by G. A. Henty
The feeling was deepened by events at the French Legation. Here Mr. Wagner, an officer of the customs-house, was killed and the French guards were driven back. Later, however, they recovered the position and returned to their barricades.
In the afternoon there was another misfortune. An Italian officer, Captain Paolina, proposed to attempt the capture of a gun in the northeast, facing the Fu, which had caused considerable annoyance. He suggested that the Japanese should proceed along the side of the canal, and then, working round a large block of houses, come down upon the gun from the north, while he, with a mixed party, should make his way between two of the blocks of houses against which the gun was directed. His own party of Italians was a small one, but they were supported by a few Italian marines and some Austrian and British volunteers. Among the latter were the students of the Consular College.
“It seems to be rather a hare-brained scheme,” Sandwich said. “I do not know whether this Italian officer has any particular means of finding out the lie of the land, but we certainly seem going at it in rather a headlong way, and without taking any precautions whatever. However, as we have not been called upon for much work, it is our turn for a fight. I suppose you are coming, Bateman?”
“Of course I am. I regard myself as a consular student at present, and am certainly game to take part in whatever is going on, though, as you say, it seems wiser to gather in the part of the Fu that remains in our hands, and go straight from that to the gun.”
They started along the side of the canal. When the Japanese had gone on ahead, the rest of the force rushed up the little lane at the corner of the Fu. Here they found themselves suddenly face to face with a barricade, eight feet high and loopholed. It was impossible to assault it. The Italians, who were ahead, made a mad rush for the hole leading into the wall to the Fu. They almost fought their way in, for it was but wide enough for one man to pass at a time. The officer was wounded, and two of the marines were killed. While the struggle was going on, the volunteers stood with their backs against a wall which was a little out of the general line of fire, and when the Italians were out of the way they made a dash for the door, one by one. The first four got across in safety, but the last was hit in the shoulder and leg. The Japanese, meanwhile, had forced their way some distance north, but after having one man killed and two wounded, finding themselves unsupported, they fell back.
The failure of the affair excited much indignation in the Legation. It had been attempted without any knowledge of the ground, without any pains being taken to ascertain the enemy’s position, and in a hasty and haphazard manner. Their success, however, gave great encouragement to the enemy.
The next day the Chinese gun again opened fire against the Fu, and under its cover a furious attack was made on the building. The Japanese, who had already suffered heavily, were forced back, fighting stoutly; and they must have been driven out of the building had it not been for a company of Christian Chinese whom their colonel had assiduously drilled, and who now fought as bravely as the Japanese themselves. With their aid the Japs recovered their lost ground by the end of the day.
The Chinese had shown particular animosity towards this company of converts, hurling curses against them and hitting them with stones. This was the result of an imperial proclamation which had been issued on the previous day, ordering that all missionaries and converts who did not repent of their former error should be slain.
The position at the American barricade was becoming more and more dangerous. The Chinese attack had increased in vigour, and they had built another barricade diagonally across the bastion, and almost touching that of the Americans. The consequence was that they could at any moment from their barricade pour into the bastion, and then make a rush over the American barrier. It was evident that if they were not driven out the wall must be abandoned. At daybreak, therefore, the Americans, strengthened by a reinforcement of British and Russians, gathered noiselessly behind their barricade, and, with the first gleam of light, dashed over it. They found most of the Chinese behind the new barricade asleep, and bayoneting them, drove the enemy also from the barrier on the other side of the wall. The Chinamen rallied, however, behind a barricade farther along the wall, and again opened fire, killing two of the American marines, and wounding Corporal Gregory of the British marines, and Colonel Myers, who had all along been in command. This was a serious loss to the defence.
By this time life in the British Legation had become smooth and regular, with the exception that a number of Chinese men and women, for whom no houseroom could be found, had to be accommodated in rude shelters in the square in front of the British envoy’s house. All were settled down, and every crevice through which a musket-ball could enter had been closed up. The chapel had been divided into compartments, and some fifty people were lodged in it. The library had been thrown open to the use of all within the Legation. The wells were fortunately full, and the health of the whole company was excellent.
Communication was opened with the Fu, as a sloping passage had been driven down into the canal and a strong barrier erected at the lower end, so that it was possible to pass along it without risk of suffering from the fire kept up from the north bridge.
From another quarter, however, the enemy were giving a great deal of trouble. Owing to the burning of the museum the space between our outposts and the Imperial wall was clear. The Chinese had now built behind that wall a strong platform and mounted several cannon upon it, only one of which, however, was of foreign make. The parapet of the wall, heightened and loopholed, served as a breastwork, and as they put an iron shutter before the larger gun, they could with perfect safety bombard the Legation below, only three hundred yards away. The besieged could make no reply to the fire. The wall itself could not be breached unless by heavy cannon, and had the Chinese placed upon the wall some of the modern cannon, of which they had abundance, and added to their number, they could easily have destroyed all the Legations. But, strange to say, they contented themselves with only firing an occasional shot, which did a certain amount of damage no doubt, but nothing serious.
Why the Boxers should not have utilized this commanding position is a mystery, and as inexplicable as their failure to use the gun on the opposite side of the market. This question was, too, a fertile cause of argument. In many respects the Chinese showed a good deal of intelligence in their attacks, and it was simply astounding that they should almost entirely neglect two points from which they could have done us more harm than from all others together. Some asserted that it must be due to officers in Ching’s force, men who, like himself, absolutely disapproved of the attack upon the Legations. But whatever the reason, all agreed that had the enemy utilized these two positions, the defence of the Legations must sooner or later have broken down.
“They are a curious mixture,” Sandwich said. “Sometimes they seem to fight very pluckily, and then when they have really got the best of it they seem to hesitate in an unaccountable manner. Twice, you see, it has really been open to them, if they had made a push, to take possession of the American and German Legations and they might also have captured the French; then all of a sudden their attack ceased without any apparent reason. Again, when they had captured the walls, which really placed us almost at their mercy, they let themselves be driven off by less than a hundred men. Considering the force that they have at their disposal, they ought to have repulsed the attack with ease. Then they did actually repel our attack on the other side of the market, but the moment they had done so they withdrew the gun and ceased to harass us. They have any number of guns at their disposal, and might have planted a score of them there, in which case they could have battered down the whole length of our wall on that side in a few hours. Now they have stuck those guns up there and play right down into the residency, yet they leave unworked the one formidable piece they have at that point.”
“It almost looks, Sandwich, as if they were divided into two parties, one using some sort of activity in order to take the place, the other th
warting them at every turn. That is the only explanation I can think of. It is a pity that one can’t get at some of the leaders. I don’t mean, of course, that Prince Tung could be bribed, but there must be some smaller princes and mandarins who would be amenable to a handsome offer, and who would go round to the side of Prince Ching, who we do know is dead against the Tung party. The best plan, though I don’t for a moment suggest that it is possible, would be to kidnap the Empress, and bring her in here in a sedan-chair.”
Sandwich laughed.
“That certainly would be a grand move, but, short of the power of making invisible the Empress, the chair, and its bearers, I am afraid there is no way of doing it.”
“No, I am afraid not. Certainly it could only be done by someone who knows the palace and its ways perfectly. We may take it for granted that all the approaches are guarded, and that it would be absolutely impossible for anyone who is not perfectly familiar with the place to make his way in. That is the difficulty. I suppose that if a man could once make an entrance and hide up, he would be able to get at the Empress. She must be alone sometimes, and if he could get at her at such a time and put a pistol to her head, he might be able to get her out. I don’t suppose she would be less amenable to persuasion of that sort than other women.”
Sandwich burst into a fit of laughter.
“You are a curious fellow, Bateman. I do believe you would be mad enough to try it if you could see the slightest possibility of success.”
Rex joined in the laugh.
“I am not sure that I wouldn’t. It would be well worth risking one’s life to save the occupants of these Legations, but I confess I do not see a possibility of carrying out the idea, at any rate without the assistance of someone who knows every in and out of the place, where the guards are placed, what are the habits of the Empress, how she occupies every minute of the day, and all that sort of thing. If a man had learnt all that, and had got such a guide, I should say that it would be possible. In case of failure, however, he would have to be prepared to put an end to himself, so as to avoid a very much more unpleasant form of death. But it is useless to think of it, as I have no idea whatever of the geography of the forbidden city, or the routine of life there. It is a pity, for it would really be worth trying.”
“It is a pity,” Sandwich laughed. “Can’t you suggest any other plan? For instance we might make a balloon, anchor it over the palace, and keep up a rain of Greek fire till we have destroyed the palace and all its occupants.”
“I am afraid that could not be done,” Rex said, “there are many reasons against it, but it is a thousand pities that we have not a good stock of iron here and a smelting-furnace.”
“What would you do with that?”
“Well we might make a big mortar, say a two-foot mortar; it would not need to be very strong, because a small charge of powder would be sufficient for our purpose. If we could but drop a half a dozen shells into the Imperial Palace, I should think the Empress would be inclined to come to terms speedily if she did not want the palace and all its contents burned.”
“That is a more feasible idea than the last,” Sandwich said gravely; “but, as you say, we haven’t got iron or a smelting-furnace, nor powder, nor skill. If we had all these things we might manage it. Try again, old man. If you keep on inventing things you may hit upon something good some day or other.”
“My opinion is,” Rex said sturdily, “that where there is a will there is a way. I have no doubt that when a certain ingenious fellow suggested making a wooden horse to capture Troy he was tremendously chaffed at first, but nevertheless you see he succeeded.”
“So he did, Rex, therefore clearly there is a chance for you.”
“I am afraid not,” Rex said, shaking his head gravely.
“Well, I would go on thinking, Bateman, if I were you. For myself I own that I see no way at all, but I do think that you would be more likely to invent a way than anyone else, considering the manner in which you rescued your cousins from the Boxers, and your success in getting in and out of this place, to say nothing of the convoying of those native Christians into the Legation. I believe that if a plan could be hit upon, you would be the fellow to do it, and to carry it out; but I am afraid that this is beyond you.”
“I am afraid so; still, I shall keep on thinking the matter over. I am a great believer in the saying that where there is a will there is a way.”
The next morning there was quite a stir. The Chinese had discovered an old iron cannon in one of the shops of Legation Street. It was an old Chinese gun, and it was a question whether it could be fired without bursting. The Russians had brought up some shell with them, but no gun, and after cleaning out the gun, they found that these shell would fit it moderately well. With some trouble the gun was mounted on the wheels of a hand carriage. Some of the charge was then removed from one of the Russian shells, and, the onlookers having retired to a safe distance, it was pushed home and fired. The result was grand; the gun turned over and over, the wheels went into fragments, but as the spectators ran up, a cheer broke from them, for they found that, contrary to all expectations, the gun had not burst. The one-pounder Italian gun was then brought up, and the Chinese gun mounted upon it. This suggested the happy idea of utilizing the Italian gun, which was without shell. A quantity of leaden candlesticks was therefore brought in by the coolies, melted down, and cast into shot, and thus the Legation received the addition of two guns to its armament. Both proved very useful. They were brought up to assist in the defence of any point seriously threatened, and evidently created a considerable impression upon the assailants.
On Sunday, July 8th, the Chinese made a heavier attack than usual. The British and French Legations and the Fu were all subject to this attack. On the spot from which they had set fire to the buildings behind the Chinese secretary’s house the enemy now planted a gun, and proceeded to shell the house and the fort on its roof. This did considerable damage, and caused much excitement, but after firing for some time they stopped in the same unaccountable way as they had done at other points. The defenders had begun to make a slide for the purpose of hauling their new gun up to the roof, but this was abandoned as soon as the Chinese fire ceased, as the gun was urgently wanted to aid the Japanese to repel a serious attack upon the Fu.
The attack there was a very sharp one, the Chinese keeping up a heavy fire of shell, and setting some more of the buildings in flames. The Japs, however, were in the end successful in driving the enemy off. The defenders of the French Legation were very hardly pressed for a time, but the attack was finally repulsed. At this point the Austrian captain, who had a fortnight before ordered the troops out of the Russian, French, German, and American Legations, was killed fighting bravely. The Germans and Americans had also to fight hard to repel the attacks made upon them.
Rex always looked forward greatly to his hour’s chat with the girls every evening. He had, early in the siege, introduced Sandwich and three or four of the other consular students to them, and one or more of these generally accompanied him on his visits, so that they made quite a merry party, as there were generally many amusing incidents of the day to be related. As a rule, however, they chatted upon general topics—life in Tientsin, the prospects of relief, and other matters. Sandwich had caused great amusement, the evening after he and Rex had discussed the latter’s projects, by gravely detailing them to the girls, who, however, at first seemed a little alarmed lest Rex should endeavour to carry them into effect.
“You need not be afraid, girls,” Rex said. “One must think of something while one is standing on sentry for hours; and I can assure you that it helped me very much through the long hours to imagine the various ways in which one might do service. I do not intend to take Sandwich into my confidence in the future. I consider that his retailing these ideas to you is nothing short of gross treachery. In future he will not hear of these matters until they have been accomplished. When I bring the Empress into the Legation, tied on my back in a sack, he will be oblig
ed to own that there is method in my madness.”
“But really, Rex, you have no idea of carrying out any of these mad schemes?”
“I have no idea of carrying out any mad schemes, Jenny. Schemes are only considered mad when they are not carried out; when they are accomplished, everyone says how simple and easy they are. However, whether mad or simple, I have no idea of attempting to execute any of them at present. Possibly some day I may require your assistance. I do not say that I shall, because I have not at present fixed upon any plan, but when I do, I may put your devotion to the test.”
“I will do anything that I can do, Rex,” Jenny said seriously. “After your rescue of us from the yamen at Chafui I don’t think I should consider anything that you might suggest as impossible.”
“Very well. I am afraid, however, that I shan’t be able to ask for your assistance, Jenny, for my brain really doesn’t seem capable of inventing anything. I am always thinking of things when on sentry, but I have never managed to hit on a satisfactory scheme. It is horribly annoying. I came back into this place on purpose to be of some good, and yet I don’t seem to be doing any good at all.”
“Why, my dear Bateman, you are doing as much good as anyone else,” Sandwich laughed. “Nobody else performs any out-of-the-way feats, and why should you be called upon to do so? You do as much as anyone else.”
“Yes, I know all about that; but, you see, every day our position gets a little worse. The French, the Americans, and the Germans are all hard pressed; the Japanese, the Italians, and the Austrians are gradually losing ground in the Fu; and I feel that something ought to be done, if I could but find out what that something is. If we had had some inventive sort of chap up here—a man like Edison, for instance—he would have hit upon fifty plans for annoying the enemy. He would have invented special electrical machines for startling them, would have contrived substitutes for cannon, would have peppered them with pneumatic machines; in fact there is no saying what he would not have done.”