. In his opposi-
tion to Foreigners this soldier was strongly supported by
the Prince of I, a member of the Imperial family, and
President of the Imperial Clan-Court ; by the Prince of
Ching, Commandant of Peking and President of the
Astronomical Board ; and by Su Shu-en, a junior Chief
Secretary of State—an ambitious Mandarin, who acquired
great power and influence during the last years of the
reign of Hien-fung. These men had that Emperor very
much in their hands; they were chiefly responsible for
his opposition to Foreign demands ; and on his death in
1861 they forged a decree, purporting to be from him,
appointing themselves regents over the new boy-Emperor.
Their power, however, was overthrown by Prince Kung’s
coup @état of the 2d November, the two princes being
strangulated in private, and Su Shu-en being publicly
decapitated, “giving forth sounds to the last which were
294 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

not obedient,” as an indignant witness of gis conduct re-
marked. More fortunate for a time was their supporter,
General Shung Pow, a warrior given to poetry and wine ;
for after their death he was continued in his command.
There is now no doubt that this man was responsible for
the decapitation of Captain Brabazon and of the Abbé
de Luc, as they were put to death by his soldiers when
retreating on the 21st of September 1860. Eventually,
however, Shung Pow came also to a bad end, being
condemned to strangulate himself, for, among other
reasons, having introduced concubines into his camp,
the Chinese apparently being stricter on that point than
the War Offices of either France or England.

After the conclusion of the Convention of Peking, and
the establishment of Sir Frederick Bruce as Resident
Minister at the capital, our relationships with high Chi-
nese officials were of a much more friendly and satisfactory
kind. The Prince of Kung in particular, as President of
the Foreign Board, was brought much in contact with
our representatives, and favourably impressed them by
his candour, and his enlightened views in regard to other
nations. He is still almost a young man, of distinctly
Tartar but agreeable and intellectual countenance, and
his chief fault is an aversion to much business. It has
been complained of him that in one respect he shows too
great a tendency to follow the evil practices of Charles II.
of England ; and about two years ago he fell into tem-
porary disgrace, and was severely reproved for want of
proper respect in private to the two Dowager-Empresses.
It is indeed almost impossible to say where the chief
power lies in China at any given time. Now one pro-
minent personage, now another, is popularly spoken of as
having everything in his hands, but the next moment we
hear of his being degraded or censured. One year it is
THE PREMIER OF CHINA. 295

Sankolinsin, the next Prince Kung, and then Tseng Kwo-
fan, who is considered to be in a position to make himself
Emperor; but there is a power behind which can pull
such men down as well as raise them up. So far as I
can judge, this power seems to be the consensus of the
higher officialdom of China, and of the members of the
Imperial family. Any one who secks to raise himself
above that tribunal is brought down very sharply ; and
even Prince Kung, notwithstanding his cowp d’état and
his being uncle of the Emperor, has been handled quite
unceremoniously. After this Prince, the prominent states-
man best known to the British Legation at Peking is
Wan See-ang, the senior Secretary of State, or Premier of
the Empire. He is a Manchu by birth, and now only
fifty years of age, having taken high literary honours
when he was quite a youth, and worked his way from
office to office. Of low stature, slightly built and gen-
tlemanly in appearance, he has also an astute, states-
manlike countenance, and has shown remarkable ability
in “harmonising” Imperial and Foreign interests.

The immense trade of Shanghai, and the proximity
to it of the Tai-ping capital Nanking, has made it a
very important point of contact between Foreigners and
Chinese officials. Setting aside Ho Kwei-tsin, General
Ching, and many other officers, civil and military, whose
names might be introduced in this connection, I pass at
once to the two great Mandarins, Li Hung-chang and
Tseng Kwo-fan, who had most to do with the suppres-
sion of the Tai-ping rebellion. The former of them has
been often mentioned as Futai of Kiangsoo, in connec-
tion with the Ever-Victorious Army; and his counte-
nance strikes one by its intelligence and quiet energy.

He is a native of Seuchew in the Hohfei district of
the province of Nganhwui, and is now between forty
296 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

and fifty, having passed the Han-li Coljege in 1849.
Immediately after, on the Rebels invading Nganhwui,
he took command of a small militia force, and then went
as a secretary into Tseng Kwo-fan’s army. We next
find him with the title of a provincial judge in the
province of Chekiang, but also acting as commander of
a body of troops. In 1861, the first year of the present
Emperor, Li first rose to high position, being, on Tseng
Kwo-fan’s report, made acting Futai or Governor of
Kiangsoo. This brought him into contact with Foreign-
rs; for Soochow, the capital of the province, was in
the hands of the Rebels, and so he had to make Shang-
hai his headquarters. Taking the field with his troops,
and often leading in person, he defeated them at various
places ; but as they were pressed down in great masses
by Tseng Kwo-fan in his direction, he did not make
much head against them till he employed the services
of the disciplined Chinese of the Ever-Victorious Army.
After Colonel Gordon took command of that auxiliary
force, Li Hung-chang made rapid progress in clearing
Kiangsoo of the Tai-pings. Soochow, the capital, was
taken in the end of 1863; and for his services there he
was confirmed in his Futaiship, received the decoration
of the Yellow Jacket, and was created temporary Junior
Guardian to the Emperor. For his services at the close
of the Rebellion in entirely clearing Kiangsoo of Tai-
pings, and for operating with a fleet before Nanking, he
received a double-eyed peacock’s feather, and was created
a hereditary first-class noble of the Peh or third rank.
When, in 1866, Tseng Kwo-fan became Generalissimo of
all the Imperial armies, Li was made Governor-General
of the two provinces Kiangsi and Kiangsoo. A few
months ago he was engaged in operating against the
Nien-fei in Shantung, and was said to have perilled his
TSENG KWO-FAN. 2097

position by allowing a large body of them to escape
through his intrenchments ; but in the end of last year
he destroyed them altogether, and is now about to be
sent against the Mohammedan rebels,

Tseng Kwo-fan, to whom reference has frequently
been made in preceding pages, is even a greater Man-
darin than Li, and is at present the most distinguished
and influential person in the Empire not of royal blood ;
while even of the royal family itself there are none to
compare with him in influence, unless it be the youthful
Emperor himself, the Dowager Empresses, and the Em-
peror’s uncle, the Prince of Kung, who is President of
the Tsung-li Yamun or the Foreign Board.* He is now
a man of about sixty—stout, dark, with a Chinese resem-
blance to Oliver Cromwell—and entered the ranks of
Celestial officialdom by passing the examination of the
Han-li College in 1838, the eighteenth year of the Em-
peror Tao-kwang, and was soon afterwards made a
member of the Board of Ceremonies. In 1852, the
fourth year of the Emperor Hien-fung, he retired from
office, owing to the death of his mother; and whilst at
home at his native town, Hseang-siang, in the province
of Honan, he raised a river-fleet, and undertook the
management of a body of militia which were employed
against the Tai-pings, who had taken several cities in
the province. Being made an Imperial Commander, he
recaptured several of these cities, and destroyed a great
portion of the Rebel flotilla. Immediately after this, in

* The Luh Pe, or Six Boards at Peking, are—the Civil Office, the
Revenue Office, the Office of Rites, the War Office, the Office of Punish-
ments, and the Foreign Office. At the head of each are two presidents
and four vice-presidents ; and in each are three subordinate grades of
officers—directors, under-secretaries, and controllers—besides a host of
clerks. There are also several separate bureaus in each board; and the
Tsung-li Yamun, or Foreign Office, has lately been extended and remodelled.
298 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

conjunction with other Imperialist fowces, he entered
the neighbouring province of Hupeh, and retook its
capital, Woochang, along with other towns. Thus the
two Hu were cleared of Tai-pings very much through
his patriotic exertions. For this Tseng received a
second-class button, and was made a member of the
Board of War. In 1853 he moved down the Yangtsze,
and attacked Kiukiang; but, owing to losing part of
his fleet, he was repulsed. During the next three years
he took part, along with his brother, in various opera-
tions against the Rebels on the Yangtsze and in its
neighbourhood, and. aided in rescuing the capital of
Kiangsi from their grasp.

The death of Tseng Kwo-fan’s father in 1857 led, as
is usual in such cases, to his retirement from public em-
ployment for a nominal term of three years; but in 1859
he was made Commander-in-Chief in the province of
Kiangsi, and raised to a higher position in the Board of
War. On taking the field this energetic Mandarin soon
cleared Kiangsi of Tai-pings, and was in consequence
made Imperial Commissioner and Chetai, or Governor-
General of the Two Kiang *—that is to say, of the rich and
important provinces of Nganhwui, Kiangsi, and Kiangsoo
—which is one of the highest appointments that the
Chinese Crown has it in its power to give. About the
same time, in 1860, he was made Commander-in-Chief in
the four provinces of Kiangsi, Kiangsoo, Nganhwui, and
Chekiang; so he was thus placed in supreme command of
all the operations against the Tai-pings, a position which
he occupied for four years, until the fall of Nanking and

* This phrase, the “Two Kiang,” though still often used, is apt to mis-
lead, for it arose previous to the division of Kiangnan into the two provinces
of Kiangsoo and Nganhwui. The “Two Kiang” are properly Kiangsi,

“west of the river,’ and Kiangnan, “ south of the river ;” the latter in-
cluding both Kiangsoo and Nganhwui.
TSENG KWO-FAN’S POSITION. 299

the suppression of the Rebellion. In 1861, the first year
of the present Emperor Tung-che, he became a Cabinet
Minister, but continued to direct in person the military
operations against the Tai-pings. Next year, with aid
of his brother ‘'seng Kwo-tsun and other lieutenants, he
cleared the Yangtsze valley of the Rebels, with the ex-
ception of Nanking, which they still held. The appoint-
ment, on his proposal, of Li as Governor of Kiangsoo, and
the employment of Gordon’s force, led to the expulsion of
the Tai-pings from that province, and, on the fall of their
capital, to the final suppression of the Tai-pings in 1864.
Tseng Kwo-fan received a double-eyed feather, and was
made Senior Guardian to the Emperor and a first-class
noble of the rank of How—or Marquis, as it might most
correctly be rendered in English. After the death of
Prince Sankolinsin in 1865, Tseng acted successfully
against the Nien-fei Rebels; and, being succeeded in his
Chetaiship by his protégé Li Hung-chang, succeeded
Sankolinsin as Generalissimo of all the Imperial forces in
China. Whenever in late years there has been any dif-
ference, or rumour of difference, between this great Man-
darin and the Peking Government, popular report has
assumed that he would proceed to the capital and ascend
the dragon throne, or else found a southern empire ;
but he has shown no intention of making any such
attempt; and if he did, it would not likely be successful,
as, in such a case, the Imperial Government would pro-
bably receive the assistance of Li and others of his pro-
tégés, on whom he would have in great part to rely.
Tseng Kwo-fan, besides, is more of a soldier than of a
statesman ; his public life has been spent in fighting on
the banks of the Yangtsze—not in exercising his wits
among the bureauocracy of Peking; and he resembles the
late Duke of Wellington in being strongly inclined to-
300 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

wards the Conservative party of his couetry. By Hong-
kong quidnuncs he has been described as reactionary in
sentiment, and as opposed to intercourse with Foreigners ;
but in his practice, at least so far as it is known to us, he
has shown no such disposition.

As this is a somewhat personal chapter, it may not be
amiss to give sketches of the chief British officials who
have been brought in contact with the Chinese during
recent eventful years. What may be termed the modern
period commences with Sir John Bowring, who succeeded
to Sir George Bonham, after a long service at the Canton
Consulate, as Governor of Hongkong and Minister-Pleni-
potentiary to China, only to become one of the best-
abused men of the day, both at home and in the Far
East. A philosopher and linguist of some ability, but with
a partly self-conferred reputation much beyond his real
merits and acquirements, Sir John has displayed neither
the scholar’s devotion to ideas nor the statesman’s grasp
of practical principles, but has rather sunk into the
scholar when he should have been a statesman, and has
striven to be a man of the world when he had better have
continued a philosopher. A certain jocular Mandarin
understood this Minister very well, when, in answer to a
complaint as to the use of the term J, or “ Barbarian,”
in his despatches, he replied, that it was not for him, an
insignificant one, to enter on linguistic discussions with
so great a scholar. But Bowring exercised hardly any
personal influence on our relations with China; he scarcely
deserved the abuse which was heaped upon him in Par-
liament for his connection with the lorcha Arrow affair,
and not even the angel Gabriel could win golden opinions
in the position of Governor of Hongkong. When he was
made Minister to China matters were in such a state that
a conflict was almost unavoidable. The British mer-
SIR JOHN BOWRING. 301

chants in that country had long resolved on obtaining
a great extension of the privileges of trade; they had
been profoundly irritated by the cruel murder of six of
their young men at Hwang-chu-kee, near Canton; and
though the Chinese could plead treaty-rights in favour
of the conservative position which they held, yet certain
higher considerations forbade that their Empire should be
isolated any longer. Had Sir John Bowring been a man
better fitted for his position, he would in these circum-
stances have advised his Government to approach the
Chinese authorities in an open and candid manner, stat-
ing what were the arrangements which the new time re-
quired ; but instead of doing so he made himself a will-
ing tool in the hypocritical and injurious policy of pick-
ing a quarrel with the Celestials on some dubious point
of an existing treaty. I have been told on high autho-
rity that, previous to the Arrow affair, Sir John Bowring
had received private instructions from the Foreign Office
on no account to let any opportunity pass of commencing
a quarrel with the Chinese Government ; and this explains
the pertinacity with which Lord Palmerston afterwards
supported his subordinate, even appealing from the House
of Commons to the country on that subject. Neither
the lorcha case nor the alleged right of entry to Canton
were points upon which a very conscientious plenipoten-
tiary could have had recourse to arms; and Nemesis soon
overtook Sir John in shape of the obloquy which he had
to endure, and in his unexpected supercession by Lord
Elgin as Plenipotentiary in China. Thus, if Bowring
had any pleasant vision of figuring in Peking as a greater
successor of Macartney and Amherst it was cruelly dis-
appointed ; and from being the holder of plenipotentiary
powers in regard to four nations—Annam, China, Siam,
and Japan—he found himself suddenly and unexpectedly
302 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

reduced to the humble and almost intolgrable position of
Governor of the islet of Hongkong and of its adjacent
waters.

After hostilities with China had commenced, and we
were determined to obtain a new treaty, the appoint-
ment of Lord Elgin as the new Plenipotentiary to China
was a fortunate event. Of an historical family, de-
scended from Scottish royalty, and connected with the
proudest traditions of his country, this nobleman, along
with his two brothers, General Bruce and Sir Frederick
Bruce, had devoted himself from his early years to the
public service. As Governor in Jamaica, where he sub-
dued the disorders consequent on the Emancipation Act,
and as Governor-General in Canada, where he opposed
the various factions, and brought the mass of the people
from a state of chronic disaffection into one of perma-
nent loyalty, Lord Elgin had shown a disposition to pro-
tect weaker races from the unreasonable violence of the
unthinking portion of our countrymen, while at the
same time he had pursued Imperial interests with dis-
tinguished tact and success. As with all the Bruces,
not excepting King Robert, the great founder of the
family, there was more of the Englishman than of the
Scot in his physique and temperament; but to great
clearness of mind, and to a strong sense of the practical
requirements which, in his various positions, he knew
so well how to subserve, there was added a speculative
ability and power of appreciating general considerations
which belong more distinctively to the Northern intel-
lect, and particularly fitted him for grasping the problems
which arise from the conflict of great opposing races.
His personal appearance, “venerable beyond his years,”
and a placidity of aspect and demeanour which partially
concealed a keenness of eye that bordered on the dis-
 

LORD ELGIN. 303

agreeable, were specially calculated to impress with con-
fidence and respect a calm-tempered people like the
Chinese, of whom Du Halde so truly said, that they
would not hear in a month what a Frenchman would
speak in an hour. Moreover, being raised above the
temptations to which men of less fortunate circum-
stances struggling with the world are subject, he was
not actuated so much by personal ambition as by a deep
sense of duty ; and, on going out to China, his sincere
resolve was—“ No human power shall induce me to ac-
cept the office of oppression of the people.” *

To the Chinese it will probably appear absurd that
such a species of praise should be ascribed to Lord
Elgin, for they knew him almost solely in his unpleas-
ant function of pressing upon them changes to which
they were at the time averse; and they can scarcely
know what was the pressure he had to resist against
doing so to excess, at a period when our knowledge
and understanding of China were at the lowest ebb,
and what was the dissatisfaction which his moderation
caused among a section of our countrymen there.
While seeing that the time had come when the whole
relationship of the Celestial Empire towards Great Bri-
tain required to be changed, he firmly set his face
against demanding any changes which would only
serve the interests of individuals; and I well remem-
ber observing, on going out to China in 1858, the
strength of the secret animosity which this determi-
nation had caused among what might be called the
“Old Canton” party of our countrymen, who had dis-
covered, to their ineffable disgust and secret rage, that, in
calling in the aid of the arms of Great Britain, they had

* See an interesting article on Lord Elgin’s last days, attributed to the
Dean of Westminster, in the ‘North British Review’ of May 1864.
304 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

subordinated their,own petty aims to Jmperial interests,
and had to do with a Plenipotentiary who neither sought
their favour nor feared their frown. The mistakes which
Lord Elgin made arose chiefly from the defects of the
agents he had to employ—as from the timidity of Mr
Wade and the overbearing presumption of Mr Lay.
The frank decision with which he pressed his demands
on the Chinese, and which led the French officers in
the Peking Expedition to speak of him as being capable
of being un officier de dragons, was, in the circum-
stances, as some of the leading Mandarins now admit,
the greatest kindness he could have shown towards
them. Even the burning of the Emperor’s Summer
Palace was quite justifiable, and was well calculated
to promote a good end without inflicting painful in-
jury, though it is deeply to be regretted that, when
ordering the conflagration, Lord Elgin did not take
steps to insure the preservation of the oldest library
in the world.

When Sir Frederick Bruce went up to Peking as
Resident Minister in November 1860, and established
his mission in the capital in March 1861, it was scarcely
anticipated that he would show distinguished ability in
his new position. He had seen service enough: in
Washington, where he was attached to Lord Ashburton’s
special Mission in 1842; in Hongkong, where he had
been Colonial Secretary from 1844 to 1846; in New-
foundland as Lieutenant-Governor; in several of the
South American Republics ; as Consul-General in Egypt
from 1853 to 1856 ; as attached to Lord Elgin’s Mission
to China in 1857; and as Envoy Extraordinary and
Minister Plenipotentiary to the Emperor of China in
1859, when he refused to go to Peking except up the
Peiho river; but in none of these positions had he had
SIR F. BRUCE. 305

opportunity of attaining eminence. Perhaps an easy
off-hand manner, and facility in making himself agree-
able, had tended to conceal his real abilities. Those
who knew him superficially were apt to suppose that he
would sacrifice anything to comfort and the pleasures of
good companionship ; while a closer acquaintanceship
with him dispelled this illusion, and disclosed a man of
very firm character and sound judgment, who allowed
others to trifle with him as they pleased, not because he
was afraid to cause them annoyance when duty required,
or in any degree to incur their resentment, but simply
because he felt that he could rely on his own strength.
During his service at Peking, this fact made itself very
apparent. Taller and handsomer than his brother, Lord
Elgin, with a commanding presence and agreeable man-
ners, Sir Frederick exhibited a demeanour at once digni-
fied and suave, whether towards the Imperial Mandarins
or his own countrymen; but any attempt to interfere
with his direction of the interests of his country was
very promptly checked when it could not be set aside
in a lighter way. By a portion of the mercantile com-
munity he was accused of indolent neglect of their
interests ; but his despatches clearly show that he had
fully weighed their complaints, and was prepared, had
he deemed it advisable, to answer these complaints
very fully.

The position in which Sir Frederick Bruce was placed
at Peking was exceedingly difficult, between the un-
reasonable expectations of the British merchants, who
imagined that the new treaty was to produce a com-
mercial millennium, and the timid suspicions of the Man-
darins, who were inclined to look upon every Foreign
proposal as hurtful to their own interests and destructive
to China. A fussy, meddling man might in his place

U
306 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

have done irretrievable injury by inclinjng injudiciously
to either side. ‘To have ignored just Foreign demands
would have confirmed the Chinese Government in its
worst mistakes, and to have urged that Government
beyond the limits of its own judgment would have had
a very similar effect. It required no small degree of
moral courage, even for a man who understood the
position, to act in it so calmly and satisfactorily as Sir
Frederick did. He was not afraid even to rebuke her
Majesty’s Foreign Secretary, Earl Russell, for acting on the
Lay-Osborn agreement; and Lord Palmerston, the then
Premier, when referring to this matter in Parliament,
seemed rather to chuckle over the boldness of his sub-
ordinate. An attentive perusal of Sir Frederick Bruce’s
despatches from Peking, and of a number of his private
letters, has left upon me a very high impression of his
great ability and honesty of purpose. It is quite true
that in 1863 he hesitated a good deal, and so for a short
period his policy assumed an appearance of feebleness
and vacillation. The cause of hesitation lay, not in his
own character, but in the extreme difficulty of the ques-
tion which he had to decide. Desiring, for the sake of
our mercantile interests and of the people of China, to
aid in strengthening the Imperial Government and in
putting down the Rebellion, he felt bound to give the
full weight of his support to Colonel Gordon and any
other British officers who chose to enter the Imperial
service. At the same time he had to see that the
assistance so given should not confirm the Chinese Gov-
ernment in its old inefficient style of dealing with
rebellion. It is no wonder that he hesitated in these
circumstances, for even now it is difficult to say whether
he might not with advantage have inclined a little more
to one side or the other; but no one can aver with even
SIR RUTHERFORD ALCOCK. 307

the slightest show of truth, that having once made up
his mind as to the course to be pursued, he did not
pursue that course in a persistent manner, or shrunk
from responsibility, or failed to acknowledge in a gener-
ous manner the services of his coadjutors. It may also
be noted that he was eminently successful in leading the
other Foreign Ministers at Peking to act along with him,
so as to present an undivided front to the Mandarins;
and there can be little doubt that this was one of the
chief reasons which led to his promotion to the still
more difficult post of Minister at Washington, where he
also acted with rare tact and discretion, almost up to
the very day of his sudden and lamented death,—-a death
which, as the President of the United States remarked,*
revealed to Americans the fact that the friendship which
they had cherished for him “had even acquired the in-
tensity of fraternal affection.”

It is not necessary to say much about Sir Rutherford
Alcock, the successor of Sir Frederick Bruce as British
Minister at Peking. In ordinary times the Chinese
need not expect that we should always be represented
by distinguished or able men, or that our Foreign Office
should overlook the claims which long service in the Far
East may confer on a mere routinier. It is greatly to
Sir R. Alcock’s credit that nothing particular has to
be said against his conduct of the mission to China ;
for both as Consul at Shanghai and as Minister to Japan
his previous career had given indications of considerable
want of judgment. One or two of his earlier reports to
his own Government on the state of China, and on our
relationships with that country, are really valuable docu-
ments, characterised by sound knowledge and great

* In his address to Mr Thornton, the successor of Sir F. Bruce as British
Minister at Washington.
308 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

moderation of tone; but as Consul ateShanghai he did
not always act on the principles he had propounded,
and especially in threatening, on account of some dubious
dispute with the Imperialist authorities in his neigh-
bourhood, to lay an embargo on the sea-going supply of
grain to Peking. In Japan the conduct of Sir Ruther-
ford Alcock was productive of more serious consequences,
and a good deal of our difficulties with that newly-
opened country may be fairly charged against him.
Towards the Japanese he was both overbearing and
timid. He greatly weakened his position as her Ma-
jesty’s representative by, at an early period of his mis-
sion, threatening them with war on insufficient grounds
and without sufficient authority, an offence for which he
was severely reproved by Earl Russell, then Foreign Secre-
tary ; and yet when the Japanese Government, pursuing
its policy of intimidation towards Foreigners, warned
him that it could not protect the Legation at Yedo, he
had the weakness to remove his flag to Yokohama, while
Mr Harris, the American Minister, continued to reside
in safety at the secular capital. Towards his own coun-
trymen in Japan also Sir Rutherford Alcock behaved
very injudiciously, trying to control and thwart them in
regard to matters in which they were perfectly in the
right,—such as preferring Yokohama to Kanagawa as a
place for a commercial settlement, and travelling in the
country, with the connivance of Japanese authorities,
beyond the limits allowed them by treaty.

In our connection with China a great deal depends
on the character of certain British officials who are well
acquainted with the Celestial language, but who do not
come prominently before the notice of the British public.
Of these by far the most important of late years has
been Mr Thomas Wade, who acted for long as Chinese
MR THOMAS WADE. 309

Secretary to the Legation, and filled at one time the
post of Chargé d’Affarres at Peking. Having gone out
to China as a subaltern in one of her Majesty’s regi-
ments during the period of the Opium War, Mr Wade’s
linguistic proclivities led him to acquire a knowledge
of the Chinese tongue, and his first civil employment
was in the somewhat humble position of interpreter to
the Supreme Court of Hongkong. Neither well skilled,
nor professing to be well skilled, in the use of colloquial
Chinese (a defect which he shares, along with the Ame-
rican, Dr 8S. W. Williams, one of the most eminent of
living Sinologues), Mr Wade has, nevertheless, enormous
knowledge of the Chinese language and literature, and
has done good service by his translations, published or
only privately printed, of Chinese State-Papers. His
irritable repellant air, as of an ill-used and over-worked
man, has not been fitted to inspire the confidence of a
calm-tempered people like the Chinese, and he has been
not altogether unjustly accused of a fondness for work-
ing in the dark in circumstances where the interests of
the two countries would have been much better fur-
thered by greater frankness and publicity. In brief,
Mr Wade's great fault is, that in a position of great
power and responsibility he has failed to rise above the
subservience and caution which are the characteristics of
subordinate officials in small colonies such as Hongkong.

Sir Harry Parkes and Mr H. N. Lay come to be
noticed together, as both belonging, longo «intervallo,
to the same school. They both went out to China ata
very early age, and had the misfortune of being pupils
of the late Dr Gutzlaff, a man of somewhat unscru-
pulous character. I have noticed that Europeans who
have been brought up from childhood or from early
youth in India or China, and have at the same time
310 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

made early acquaintance with Hastern languages, are
disposed to treat the natives of these countries with
greater rudeness, or, a8 some would call it, energy, than
is usual among other Englishmen in the Hast of similar
social standing. The real cause of this I believe to
be partial arrestment of moral development at the bois-
terous schoolboy stage, owing to a too early acquire-
ment of power among people of a different moral code
from that of their own countrymen ; but it may plausi-
bly, however erroneously, be argued that it proceeds
only from appreciation of the best means of dealing with
Asiatics. Be that as it may, both the gentlemen now
referred to acquired a reputation among the Chinese for
this characteristic. Of Mr Lay enough has been said
already,* and I have no wish otherwise to compare Sir
Harry Parkes with him; but the latter also has certainly
been affected by early Eastern training, both as regards
a habit of driving the Chinese, and as regards a quality
which may be called subtlety. When he was engaged
with Sir John Bowring in obtaining our treaty with
Siam, the officials of that country said that he combined
the energy of a European with the finesse of a Chinese
Mandarin ; and a similar suggestion is made by the
contrast between his brilliant forehead and manly open
countenance and his stereotyped hollow smile, so indi-
cative of oblique design. Though that affair passed very
soon out of his hands, yet a certain responsibility for
the Arrow difficulty rests upon him; and I have heard
more than one impartial observer speak of his treatment
of Chinese officials on certain occasions as having been
something “ quite frightful.” t

* See ante, p. 260 et seg.

+ On this subject generally, Dr Rennie makes the following remark,
which is worthy of note, in his ‘ Peking and the Pekingese,’ vol. ii. p. 290:
“Wang a small Mandarin, who has often complained bitterly of his
SIR HARRY S. PARKES. 311

When Sir Harry Parkes fell into the hands of the
Chinese in 1860, no one expected that he would ever re-
appear in any other shape than that of “minute pieces ;”
but his unshaken courage and firmness had something to
do, as well as his good fortune, in preserving him from
the fate of his companions ; and his estimable personal
qualities, as well as his value as a public servant, made
his release unharmed a matter of rejoicing to all his
countrymen in China. Being still little past Dante’s
mezzo del cammin di nostra vita, his success in life has
been somewhat remarkable ; but it has been well earned
by his singular activity and his devotion to the interests
of the British merchants in China. I believe it was the
intention of Lord Elgin, when he superseded Sir John
Bowring, to have sent Sir Harry, then Mr Parkes, back
to his unimportant consulate at Amoy, as having proved
himself of rather too active a disposition ; but the services
of the latter were found indispensable, and on our occu-
pying Canton he was made British Commissioner for
the Government of that city, fulfilling the multifarious
duties which devolved on him with an ardour which
knew no rest, and a personal fearlessness which despised
even common prudence. His captivity at Peking, and
services about that period, were rewarded with the title
of K.C.B.; and from the Shanghai Consulship he was ad-
vanced to be our Minister in Japan, a position which
will probably lead to his obtaining the Peking mission.

treatment by Sir H. Parkes, when he went over to the north fort, at Taku,
in August 1860, to deliver a letter to Lord Elgin from the Governor-Gene-
ral of Chili] attributes a great deal of the troubles of the British Govern-
ment with China to the overbearing conduct’of our interpreters, who, he
remarks, lose themselves completely as soon as they have learned the
Chinese language, and try to carry everything by bullying, and what they
call ‘knowing how to manage the Chinese ;’ an observation that my own
experience inclines me very much to endorse, from what I have on several
occasions myself witnessed.”
312 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA,

. This, in a public service like that of Great Britain, is a
splendid career for so young a man, aided by no special
interest, and distinguished rather by ordinary parts in a
high state of activity, than by the qualities of what Con-
fucius was wont to call “the superior man.”

Mr Thomas Taylor Meadows is a remarkable contrast
to Sir H. Parkes: his Northumbrian stature and solidity
indicate a man of slow adaptability, not easily moved
from any opinion he once takes up; and his early educa-
tion at a German University has given him a tendency
to theorising somewhat in excess of the actual grasp of
his mind. He has been connected in an important man-
ner with the Tai-ping movement, because from an early
period of its existence he took a great interest in it, and
industriously availed himself of his position in the Con-
sular Service to collect information regarding that move-
ment. In his most valuable and interesting work, ‘ The
Chinese and their Rebellions,’ and in his long reports to
Government, he always took a very favourable view of
the Tai-pings. Mr Meadows has the credit of having
been the first among our modern Sinologues to compre-
hend the vital principles of the Chinese State, and the
pretensions of the Rebellion in relation to these princi-
ples; and his great knowledge of the Chinese has been
gathered not only by hard and intelligent study (for
there is such a thing as industrious unintelligent study)
of their language and literature, but also by frequently
travelling among them as one of themselves, in circum-
stances which exposed him to very great danger. He is
not for a moment to be confounded with the rut of
Tai-ping sympathisers in China, or with Colonel Sykes
et hoc omne genus at home; but, owing to the interest
which the Rebellion excited in him from its resemblance
to earlier revolutionary movements in China, and to
MR T. T. MEADOWS. 313

the foolish character of many of the objections brought
against it, he greatly exaggerated its merits, and lost sight
of the deterioration which took place in the character
and in the practices of its leaders. It was of import-
ance, however, for a competent person among our offi-
cials in China to take the side of the Tai-pings and say
all that could be said in their favour. While doing so
Mr Meadows has always shown himself a scholar and a
gentleman, and he has thrown much light on collateral
subjects of interest and importance. It is greatly to be
regretted that some differences with Sir Frederick Bruce
when Mr Meadows was Acting Consul at Shanghai, and
his own love of studious retirement, should have pre-
vented him from taking a much higher place than he has
done in Anglo-Chinese officialdom. At his own request
he was banished to the unimportant consulship of New-
chwang in Manchuria some years ago, and as he has never
shown any disposition to be released from that post, we
can only hope that he may soon lay before the public
the result of his researches in Manchu language and
history.

So far as I can judge in regard to a subject which
seems purposely kept as much in the dark as possible,
Admiral Sir James Hope was the British officer in China
who took the most active part in bringing about a change
in our relationships towards the Tai-pings; but I have
no means of determining whether this was done from a
serious view of the position, or simply from the natural
tendency of naval officers to cut out work for themselves
and for those under their command. There can be no
doubt that the Taku disaster of 1859 was one which
would have been fatal to the prospects of any British
admiral not backed up either by great interest or by
much popularity in the service. Both these causes, com-
314 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

bined with his own personal gallantry, have served to
throw a veil over Admiral Hope’s management on that
occasion ; and it may also be said, that previous to the
disaster our experience of Chinese warfare had not war-
ranted any expectation of such serious resistance as San-
kolinsin made at the mouth of the Peiho in 1859. In
determining on the clearance of a thirty-mile radius
round Shanghai, in the operations which effected that
end, and in his support of the course of conduct followed
by Captain Dew in Chekiang, Admiral Hope did valu-
able service to the cause of order and peace in China;
but it was by the support he gave to General Ward, and
to the establishment of the Ever-Victorious Army on the
footing of a respectable force, that he dealt his most
effectual blow against the Tai-pings. Of his subordinate,
Captain Roderick Dew, it is not necessary to repeat here
what has already been said in the commencement and
the end of Chapter VII. The valley of the Wye has
reason to be proud of so dashing and distinguished a
naval officer.

Both the chief of the present Abyssinian Expedition
and his second have served in China. Sir Robert Napier
held a divisional command under Sir Hope Grant on
the Peking Expedition, and directed the capture of the
North Fort at Taku, impressing on his troops a high idea
of his ability, and on observers like myself, of his geni-
ality of disposition. Major-General Sir Charles W. Stave-
ley went through a good deal of service in the Crimea,
having been in the battles of Alma and Balaclava, and
in command of the 44th Regiment at the fall of Sebas-
topol. In the China campaign of 1860 he commanded a
brigade, and, in April and May 1862, was in command
of the force employed against the Tai-pings in the neigh-
bourhood of Shanghai, when the fortified town of Najow
GENERALS STAVELEY AND BROWN. 315

was taken, the walled cities of Kading, Tsipoo, and
Cholin, and several intrenched camps. He has the repu-
tation of being very active and kind-hearted, but cau-
tious, and more inclined to fulfil the duties of a second
in command than for assuming the initiative and the
responsibility required of a chief. His appointment of
a British officer to command the Ever-Victorious Army
was an event forced upon him by circumstances rather
than of his own seeking, and his bearing towards the
Chinese was dignified, reserved, and guarded; but at
the same time he was very polite towards them, and they
thought very highly of him. His successor, Major-Gen-
eral W. G. Brown, on the contrary, was not at all afraid
of incurring responsibility, and was apt to be a little high-
handed with the Chinese. The acquaintance of this
officer with active service had been drawn chiefly from
the Punjaub campaign, he having been wounded at the
battle of Chillianwallah, and commanded the 29th Regi-
ment at the battle of Goojerat. Like many other officers
who have seen much service in India, he was disposed to
deal with the Chinese as we do with the natives of India,
which the Celestials do not at all appreciate ; but any un-
pleasantness arising from that cause was amply compen-
sated to them by the hearty and effective support which
he gave to Colonel Gordon, and, in general, to the Im-
perialist cause, regardless of the outcries of Tai-ping
sympathisers, and fearless of the responsibility which he
incurred.

In the persons of Colonel Gordon and of Mr Robert
Hart the Chinese have, at a very critical period of their
history, been happily brought in contact with two Fo-
reigners of a higher tone of mind and character than
their previous experience had made them much acquainted
with. Of the former officer I have thought it necessary
316 SKETCHES OF OFFICIALS IN CHINA.

already to say much more than is agreeable to himself,
and shall only add here a very few words. A great deal
of what has been mentioned to his credit I should never
have learned from himself; and the reader who has gone
through the details of fighting and bloodshed with which
his name is associated, might be surprised on finding him
to be a man still young, of quiet manners and disposi-
tion, and of varied culture. Deeply religious in sen-
timent, and a soldier of the Havelock and Stonewall
Jackson type, Colonel Gordon presents few of the char-
acteristics usually associated with the common notion of
the dashing leader of an irregular force. Great pleasure
in activity, a self-sacrificing disposition, and a sense of
duty, have been evidently the mainsprings of his conduct;
and the results, whatever others may think, have been
too pleasant and satisfactory to himself, and, as he thinks,
too undeserved, to allow of his glorying in them.

Mr Hart, the Inspector-General of the Chinese Imperial
Maritime Customs, was in the British Consular Service
in China before he entered that of which he became the
head on the dismissal of Mr Lay in 1863, and brought
much previous culture to assist him in acquiring a know-
ledge of the Chinese language and people. While fully
alive to the defects of the Celestial Government, he has
shown great tact and wisdom in leading it along the
path of progress; at the same time he has commanded
the respect of his own countrymen in the somewhat in-
vidious position of Inspector-General of Customs. His
lucid memorandums on the trade and the condition of
China are well worthy the consideration of those who
desire to see gradual and pacific improvement in that
country. Of late he has almost entirely taken up his
residence at Peking, and has become the confidential
adviser of the Peking Government in all that refers to
COLONEL GORDON AND MR HART. 317

its Foreign relationships. To the effects of the confidence
which he has inspired may be ascribed the appointment
of the Laou-yeh Pin to proceed to Europe in 1866 as
a Commissioner from the Imperial Government, the
establishment of a College at Peking for the study of
European languages and science, and the appointment
of Mr Burlinghame as Minister from China to the Treaty
Powers. In character, and, to a less extent, in manner,
Mr Hart reminds one of an Indian civilian of the higher
class, and especially of that school of Indian civilians of
which Sir Bartle Frere is facile princeps. The pleasant
demeanour of an Irishman has been useful to him at
Peking, as it was, many years before, to Earl Macartney.
He is more inclined to Jead than to drive the Chinese,
and has established himself as a power in the country ;
but it may be well for him to keep in mind the de-
served fate of Mr Lay, and not to lose sight of the fact
that, though he has used them well, he has had great
opportunities provided to his hand. Hitherto his course
has been favoured by that of events; and while he has
himself reaped a large share of the resultant rewards,
perhaps the most arduous portion of the task of adjust-
ing our international relationships with China has fallen
upon those who have received no remuneration or
even acknowledgment for their unselfish but invidious
labours. Now that he is able in some degree to command
events similar to those by which he has been guided,
and of which he has so wisely availed himself, it remains
to be seen how far he will be equal to the high respon-
sibilty and grand opportunities of a very powerful
position between England and China.
CHAPTER. XVI

THE FALL OF NANKING AND THE LAST STRUGGLES
OF THE TAI-PINGS.

THE TIEN-WANG’S INDIFFERENGE AND SECLUSION—SWEET DEW—
HIS WISDOM AND GOOD FORTUNE—COMPLETE INVESTMENT OF
NANKING — DESPAIR OF THE FAITHFUL KING—LAST DAYS OF
HUNG SEW-TSUEN—HIS DEATH AND BURIAL—HIS SON FU-TIEN
ASCENDS THE THRONE—THE FALL OF NANKING—CAPTURE OF
THE FAITHFUL KING—HIS CHARACTER AND AUTOBIOGRAPHY—
HIS EXECUTION—FATE OF THE SHIELD KING AND OF THE YOUNG
MONARCH —-STATE OF NANKING WHEN CAPTURED — REPORT ON
ITS CONDITION BY VICE-CONSUL ADKINS— RECEPTION OF THE
NEWS AT PEKING—IMPERIAL DECREE—THE FALL OF WUCHU —
EXPERIENCES OF PATRICK NELLIS — RETREAT OF THE TAI-PING
REMNANT THROUGH KIANGSI INTO FUKIEN—-THEY APPEAR AT
CHANGCHOW, NEAR AMOY—MANIFESTO OF THE ATTENDANT
KING—THEIR DISPERSION AND FINAL DISAPPEARANCE—FATE
OF THE I WANG.

Waite Soochow was in course of being taken in 1863,
Tseng Kwo-tsun, the Imperialist General, was engaged
with large forces in closely investing Nanking. He
intrenched himself so closely and strongly round that
city as to be able to cut off all supply of provisions,
and easily to defeat the attempts of the Faithful King
to bring it relief. That latter prince, however, managed
himself to gain admission to the Rebel capital, and
besought the Tien Wang to make his escape and give
up the city, as it could no longer be held, and was defi-
THE TIEN WANG’S INDIFFERENCE. 319

cient in the necessaries of life ; but the monarch, accord-
ing to the Faithful King’s Autobiography, was highly
displeased at this proposal, and indignantly exclaimed,
“Thave received the commands of Shangte [God] and of
Jesus to come down upon the earth and rule the empire.
lam the sole Lord of ten thousand nations, and what
should I fear? You are not asked your opinion upon
anything, and the Government does not require your
supervision, You can please yourself as to whether
you wish to leave the capital or to remain. I hold the
empire, hills, and streams with an iron grasp, and if
you do not support me there are those who will. You
say, ‘There are no soldiers!’ But my troops are more
numerous than the streams. What fear have I of the
demon Tseng? If you are afraid of death then you
will die.” It was in this way only that the Heavenly
Monarch would look at practical matters. Burying
himself in the depths of his palace, and engrossed with
religious exercises and the society of his women, he
gave himself no concern about either the approach of
his enemies or the terrible state of his people) When
any one memorialised him on internal affairs, or made
suggestions pertinent to the preservation of the kingdom,
he would invariably silence them with remarks on heaven
and earth, which, as the Chung Wang complains, were
“totally irrelevant to the main point in view.” When
it was mentioned to him that only the very wealthy
people in Nanking had any food to eat, he issued a
decree that the remainder should support themselves
upon “sweet dew,” and illustrated his meaning by order-
ing some herbs from the palace garden to be prepared
for his own dinner. His subordinates in the Govern-
ment were allowed to do as they liked so long as they
professed implicit submission to his decrees; but their
320 THE FALL OF NANKING.

chief was very particular with them in regard to points
of theological phraseology, and threatened to draw any
one asunder between five horses who omitted a due use
of the term “ Heavenly ” in all official documents.

It should not be supposed, however, that such conduct
on the part of Hung Sew-tsuen was altogether insane,
for it was in great part by following such a course that
he had created Tai-pingdom and maintained his suprem-
acy over it. At no period had he personally interfered
much in the details of government or in the manage-
ment of fighting. Even when blaming him for his
inactivity, the Faithful King admits that “the Tien
Wang had been inwardly conscious for some time past
of an impending crisis and of the insecurity of the
capital; but, being of an elevated mind, he did not care
to review the past or speculate on the future.” And it
is very questionable whether he would have gained any-
thing by admitting the serious nature of the circum-
stances by which he was now surrounded, for one of the
greatest supports of his position was his lofty reliance
on the favour of Heaven. It would have been exceed-
ingly dangerous for him to have shown any signs of
failing or of apprehension ; and his extraordinary past
career afforded at least some show of reason for his con-
fidence in Heaven, and his disregard of prudential con-
siderations and of merely human advice. Certainly he
had enjoyed the smiles of Fortune for a very long
period, and that without any great exertions of his own.
He had survived all his colleagues who had issued with
him from Kwangsi. Of the four leading Kings who
started with him on his journeys, two, those of the South
and of the West, did not live to reach Nanking ; while
the Eastern and the Northern Kings had been put to
death for conspiring against his authority. More than
COMPLETE INVESTMENT OF NANKING. 321

once before he had been in apparently desperate circum-
stances, and been relieved not so much by any efforts of
his own or of his subordinates as by a fortunate turn in
the course of affairs. Hence it was not altogether bad
policy of him to refrain from reviewing the past or
speculating on the future with his elevated mind.

The Faithful King was well aware of the desperate
state into which matters were falling, but no thought of
faithlessness to his Lord seems to have crossed his mind;
and it is to his honour that he largely expended his
own means in assisting the starving people of Nanking.
In the commencement of 1864 Nanking was closely in-
vested on all sides, so that the only road from it open
was that to Tayan. The Imperialists had a large flo-
tilla on the Yangtsze. From this river their double, and
at some places even treble, intrenchments ran above
Nanking to Porcelain Tower Hill, which commanded
the city; and on the north extended down from the
Tsao-hia creek almost to the hills above the Ming
tombs, where the Rebels still held a strong position.
The forts below the capital had also been captured by
the Imperialists, and when the Faithful King returned
to it in January 1864 he lost about 100,000 of his men
merely from having no rations to give them all, and no
spot on which to camp them.

When the Ever-Victorious Army was dissolved in
June 1864, the capture of Nanking and the final sup-
pression of the Tai-ping Rebellion were events which
appeared evidently close at hand. On the Ist of June
the investment of the Rebel capital was completed suf-
ficiently to prevent its receiving any further supplies.
The Imperialists had exploded several mines at different
places beneath the walls, so compelling the garrison
to be continually on the watch. The Imperialist lines

x
322 THE FALL OF NANKING.

around the city were about thirty milgs in length, con-
sisting of strong forts, stockades, and deep ditches.
These fortifications were so constructed as to protect the
besiegers, who were about 80,000 in number, from any
attack from the outside; and though the pay of some
of these troops was considerably in arrear, they were
well fed and contented. The besieging army was about
to be reinforced by Colonel Gordon’s late corps of artil-
lery under Colonel Doyle, and also by Bailey’s artillery,
which had operated under the late General Ching; while
Gordon himself took occasion of a flying visit to select
the best point for attack, choosing the north-east angle of
the wall, which in most parts of its circuit was about 40
feet high and 50 feet thick.

Before matters had got quite to this pass, some of the
Tai-ping leaders escaped with their troops and fled into
Kiangsi ; but the poor Faithful King remained true to
his name and to the Tai-ping cause. He had lost heart,
however, and regarded the Rebel movement as virtually
defunct. Even then the Heavenly Monarch would not
listen to his advice, and trusted the management of
affairs to the Shield King alone. He still continued his
policy of ignoring the actual state of things, and of dis-
coursing grandiloquently on the mysteries of heaven and
earth. Inside the doomed city matters were daily becom-
ing worse and worse. The Faithful King says that starv-
ing men and women were constantly clinging round him,
beseeching relief which was no longer in his power to
afford. As the Tien Wang refused to allow any of the
famished people to leave the city, the Faithful King
issued secret orders enabling them to do so; and so
about 3000 women and children were allowed to go
out to the Imperialist General, Tseng Kwo-tsun, who
had established a provident fund for their relief. On
LAST DAYS OF HUNG SEW-TSUEN. 323

the other hand, the Cantonese soldiers of the Shield
King plundered and murdered as they chose, so that
complete anarchy and confusion reigned in the be-
leaguered capital of the Great Peace. “Thieves and
robbers,” says the Chung Wang, “sprang up in the
city. The nights were disturbed with incessant can-
nonading within the walls, and murders and pillages
of whole families took place. These were fatal omens,
and indications of coming destruction.” As dangers
gathered round him, Hung Sew-tsuen, the Heavenly
Monarch, became more cruel in his edicts, and ordered
any of his people who might be found communicating
with the enemy to be flayed alive or pounded to death ;
but even he could no longer conceal from himself the
fact that the days of his reign and of his life had drawn
toaclose. It would be interesting to know what were
the last thoughts of this extraordinary man when he
found himself in these circumstances. Did he still be-
lieve that he was a favourite of heaven, and authorised
representative of Deity on earth, or had he in his last
hours some glimpse of the true nature of the terrible
and cruel destiny which he had had to fulfil? Surely
as his thoughts reverted to the simple Hakka village of
his youth, he must have known that his path over the
once peaceful and happy Flowery Land could be traced
by flames and rapine and bloodshed, involving a sum
of human wretchedness such as had never before lain to
the account of the most ferocious scourge of mankind.
Where there had been busy cities, he had left ruinous
heaps ; where fruitful fields, a desolate wilderness ; “ wild
beasts, descending from their fastnesses in the moun-
tains, roamed at large over the land, and made their dens
in the ruins of deserted towns; the cry of the pheasant
usurped the place of the hum of busy populations ; no
324 THE FALL OF NANKING.

hands were left to till the soil, and noxjpus weeds covered
the ground once tilled with patient industry.” Even, as
has been remarked, the very physical features of the
country, owing to neglect of the embankment of great
rivers, had been largely changed by his destructive
career. And, after all this ruin and misery, what had
the Tai-ping movement come to at last but the restora-
tion of Imperial rule in China, while a cloud of fear and
wrath hung over the doomed city in which the king and
priest and prophet of the Great Peace anticipated death
in the midst of his trembling women and the remnant
of his ferocious soldiery ?

It is a dreadful story, but chiefly interesting and
solely valuable to us from the warning it gives as to
the disorganisation and ruin which may swiftly overtake
the human race, when it tries to avoid the constantly
recurring necessity of facing the exigencies of its posi-
tion; and as to the danger of allowing a man of
powerful imaginative mind to become mad in the fire of
his own repressed energy, and under a sense of his own
sufferings and wrongs. Men like Rousseau and Hung
Sew-tsuen are not to be held personally accountable for
their destructive effect on the society in which they grow
up. “They made themselves a fearful monument ;” but
in order to its being made, society must have become
ripe for ruin—the tree must be ready to fall; and there
is no surer indication of such rottenness in any civilisa-
tion, than its inability or its unwillingness to find a
fitting place for men of so remarkable powers. In
the case of the Tai-ping chief, over-population, nomi-
nal submission to Tartar dominion, and unlooked-for
contact with a different civilisation, at least as power-
ful as its own, had brought China to a condition in
which it required a great purifying punishment. A
THE MORAL OF TAI-PINGDOM. 325

striking indication of this fact was the sale of civil offices
for money, because there was nothing on which the
Chinese had so justly prided themselves, and in which
they were so superior to other nations, as their committal
of both power and wealth to men of regal qualities.
“Virtue,” says the commentator in the ‘ Great Learning,
“is the root, wealth is the result ;” and so long as the
Chinese acted on this principle their empire flourished ;
when they departed from it, trouble came, as it has
always come, and always will come, upon nations who
value this result more than its root, and having first
allowed the exercise of low qualities to determine the
possession of wealth, proceed to the almost necessary
consequence of allowing wealth to wield the chief power.
It really required some such terrible affliction as the Tai-
ping Rebellion to save China from the state of corruption
and imbecility into which it was sinking; and when
that rebellion had served its purpose, it too came to an
end, and fell like a tree prepared to fall. In all this
there was nothing but that benevolence of Heaven to
which Confucius refers, terrible as its working may seem
to human eyes; and so it becomes intelligible how the
nation which required this punishment had not the
privilege of meting out justice and inflicting retribution
on the instrument of it.

Those who were in intercourse with him at this period
gave no indication as to Hung Sew-tsuen’s state of mind.
His son, the “Young Lord,” only states that on the
“24th May 1864 the Tien Wang succumbed to sick-
ness ;” but the Faithful King more probably relates that,
terrified by the bursting of mines which the Imperialists
had sprung round the East Gate, the Rebel Monarch fell
into such anxiety and trouble of mind that on the 30th
June he poisoned himself. His corpse was buried by
326 THE FALL OF NANKING.

one of his wives in the garden behind his palace, where
it was afterwards dug up by the Imperialists, and was
found draped in yellow silk, the head being bald and
the mustache grey.

After the death of this monarch, his eldest son, Hung
Fu-tien, a youth of sixteen years old, ascended the no-
minal throne; but he had been brought up in ignorance
of state matters and of military operations. The city
was still more closely beleaguered, and on the 8th July
the Faithful King made a sortie, but was driven back
after a severe fight. As it was plain to him that the
city could not be held much longer, he was now anxious
to surrender, but was so closely watched by his col-
leagues that he could not get away, and an attempt he
made to escape nearly cost him his life, through the
drunken loquacity of one of his adherents. On the
19th of this month the Imperialists fired an enormous
mine, said to contain over 40,000 lb. of gunpowder,
which blew a long breach clean through the wall, and
through this the Imperialists poured into the city, while
at the same time false attacks were made on all sides.
On seeing this, the garrisons of Chung-kuan, and of the
few other forts which remained to the Tai-pings outside,
either surrendered or were killed when running away ;
but inside the city the Faithful King rallied his troops,
and repulsed the assailants near the Tien Wang’s palace,
which he held till midnight, protecting the Monarch’s
weeping family. As-the Imperialists thronged into the
city, however, he found he could no longer make a stand,
and, having set fire to the palace, along with his own re-
sidence, retreated towards the South-west Gate. Here
Hung Fu-tien and two other sons of the Rebel Monarch
claimed his assistance, and, as a last instance of his won-
derful and unselfish faithfulness, he mounted the Young
DEATH OF THE FAITHFUL KING. 327

Lord on his own war-horse, and contented himself with
a weak, useless animal. “Though the Tien Wang’s
days,” he writes, “ had been fulfilled, the nation injured,
through others baffling and deceiving him, and the state
lost, still, as I had received his favours, I could not do
otherwise than evince my faithfulness by endeavouring
to save his son.”

In the confusion which followed the capture of Nan-
king, the Faithful King, the Shield King, and the Young
Lord, with about 1000 of their followers, did manage to
escape out of the city and through the Imperialist lines,
but were immediately followed by a body of Tseng
Kwo-tsun’s cavalry. The first of these Wangs soon got
separated from the others, but finding that the wretched
pony which he rode was unable to carry him, he soon
took refuge in a ruined temple on the Huang Hill. On
learning that he was the Chung Wang, some country
people who discovered him there, knelt down before him
and gave way to tears. They besought him to shave
his head and assume disguise; but to this he answered,
“Tam a great minister of a nation now extinct, and of
a sovereign now no more. Had I not escaped, but been
taken by the Imperialists, I should not now be in life ;
and even though I now live, it will not be fair to my
men who have fallen if I submit myself to have my
head shaved.” On being pressed, however, the Faithful
King gave way to the proposal, but before his further
escape was contrived, another party came up who recog-
nised him to be a high Tai-ping Chief, from his being in
possession of some seals made of precious stone, and
who accordingly insisted on his being delivered up to
the pursuing cavalry of General T’seng.

On the further fate of Li Seu-cheng, the Chung Wang
or Faithful King, it is painful to dwell. He was ex-
328 THE FALL OF NANKING.

ecuted by simple decapitation, without apy previous
torture; but during his whole connection with the
Rebellion he had behaved in so humane a manner, that
his life might well have been spared ; and the constancy
he had displayed to the Tai-ping cause, even when sus-
pected and ill-treated by his monarch, was a sufficient
guarantee that, having once submitted to the Imperial-
ists, he would not again have taken up arms against
them. His last act of fidelity, that of giving his horse
to the young Tien Wang, was a noble trait in his
character, for had he not done so, he might very likely
have himself escaped. Among the Tai-pings generally
he was very much beloved, and the country people
always spoke well of him, and distinguished him favour-
ably from other Rebel leaders. On various occasions
during his career he sacrificed his own property to
relieve the distress of cities which some of his colleagues
had misgoverned, and the people of Soochow had erected
a monument to commemorate one of these his humane
efforts. All this, however, did not avail to preserve his
life. The Imperial Commissioner, Tseng Kwo-fan, re-
ferred his case to Peking; and during the respite thus
afforded, the Chung Wang occupied himself in writing
his autobiography, which he completed in eight days, at
the extraordinary rate, considering the nature of the
Chinese language, of about 7000 characters daily. This
apologia pro vita sua, though written in these curious
circumstances, to show cause why he should not be put to
death, is a masterly production, bemg an exceedingly
clear and condensed sketch of the history of the Rebel-
lion, and displaying very graphic powers of description
in those parts which relate to the author’s own experi-
ence. Of its truthfulness there need be no question,
because it is accurate on points where it can be checked,
FATE OF THE KAN WANG. 329

and it is tinged throughout with a fine colouring of
philosophic melancholy, suitable to the circumstances in
which it was produced.

On second thoughts Tseng Kwo-fan did not wait for
Imperial directions as to the disposal of this Tai-ping
Chief. It occurred to him that, if sent up to Peking, the
Faithful King might either escape on the road and cause
new misfortunes, or else avoid a public execution by
starving himself to death; so he suddenly took upon
himself the responsibility of ordering his decapitation,
which took place on the 7th of August 1864, and his
head was sent round to various cities “in order to
gratify the public mind.” So far the Faithful King was
actually fortunate, for an Imperial decree which arrived
soon after condemned him to a “slow and ignominious
death;” but his execution in any way must be con-
demned. Even asa matter of policy it was inexpedient,
for he had offered to secure the allegiance of the Rebels
in Hoopeh and Kiangsi as a ransom for his life. There
can be no doubt that he had sufficient influence with the
remaining Tai-pings to secure this result; and had his
offer been accepted, the people in various districts in
China, where the Rebellion still lingered for more than a
year, might have been saved from a good deal of misery.

Hung Jen-kan, the Kan Wang or Shield King, a near
relative of the Tai-ping monarch, was also taken prisoner
when fleeing from Nanking, and executed along with the
Faithful King. This man has a prominent place in Tai-
ping history, but not one of a very attractive kind. He
was born about the year 1820, and at one period of his
life had lived in Hongkong, and so made acquaintance
with Foreigners. During that period he professed to
be a Christian, and was either employed by, or was in
other intimate relationships with, some of our mis-
330 THE FALL OF NANKING.

sionaries. In 1851 and in 1854 he made ineffectual
attempts to join his Heavenly relative, but did not do
so until 1859, when he reached Nanking, received a
title of nobility, and was soon after created a prince,
and made Generalissimo of the Tai-ping armies. Dr
Dickson, lately of Canton, who met the Kan Wang
during one of the attempts the latter was making to
reach Nanking, informs me that he was a tall, dark
man, of rather coolie-like appearance; but he must have
possessed a good deal of intelligence and education, for
on that occasion he was acting as tutor in a wealthy
Chinese family. Hung Jen-kan’s knowledge of Foreign-
ers led him to understand how important it would be for
the Tai-pings to establish themselves at Shanghai and
Ningpo, but he does not seem to have otherwise been
any accession to the Rebel cause. When the Rev. Mr
Roberts, the American missionary, who had been the
Tien Wang’s first Christian instructor, was residing in
Nanking in 1860, it was this Chief with whom he came
most in contact, and who drove him away from the
rebel capital by striking him on the face, and murdering
one of his servants before his eyes.* And it does not
seem that the Shield King was any milder in his de-
meanour towards the Tai-pings themselves. Very sel-
dom taking the field himself or exposing his person, he
was cruel in his treatment of those subject to his sway,
and was hated by the people of Soochow and of other
cities which had reason to feel his presence. As it was
customary with the Tai-pings to keep up titles so far as
possible, there are some obscure notices of another Kan
Wang existing among the remnants of the Rebellion in
1865, but that was a different person from Hung Jen-
kan, the Heavenly Monarch’s Prime Minister from 1860

* See Blue-book, China, presented to His Majesty, April 8th, 1862, p. 142.
FATE OF THE TIEN WANG II. 331

to 1864. The latter was executed immediately after
the fall of Nanking; and before doing so he wrote a
short biography of himself, at the conclusion of which
he says, “ Three years back, little did I think, when hold-
ing such a high position at the capital, and endowed
with such vast power as I then had, that affairs would
come to such a pass at the present day, and that an
ignominious death would await me.”

Though the Faithful King gave his war-horse to
Hung Fu-tien, the second Heavenly Monarch, the latter
did not long escape his Imperialist pursuers. Roused
by the fall of Nanking from his easy life and the society
of his young queens, he was ill fitted to meet adverse
circumstances. In the course of his flight he got sepa-
rated from the Kan Wang and his other companions,
and concealed himself among some hills, where he suf-
fered so much from starvation that he actually wished
for death. Being relieved by some country-people, the
unfortunate youth continued his wanderings for some
weeks, when he fell into the hands of Imperialist braves,
and being delivered up to General Shung Pow, was
quickly executed at the provincial city of Kiangsi, ap-
parently not expecting such a fate; for in his declara-
tion made after capture, he repudiated all ambitious
designs, and expressed a hope that he might be sent to
Hoonan “to read for a literary degree.”

When the city of Nanking was captured, it was found
to be in a very deplorable state; grass was growing
luxuriously in the streets, and most of the houses were
in ruins. Judging from various statements, there could
not have been more than 20,000 fighting men within
the walls; of these about 1500 escaped, and about 7000
were put to death. This is not in accordance with Im-
perialist statements, which speak of 100,000 men having
332 THE FALL OF NANKING.

been killed, which is merely an indefingte phrase used
by the Chinese when they cannot conveniently compute
numbers. There is more probability in Tseng Kwo-tsun’s
statement, that during the last two years’ siege 10,000 of
the Imperialist soldiers fell victims to sickness, and 8000
or 9000 of them were killed in fight. The fire which
the Faithful King had kindled raged for three days
before it was got under and arrangements were made
for restoring order. After this the Rebel palaces were
found to be only heaps of ashes, and the strictest search
could discover no treasure, though it had been rumoured
that the Rebel Monarch’s wéalth was “vast as the sea.”
Tseng Kwo-fan seems to have been a little disappointed
at this result, and complains that even Soochow had
more wealth in it than Nanking had. He acknowledges,
in his despatch on this subject to the Imperial Govern-
ment, that some of his soldiers took a good deal of money
from individual Tai-pings, but he did not think fit to
interfere with their privileges in that respect. He only
required that any buried treasure which might be dis-
covered should be handed over to the public funds ; and
none such being forthcoming, he philosophically observes,
“To capture the great stronghold of the Rebels, and to
find no wealth whatever, certainly surpasses your humble
servant’s calculations, and is a thing of rare occurrence.”

A very few days after the fall of Nanking, a visit was
paid to that city by Mr Adkins, the Acting British Con-
sul at Chinkiang ; and he describes what he then saw
in the following extract, from a despatch to Earl Russell,
dated the 29th July 1864:—

I have the honour to inform you that the city of Nankin, so
long the centre of disaffection in China, and the point from
which so many bands of ruthless plunderers have started on
their raids upon the peaceful and wealthy cities of Central
THE CONDITION OF NANKING. 333

China, has been captured by the Imperialist Army under the
command of Tseng-kwo-chuen, the Governor of Chekiang, and
brother of the Viceroy of the provinces of Kiang Nan and Kiang
Su.

The city was stormed on the 19th of this month, through a
breach caused by a mine sprung under the wall near the east
gate. Rumours of its capture reached me on the day following
the assault, but I paid no attention to them, having been so
often deceived by reports of Chinese victories. On the 24th
of this month, however, I obtained a copy of the Memorial to
the Throne formally announcing the capture.

On the following day I started for Nankin in her Majesty’s
ship Slaney, intending to congratulate the Chinese Com-
mander-in-Chief on the auspicious termination of his two years’
siege. I found his Excellency at his camp outside the south
gate of the city.

When the Imperialists made good their entrance into the city,
they found that the palace of the Tien Wang, the leader of the
Rebellion, and the claimant for many years past of divine honours
and attributes, had been burnt to the ground. It is said that
the impostor and his immediate attendants lie buried in its
ruins. I am inclined to credit the rumour, for the city has been
closely blockaded since January last, and I think that nothing
but a desperate sortie would have enabled him to get clear.

But the most important fact of all is the capture of Chung
Wang. This person has for many years been the most restless
and determined of all the desperadoes Tai-pingdom has sent
forth. He it was who threatened Shanghai in 1860; he was
Admiral Hope’s antagonist in his operations near Shanghai; he
fought against Colonel Gordon at Soochow. He tried to intro-
duce the foreign element into his levies, and was said by Rebel
sympathisers to be the main hope of the Tai-ping cause in its
declining days. After the assault, he managed to leave the city
with afew followers, but he was captured three days subse-
quently by a party of cavalry. I was much pressed to visit the
Chung Wang in his confinement, but declined, as I had no
personal acquaintance with him.

On the day following my interview with the Commander-in-
Chief, I rode into the city and visited the breach. Words can-
not describe the utter desolation of everything within the walls
334 THE FALL OF NANKING.

The main thoroughfares traversed by me were the streets be-
tween the south-west and east gates, and those between the
south-west and south gates. On either hand, the houses left
standing had the appearance of having been tenantless for years,
while the gaudy gateways, denoting the residences of the wangs
or princes, opened in most instances on to courts full of brick-
bats and charred timbers. As for the side streets, they were,
many of them, overgrown with jungle four feet high.

During my ride through the city I saw a great number of
unburied bodies, and in many places the smell was so offensive
that both myself and Lieutenant Lee, who accompanied me,
were almost overpowered. But on the whole I came to the
conclusion that the Rebel force in the city at the time of its
capture could not have been very large. The Imperialists, ac-
cording to their own account, spared very few able-bodied males,
so that the dead lying in the streets would be a fair criterion
of the strength of the garrison. I estimate it at 10,000 men,
against 50,000 under the Imperialist commanders.

I think a ride through the streets of Nankin, as they are at
present, would satisfy the most ardent advocate of the Rebel
cause of the dreadful hollowness of the system they support.
Some eleven years ago the Tai-pings took Nankin, then one of
the finest cities in China. Ever since its capture it has been
their headquarters. In it the chiefs of the movement built
their tawdry houses, and from it they despatched plundering
bands in all directions. Meanwhile the works of civil govern-
ment and social organisation are entirely neglected, and when
the city is retaken it is found to be a wilderness of empty
houses.

The Imperial Government was greatly elated at this
victory, the news of which reached it in six days, and
made Tseng Kwo-fan a Marquess, or noble of the second
grade, and senior guardian of the youthful Emperor, and
his brother, Tseng Kwo-tsun, a noble of the third grade,
and junior guardian of the Emperor. The other officers
who distinguished themselves in the siege were also suit-
ably rewarded ; and the Prince of Shun was appointed
to proceed to the Shrine of Glorious Happiness, the rest-
IMPERIAL DECREE. 335

ing-place of the coffin of the Emperor Hien-fung, to
announce the victorious news to that departed monarch.
“This,” says the Imperial decree announcing the fall of
Nanking—*“this was indeed a special dispensation in
Our favour, for which we are grateful to Heaven and
Our sacred Ancestors. The Empresses Dowager are
agreed in their feelings of gratitude for the peace and
order which have been granted to Us. They knew how
to choose fit persons (to whom to intrust this great
undertaking), so that everywhere there was the greatest
unanimity ; and both civil and military officials girded
themselves for the task set before them, which has now
been fully accomplished. Our Imperial Father, now
enthroned in Heaven, will congratulate himself on the
turn affairs have taken; while the inhabitants of the
world, from the highest to the lowest, will be grateful.
We acknowledge that virtue lies not in ourselves ; how,
then, could WE bring about these successes? We look
back on the deceased Emperor, who never desisted from
the pursuit of that purpose of his (the extermination of
the Rebels). It continually grieves Us to think that
Hz did not survive to see his designs carried out. Since
this Rebel Hung first created confusion in Kiangsi fif-
teen years have elapsed, and since he settled himself in
Nanking twelve years have dragged slowly on. The
Insurgents have trampled more than ten provinces under
foot, and overthrown several hundred cities, which have
gradually been won back. Now, however, that the
originator of all this mischief has met his fate, those
great warriors who, during the pacification of the coun-
try, were exposed to every blast of heaven, and were
drenched with rain, tasting every danger and difficulty,
are indeed entitled to most unmistakable marks of Our
favour and gratitude.”
336 THE FALL OF NANKING.

So rare is it for people in this country,to follow closely
the course of events in China, that for long after the fall
of Nanking it was supposed by many that the Tai-ping
Rebellion was still in existence ; and even at the present
day the question is sometimes put, whether it has really
been extinguished or not. No one acquainted with the
subject has any doubt that Tai-pingdom has long been
extinct ; but it is easy to understand why such questions
are raised. A portion of the Foreign community in China
was exceedingly anxious for a continuance, and after-
wards for a revival, of the Rebellion, because a state of
confusion and misery in China served their own petty
interests, and they have spared no pains in sending home
letters and telegrams calculated to convey a false im-
pression. They have also been assisted to this end by
the facts of the case. China is an immense country,
having, according to the last census accessible, a popula-
tion of 450 millions, or nearly double that of Europe.
Among this enormous mass of human beings, having
varieties of religion, language, and blood, it is hardly to
be expected that perfect order and tranquillity should
always prevail. If we consider the enormous wars of
Europe, during this century, and the gigantic conflict
which has recently convulsed the United States of Ame-
rica, it may be seen how absurd it is to presume that
China, to be in a satisfactory state, must be absolutely
free from all internal disorder. “Nevertheless, that is the
ridiculous assumption on which we are incessantly asked
to judge the affairs of the Celestial Empire. If in some
out-of-the-way corner of China any unusually large band
of robbers manage to make their appearance, it is imme-
diately telegraphed to England that rebellion has again
broken out in Fukien or Kwangsi. Since the suppres-
sion of the Tai-ping Rebellion there have been several
HOW WE JUDGE OF CHINA. 337

disorderly movements in China of more or less note, and
all these are apt to be accepted, not merely as political
movements, but as remnants of Tai-pingdom. We have
heard of Nien-fei, and of Tu-fei, and of “ Honan Filchers,”
and Hakkas, and Mohammedan rebels, until it has very
naturally been supposed that the whole Empire must be
in confusion and rebellion. In point of fact, we are too
apt to judge of that great country, just as a Chinaman
might do, who, reading in English newspapers of Fenians
and Reformers, of Confederates and Northerners, of Danes
and Prussians, of Romanists and Garibaldians, and of
French and Austrians, came to the conclusion that the
people of the West were living in a state of endless dis-
satisfaction and strife.

I shall speak presently of the Nien-fei and other bodies
of men who have recently disturbed some portions of
China; but before doing so let me note, that after the
fall of Nanking the Tai-ping Rebellion became insignifi-
cant, and within two years was entirely extinguished.
It would serve no good purpose to follow minutely the
fate of the different bands of Tai-pings, and it will be
quite sufficient to note the points at which they made
anything like a serious stand previous to their final
disappearance altogether. After the fall of Nanking the
Governor of Kiangsoo had still some fighting with the Tai-
pings in his province and its neighbourhood, but none of
any importance, except at the city of Wu-chu, or Hoo-
chow, in Chekiang, a strongly-fortified place, where the
Tow Wang, or Yellow Tiger, made a desperate stand, and
where at first he defeated some of the Imperialist forces
sent against him. Li's troops, however, among which
were Colonel Bailey’s Artillery and the army formerly
commanded by General Ching, formed a combination
with forces which came up from the South under the

Y
338 THE FALL OF NANKING.

orders of Tso, the Governor-General of Chekiang, and
which included 1800 Franco-Chinese under MM. D’Aigui-
belle and Giquel, besides 800 disciplined Chinese, com-
manded by an Englishman called Reynolds, who was
killed in the fighting which then took place. The jeal-
ousy which existed between Tso and Li caused some
bungling at first, of which the Yellow Tiger availed him-
self very smartly ; but he soon found his position un-
tenable, evacuated the town in the end of August, and
retreated towards Kiangsi, with the intention of there
joining the She Wang, or Attendant King, who had
escaped from Nanking some time before its capture.
There were about a dozen Europeans, who had fallen
accidentally into the clutches of the Tai-pings, fighting
along with the Yellow Tiger in Wuchu. One of these,
Patrick Nellis, formerly in the Royal Engineers and in
Gordon’s Artillery, made a statement of his experiences,
when, after many adventures, he contrived to reach
Shanghai. This man, being seized by the Tai-pings when
convoying silk, was forced to serve with them, and gives
an appalling account of the state of matters which ex-
isted in Wuchu. “ All offences,” he said, “received one:
punishment—death. I saw 160 men beheaded, as I un-
derstood, for absence from parade; two boys were be-
headed for smoking ; all prisoners of war were beheaded ;
spies, or people accused of being so, were tied with their
hands behind their backs to a stake, and brushwood put
around them, and they were then burned to death. In
spite of the orders against smoking, the Chiefs were in-
veterate smokers.” Nellis mentions, that when he was at
this place a certain “ Kang Wang” arrived from Nanking
with an escort, and spoke to him in English very slowly,
from whence arose a rumour that Hung Jen-kan, the
Kan Wang, or Shield King, was not really executed at
THE ALLEGED KAN WANG. 339

Nanking ; but there is good reason to believe that this
new Kan Wang was a young fellow who could only speak
very little English, and who had a title resembling that
of the Shield King. This same leader afterwards turned
up at Changchow, near Amoy, and an American, named
Baffey, who served under him there, describes him as
only thirty-five years of age. Had he really been the
Prime Minister of the Rebel Monarch, the fact would have
been notorious, and he would not have been in a subor-
dinate position to the Attendant King.

After the loss of Wuchu the Rebels retreated along the
base of the mountain-ranges of Chekiang into Kiangsi,
where they threatened the city of Kwangsin, but were
defeated with great loss. Having formed a combination
with the forces of Li Siu-shien, the Attendant or Protect-
ing King, they came down and occupied Changchow-fu,
in the province of Fukien, near the consular port of Amoy.
The Kang Wang was at this time with them, but the
Attendant King was the principal Chief, and issued a
manifesto in the beginning of 1865, addressed to the
Representatives of England, France, and America, asking
their assistance, and offering to divide with them the
Celestial Empire. “If,” he modestly proposed in this
curious document, “ your various nations, relying in the
omnipotence of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ,
and acting upon the doctrine of Christianity, will come
to terms with us for destroying the Tsing dynasty ; if
you command your naval armies, and attack those places
near the water, whatever cities, districts, ports, and passes
you will have taken and conquered by your force, you
will be at liberty, without the least opposition on my
part, to keep; and whatever treasures and food found
therein you will be at liberty to appropriate ; and so I
will attack on land, and whatever cities, districts, and
340 THE FALL OF NANKING

passes I conquer, and whatever treasures agd food I find,
I will divide, giving one half to you; and all the distant
cities and marts will be surrendered to you.” The only
result of this invitation was to induce about a dozen
Foreigners of loose character and in desperate circum-
stances to join the Rebels. Among these were Rhode,
Williams, and Baffey, who had formerly been officers in
Gordon’s force, but who at this time were out of employ-
ment; and Burgevine, as I have already mentioned,
made an effort to join them, which resulted in his being
seized by the Imperialists, and drowned, according to. re-
port, by the accidental upsetting of a boat.

The local militia of Fukien were unable to do much
against these Tai-pings, but the Government, roused to a
sense of danger, sent down 8000 troops, disciplined at
the Tung-wang Shan camps, under the command of Kwo
Sung-ling, and accompanied by Colonel Kirkham. On
this force making its appearance the Rebels evacuated
Changchow by night on the 16th April 1865, and re-
treated towards the town of Tungshan. Pressed on all
sides by Imperialist forces, and in the midst of a hostile
population, they were soon broken up into small parties,
and retreated into the mountainous region which sepa-
rates the three provinces of Fukien, Kwangtung, and
Kiangsi, where they may be said to have disappeared.

The last accounts we have of the Tai-pings in this re-
treat is derived from a statement made at the British
Consulate at Canton in 1865 by George Baffey,* who,
as before mentioned, had been in the Imperial service,
but had been induced by Rhode and others to join the
Rebels. This man states, that eleven days after the
evacuation of Changchow the Attendant King’s division
became disorganised near Yingting, on the Han river,

* See Appendix TV.
THE END OF THE TAI-PINGS. 341

and that he then joined the Kang Wang, who pushed
into the province of Kwangtung with 15,000 fighting
men. Almost all his Foreign companions were murdered
at different times, and none received the fulfilment of
the promises by which they had been enticed over. In
the middle of July Baffey managed to escape, being hor-
tified by the cruelties which the Tai-pings perpetrated—
such as burning two Mandarins alive, and slaughtering
in cold blood 1600 local militia, who had surrendered on
the promise of their lives being spared. When he left the
Rebels they were talking of returning to Kiangsi; and
apparently they did so, for soon after the ‘ Peking Ga-
zette’ announced that the city of Kanchow had been
taken from them, and the province of Kiangsi finally
cleared of their presence. Since nothing more has been
heard of them, we may conclude that a portion of them
perished miserably among the sterile mountains of that
region of China, while the remainder may perhaps still
haunt these mountains as small bands of banditti. It
only remains to be added, that Rhode, who did such good
service as a military instructor in Gordon’s army, was
at first reported to have met with a fate similar to that
of Burgevine. After the evacuation of Changchow, he
and a man named Mansfield delivered themselves up to
the Mandarins, who handed the latter over to the British
authorities, but reported that Rhode, their former servant,
had been accidentally drowned by the upsetting of a
boat ; he turned up, however, at Canton, and is now
living at Shanghai. The only other Tai-pings of which
there is any rumour after this date, are the remnants of
the force which went into the distant western province
of Szechuen, under the leadership of Shih Ta-kai, the I
Wang, or Assistant King, who broke off from allegiance
to the Heavenly Monarch, and set up his own standard
342 THE FALL OF NANKING.

in 1861. After that Chief was captured bygan Imperialist
colonel in 1863, he was executed by order of the Gover-
nor-General of Szechuen, and a portion of his whilom
followers are rumoured to have escaped into the province
of Kansuh, and to have been amalgamated with the
Mohammedan Rebels in the extreme north of China.
CHAPTER XVII.

NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

MEANING OF THE NAME NIEN-FEI—-ORIGIN OF THESE REBELS—
THEIR CHARACTER AND TACTICS—-WEAKNESS OF THE CENTRAL
GOVERNMENT IN CHINA——POLITICAL PARTIES—-SANKOLINSIN AND
TSENG KWO-FAN—-DEATH OF SANKOLINSIN—VARYING FORTUNE
OF THE NIEN-FEI—LI HUNG-CHANG APPOINTED TO THE COM-
MAND AGAINST THEM—HIS SUPPRESSION OF THEM—RELATION-
SHIPS BETWEEN CHINA AND MOHAMMEDANISM—THE MOHAMME-
DAN REBELS IN SHENSI—THEIR RETREAT INTO KANSUH—THE
PROVINCE OF ILI AND ITS RELATION TO CHINA-—-THE MIAOU-
TSZ AND HAKKAS.

During the last two years a great deal has been heard
about the Nien-fei Rebels, and in some quarters it has
been supposed that these constitute a political party in
China. Some wiseacres have also told us of Tu-fei, and
of other Fei, all which the ingenuous British reader is
asked to believe betoken the dissolution of the Chinese
Empire. Now the fact is, that words of this kind are
used to designate thieves and banditti in general; and to
use them with a political signification, or even as denot-
ing separate varieties of marauders, is about as sensible
as to talk of England being convulsed by Thieves and
Prigs. The term Nien-fei is merely a local name for
marauders prevalent among the inhabitants of the
southern part of the province Chili, the western part
344 NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

of Shantung, and the northern part of Hgnan. Through
this district flows the great Ho-ang Ho, or Yellow River,
which the Chinese, from the earliest historical times, have
had great difficulty in keeping within its embankments.
In many places the bed of the river is considerably
higher than the surrounding country, and it is only
by constant and careful labour on the embankments
that it is prevented from overflowing these districts.
Of course, whenever the works on this river are much
neglected, as sometimes happens when the Government
is greatly out of funds, the water breaks through,
and floods immense tracts of land. Now, one of the
results of the Tai-ping Rebellion has been to diminish
the funds at the disposal of the Chinese Government to
such an extent, that for many years the embankments of
the Yellow River have been so neglected, that the people
in considerable stretches of country have been deprived
of the means of subsistence. Moreover, the march of
the Tai-pings towards Peking in 1853 through these
very districts caused an amount of destitution from
which they have scarcely yet recovered. Hence, in the
three provinces just mentioned there has been for some
time a good deal of brigandage—the usual Chinese way
of levying a benevolent fund for the relief of washed-out
agriculturists, who are not very particular when collecting
the tax in person. The number of these Nien-fei must
not be judged by the extent of country over which they
roam. Mr Gibson, lately H.M. Acting Consul at Tien-
tsin, who came into rather unpleasant contact with them
in 1863, estimated their numbers as under 10,000, ex-
clusive of women and children. They move about in
large parties, covering a track as large as two or three
English parishes. The women and the carts usually fol-
low the public roads, while the men scatter about over
CHARACTER OF THE NIEN-FEI. 345

the country, but retreat to their waggons when danger
appears. They are all pretty well mounted on good
ponies, and can move when necessary at the rate of sixty
miles a-day. Captain Coney, of H.M. 67th Regiment, who
went out against them from Tien-tsin with some disci-
plined Chinese in 1863, never saw Nien-fei till the Nien-
fei concentrated and attacked him; and when they found
that they were getting the worst of it, they were out of
range again in a few minutes. Extremely ill armed,
with spears, rusty swords, gingalls, and a few cannon,
they are very bad shots. They take good care, how-
ever, to send patrols out before them, and are chary of
going in directions where they are likely to meet with
serious resistance. Almost anything in the way of
plunder they can carry or consume is acceptable to
them. They loot young women, boys, gold, silver, silk,
cotton, rice, wheat, and clothes of all kinds, but seldom
wantonly destroy life. The necessity which knows no
law before that of self-preservation, has created these
robber-bands, but of course they have attracted to them
many idle and disreputable fellows, inclined for all kinds
of mischief, and such bands necessarily grow by what
they feed on. The well-to-do people whose houses they
plunder become themselves Nien-fei, in order to avoid
starvation ; and so a band increases rapidly, until it at-
tains such dimensions that Imperialist troops are directed
against it.

The theory of the Chinese Government, that each vil-
lage, district, department, province, and viceroyship,
should harmonise itself or settle its own affairs, is
consonant to the genius of the people, and acts ad-
mirably in ordinary circumstances, but it is quite in-
adequate as a basis for preserving order during the
great convulsions to which nations are sometimes ex-
346 NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

posed, and when large districts of cougtry are suffering
from the want of means of subsistence. In such circum-
stances the weakness of the central government, and its
dependence upon moral force, are disastrously felt ; for
on the one hand, it is not till the very existence of the
Government is threatened that it will rouse itself to check
rebellion effectually; and on the other, sufficient efforts
are not made to prevent famine in afflicted districts by
throwing into them supplies of food from the rest of the
Empire. The state of local disorganisation which thus
arises is greatly aggravated by the difficulties of transit
in China as regards the conveyance both of troops and
of provisions. Occupied by its foreign war and the great
Tai-ping Rebellion, the Chinese Government allowed
the Nien-fei, or the marauders of the North-eastern pro-
vinces of China, to continue their depredations, until
they became rather formidable bands, threatening at times
to advance on Tientsin, and cut the communication be-
tween Peking and the sea. Parties of them also pushed
to the south, and appeared in the Yangtsze valley, co-
operating with the Tai-pings in the end of 1860, but in
the following year were soon disposed of by the Impe-
rialist forces. In the North-east they gave much more
trouble, and extended their ravages beyond their usual
limits into the provinces of Shantung on the one side,
and Hoopeh on the other. In the year 1865 their num-
bers had increased to a formidable extent, but by that
time the Imperial Government was able to deal with
them more effectually than it had hitherto done, having
been released from the incubus of the Tai-ping insurrec-
tion. Operations were directed against them, not only
by Prince Sankolinsin from the North, but also by
Tseng Kwo-fan from the South. These two great
Chinese officers had never met, and were very jealous
CHINESE AND TARTAR MANDARINS. 347

of each other’s power and influence. The first repre-
sented the Tartar element in the Chinese Government,
while the latter was the acknowledged head of the native
Chinese Mandarins. The opposition between these two
great parties in the Chinese state has not of late years
been of a serious kind—not anymore so than that between
the Conservatives and Liberals in England—but it has
been sufficient to affect the course of events. Sanko-
linsin and Tseng K wo-fan were both warriors rather than
statesmen, and perhaps specially on that account took
the lead of their respective parties ; for the recent course
of events in the Flowery Land has had the effect of
giving military Mandarins a higher position than that
which they usually hold. In one important respect the
Chinaman had an advantage over the Tartar, having to
do with the Tai-pings, who could be suppressed, while
the latter had to deal with the demands of Foreign nations,
which the whole power of China would have been unable
to resist. So, while Tseng was reaping glory in 1860 by
his operations on the Yangtsze, the Tartar prince had to
face defeat at the hands of the allies, and never quite re-
covered his former cheerfulness and prestige. He was
always afraid that the Southern leader was attaining a
height of glory which would overshadow the power and
influence of the Imperial house, and even went so far as
to procure the issue of an edict from Peking which de-
graded Tseng Kwo-tsung, the military commandant at
Nanking, and ordered Tseng Kwo-fan himself to proceed
to the capital to explain his conduct. This edict, how-
ever, was openly disregarded, and any further conflict
between the two great fighting men of China was put an
end to by the death of Sankolinsin in 1865, and by the
want of success in his operations. The Peking Govern-
ment were not inclined to say much more on the subject
348 NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

to Tseng Kwo-fan, who had despatched a body of his
picked troops to the north of Nganhwui, to protect that
province and Hoopeh from invasion. Indeed, the Pe-
king Government, sinking all minor points of difference,
at once ordered Tseng Kwo-fan and Li Futai to move
all their available forces upon the Nien-fei, who were
now commanded by leaders of some note—namely,
Shung, a son of concubine-loving Shung Pow, who had
been compelled to strangle himself the year before; Miao,
who, when a Tai-ping, had made peace with the Imperi-
alists by betraying to them the Heroic King; and Chang,
a son of the notorious Chang Lo-hing.

The position of affairs demanded prompt action, for
in Shantung they had advanced to Kiachow; in Chili
they were not far from Powting, where the Tai-pings
had been arrested in 1853, and even Chiu fu in Shan-
tung, the birthplace of Confucius, had fallen into their
hands, and they had there destroyed the temple of the
sage, which was considered the most sacred and magni-
ficent in China. After the death of Sankolinsin, his son,
the Pao Wang, defended the city of Tsinan with 30,000
Mongol cavalry, and there awaited the arrival of the
experienced troops of Tseng Kwo-fan, who had been
appointed Generalissimo of all the Imperial troops in
China. The movement of the Nien-fei, however, col-
lapsed at this moment without much necessity for fight-
ing. They evacuated the entire province of Shantung,
and proceeding into Shansi, a large body of them were
swept away by a sudden inundation of the Yellow River,
while the remainder retreated through Shensi to join the
Mohammedan Rebels in Kansuh. The parties of the
Nien-fei who had entered Chili were now easily cut up
by the Tartar cavalry, and a new outbreak which took
place in the end of this year was easily suppressed by a
OPERATIONS AGAINST THE NIEN-FEI. 349

portion of the garrison at Nanking, with European
drilled artillery which were ordered to proceed against
them. arly in the year 1866, marauders again made
their appearance on the banks of the Yellow River, and
established themselves for a time in some districts to the
north of that stream. In the south of Shantung also
they reappeared, but were put down there by a Manda-
rin called Puan, who had served along with Colonel
Gordon. In the spring some of them pushed down
south into Kiangsoo by forced marches, and a circuitous
route along the seaboard, where there were no troops to
oppose them, and assembled in imposing numbers at
Tungtai. Tseng Kwo-fan, who advanced against them
at this place, concentrated his troops round them very
carefully, but the brigands managed to give him the
slip. During the same year marauders of a similar kind
threatened Hankow in the very centre of China, having
been joined by some Imperialist regiments, whose pay
was in arrear; but these latter were easily brought back
to allegiance, on which the Rebels dispersed and re-
turned to their homes. In the beginning of 1867,
Nien-fei were again reported to be ravaging the country
between the Yangtsze and the Yellow River, while
others of them had reappeared on the confines of Shan-
tung and Honan, where they managed to slip out of the
toils of our old friend Governor Li, now a Chetai. It
requires, however, a close scrutiny of such reports, and
of the sources through which they come, to know what
value to attach to them. Contrary to a usually received
opinion, Mr Wade, who of all Europeans is probably
best acquainted with such papers, has said that, for
some reason known only to Chinamen, the reports on
contemporary affairs in the ‘ Peking Gazette’ always set
out the worst view of the case, without any conceal-
350 NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

ment, and it is possible to get at the true story of events
in China, when we have these documents, or when the
intelligence comes through Foreigners of sufficient intel-
ligence and knowledge of the country to enable them to
discriminate ; but without such aids, it is impossible to
know what value to attach to the innumerable reports
which come every mail from that country, some of
which are the pure invention of unscrupulous persons,
while others are the joint handiwork of young Foreigners
who enliven their exile by abundant gossip, and of their
Chinese hangers-on, who take a peculiar pleasure in
stuffing them with startling stories. A very few months
ago Li contrvied to hem them up in the Shantung pen-
insula, and crushed them almost entirely. Still it may
be assumed without rashness, that there are yet a good
many Nien-fei or robber bands left in existence in China,
and that they will continue to give trouble for some
years.

Of perhaps still more importance than the Nien-fei,
are the Mohammedan Rebels of the north-west of China ;
for they really aim at something like political separation,
and gave a good deal of trouble to the Celestial Empire
in the year 1862. The relationship between China and
Mohammedanism began at a very early period ; for so
early as the reign of the Kalif Walid, about 708, an em-
bassy was sent to China by way of Kashgar, and ona
tablet in the Mohammedan Hiang Fang, or “Echoing
Tomb,” at Canton, it is stated that there were disciples
of the Prophet settled in Shensi in the reign of the
Emperor Wu-tsung, 842. In one Chinese native work,
the statistics of Kwangchau, it is even stated. that
Mohammed himself sent a maternal uncle to trade with
China in the sixth year of the Hegira. Be that as it
may, we know that in the ninth century Wahab and
THE MOHAMMEDANS IN CHINA. 351

Abuzaid, the Arabian travellers, wrote an account of the
Flowery Land; and about 1330, Ibn Batuta found
wealthy Moslem merchants in all the great Chinese
cities. The Arabs do not seem to have had any diffi-
culty in getting on with the easy-going Celestials, and it
was not till Mohammedanism got some hold over the
rough tribes of the north-west frontier, that it began to
cause trouble. As that frontier of the empire now ex-
panded, now contracted, according to the vigour and
good fortune of the Government, the Mohammedans in
that region were naturally left in some dubiety as to how
far it was necessary or expedient to acknowledge the
Emperor. Hence they have every now and then shown
a disposition to rise, and in 1827 Jehangir caused the
Government some anxiety by his insurrectionary move-
ment.

There are small communities of Mohammedans at Can-
ton, Tientsin, Peking, and scattered elsewhere over China;
but most of these have become Celestialised, though not
to the same extent as the Jews who established them-
selves in the Empire many centuries ago, and who,
while retaining a few rules of the Pentateuch, have lost
all the other peculiarities of their race and faith. In
the recent disordered state of the Flowery Land, and
weakened condition of the Imperial Government, it was
to be expected that the adherents of a creed so cruel,
proselytising, and uncompromising as that of El-Islam,
would try to assert themselves and to throw off the rule
of a Government which, while it tolerates all forms of
religion, will allow no interference with the Celestial
Emperor’s sacred function in matters of the state. The
wonder is that so fanatical a set should for so long have
held in complete abeyance the command of their Pro-
phet, that those who will not accept the faith should be
352 NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

put to death by the sword. It was after a very long
interval of quiet, and perhaps instigat€d by Russian
emissaries, that they broke into insurrection in 1862
in the mountainous province of Shensi. Though that
province is only separated from the deserts of Mongolia
by the Great Wall, it is the most ancient part of China ;
and its capital Signan is dear to the Chinese as having
been the seat of the Tang dynasty, and of the great Em-
peror Tai-tsung, who established the system of literary
examinations, drew up the Celestial code, pacified the
whole country, and extended his sway, so that westward
it was.only limited by a line stretching from Behar in
India to the Caspian Sea. The greater part of the in-
habitants of Shensi are Mohammedans, so the Rebels
had little difficulty in taking the capital and slaughter-
ing many of the Emperor’s adherents; but the revolt
was soon put down, partly by force, partly by arrange-
ment, as a similar one was managed in last century by
Kien Lung.

In 1855 certain other circumstances occurred to rouse
the Mohammedans. Behind Shensi there is the immense
province of Kansuh, or “ Voluntary Reverence,” for the
most part a howling wilderness of sand and snow, extend-
ing over about 400,000 square miles beyond the Yellow
River and the Great Wall, and inhabited chiefly by Bud-
dhists. Behind this, again, still to the north-west and
near the “ Roof of the World,” there is the kingdom of Tli,
surrounded by savage deserts and mountains covered with
perpetual snow, and inhabited by Mohammedans proud
of their isolation and devoted to their faith. These
Turkestanes are quite out of the way of Chinese gov-
ernment; but a century and a half ago, the principal
cities of the district being in perpetual feud, their chiefs
besought the Chinese to put an end to these disturb-
THE STATE OF ILI. 353

ances. After much hesitation the Celestials granted
this request so far as to assume military command of Ili,
leaving the entire civil administration in the hands of
the native authorities.* By position, race, and religion,
this wild high-lying country has naturally as little to
do with China as it has with India ; and when the pres-
sure of the Tai-ping Rebellion weakened the power of
the Chinese Government to suppress the feuds of its
Turkestani tributaries, it was only to be expected that
the latter would throw off the Foreign military govern-
ment to which they had voluntarily subjected them-
selves. The connection of China with this and similar
dependencies about the “Roof of the World” was only
a source of weakness to the Imperial Government, and
continued simply because the inhabitants of these regions
were solicitous for it. When the Mohammedans there
severed the connection, no objection was made by the
Celestial Government; but it was a different matter in
regard to the more properly Chinese provinces of Shensi
and Kansuh. When the Mohammedans who populate
the former of these heard of the excitement among their
co-religionists in Turkestan, they made a renewed out-
break in 1866, but with so little success that, instead of
advancing eastward in the direction of Peking, they
were pressed back by the Imperialists out of their own
peculiar province into Kansuh, which, as has been re-
marked, is inhabited chiefly by Buddhists, who conse-
quently are not favourable to their pretensions. This
caused a good deal of suffering to the people of Kansuh,
whose capital was taken and burnt by the Rebels ; but
instead of being an indication that the Mohammedans
are making any real progress in the north-west of China,

* See Vambéry’s ‘Travels in Central Asia,’ and William’s ‘ Middle

Kingdom) vol. i. chap. iv.
Z
354 NIEN-FEI AND MOHAMMEDAN REBELS.

it only shows that they have been beaten back from
their own proper ground into a thinly populated, half-
desert country, where it could not be expected that any
efficient obstacle could be opposed to them, until an Im-
perial army, sent for the purpose, has time to come up
from the south-east. The establishment of a Mohammedan
state up in that little-known part of the world is not
likely to cause any one much anxiety; and if formed, it
will likely be soon dealt with by Russia.

There are other disorderly sections of people in China,
who are occasionally raised to the rank of Rebels, and
sometimes even identified with the extinct Tai-pings.
Among these the most prominent are the Miaou-tsz, or
supposed aborigines of the country, who have remained
distinct from the Chinese for ages, and are even men-
tioned as such in some of the earliest chapters of the
‘Historical Classic, relating to a period of about 2000
years Bc. The progress of Chinese civilisation drove
these savages into the more inaccessible mountains of
Yunnan and other south-western provinces, where they
still linger, resembling a good deal the aboriginal hill-
tribes of India, and sometimes living in peace with their
more cultivated neighbours, sometimes descending for
the purposes of plunder. The Hakkas, also, in the south
of China, keep up a great deal of local conflict, with
which the Mandarins rarely interfere, and which is
accepted by the people almost as one of their amuse-
ments. At the other end of the Celestial Empire, in
Manchuria, there have been of late some roving bands
of mounted banditti, one of which lately threatened
the open port of Newchwang. Wherever, also, village
braves are allowed to gather together in large numbers,
or Imperialist troops are kept very long without pay,
disturbances are apt to arise. These usually involve
OTHER CHINESE REBELS. 355

destruction of life and property, but none within the
last two years have assumed formidable dimensions.
The Central Government is still unwilling, and probably
still too weak, to interfere promptly with cases of local
disturbance ; but it does not allow matters to go beyond
a certain point, and of late has exercised more control
and power of this kind over China than it could put
forth during the years of the Great Rebellion.
CHAPTER XVIII.

THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

CHINA EMERGING FROM A PERIOD OF DISTURBANCE AND TRANSITION
—CAUSES OF SUCH PERIODS—OVER-POPULATION — FALSEHOODS
REGARDING THE PREVALENCE OF INFANTICIDE—-DANGERS OF
PROSPERITY—CHINA’S PRESENT FAVOURABLE POSITION—CRUSH-
ING OF THE NIEN-FEI REBELS— DEGRADATION OF LI HUNG-
CHANG—EUROPEAN GUNBOATS AND ARTILLERY EMPLOYED BY
THE GOVERNMENT—MILITARY REFORM—SERVICES OF A BRITISH
OFFICER REQUIRED—CHINA’S FOREIGN RELATIONSHIPS— FOREIGN-
ERS HAVE PROVOKED HOSTILITY—SPANIARDS AND PORTUGUESE
— OPIUM versus TEA—ENGLISH MERCHANTS IN CHINA—-THE EAST
INDIA COMPANY—OPENING OF THE FIVE PORTS—REMARKABLE
SUCCESS OF OUR MERCHANTS—THEIR DISSATISFACTION—THE
TREATY OF TIENTSIN — THEY ARE RUINED BY THE OPENING
OF CHINA — OVERTRADING—TEA SOLD CHEAPER IN LONDON
THAN IN CHINA—COMPLAINTS AS TO EXACTIONS ON THE TRAN-
SIT OF GOODS—MEMORIALS OF THE ANGLO-CHINESE CHAMBERS
OF COMMERCE — JARDINE, MATHESON, AND CO. ON THE OPIUM
TRAFFIC, AND ON ACCESS TO THE INTERIOR OF CHINA—NET
RESULTS OF AN AGGRESSIVE POLICY—A PROPHECY BY WAN SEE-
ANG—DANGER OF OUR TRADE PASSING INTO CHINESE HANDS,

THERE is a remarkable contrast between China as de-
scribed by the older European travellers, from Marco
Polo to the mission of Macartney, and the China of
to-day, or of the last twenty years. The prevailing
impression left by the former vision is one of ease, order,
peace, luxury, silks, and sumptuousness, such as war-
A TRANSITION PERIOD. 357

ranted a use of the words “ Flowery” and “Celestial ; ”
while our more recent notion of China is a good deal
associated with poverty, squalor, and almost unlimited
bloodshed. No doubt one cause of this difference is,
that the Occidental ideas of what constitute comfort and
splendour have changed a good deal from what they
were a century or two ago; and another is, that in late
years our judgment of the country has been somewhat
vitiated by the representations of persons who either
cannot appreciate it, or suppose they have a distinct
interest in representing it in the blackest colours.
“?Spose,” said to me, in “Pidjin English,”* a young
Chinaman whom I once proposed taking to England—
“’Spose I no catchee lice (rice), I makee die.” And just
as this youth could not conceive of comfortable or even
of possible existence in England without his accus-
tomed bowls of fan, so a large class of narrow-minded
Foreigners in China (unknown there, or almost so, in
former years) regard it as an uncomfortable country
simply because of the strangeness of its aspects to them-
selves, and have done something to impress their own
outraged feelings on the mind of Europe.
But making due allowance for such elements of
opinion, there still remain in China itself broad grounds
for our changed idea of that country. We, of the pre-
sent generation, have seen it only in one of those periods
of transition and disturbance with which it is afflicted at
intervals of a few centuries, and from which its recu-
perative force enables it to recover with remarkable
rapidity. The Chinese people stand unsurpassed, and
indeed almost unequalled, in regard to the possession of

*  Pidjin” is a corruption, in the Chinese mouth, of our word “ busi-
ness,” and has nothing to do with pigeons, or with pigeon-holes, as Colonel
Fisher, in his otherwise excellent and interesting work on our last war with
China, seems to suppose.
358 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

freedom and self-government. Their social and political
system is the result of the transmitted experience of
many centuries in regard to what human life is, and to
how it may best be controlled ; but in periods of great
excitement, and especially when brought in contact with
the disintegrating influence of foreign nations, it fails
in ability to suppress the uprisal of the dangerous classes.
Moreover, deeply seated in the national mind there are
certain ideas in regard to progeny which have a power-
' ful effect in producing over-population in China, and so
leading every now and then to a great national catas-
trophe. No competent political economist nowadays is
disposed to dispute substantially the Malthusian law,
whatever differences of opinion may exist as to the action
which it calls for. The tendency of population to in-
crease in a much greater ratio than the increase of food
is an established fact, and this tendency comes into play
in China in a specially terrible manner. The neigh-
bouring Japanese are practically almost as good Malthu-
sians as the French, and their custom of placing in the
“ tea-houses,” for a term of years, a large number of the
young women of the middle and lower classes, has en-
abled them to check the growth of their population
without exercising any ascetic self-denial. But in China
we have all the circumstances which go to favour over-
population in the old countries of Europe, together with
certain peculiarities of its own. It is an old country,
where every foot of ground is cultivated which can
profitably be so, and no scrap of manure is allowed to be
wasted. The feelings of the people are opposed to colo-
nisation, and so also were the laws of the country up
to a very few years ago. It is true that a considerable
Chinese emigration has gone into Malaya, America, and
Australia, but that has only been in recent years ; it is
INFANTICIDE IN CHINA. 359

really very inconsiderable when compared with the popu-
lation of China itself, and it has been composed chiefly
of persons who were either worthless in character or
desperate in circumstances. And while there is thus
no sufficient outlet for the ever-increasing population of
China, either in the country itself or in opportunities for
emigration, the Celestials are governed by ideas which
lead them to regard an increase of progeny with more
favour than do any other people on earth, unless it be
some of the nomadic tribes of Central Asia. On this
subject some confusion has arisen from notions which
have got abroad in Kurope as regards infanticide in
China. Some of the statements of Gutzlaff and men of
that stamp, with Barrow’s invention about carts going
round the streets of Peking of a morning in order to
pick up the bodies of exposed children, have but too
pointedly illustrated Talleyrand’s lie, that if a lie gets
only an hour's start it will never be overtaken. I
have heard Englishmen, whose acquaintance with China
was entirely drawn from Hongkong, Macao, and the fac-
tories of Canton, speak as if it were impossible to take
a walk in the Celestial Empire without seeing a dead
child lying under every bush ; but in all my wanderings
among the Chinese I never came across any indication
of a single case of infanticide, and found abundance of
proof that they regard their children, both male and
female, with great affection, and set a high value upon
the possession of them. Indeed, there is nothing which
a Chinaman dreads so much as to die childless. In the
popular imagination, the spirits of those who so die wander
about in the air discontented, miserable, and malignant,
because there is no one on earth to care for them; and
so strong are the Celestial notions on this point, so much
is the malignancy of these friendless spirits dreaded,
360 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

that in most districts there is yearly what is called a
“ Universal Rescue,” to provide offerings of food, clothes,
&c., to propitiate and soothe these spirits. Every China-
man likes to have as large a family as possible, and is as
proud of its size as English Hodge is told to be of the
thirteen children whom he has brought up without parish
aid. Among the great masses of the population the
labour of female children is so useful to a father that in
circumstances of ordinary comfort it is an object to him
to have as many of them as possible. Of course, when
districts of country are ravaged by famine, or by rapa-
cious and cruel rebels, infanticide becomes not uncom-
mon, and in such circumstances female children are the
first to be sacrificed ; but the infanticide of China, so far
from arising from any tendency among the Chinese to
destroy infants, whether male or female, is caused, so far
as it exists, by the desire of the people to have as many
children as possible, and by the over-population which is
thus produced.

It consequently follows that the more China is in a
state of peace and prosperity, the more danger is it in
of a great catastrophe; for when in such a state its
population expands so immensely, that a foreign war, an
internal rebellion, or a great inundation, cannot fail to
deprive vast masses of the people of the means of sub-
sistence, and even the natural expansion of the popula-
tion tends to produce such a result. But the very ease
and luxury which prepare the way for such catastro-
phes have a demoralising effect upon the Government,
making it both weak and corrupt; so when a great
check occurs, there is no power in the nation prepared to
meet the difficulties which arise. Thus the very peace
and prosperity which China had enjoyed for nearly
three hundred years before, peculiarly unfitted it for
THE PRESENT STATE OF CHINA. 361

meeting the events which overtook it during the last
quarter of a century, and assisted in plunging it into
the painful and almost desperate circumstances with
which we have seen it struggle. At several points in
the ten years, between 1853 and 1863, it looked as if
only a very little additional weight were required to
throw the country into a complete state of disorder
and anarchy ; but always, and usually from unexpected
quarters, something intervened to prevent that result.
Now it was quarrels among the Tai-pings themselves,
then the energy of Yeh Ming-chin, next a sudden change
in the policy of Great Britain, then Colonel Gordon’s
advent on the scene, and the rise to power of such able
mandarins as Tseng Kwo-fan and Li Hung-chang, that
unexpectedly came to the assistance of the Chinese State,
and enabled it to float over floods which threatened to
sweep it away and strand it on the shore where the
wrecks of so many states and nations lie.

There is no doubt that China has at present reached a
very favourable position. The Tai-ping Rebellion has
been so completely crushed that for almost three years
it has given no signs of even the smallest local exist-
ence; the Nien-fei and other rebels have been so far
subdued that their destroying influence is no longer of
much importance, and there is no prospect of any seri-
ous disturbance from the Foreign relationships of the
Empire ; but the two latter points may seem to require
a little more extended remark, before I allude to what is
the subject of most importance as regards the future of
China.

Li Hung-chang, to whom was committed, two years
ago, the task of dealing with the Nien-fei rebels, found
that his heavy artillery and foot-soldiers, disciplined after
the European method, which had been found so effectual
362 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

against the Tai-pings who fortified themselves in cities,
could not effectually be brought to bear against the
Nien-fei, who scamper about on their ponies over the
rolling plains of the north-east of China. Accordingly
he fell back on the old Chinese tactic of hemming them
into corners by long lines of Imperial troops; and as
parties of them occasionally broke through and escaped
from these lines, and as all such events were faithfully
recorded in the official ‘ Peking Gazette,’ and recorded in
the Anglo-Chinese papers, it looked, to superficial ob-
servers, as if he were making no progress in his task,
while in reality he was gradually disposing of the rebels.
Towards the middle of last year he succeeded, at great
expense, and with an army said to be 200,000 in num-
ber, in hemming them up into the extreme north-east
corner of Shantung; but a force of 30,000 of them
managed at that time to escape through his lines (which
are marked in my map of the Tai-ping routes), and again
began devastating a district of country which had been
restored to order. It was half expected that the Peking
Government would degrade Li on that account, it hav-
ing supplied him very liberally with funds; but proba-
bly he was too powerful to be interfered with then ;
and after dispersing the band which had escaped, he
continued his intricate and serpentine operations, striving
to keep the rebels within the narrowest compass. The
result was, that in the beginning of this year Chetai Lf
succeeded in his darling project of closing round them,
so that he could effectually attack them with the main
body of his army. Having got them pressed back into
the Shantung peninsula, and shut in there by a strong
series of forts extending across that peninsula from
Laichow to Kiachow, he defeated them in a series
of engagements, and drove them eastward on another
END OF THE NIEN-FEI. 363

Imperial army. Between these two forces the Nien-fei
were crushed, and their chief, who at first managed to
escape along with his wife (who was one of the ablest of
his lieutenants), was also soon after killed; for his spouse,
when reconnoitering, having been drowned in fording
a canal, he insisted on going to the spot in order to
recover the body, and, venturing too near an Imperial
camp, was taken prisoner.

According, however, to the latest news received from
China, it appears that some parties of the Nien-fei had
escaped through Li’s lines into the province of Chili,
and had there combined with a party of Mohammedan
rebels who had made an unexpected excursion from
the north-west. It was also reported that on this
account Li himself had been degraded by the Peking
Government, and deprived both of his yellow jacket and
of the two-eyed peacock’s feather, the mark of his nobi-
lity; but this requires confirmation: and even if true, as
the Chetai continued to follow up the rebels, it is possi-
ble he may feel himself strong enough to set at nought
any decree degrading him, or to get it revoked.

The present state of internal affairs in China is not to
be judged of merely by the fact that there is now very
little rebellion in the country; the more important point
is, that the Government has shown a capacity and will-
ingness to employ means for preserving order, which
should make rebellion much more difficult in the future
than it has been in the past, and indeed almost impos-
sible so long as the Government is tolerably just and
active. The camps for disciplining Chinese troops after
the European manner at several places in the country,
the arsenal at Nanking,* under the charge of Mr Mac-

* This arsenal was first established at Soochow, but was removed in
1866 to Nanking, being erected close to the site of the ruined Porcelain
364. THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

artney, for the construction of Europgan artillery and
munitions of war, the number of steamboats and even of
steam gunboats which have been procured for the Impe-
rial service in its various branches, the readiness and
celerity with which Chinese troops are moved from one
province to another as circumstances may require, and
the extensive powers which are now committed to high
officers, such as the Prince of Kung, Tseng Kwo-fan,
and Li Hung-chang, all go to constitute a new state of
matters highly unfavourable to the rise, and almost de-
structive to the progress, of insurrection in China. Were,
for instance, anything like the Tai-ping rebellion in its
genesis again to break out, the Imperial Government, with
its steamers, artillery, disciplined troops, and competent
commanders, could easily crush the movement in the bud,
long before it obtained formidable dimensions, swollen by
the crowds it might ruin; and the practice has already
been inaugurated of not leaving such movements to be
dealt with locally until they become formidable.

At the same time it must be admitted that military
progress in China has not during the last few years
been anything like what it might easily have been, and
what it might have been expected to be after the lessons
of the years 1862-64. A very small efficient force, with
flying-artillery, a few fast gunboats, and a certain
number of competent European officers conjoined with
Chinese ones, might at very small expense be made
more serviceable in the preservation of peace and order
in the Celestial Empire than any force yet established
in China, and immensely more so than the expensive,
exhausting, and all but useless local levies which each

Tower, and almost entirely from the bricks of that edifice, while the wood-
work was taken from the ruins of the Tien Wang's palace, so that likely,
before long, it will be the only memorial of these two famous structures.
MILITARY PROGRESS IN CHINA. 365

province frequently counts by hundreds of thousands.
Sooner or later the Celestials must come to depend en-
tirely on European science in matters of war, and they
can never learn to do so without the aid of European
officers ; but their jealousy and fear of us is not a matter
of surprise, when they consider the career of the Si Yang
Jen, or “ Western Men,” in other parts of Asia. More-
over, there is the great difficulty as to what party in
China should have command of so formidable a force
thus constituted. If it were established from Peking,
the provincial Governors, together with the great mass
of the officials and people of China, would regard its for-
mation with jealousy and distrust, as threatening com-
plete Tartar domination in the Flowery Land; while if
it were formed by the great Chinese Mandarins, such as
Tseng and Li, the Court party at Peking would regard
its own rights, and even the dynasty itself, as endan-
gered. With such difficulties in the way, and no great
pressure of circumstances requiring military reform, we
need not look very sanguinely for much immediate im-
provement in that respect in China. Such affairs have
already advanced greatly from their position during
many centuries back, and the Chinese are not a people
so eager of new things as to change their organisation,
except under pressure of some kind or other. It strikes
me, however, that if Mr Hart exercised fully his influ-
ence, or if there were an able British Minister at Peking
who enjoyed the confidence of the Imperial Government,
it would not be very difficult to prevail on the Chinese
to form their military power in a manner which would
completely secure the preservation of order, and at the
same time relieve the country from the great burden of
its provincial levies, which themselves, being so often
and of necessity left unpaid, have been a fruitful source
366 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

of disorder and rebellion. To such an end nothing could
be so useful, so well fitted to allay local jealousies, and
to secure provision against dangers lying in the future,
as the employment of the services of a British officer
of high character, and of talent for organisation. If the
Mandarins could only be assured that he would not
employ his power except as a servant of the Chinese
State, they would be glad to accept his services ; and the
best guarantee for that, as well as an assurance against
his employment in any manner repugnant to Western
civilisation, would be his continuance in the service of
her Majesty the Queen while he was employed by the
Emperor of China. It may be said, that for us to con-
solidate the military power of China, would be to put
arms into the hands of very probable enemies ; but this
is a weak objection. The prestige of British arms would
be vastly increased, not decreased, in the Middle King-
dom, by the fact of the Celestial troops having been
trained by British officers; in the event of a war these
troops would be ready to come over to us in large num-
bers ; and even if China’s power of foreign resistance
were greatly increased by the training we had given to
it, that would be a positive advantage to Britain in any
war with China, because it would present us with a
point of resistance which could be easily crushed, like
Magdala, so as effectually to overawe the country.

In the present state of the world, the foreign relation-
ships of China are even of more importance than are its
internal affairs; for the latter can be settled on principles
which are assented to by the people of the country,
while the former demand the harmonising of very for-
midable opposing forces. The Middle Kingdom can no
THE CONDUCT OF FOREIGNERS IN CHINA. 367

longer be secluded from the rest of the world by the God
of Hurricanes on the south and east, and by its deserts
and lofty mountain-ranges on the north and west. At
this day the China Sea, instead of being sparsely dotted
by a few junks, Arab buglahs, and barnacle-covered
caravels, is veiled with the smoke of European steamers,
and fanciful speculators in the West even speak of push-
ing railways.from Burmah into Szechuen.

It is frequently complained of the Chinese, that for
the last two centuries, and more especially during the
last twenty years, they have laboured unnecessarily and
injudiciously to raise obstacles against the entrance of
their country into the comity of nations; but to do
them justice on this point, and practically to understand
the question which arises, it is necessary to bear in mind
the position which Foreigners have taken up towards
them. So to speak, there has been no innate objection
on the part of the Chinese to intercourse and interchange
with Foreign nations. The first Kuropeans who went to
China were received very hospitably; but when the rela-
tionship changed into the simple fact, as it did too soon,
of naval commanders like Simon Andrade and Mendez
Pinto ravaging the coast, plundering towns and villages,
aud carrying off young women and boys to be sold as
slaves, it must be admitted that it was difficult for the
Chinese to appreciate the great advantages which were
to be derived from a connection with the nations of the
West. So, when the emissaries sent from France by
Louis XIV., with Jesuit and other Roman Catholic mis-
sionaries, began instructing the Celestials in astrono-
mical and other scientific truths (which, by a curious
inconsistency, the Romish Church itself denied and de-
nounced), the Chinese were not only willing to receive
the new knowledge, but also conferred upon those who
368 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

conveyed it an amount of respect and practical recogni-
tion which priests of science rarely receive. It was only
when the Roman Catholic agents were found to be aim-
ing at the possession of supreme power in the country,
that the Chinese turned against them and sought to shut
up the country; because the Mandarins soon saw, and
only too clearly, that these Huropeans were threatening
to establish in China what they had failed to do in
Europe, a political and intellectual despotism, which
is equally opposed to the generous freedom of Con-
fucian ideas, and to the loftiest instincts of the human
race.

After the Spanish and Portuguese adventurers ceased
to vex the coast of China, and the Roman Catholic mis-
sionaries were excluded, there came an interval of about
two centuries to the Flowery Land, when it was almost
entirely undisturbed by Foreign influences; but with the
mercantile and political progress of Great Britain in the
East there came an entirely new state of matters. Up
to very recently, however, the relationships thus opened
have not been of a kind calculated to inspire the Chinese
with confidence. I am afraid the two words, Opium and
Tea, express the two sides of it only too correctly. We
have got the Chinese to supply us with a very beneficial
article called tea, which has increased our pleasures
without doing harm, and has ameliorated our manners ;
while, in return, we have forced them to accept a highly
dangerous, if not deleterious, substance, which they did
not want, and which both the officials and the people
had agreed to exclude from China. I am no opponent,
however, of the opium traffic; and this point of our
mercantile relationship to the Chinese requires a little
special elucidation.

The mercantile life of England has been a sort of mid-
THE BRITISH MERCHANT. 369

way career, partaking on the one side of the ferocity
and cruelty, the chivalry and adventure of Spaniards
and Portuguese, while on the other it has borne no little
resemblance to the heavy plodding, the meanness, and
the dull unscrupulousness of the Dutch. The poet
drew a very accurate picture when he wrote—

“ To trade the Dutch incline ; the Swiss to arms ;
Music and verse are soft Italia’s charms ;
Britannia justly glories to have found
Lands unexplored, and sailed the world around.”

Though the English have always had a very strong
warm appreciation of the advantages of merchandise,
merely considered as such, yet they have always, or at
least until very lately, associated it with something
better, and been ready to sacrifice it to many things
higher. Thus the merchants of the Hast India Com-
pany could not stoop, like the Dutch at Nagasaki, to
sacrifice their personal dignity to immediate commercial
crumbs ; and whenever they got a chance they were
eager and prepared to exchange their place of traders
for that of enlightened rulers of the numerous millions
of India. It may be said as a rule, our mercantile effort
has gone in directions where there was something more
than mere mercantile gains to lure on the young and
adventurous spirits of the country who found no suffi-
cient outlet for their energies at home. The consequence
was, that our outlying mercantile history had much in
it that was really noble and romantic. The mere
exchange of pigs for poultry in a quiet market is apt to
develop only the lower tendencies of human nature, and
merchandise on the most extensive scale, the traffic even
of “merchant princes ”—so called—is little better when
it refers only to questions of gain. But, at least up toa
very recent period, the commercial enterprise of Britain
2A
370 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

has been connected with many things besides mere com-
mercial gain; and so has both comn*anded external
respect and nourished internal strength.

In this department of our history the China merchants
occupy an important section, and it would be interesting
for a competent historian to depict them in the three
great phases of their career. From the archives of the
East India Company it would be easy to disinter many
details which would afford a graphic idea of our rela-
tions with China previous to 1839, and of the life led in
old times by the Company’s agents at Canton before
the existence of treaties between China and Britain.
During that early period matters went on very smoothly,
and commerce brought great gains on both sides. The
dangers of piracy gave a sort of romance to the passage
of the Chinese Sea and of the Straits of Malacca; but
on the Celestial seaboard difficulties rarely arose, because
the exchange of commodities was severely regulated by
the Mandarins on the one side and by competent officers
of the East India Company on the other.

This state of matters, however, could not continue
after the independent commercial enterprise of Britain
broke into Hastern seas, and the Opium war provided
an entirely new state of matters, of which the principal
feature was the establishment of five ports for the resi-
dence of Foreigners, and open to the Foreign trade on the
coast of China. The consequence of this “opening of
China” was, that several energetic English communities
were established on the seaboard of that country, and
under no jurisdiction or guidance further than what was
supplied by the Supreme Court of the nominal colony of
Hongkong, by the action of the consuls appointed by
the Foreign Office of Great Britain to the open ports
in China, and by the natural tendency of British com-
OPENING OF THE FIVE PORTS. 371

munities to control the actions of their own members.
Shortly after the opening of the five ports in China, over-
trading was carried on by the English merchants to a
considerable extent, and so, on a lesser scale, there arose
a state of matters resembling that which has existed for
the last few years in our commercial relationships with
the Chinese.

It was expected that the opening of the five ports
would give a much greater impetus to British trade
with China than it actually did for a long period, and
the consequence was that the opening of these ports was
at first followed by overtrading, and considerable losses
on the part of the Foreign merchants. In time, how-
ever, the position began to be understood, and the China
merchants entered on a period of wonderful prosperity.
In no part of the world, before and after the year 1850,
did commerce bring so large returns with such ease and
certainty as in China. It was understood that one of
the How-kwas possessed a fortune equivalent to about
fifteen millions sterling, when the Imperial Government
came down upon him with a “squeeze,” thinking that sum
rather too ample a reward for dealing successfully in tea
and opium ; and most of the Foreign merchants on the
coast of Cathay enriched themselves largely. Almost
the entire trade was carried on by word of mouth; and
though Chinese agents were intrusted with immense
sums for the purchase of tea in the interior of the
country, and were often absent for months on such
errands, they were never known to fail in fulfilling their
engagement.

The very ease with which they made money, and their
otiose, luxurious style of life, however, brought the Foreign
merchants into a condition like that of Jeshurun when
he waxed fat and kicked. The repelling attitude of the
372 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

Celestials at Canton, the Hwang-chu-kee murders, the
expansion of commerce in other parts of the world, and,
above all, vague but glowing hopes connected with a
proposed opening of the Yangtsze river, and of the in-
terior of the country in general, threw the Foreign com-
munity in China into a feverish state of dissatisfaction
with the past, and disgust with the then present, and of
boundless anticipations of the future. It must have
been a great relief to their minds when Sir Harry Parkes
picked up the bone of the lorcha Arrow, and Sir Michael
Seymour suddenly remembered that we had a right, or
something like a right, to enter the gates of Canton.
Still the insertion of the small end of the wedge was
provokingly imperilled and delayed. The Chinese ques-
tion got mixed up with Earl Russell’s and Mr Glad-
stone’s quarrel with Lord Palmerston ; it was also con-
trary to the principles of these and other statesmen to
support our demands on China, and the movement for
coercion in that country was defeated in the Parlia-
ment of Great Britain. Then, when the country had
reversed that decision, in order to support its favourite
Minister, and troops were on their way to Hongkong,
the red light of the Indian Mutiny arose in the Eastern
horizon, and operations against Canton had to be de-
layed for a year. When that city was taken it began to
dawn disagreeably on the mind of the mercantile com-
munity, that something more than the seclusion of China
was being broken into; that most old things were to
pass away, including many of their former privileges,
and a portion of their former power. The heads of
great houses found their position not so commanding as
it had been before, and the smaller merchants kicked
violently against being refused permission to make their
own bargain with the Chinese Customs. At Shanghai
EFFECTS OF THE LORCHA WAR. 373

a great number of rowdies made their appearance and
associated themselves with the interests of the Tai-pings.
Foreign arms and Tai-ping rebellion shook the Chinese
Empire to its foundations; loud were the cries that it
was doomed, and Mr Lay and Captain Osborn hastened
out to regenerate it, and to divide it between them-
selves, being unaware that, if they did not immediately
succeed, Sir Frederick Bruce was prepared to assist them
back again.

After the events to an account of which this volume is
chiefly devoted, the Foreign community in China entered
on a phase of matters very different from what it had
fondly anticipated. Judged by Chinese Custom-house
returns, our trade was very largely increased, but it is im-
possible to say how far this was an increase in the trade
itself and not simply in the regular and notified payment
of customs dues. It soon became painfully clear that the
opening of a large number of new ports, the influx to China
of an increased number of Foreigners, and a wild tend-
ency among them to competition and overtrading, which
was taken advantage of by combined action among the
native merchants, were producing a period of com-
mercial distress and ruin. First the small merchants,
then one after another of the large houses, fell into
difficulties or failure ; and lastly the great house of Dent
and Company, which a few years before stood as high
in reputation as the Bank of England, came with a crash
to the ground, paying only half-a-crown in the pound in
instalments over a term of years, and causing much
suffering to military officers and to Foreigners who,
after spending their best days in the Hast, had intrusted
it with the use of their savings. So far has the spirit of
overtrading been carried, that tea, which is by far the
most important article in our trade with China, and: is
374 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

now imported into this country to the value of over
£10,000,000 annually, has been purchased in China, as a
rule, for several years, at higher prices than those for
which it is sold in London, and, which is of more im-
portance to consumers in Britain, its quality has gone on
steadily decreasing, while its price (without the duty
im this country) has greatly increased.* This highly
objectionable state of matters has been caused by the
largely increased demand for tea in England, consequent
on reduction of duty and other causes, and the great

* These extraordinary facts require the authority of the following ex-
tract from the Circular of the 7th January 1868, issued by Messrs Benyon,
Harding, & Co., the well-known tea-brokers of Mincing Lane :—“ Refer-
ring to the importation of tea from China as a source of profit, it appears
to us highly improbable that the day will ever arrive when that result can
be looked forward to as a rule and loss the exception, For many years
past the average result has been loss, and though in a few instances large
profits have been made, it has generally been attributable to some unforeseen
and unexpected occurrence, which even those who have benefited by it have
never calculated upon. Notwithstanding the falling-off in quality, prices
in China are fifty to sixty per cent higher than they were when tea was
so much better, though now we are close to the producing districts, and the
expense of transit to Canton and Shanghai is saved to the Chinamen. As
a rule, prices in China are above home rates, and tea is bought under the
idea that something favourable will turn up before it comes upon the
market. In the season of 1852-53, the finest ever known, the first crop
black leafs were bought at Canton at 23 to 26 taels, and paid the China-
men handsomely. At Shanghai in the same season they ruled 3 or 4 taels
lower. So superior were the teas of those days to those of the present
that the third and fourth grades, which were laid down in London to cost
1s. 3d. to 1s. 4d. per Ib., were equal if not superior to the finest first crop
teas of the present season, or any other since 1860-61. Such being the case,
it is quite clear that the price has been continually forced up by competi-
tion among buyers, while the quality has persistently declined ; the quan-
tity taken has doubled itself, the quality is infinitely worse, and the price
has advanced fifty, sixty, and even seventy per cent. It is next to impos-
sible that importing tea can pay, with a quality always getting worse, and
an extravagantly high price ruling. On-this side the price paid by dealers
is high considering the quality, but in China it is enormous, and until
some very great change comes either in the price or in the quality, import-

ing tea can never be relied upon as a source of profit to those engaged
in it.”
OVERTRADING OF ENGLISH MERCHANTS. 375

competition among Foreign purchasers in China. The
latter cause enables the Celestial to sell his inferior teas
at the same price as his fine ones ; and, not having done
much of late in the way of making new plantations, he
has met the increased demand by plucking the old trees
much too freely, and so deteriorating the quality of the
leaf which they produce. A very good authority on this
subjects asserts to me that, quality considered, tea, less
duty, is now fifty per cent dearer than it was before
Hankow was opened in accordance with the Treaty of
Tientsin.

The prospects of the China merchants have consider-
ably brightened this year, but the facts just alluded to
strongly suggest that their trade is in an unsatisfactory
state, because of their own faults quite as much as on
account of any obstacles which they meet with in the
Chinese Empire. With the exception of a few of the
more intelligent of them, their cry has ever been that
their trade is fettered by want of access to the interior
of the country, by the illegal exactions levied on the
transit of goods by local authorities, and by customs
arrangements unfavourable to commerce. It is vain to
point out to them the great fact that our trade with
China is conditioned by the demand in Foreign countries
for Chinese products, that the Celestials are so thoroughly
organised, self-controlled, and economical, that, managing
the matter in one way or another, they will not consent
to pay for articles from abroad except out of the profits
which accrue from the sale of their own products.

Their fixed idea is that China is not opened, and that
commerce will expand immensely and immediately if
only they can get further access to the interior of the
country. In the memorials addressed by the Chambers
of Commerce in China to. the British Minister at Peking
376 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

in regard to the revision of the Tregty of Tientsin,
which should come on this year, the one great subject of
complaint on which almost all the Chambers agree is the
alleged obstacle to commerce arising from illegal transit-
dues in the interior of China. Now, before the Treaty
of Tientsin was framed, this statement was advanced
with more reason than it can be now, but it was partly
disproved by the low prices at which Lord Elgin’s
expedition up the Yangtsze found English goods selling
at Hankow in the centre of China, and Mr Wingrove
Cooke discussed the subject pretty fully in the ‘ Times.’
Since then China has been “ opened;” there are a large
number of new ports, and Foreign travellers have per-
mission to go through the country, and protection in
doing so, yet it seems that the high duties charged at
internal custom-houses in China are still the great cause
why our commerce with China does not increase more
rapidly. There is some truth in this view, but its
importance is exaggerated. In Hongkong itself, a
British colony and a free port, articles exported from
Europe are hardly at all purchased by the Chinese re-
sidents for their own use; and I have no doubt that the
coolies who carried the members of the Hongkong Cham-
ber of Commerce to their meeting denouncing inland tran-
sit-dues were all clothed in cotton stuffs of Chinese manu-
facture. In a country such as China, where irregular
transit dues are levied, that often tends to protect com-
merce rather than to hamper it; the extent to which that is
done is probably greatly exaggerated, there being nothing
but strong vague assertions to prove it; and it is very
questionable whether all the exactions on trade in China,
legal and illegal, amount to such a sum as is levied on
the China trade by our own taxation. The recklessness
with which such subjects are discussed in the Hast may
 

MEMORIALS OF THE CHAMBERS OF COMMERCE. 377

be judged of from the following passage in the me-
morial of the Shanghai Chamber of Commerce: “ Your
memorialists beg to illustrate their views by putting
the question of what would have been said if, imme-
diately after the conclusion of the Cobden Treaty
with France, the French Government had proceeded
to make a tax, not upon English goods, but upon those
who traded in them ; or what would have been thought
if, in the British Parliament, a poll-tax had been voted
upon all persons who dealt in French wines? It is
scarcely to be imagined that such ill faith would have
been tolerated, and yet it is what we are submitting to
in China.” Here it is entirely overlooked that such a
“ poll-tax” does exist in Britain on the vendors of French
wine, while there are octrod duties in France; and
that, in forming their treaty, neither country dreamed
fora moment of relinquishing its right of levying its
internal revenue to the extent and in the manner it
deems best.

At once the ablest and most reasonable of the memo-
rials referred to is that which the great house of Jar-
dine, Matheson, & Co. has sent in on its own account,*

* The bold manner in which this house defends the opium traffic is amus-
ing, and worthy of note. “Since 1860,” say these much-misrepresented
philanthropists, “it has been rendered abundantly clear that the use of
opium is not a curse, but » comfort and a benefit, to the hard-working
Chinese. As well say that malt is a curse to the English labourer, or
tobacco one to the world at large. Misuse is one thing, use another. If to
a few the opium-pipe has proved a fatal snare, to many scores of thousands,
on the other hand, has it been productive of healthful sustentation and en-
joyment.” There is a great deal of truth in this view of the subject. Most
Chinese who use opium do so in moderation, just as we do wine and beer,
and often with positive advantage to themselves ; put if the people were
polled, they would exclude the drug from China by an almost unanimous
vote: and we forced the introduction of it against their wishes—first, by,
contrary to treaty, giving the opium-receiving ships on the coast the protec-

tion of our flag, so forming a basis of operations for smugglers on a line of
coast which it was impossible for government officials to watch sufficiently ;
378 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

and the point on which it lays most stygss is, the right of
residence in China by British subjects at other places
than the ports opened by treaty. Undoubtedly this is
an important matter, but it is not true, as some other of
the memorialists allege, that residence in the interior of
the country is impossible at present. A very large
number of Roman Catholic, and a smaller number of
German Protestant, missionaries do at present reside,
and for many years have resided, in the interior of the
country, away from the open ports, holding houses and
lands on their own account. The mercantile community
have never displayed any particular readiness to un-
dertake the trouble and undergo the risks necessarily
attendant upon residence among a people such as the
Chinese. What they too much want, in point of fact,
is, that the imperial power of Great Britain should be
employed in enabling them to sit down anywhere they
choose in the vast empire of China, without being at the
least trouble in adapting themselves to Chinese habits or
institutions, and in greater safety and comfort than they
ever enjoyed in London. This is not the style of thing
in which Britannia justly glories, nor is this the spirit
which created our commerce and founded our empire in
the Hast.

It is beyond my plan to enter fully into a discussion
of our mercantile relationships with China, so I must
remark on the subject only curtly, and therefore appa-
rently ex cathedrd. When Messrs Jardine, Matheson,
& Co. assert that the alleged inland transit dues in
China “are deadly foes of the English artisan, for they
make teas and silks dear, as well as impede the distribu-
and secondly, by making the result thus obtained an excuse for insisting,

vt ct armis, that the admission of opium at a fixed and low rate of duty
should be legalised by an article in the Treaty of Tientsin,
THE RESULTS OF AGGRESSION. 379

tion amongst millions of buyers of the various produc-
tions of his handicraft,” they leave entirely out of sight
certain responsibilities which attach to the British mer-
chants in China. What have been the net results of the
ageressive policy they have supported during the last
twelve years? Since the lorcha war gave such an im-
petus to the Rebellion in China as to disorganise the
Government and ruin large districts, we have paid on
an average about a pound sterling per chest of 100 lb.
dearer for tea than we should otherwise have done, and
about ten shillings extra on every pound weight of raw
silk, even making allowance for the failure of the Euro-
pean crop; in war expenditure on account of China we
(including the British artisan) have laid out about fifteen
millions sterling, minus two or three repaid back as in-
demnity money ; our soldiers and sailors have been buried
in Celestial soil by thousands, while the impetus we gave
to the Rebellion has caused the Chinese to be buried
untimely by tens of millions; half the English mercan-
tile houses in China have gone down; and, in return,
a few new ports have been uselessly opened, Sir Ruther-
ford Alcock resides at Peking, and the whilom Mr Consul
Parkes has been madea K.C.B. Any further progress
effected in China during late years has been due to the
natural unforced expansion of trade,* which the Chinese
value as much as we do ourselves; to the assistance
which Colonel Gordon and others have given to the
Government in restoring order; and to the legitimate
influence which has been exercised by Foreigners such
as Sir Frederick Bruce, Mr Burlinghame, and Mr
Hart.

* The latest reliable returns which I have on the trade of China are in
the Blue-book on that country presented to Parliament by her Majesty in
February of this year, from which it appears that, in the year 1866, the
380 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

We may, however, confidently. hoge that the China
merchants will not be disappointed in regard to the
further progress which they desiderate, and especially as
regards the right of Foreigners to reside in the interior ;
the introduction of steam carriage on land, with its
further introduction on water; and the development of
the mineral resources of the country. Already steam-
boats are freely used in China by the Government as well
as by the mercantile classes ; the local Viceroys possess
steam gunboats. Docks have been constructed, and at
least one arsenal is worked successfully. A college has
been established at Peking for the study of European
languages and science; a Chinese Commissioner has
visited Europe; and the Celestials have appointed a
representative, albeit he is.a Foreigner, to the Courts of
Europe. Further changes, however, are still urgently
required. After the questions of over-population and the
military organisation of China, there comes the position
of the Mandarins. At present they have nothing to fall

estimated value of the trade of China with Foreign countries and coastwise
was as follows :—

 

| Imports. Re-exports. Exports. Total.

 

Great “Britain, ent £22,723,128 £14,769,295 | £37,492, 498

 

Possessions & Colonies, ras
Japan, ...... 928,646} £607,043 235,041 1,770,730
United States of America, 91,780 es 2,000,111 2,091,891
pe pees hes 617,858 ics 780,127 1,897,985
amie, < a ca 30,251,596 | 13,520,849) 14,807,721! 58,580,167
Total, £54,613, 008, is £32,592,295 | £101,333,196

 

 

 

 

This may appear to contradict my statement that the Chinese will not
pay for articles from abroad, “ except out of the profits which accrue from
the sale of their own products.” One explanation is, that the Chinese do
make profits to speak of on their side of the trade ; they do not sell tea at
less than it costs themselves or otherwise, try to force a trade.
WAN SEE-ANG’S PROPHECY. 381

back upon, in the event of unsuccess in the discharge of
their duties, except concealed funds which they may
have levied illegally when in office. The highest among
them, as well as the lowest, stand in danger of being
degraded to intolerable positions simply for want of
success ; and, consequently, they seek to lay up private
funds when in office, regardless of the general interests
of their class and of their country. The evils thus aris-
ing could easily be obviated by a reconstruction of the
Civil Service of China on a footing, in this respect,
resembling that of India; and such a change would be
the most efficient means of putting an end to any illegal
transit-dues which may at present be levied.

What it seems to me we have to dread is, not China
hanging back but going too quickly for our own interests
and comfort. Wan See-ang is reported to have said
some time ago to Mr Hart, “Foreigners complain at
present that China is changing too slowly, but fifty
years after this you will make war upon us for going
too fast.” This astute Mandarin was not speaking
thoughtlessly. It takes a considerable time to wheel
round a very populous and democratic people like the
Chinese to an unaccustomed stand-point, but once get
them round and their action from it comes to be some-
thing tremendous. In Japan, a feudal country, any
individual Daimio who takes it into his head may intro-
duce a European improvement, such as the use of steam ;
but in China the mass of the people must be to a certain
extent prepared for the innovation before it can be
introduced. Hence progress in some respects is very
slow in that country; but what will be the state of the
case when the people of China have got fairly turned
round to the point of accepting and using the practical
appliances of Western civilisation? I doubt whether
382 THE PRESENT AND FUTURE OF CHINA.

then there will be any great English, mercantile houses
on the coast of Cathay. It is to be feared that the
native Chinese merchants will very quickly take their
maritime commerce into their own hands, and try to
dictate prices in London as they are already doing at
Hankow and Shanghai. Already the Anglo-Saxons of
Australia have had recourse, and not very effectively, to
a heavy capitation-tax in order to keep down the com-
petition of Chinese emigration, which is nothing com-
pared with what it is capable of becoming. Without
doubt we shall open up the Flowery Land effectively
enough ; but the results of that opening promise to be
somewhat different from our fond anticipations. At all
events, any change for the better in our position with
reference to that country must come from England out-
wards. In order that Great Britain may extend, or even
continue to hold, its once grand position in the East, it
must be more worthy of doing so than it is at present,
and there must be a return to some tolerable connection
between its higher intelligence and the wielding of its
power: otherwise, Britannia will soon share the fate
of Carthage and Venice, of Spain and Holland ; while
delenda est, or the capta of the Arch of Titus, enscrolled
after its name, will afford another instance of the Con-
fucian benevolence of Heaven towards trees which are
prepared to fall.
APPENDICES.

LIST or CHINESE TITLES, CIVIL anp MILITARY.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Civil.
rid
Chinese Title. English, a Button.
Che-tai, or Tsung-tu Governor-General 1 | Red
Fu-tai, or Hsiun-fu . Governor ‘ & 2) Do.
Fan-tai, or Pu-cheng-sze . | Superintendent of Finances | 2 | Do.
Nie-tai, or An-cha-sze Provincial Judge. . | 3 | Transparent blue
Yen-tai, or Yen-yuen-sze. | Collector of Salt by Gabel 3 Do.
Leang-tow, or Leang-chu-tow| Grain Collector z - | 4 | Opaque blue
Taou-tai, or Show-siun-taou | Intendant of Circuit 4 Do.
Che-foo . i Prefect of Department 4 Do.
Chih-le-che-chou Do. Inferior do. 5 | Uncoloured glass
Tung-che : Sub-Prefect 5 Do.
Chih-le-tung-che Independent do, . 5 Do.
Tung-pan Deputy Sub-Prefect . 6 | White
Che-chow District Magistrate 5 | Uncoloured glass
Che-shien : ; Do. do. 7 | Plain gilt
Tso-tang, or Hsien-cheng. | Assistant do. 8 | Gilt.
Military.

Ti-ta,* General.

Tsung-ping, General of Division.

Tu-tsi-ang, Brigadier.

Tsan-tsi-ang, Colonel.

Yt-ki, Lieutenant-Colonel.

Tuw-sze, 2 Major.

Shan-pi, . Captain.

Tsien-tsung, Lieutenant.

Pa-tsung, Ensign.

Wai-wei, Sergeant.

 

 

_ * In China proper, or the ‘‘ Middle Kingdom,” which contains eighteen provinces,
there are eighteen Ti-tus only employed in times of peace, but in time of war this rule
is departed from, and other Ti-tus, sometimes in all to the number of 200, are em-
ployed under the Governors, or Futais of each province, in command of distinct levies

raised for a specific purpose.

Legitimately there could no more be two Ti-tus in a

province than two Futais. Colonel Gordon's force was one of those raised for a specific

‘purpose—the suppression of rebellion, and so was General Ching’s,

The Ti-tu of a

province is Commander-in-Chief of its naval as well as of its military forces.

 
384 APPENDICES,

e
LIST or OFFICERS anp oTHER EUROPEANS KILLED anp
WOUNDED pvurinc COLONEL GORDON’S CAMPAIGN

In 1863 anp 1864,

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rank. Names. At what Place. | Killed or Wounded.
Captain Belcher Fushan Dead
Lieutenant Baty Taitsan Wounded
Colonel (Capt. ) Williams Do. Do.
Captain Robertson Do. Do.

Do. Chidzwick Do. Do.
Do. Bannon Do. Killed
Do. Ludlam Do. Wounded
Captain (Col.) Chapman Do. Do.
Major Murant Do. Do.
Lieutenant Murdock Wokong Do.
Captain Baffy Do. Do.
Do. M‘Guiness Patachiao Do.
Lieut.-Colonel Rhode Do. Do.
Captain Chapman Do. Do.
Do. Perry Leeku Killed
Do. Gibb Wanti Do.
Do. Parker Do. Wounded
Private Nicholson Do. Do.
Do. Friday Do. Do.
Major Kirkham Soochow Do.
Captain Wiley Do. Killed
Lieutenant King Do. Do.
Captain Maule Do. Do.
Lieutenant Polkson Do. Wounded
Captain Hartney Do. Do.
Do. Christie Do. Killed
Lieutenant Agar Do. Do.
Do. Carrol Do. Do.
Do. Williams Do. Do.
Do. Glanceford Do. Do.
Colonel Brennan Do. Wounded
Do. Tapp Do. Do.
Lieutenant Rhodes Do. Do.
Captain Baffey Do. Do.
Lieutenant Jones Do. Killed
Do. Shamroffel Do. Wounded
Captain Wilson Do. Do.

 

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

APPENDICES. 385

Rank, Names, At what Place. | Killed or Wounded.
Private Upchurch Soochow Killed

Do. Miller Do. . Do.

Do. Rodgers Do. Wounded

Do. Ryan Do. Do,

Do. Hallick Do. Do.
Corporal Brown Do. Do.
Private M‘Clean Do. Do.

. Do. Clark Do. Do.
Lieutenant Herzog Yeshing Do.
Commander Gordon Kintang Do.
Major Brown Do. Do.
Colonel Kirkham Do. Do.

Do. Tumblety Do. Do,
Captain Cramer Do. Do.
Colonel Williams Do. Do.
Captain Banning Do. Killed
Major Taite Do. Do.
Lieutenant Williams Do. Wounded
Captain Wilson Do. Do.
Lieutenant Rudimare Do. Do.

Do. Bertrand Do. Do.
Captain M‘Mahon Do. Do.

Do. Mansell Do. Do.
Lieutenant Polkson Waissoo Killed
Captain Chirikoff Do. Do.

Do. Hughes Do. Do.

Do. Graves Do. Do.

Do. Gibbon Do. Do.
Lieutenant Pratt Do. Do.

Do. Dowling Do. Do.
Colonel Taylor Do. Wounded

Do. Tapp Chanchu Killed
Lieutenant Chowne Do. Do.
Captain Everest Do, Wounded

Do. Hendrickson Do. Do.
Lieutenant Maloney Do. Do.

Do. John Do. Do.
Captain Donald Do. Killed
Lieutenant Greenlaw Do. Do.

Do. Donelly © Do. Wounded
Captain Smith Do, Killed

Do. Reynolds Do. Wounded
Major Morton Do. Killed
Captain Hammond Do. Wounded

 

 
386 APPENDICES.

 

 

e

Rank, Names. At what Place. | Killed or Wounded.
Lieutenant Robinson Chanchu Killed

Do. Mitchel Do. Wounded
Colonel Rhode Do. Do.
Captain Graham Do. Do.
Colonel Howard Do. Do.
Major Coats Do. Do.
Captain Carr Do. Do.
Lieutenant Jones Do. Do.

Do. Williams Do. Killed
Captain Bailey Do. Wounded
Colonel Doyle Do. Do.
Captain Rhodes Do. Killed
Lieutenant Brown Do. ~ Do.
Captain Dunn Do. Wounded

Do. Murphy Do. Killed
Colonel Chapman Do. Wounded
Lieutenant Gibb Do. Killed

Do. Greenlaw Do. Do.

 

 

 

 

 

 

OFFICERS wWHo DISTINGUISHED THEMSELVES,

The following Officers particularly distinguished themselves
under Colonel Gordon’s command, being frequently in front and
very much exposed :—

THROUGHOUT THE CAMPAIGN—

Major Brown, Staff.
Colonel Kirkham, ae
Doctor Moffitt, P.M.O.

T. Thorpe and C. Draper, Orderlies.

Colonel Brooks,
Mr Hobson,
Captain Davidson,
Colonel Doyle.
Colonel Baily.

Provost Marshal.
European Interpreter.
Steamer Hyson.

At Capture or Tarrsan—

Captain Williams, 2d Regiment.
Captain Tchirikoff, 5th = do.
Major Brennan, 5th = do.
Captain Howard, 5th = do.
Captain Brooks, ad do.
APPENDICES.

387

At CarPrure or Quinsan—

Captain Howard,
Captain Cawte,

5th Regiment.
5th = do.

At CaPTuRE oF Wokonc—

Captain Cawte,

5th Regiment.

European Sergeant-Major Smith.

Av PaTacHIaou—

Major Tumblety,
Captain Williams,
‘Captain Chapman,

At Lerxu—
-Major Howard,

At Wantl—
Captain Gibb,

Soochow—
Captain Cawte,
Captain Williams,
Captain Tuite,
Captain Chapman,
Lieutenant Henrickson,
Lieutenant Bremler,
Captain Maule,
Captain Wilson,
Major Howard,

At CHancHu—

Colonel Cawte,
Colonel Howard,
Captain Winstanley,
Colonel Chapman,
Lieutenant Cane,
Captain Bremler,
Captain Henrickson,

Av Kiytane—-

Colonel Kirkham,
Colonel Brooks,
Major Brown,
Colonel Williams,
Colonel Tumblety,

lst Regiment.
2d_—s do.
5th do.

4th Regiment.

[st Regiment.

5th Regiment.

2d do.
2d do.
5th = do.
4th do.
4th = do.
2d do.
2d do.
4th do.

4th Regiment.

4th = do.
5th = do.
5th = do.
4th do.
3d do.
4th do.
Staff.
Staff.
Staff.

2d Regiment.
Ist do.
388 ; APPENDICES.

ARRANGEMENTS For PLACING THE EVER-VICTORIOUS
ARMY UNDER THE JOINT COMMAND OF CHINESE AND
FoREIGN OFFICERS, APPOINTED BY HIS EXCELLENCY THE
FuTAI AND GENERAL STAVELEY, C.B.

1. The Force shall be placed temporarily under the joint command of
Captain Holland, and Captain Gordon shall be recommended to Pekin
as joint commander, and to regularly enter the Chinese service. The
Futai appoints Futsiang Le Heng Sing to the joint command.

2. No expedition shall be undertaken beyond the thirty miles without
previous reference to the Allies (England and France), but in reference to
sudden expeditions within those limits their consent shall not be required.

3. A Chinese officer, of the 4th or 5th grade, shall be placed under
the orders of the joint commanders as provost-marshal, to carry out such
punishments as they shall order, who shall always be on the spot ;
another officer, of equal rank, shall be appointed under their order to
superintend the commissariat and pay of the Force, who shall always
be on the spot. A third officer shall be appointed to take charge of
military stores, who shall report from time to time to the Futai.

4. Three good linguists shall be appointed permanently to the Force.

5. The discipline and internal economy of the Force shall be in the
hands of the joint commanders, and they shall be both present in per-
son, or by deputy, at all issues of pay or of rations to the Force.

6. Orders on the Harguan Bank for six months’ pay shall be issued
every year, payable as due monthly, the amount to be settled when the
standing of the Force is arranged.

7. The strength of the Force shall be 3000, but if the custom-house
receipts should fail, this number may be eventually reduced.

8. No foreign officer of the Force shall be dismissed without a mixed
court of inquiry, the sentence of which must be confirmed by the Futai,
and which sentence cannot be reversed without the concurrence of the
British General. No officer shall be appointed to the Force by the
Chinese Commander without the concurrence of his British colleague.

9. The commanders shall not interfere with civil jurisdiction of Sung-
Kiang and its suburbs.

10. The civil authorities shall carry out the wishes of the joint com-
manders in all matters connected with the defence of the city, but no
public works shall be undertaken without their consent.

11. No purchases of arms, ammunition, or military stores of any
kind, shall be made without the written consent of the Futai.

12. The British commander shall rank as equal with a Chéntai or
Taoutai, and shall be given a proper Chinese designation corresponding
thereto, but shall be under the orders of the Futai.

13. The British commander is only to leave the Force (if at his own
request) with the consent of the British Commander-in-Chief, obtained
and signified through the Consul. If the Chinese are dissatisfied with
APPENDICES. 389

the commander they shall not dismiss him without a judicial inquiry (in
which the Consul shall take part), and due notice must be given.

All subordinate officers are to be appointed at the discretion of the
joint commanders, due regard being paid to the 8th Article.

14, That the number of coolies employed by the Force shall be reduced,.
100 per 1000 soldiers only being allowed, and their pay put on the foot-
ing of those employed in the Futai’s camp—viz., 3 dols. per mensem.

15. That the hospital expenses be reduced. The Force to be put, as re-
gards sickness, wounds, &c., on the same footing as other Chinese troops.

16. That the Foreign officers of the force shall receive certain pay, but
no extra allowance.

“TI-PING TIEN-KWOH.”

In a note to page 189, giving an account of the capture
of the steamer Firefly, it is mentioned that the leader of the
men who perpetrated that act escaped to England, and under
the name of “Lin Lee” published a book, entitled ‘Ti-ping
Tien-Kwoh.’ My reasons for taking no notice of that book
in the body of my history are various and sufficient. It is
not necessary to go beyond the author’s own admissions in
order to find ground for receiving his statements with caution.
Though he does not mention the name of the Firefly, he admits
(Chap. XXIII.) having been engaged in heading the capture of
a steamer at Shanghai, in circumstances which leave no doubt
that the Firefly is referred to; he actually complains (Chap.
XXIV.) that for being engaged in that act one of his accom-
plices, a man called White, was condemned to three years’ im-
prisonment by the British Consular Court of Shanghai; and he
ingenuously adds, “Besides the fact that my medical adviser
ordered a change of climate, directly I became aware of my
lieutenant’s fate I determined to take a trip to England.”

These are not recommendations, for they involve a direct
admission that he committed what the laws of his country con-
demned as an act of piracy; but many a worthy man has-
fought in a bad cause, and I should not have refused to notice Mr
“ Lin-Lee’s ” statements on those grounds alone. More remains
behind. He admits having made prisoner on board this captured
steamer four Europeans (the same whose names I have mentioned
in the note to page 189), and that he promised to endeavour to
.

390 APPENDICES.

pass them into Gordon’s lines as prisoners gf war, though he
does not say that this was the condition on which they surren-
dered to him. How this promise was fulfilled can now only be
judged from “Lin-Lee’s” own statements, and from the fact that
when Colonel Gordon occupied Wusieh he found there the
bodies of the four men—Dolly, Martin, Perry, and Easton—in a
burned and mutilated state, which proved, in the judgment of
his medical officers, that they had been deliberately tortured
before death. In one sentence, “Lin-Lee” suggests that this
was done by the Imperialists, and in another that it was com-
mitted by the Tai-pings in revenge for the execution of the Soo-
chow Wangs ; but before determining the value of his evidence
T should like to-have some more light on this dark subject than
either his statements or his suggestions.

But even this is not all, According to his own account
(Chap. XXTV.), Lin-Lee shot dead Hart, an Englishman, one of
his four foreign associates in the capture of the Firefly, as they
were all returning from Soochow to Shanghai with the price
which they had received for that steamer. At the same time
he drove away, and “nearly frightened out of life,’ Thompson,
an American, the second of his associates; and on reaching
Shanghai, White, the third, was “betrayed” to the British
authorities and cast into prison, while only the virtuous “ Lin-
Lee” [? Lindley] escaped unscathed with his prey to England.
Of course all this was forced on “ Lin-Lee.” Hart and Thompson
tried to murder him and White for the sake of the prize-money;
and it was the dastardly Thompson who betrayed White at
Shanghai. The Chinese have another version of the story, but
then they are Asiatics, and of course liars.

Further, what actually was this man’s connection with
the Rebels? There is no doubt about his taking the Firefly to
Soochow, and then coming down with the price and escap-
ing to England; but he also gives a long account of previous
adventures which he had among the Rebels. These may be
perfectly true; but unfortunately he has entirely mistranslated
a Tai-ping pass in Chinese, of which he gives a fac-simile in the
commencement of his work, and has so mistranslated it as to make
it an evidence of his previous connection with these Rebels,
and to make it cover operations of war. I here give in parallel
APPENDICES,

391

columns “ Lin-Lee’s” version of this document, as he divides it
into_pargraphs, and a true translation prepared by one compe-
tent Chinese scholar and revised by another :—

LIN-LEE’S VERSION.

The General of the Chin-chung
(truly faithful) Army, Chung-
wang Le (The “ Faithful Prince”
Le

Hereby certifies that the under-
mentioned Foreign Brother, Lin-le,
aforetime traversed the country
between Shanghai, Ningpo, &c.,
conducting and managing military
affairs (or ships of war).

He has traversed the whole
country, and from time to time has
been actively engaged, and has col-
lected commissariat (or military)
stores, neither sparing pains nor
valuing difficulties, but directly
managing the affairs,

After this he proceeds to Kia-
hing (or Cha-shing) Prefecture to
conduct operations (with regard to
organising an auxiliary force, &c.),
and to receive and use, from Ting
Wang, certain moneys for affairs in
which he succeeded (or may succeed).

We therefore hereby command
those in charge of the military
posts on the frontier to examine
this closely, and to allow him to
pass to and fro without let or hin-
drance.

This is an Express Commission !
Dated, The Celestial Kingdom of
Ti-ping, 13th year, 10th month,
26th day.

TRUE TRANSLATION.

Ij, the Faithful King of the
True and Faithful Army, issues a
certificate [or passport].

The Foreign Brother Ling-li,
being now about to proceed to
Shanghai and Ningpo to obtain
vessels [or a vessel] of war,

The places through which he
shall pass are directed to furnish
him sufficiently with rice, oil, salt,
and firewood, so that he shall not
want anything necessary.

When he shall have obtained
[what he proceeds to obtain}, he
shall take the same to the Prefec-
ture of Kia-hing, and deliver [the
same] to the Ting Wang, who will
pay the price.

And farther, the military in
charge of the Customs Stations on
the route are directed to “release
upon examination,” and to permit
him to come and go without hin-
drance.

This pass is given 13th year of
the Celestial Kingdom of our
Heavenly Father, Elder Brother
and King, and the 26th day of the
10th month.

From the above it will be seen that this document is merely
a pass authorising the bearer to go thorough the Tai-ping lines,
and to receive payment from the Ting Wang, in the event of
his bringing a vessel of war, whereas “ Lin-Lee” makes it out to
be a certificate of his having previously engaged in military
392 APPENDICES.

operations for the Tai-pings, and an authoSisation to conduct
such affairs in future. Without such mistranslation, he produces
not even the mockery of Tai-ping authority for his capture of
the Firefly, and delivery to the Tai-pings of the Europeans on
board. If he has not been misled as to the meaning of the
Chinese document, the audacity of giving a fac-simile of it is
something stupendous, but is not out of keeping with his ac-
knowledged exploits, and may have served a purpose with
certain readers.

One would think that the force of nature could not go much
further than this, but there is even something more. “Lin-
Lee,” on returning to England for the benefit of his health, &.,
is not content with availing himself of his success, but must
place himself in prominent contrast with Colonel Gordon. The
latter officer is supposed by almost all who know him, either
personally or by report, to be not a bad specimen of the Chris-
tian gentleman. His officers and soldiers idolised him; Chinese
of all classes regarded him with high respect; when in their
power his enemies offered him no injury, and their troops came
over to him in large numbers; always foremost in moments of
danger, no coolie of his force cared less for personal comfort ;
the Foreign merchants admired him, and he returned from
China a poorer man than he went out, with little more than the
honorary acknowledgments of his own and of the Chinese Goy-
ernments. But it seems we are all under a mistake. The real
hero is “ Lin-Lee,” whose exploits, so far as he adduces testi-
mony, are the midnight capture of a small steamer lying off a
peaceful settlement; the delivery, for money, of it and of the
Europeans on board to cruel Tai-pings ; the killing of one of his
associates ; and a secret flight to England!

So far ‘Ti-Ping Tien-Kwoh’ is a curiosity in literature ; but
otherwise I cannot recommend a perusal of it to any one seeking
a knowledge of China ; it is not interesting or amusing, and I
regret much feeling myself called on to take even this notice of
it. As regards Colonel Gordon’s action in China, the statement
of facts so far as it goes does not differ much from my own.
The chief difference is in the gloss which is put upon these facts
—a gloss which, I had believed, there was only one mind in the
world pessimist and poisonous enough to have exuded.
APPENDICES. 393

STATEMENT or GEORGE BAFFEY, A Prisoner SENT TO
H.B.M. ConsuLaTE, CANTON, BY THE CHINESE AUTHORITIES.

George Baffey states, I am aged twenty-two, was born at St Paul’s,
Minnesota, and am a citizen of the United States.

I joined the rebels at Changchow about the 18th March. I went up
from Amoy to join them. When the rebels evacuated Changchow, I
came with them into this province, and stayed with them until the 14th
July, when I deserted them in disgust. The name of the Chief I joined
at Changchow was the Tze (She) Wang, and it was with his party to
the number of 20,000 that I left Changchow. There were thirteen
Europeans with them at that time. Eleven days after leaving Chang-
chow the Tze Wang’s division became disorganised near Yingting on a
branch of the Han River, and I joined the Kan Wang. It was with
the latter that I entered this province. The Kan Wang numbers his
force at 100,000, but he has not more than 15,000 fighting men, who,
however, are well armed. I got disgusted with them at last; the
slaughter was dreadful: at the city of Chénping they took 1600
Imperial braves prisoners, who surrendered on the promise of their
lives, but the same night they beheaded the whole number, and I saw
the creek run with blood for four hours. On the night of the 14th
July I took advantage of my being with a party at a point some sixty
li in advance of the city of Chénping to desert by floating down the
river on a plank, and the next day I took to the mountains. I wished
to avoid the troops, as I knew I should be put to death if taken prisoner
by them, so I made inquiries previously to my flight from the country
people within the rebel lines respecting the direction of Kia-ying-chow,
and at length I gave myself up to a village mandarin. Previously to
this I was seized by some boatmen belonging to the village, who bound
me hands and feet, and were about to behead me when a respectable old
man induced them to desist, and led me to the mandarin. The latter
sent me to Kia-ying-chow, where I was confined in an office belonging
to the magistrate, and treated well by the officials, but very badly by
the people. I only had rice and water. JI was then sent down to Can-
ton by boat in charge of a small mandarin, who treated me kindly. I
arrived at Canton the night before last, and was taken in a chair into
the city, where I was lodged in a yamén, and last night was examined
before two magistrates. It was at a Chinese prison; a linguist inter-
preted, but so badly that I could understand nothing.

To go back. I was originally employed in Colonel Gordon’s force as
Captain of Artillery, and on its being broken up I served under the
Futai Li for three months as drill instructor, and then, wages being re-
duced from 211 dols. to 150 dols. a month, I went to Foochow and took
service under Baron de Meritens, who put me under the orders of a
Frenchman at Amoy, with whom I disagreed ; and, in consequence of
this, I went to Shanghai and endeavoured to get employed in the

2¢
394 APPENDICES.

Customs. I had previously endeavoured to get employment at Amoy
and Ningpo, but had been refused everywhere ; and sv at length, having
been unemployed for seven months, and receiving offers from Rhode and
others who had joined the rebels, I went to Amoy and joined them.

Rhode was one of the thirteen who left Changchow with the rebels ;
of these only three besides myself are now alive. They are Williams,
an American; McAuliffe (who made the mortars and shells, &, at
Changchow), an Irishman; and Rhode. Williams was very ill with
dysentery when I left. The remainder, I believe, were all murdered at
different times.

While with the Tze Wang after leaving Changchow I was four days
without food ; but the Kan Wang had been well supplied by pillage.
When I left, the rebels were talking of retreating towards Kiangsi.
The rebels have great confidence in the Kan Wang ; the latter is an
exceedingly clever man, very fond of European ideas, but very distrust-
ful of foreigners. None of the Europeans were allowed to hold any
authority, and none ever received the fulfilment of the promises by which
we were enticed over. The Baron de Meritens sent Gerard and others
into Changchow with letters and passes, endeavouring to get the
Europeans over; but Gerard having previously cheated the Tze Wang
out of 3000 dols., the latter seized and beheaded him.

The greatest number of Europeans ever at Changchow was sixteen. I
attempted to escape out of Changchow, but was prevented by information
given against me by a German. The cause of my wishing to desert was
seeing two Chinese mandarins burnt alive by the rebels in the city of
Changchow. For every tail of a mandarin soldier produced the Kan
Wang gives 6 dols. reward. The Kan Wang is about thirty-five years of
age. He is the principal rebel chief at the present moment. I have
never heard the rebels speak of coming near Canton, but they are very
anxious to get to the coast so as to obtain arms. There is very little
money among the rebels, and this province is not productive enough to
support them. They threw up fourteen fine stockades around the city
of Chénping, very different from .the wretched ones erected by the
Imperial troops.

The country people are very hostile. They had cut down the unripe
paddy around Chénping to prevent its falling into the hands of the Kan
Wang. The latter, unlike the Tze Wang, does not allow useless devasta-
tion among the villages.

(Signed) GEORGE BAFFEY.
Statement taken by me,

(Signed) W. F. Mayers.
August 5, 1865.
APPENDICES. 305

LIST or tHE CHINESE NAMES or PLACES near
SHANGHAT.

In the text of this work, and in the ““Sketch-Map of the
Operations against the Rebels in 1862-64,” many of the names
of places are given as they were pronounced in the local dialect,
and written down in English sometimes by persons ignorant of
Chinese. For the benefit of travellers who may visit that part
of China, now that it can be traversed with tolerable safety, I
give the following list of some of the principal places, with their
names as represented in the Mandarin or Peking dialect, and
with their rank occasionally added. As a key to the meaning
of many Chinese names, it may be well to mention that kang
signifies a river, and shan a mountain.

SKETCH-Map. PEKING DIALEcT. Sketcu-Mapr. PrxinG DIALEcT.
Chanchufu Changchow fu. Najow Nankiao.
Chinkiang _ Chingkiang. Poashan Pooshen hien.
Chuenza Chuensha. i Quinsan Kwenshan.
Fusiquan Kwangfu. Seedong Pasiao.
Haiyuen Haiyen hien. Semen Shihmun hien.
Kading Kiating hien. Siangchow  Siyangkiao.
Kashing fu Kiahing fu. Taitsan Taitsang chow.
Kashur Kiashan hien. Vongnai Tunghien hien.
Kinsaiwai Kinshan hien. Wokong Wukiang hien.
Kongyin Kiangyin hien. Wuchufu Hoochow fu.
Naiwai Nanhwei hien. Yesing Yeshang.
Naizean Nansiang.

THE END.

PRINTED BY WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS, EDINBURGH
Preparing for Publication,

BY THE AUTHOR OF THE ‘EVER-VICTORIOUS ARMY,

PICTURES

FROM FOUR CONTINENTS.

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