general voyron—organisation of the brigade—piracy on the lang-son railway—politics and pacification—topography and a tiger hunt—among the staff records—colonel gallieni—general pernot—hano?—general coronnat—death of a friend—adieu to the army.
time dealt gently with the able officer who was in command of the 2nd brigade at bac-ninh in 1892; for this general, when at the head of the french corps, serving ten years later with the allied army under marschall waldersee in china, was still the same thick-set, active soldier, whose rugged features bespoke the energy and determination of the man, and whose eyes held the genial light which did not belie the kindly nature of the soul within. throughout the whole of his long career this officer was associated with france's colonial army. as a young officer he was severely wounded at the defence of bazeille in 1870. he served afterwards under faidherbe[pg 340] in the soudan and senegal, and with brière de l'isle in tonquin.
the man-in-the-ranks of all armies is never at a loss to find an appropriate nickname for a superior who appeals to his regard or dislike, and this general had not been long in command before he became known to the men, in the french and foreign battalions alike, as "papa voyron." it would, indeed, have been difficult to find another cognomen conveying with equal truthfulness the just, firm and fatherly manner in which he treated the troops under his orders.
it is a pleasure to do justice to the high military capabilities and admirable characteristics of this popular french officer; but it must nevertheless be stated that the speech made by general voyron at marseilles, on his return from pekin in 1902, containing as it did several adverse and unmerited criticisms on the discipline and courage of our indian troops, was a source of some surprise to me. however, when one takes into consideration that of late years politics have unfortunately occupied a predominant place in the minds of france's most capable military men, and also that public feeling was unfavour[pg 341]able to england at the time this speech was made, it may be assumed that these aspersions, which tally badly with the character of the gallant officer, were but the result of a passing wave of popular sentiment, to the effects of which the gallic temperament is always so susceptible.
the commandant of the brigade, like many others of his profession, possessed a hobby, as far removed from le métier des armes as the not infrequent desire fostered by many old merchant skippers for keeping a poultry-farm is from the art of navigation. this hobby was horticulture. it should be mentioned that during the cooler months of each year in tonquin—october to april—all the edible green stuffs of the temperate zones can be grown with success; though to obtain really good results fresh seed must be procured annually from europe. general voyron made it his special care that all the stations in the interior where white troops were garrisoned should possess a kitchen-garden. thanks to this wise measure the men, to the benefit alike of their health and palate, were, and are still, supplied during six months out of twelve with abundant quantities of fresh[pg 342] vegetables; and the quality of the crops obtained from the trim, well-kept gardens is a cause of emulation in each of these small garrisons.
whenever the general inspected the different forts situated in the regions under his care, he never failed to look round these gardens; and, when they showed proof that care had been bestowed upon them, he was lavish in his expressions of satisfaction; but there would be a mauvais moment à passer for the unfortunate officer who had neglected or ignored the brigadier's circulars containing recommendations concerning the necessity of ensuring a liberal supply of vegetables for the men.
the internal organisation of the brigade staff was very simple. there were three departments, the first being the general office, the staff of which was charged with the elucidation of all questions relating to administration, promotion and discipline in the corps belonging to the brigade, the printing and despatching of general orders and circulars, and the drawing up of the monthly reports concerning the available effectives, the existing stocks of arms and ammunition, and the general health of the troops.
[pg 343]
the intelligence department was the second section, and the duties of its chief were both numerous and delicate, some of the most important being the control of the surveying and topographical bureau, the interrogation of spies or prisoners, and administration of the secret service funds, the translation of code telegrams, the classification of the documents relative to the active operations of the brigade, and the editing of the monthly confidential reports concerning the existing bands of rebels and brigands, which gave detailed information as to their organisation, approximate strength, armament and zones of action.
the third department was the office of the brigade major, through which all completed work passed for inspection and annotation before being transmitted to the general for signature, and from which the first two sections received instructions.
the chief of the staff, who was at the head of this office, was also charged with the transmission of the general's decisions, relative to punishments or censure inflicted on officers under his orders; and to his care were entrusted the confidential notes concerning each of these[pg 344] subordinates. these notes consisted of information concerning the past services, punishments, special aptitudes or failings, as the case might be, of each officer in the brigade, and were contained in a little parchment-covered book known as the livret individuel, on the outside of which was written the name of the person it concerned. one such book is made out for every sub-lieutenant as soon as he passes out of st cyr and obtains his commission, and this little tell-tale record follows him from corps to corps during the whole of his career. it will be easily understood that it is considered a matter of extreme importance that no officer should ever become acquainted with the contents of his livret individuel, and to this effect the only persons who are allowed to handle them are the commandant of his regiment, who notes therein every six months his appreciations of his subordinate's military capabilities and moral conduct, the chief of the brigade staff and the general.
the secretaries on the brigade took turns on night duty, for it was necessary that a man should be at the office from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. to receive the telegrams when they arrived, and,[pg 345] in event of their being of urgent importance, to send them on to the chief of the staff. we were so busy in the intelligence department that in the first week in september the major decided to get another man, so as to relieve me and aid in the topographical work. to my delight lipthay was chosen for the post, so that a few days later i was able to welcome my old chum into his new quarters. this increase in work was due to the state of affairs on the railway then in construction from phulang-thuong to lang-son, for the region was overrun by bands of chinese brigands, under the orders of the famous luu-ky, who attacked the working parties, and carried away into captivity several of the french engineers and contractors. encouraged by their success, the robbers ambuscaded several of the convoys going by road to lang-son, and, after slaying the majority of the escort, carried off important quantities of treasure, several cases of lebel rifles and a good deal of ammunition. in one of these engagements a major of the infanterie de marine, commandant bonneau, was shot dead. so great was the mobility of these bands,[pg 346] and such excellent cover was offered by the mountainous country on either side of the road, that all attempts to engage and scatter them, made by the little parties of troops garrisoned in the different forts, proved of no avail; and it soon became evident that it would require a strong and well-organised column to secure any favourable results, to ensure the security of the route, and to allow of the work upon the railway being continued. in august general reste, the commander-in-chief at hano?, made an urgent appeal to the governor-general for permission to undertake operations against luu-ky, on a scale to ensure success; but m. de lanessan refused to countenance any such movement, and declared that the military authorities ought to be able to crush the bands with the forces already at their disposal, in garrison along the lang-son route. there is little doubt that the governor in making this reply was influenced by political motives. the recent successful operations in the yen-thé had been utilised to further his political aspirations in france, and the metropolitan press had repeatedly announced, with a great flourish of[pg 347] trumpets, that rebellion and brigandage were now dead in tonquin. indeed, in one of his reports to the colonial minister, m. de lanessan had declared that, owing to the success of his administration, the pacification of the colony was now an assured fact, and it was possible to wander over the country with no other protection than a stout walking-stick. the absurdity of such statements was clear in tonquin, but they found favour with the public in france, where people were only too willing to believe that an era of peace and plenty was at last to open in their far eastern possessions, with a consequent cessation of the enormous sacrifices of men and money that had accompanied the past ten years. the governor, because of this advertisement, was declared to be the first of france's viceroys capable of grappling with the situation; and as it was his firm intention to again contest, in the near future, the seat in the chamber which he had resigned on accepting the high position he was now filling, he can hardly be blamed, in a country where men take up politics as a business, for fostering interests which would assure him a considerable[pg 348] number of votes when the time came. that this state of affairs was detrimental to the progress of the colony is certain, but political influence, party hatred and electioneering jobbery have had much to do with retarding the development of indo-china, since its administration was placed in the hands of a civilian governor and staff in 1886.
it is, however, possible that the governor made these declarations in good faith, for he had hardly been a year in the country, and was obliged to rely for advice on the residents and vice-residents; and these civilians, hating the military element, were only too eager to throw doubts on the exactitude of the information contained in the reports coming in from the military territories, and they openly declared that the officers of the colonial army were intentionally exaggerating the gravity of the situation in the hope of provoking operations likely to bring them promotion and decorations. the contradictory advice of his civilian staff was possibly one of the causes which led the governor to pooh-pooh the importance of this new upheaval, declaring[pg 349] that the generals were alarmists, and that the well-armed and organised bands of luu-ky were "que des voleurs de vaches pour venir au bout desquels il suffirait de quelques gendarmes" ("only cattle-stealers with whom a few policemen could deal"). these declarations provoked the anger and disgust of every officer and man in the colony, and very soon a veritable hatred reigned between the civil and military elements. the different newspapers sided with the parties appealing most to their sentiments or their pockets; for it was an open secret that some of these journals were subventioned by the government, and a wordy warfare wherein neither insults nor invective were spared, was the order of the day. doubtless there were faults on both sides; and it is certain that the commander-in-chief committed an unpardonable error by issuing general orders to the troops, to be read at parades and posted up in the barracks, in which the civilian authorities were belittled and reproached with having insulted the army. this necessarily added fuel to the fire; and the situation became so strained that officers and civilians came to fisticuffs in the[pg 350] streets of the capital, and several serious duels took place.
things were, however, brought to a climax towards the end of august by the abduction of three frenchmen on the railway-line, one of whom, m. vezin, was the principal engineer representing the big contracting firm, fives-lille & co. the consternation in high quarters when this news was received was considerable, for there existed no possible chance of keeping such thrilling information out of the newspapers in paris.
as soon as the coup had been successfully carried through, luu-ky retired into the security of his lair in the mountains of the bao-day range, and from here he sent out messengers to the nearest military station, announcing that he would release the prisoners on the receipt of a sum of $100,000 in silver; but he also declared that, in event of the troops approaching his encampment he would have the captives executed immediately. the excitement throughout the colony was intense, and party rancour was forgotten in the general anxiety felt for the three unfortunate prisoners,[pg 351] as the cruelty of the chinese bandits was well known to all. after three weeks of negotiation a slight reduction in the ransom was obtained, and the three gentlemen were released, after having suffered indignity and torture at the hands of their captors, with the result that their constitutions were wrecked by privation and exposure.
the governor still refused, however, to authorise effective operations against the robbers; and it was not until several military convoys had been captured, and a good many officers and men slain, that m. de lanessan finally agreed that the bandits were worthy of more serious attention than they had previously received. when the column actually commenced operations its work was considerably facilitated by the death of the famous chief luu-ky, from the effects of a wound received during the attack made on the convoy when major bonneau was killed; but, owing to the rugged nature of the country in which the operations took place, it was fully six weeks before the brigands were defeated and scattered. a good many of the bandits escaped into kwang-si,[pg 352] and others fled to the mountainous regions in the north.
the telegrams and reports, coming in from the column, were of great interest to me, as my company was taking part in the battue. i happened to be on night duty one evening towards the end of september, when a wire was received stating that a detachment of my comrades had been caught in an ambuscade, among the rocky defiles of the kai-kinh, at a point not far from cho-trang, my former garrison. this despatch mentioned that captain watrin, our commander, was among the slain. both lipthay and myself were shocked at this news. we experienced, however, a certain relief on hearing next day that the body of our chief had not fallen into the hands of the enemy, though seven of the men were hit while carrying the corpse out of a narrow defile to a place of safety.
several months later i met a man who had assisted at this engagement, and he informed me that the legionaries went raving mad when they learned that this popular officer was killed, and, after rushing the position—to gain which[pg 353] they had to pass, one at a time, down a sort of narrow funnel, 50 feet long, swept by the enemy's fire—they slew every chinaman found behind the improvised ramparts. our losses were very heavy, owing to the strength of the position, but the men would not be denied, and took a terrible revenge for the death of their captain. in october the rebel chief began to give trouble again. he made overtures for peace, and, profiting by the confidence thus inspired, and the absence of the majority of the troops from the region, he left his retreat in the forest, and captured and occupied a strongly-fortified village called ban-cuc, about 10 miles south of nha-nam. he established his headquarters there, and ravaged the surrounding district, until, a fortnight later, he was driven from his fastness by a column under major barr, and again escaped to the mountains with the majority of his men.
notwithstanding the hard work we were having on the brigade, time passed agreeably at bac-ninh, for there was plenty to see in the town when we were off duty—that is, for any one interested in studying the native[pg 354] industries and customs. besides, to relieve the monotony of garrison life, the general had encouraged the french troops to organise a theatrical troupe, which gave some very amusing concerts and dramatic performances in a temporary theatre in the barracks, the commandant of the brigade and his staff never failing to attend. in october general reste was recalled to france, and general duchemin took over the supreme command of the troops in the colony, after which the animosity between the civilians and military subsided.
at this time i was often left in charge of the intelligence department, for lieutenant cassier and lipthay were away three days in each week, making a new survey of the surrounding country. during one of these outings they were approached by the headman of a village, who begged them to come and slay a man-eating tiger that had established his headquarters in a cluster of trees inside the hamlet itself. the beast had been there three days already, and each morning had seized upon and devoured one of the unfortunate inhabitants, so that the remainder[pg 355] were afraid to leave their houses. the natives declared that they had employed every available means of driving the fierce brute away, but the beating of drums and gongs, the throwing of lances and lighted torches into the scrub, had only served to enrage their uninvited guest, and that very morning one of the villagers who had approached too near to the thicket, had been slain before the eyes of his comrades. the officer and my friend, taking with them their escort, consisting of ten native soldiers and a corporal, proceeded at once to the scene of the tragedy. the tirailleurs, instructed to shout and keep on firing off their rifles in the air from time to time, were told to advance upon the little clump of trees from three sides at once, while the lieutenant and lipthay waited on the other. by these means they succeeded in driving the tiger out into the open, and he was despatched with a couple of well-aimed shots. i saw the beast when brought into bac-ninh; he was a fine specimen of his kind, measuring 9 feet 7 inches from the tip of the tail to the muzzle.
[pg 356]
at this period of my service i was promoted to the post of archiviste, and thus was placed in charge of all the records of the brigade. i should mention that at this time they were in a serious state of disorder, owing to the negligence of the secretary who had preceded me in this work; so that i was obliged to set to and sort the whole of them. it was somewhat weary work at first, wading through this mass of paper: the greater part consisting of musty, dust-covered dossiers, dating back, some of them, to the conquest of the country by the french. but there were documents of immense interest among this medley of yellow, evil-smelling and worm-eaten despatches; and the reconstruction, with the aid of all the original reports of the famous march of general de négrier to lang-son and the frontier of china, the subsequent retreat to kep, and the enquiry prior to the court-martial held on the unfortunate colonel herbinger, who took over the command of the troops after the general was wounded at ky-lua, was a source of pure joy to me for several days.
in december general voyron left tonquin[pg 357] for france, and colonel gallieni, later a general and governor of madagascar, came down from lang-son, where he was in command of the 1st military territory, and took over the service par interim. the governor-general, who had already done away with the brigade at son-tay, thinking, no doubt, that this was a magnificent occasion to weaken still further the hand of the military party in the colony, decided to dispense with another brigadier, so he issued a decree abolishing the command at bac-ninh. probably the fact that the announcement of this step would be hailed in france as another proof of the supposed pacification of the country was an inducement to the taking of this measure.
it is doubtful, from a military standpoint, if the change was a wise one; for, though it saved the colony about ￡4,800 a year—the salary of two generals—it was hardly possible for the commander-in-chief in hano? to deal directly with the commandants of the different regiments, military territories and garrisons in the delta, who were scattered all over so vast a country. indeed, the insufficiency of the new system was so evident that the authorities[pg 358] eventually returned to the original arrangement; and to-day, though the country is almost completely pacified, there exist two brigades in tonquin and one in cochin-china.
however, though m. de lanessan planned this important change in the colony, the colonial ministry in paris did not look at affairs in the same light. as soon as they learned that general voyron was leaving, they sent out general pernot to replace him, and the latter arrived in indo-china to find that the post he had come out to fill, no longer existed.
m. de lanessan would have liked to send the general back to france—and indeed he proposed to do so—but the authorities in paris, probably because they had no post for the officer at home, insisted that he should remain. thus the brigade was resuscitated for his benefit, and its secretaries, already on their way to rejoin their respective regiments, were recalled to bac-ninh. i had been in phulang-thuong four days, and was awaiting a convoy for nha-nam, when the order arrived for my return, and its arrival caused me no little surprise and speculation.
[pg 359]
two days later i was back in my old place, my absence having lasted about a week, and the following morning general pernot came up from hano? with his staff.
he was a short, fat, red-faced man with a very loud, disagreeable voice, and a temper that was worse; and his reputation with the men of being a crusty martinet was not altogether unjustified. the day following his arrival he came to the office and passed a review of the secretaries. on learning that i was in charge of the records, he came over to where i was standing at "attention," and asked:
"you are naturalised, i suppose?"
"no, mon général," i answered.
"what! not naturalised yet! you have the intention of becoming so, of course?"
"no, mon général," i replied.
he glared up at me with an angry stare, and his face took a dull-red colour. i thought he was going to burst.
"oh, indeed!" he blurted out at last. "you must put in an application to become a french citizen, or go back to your battalion. i will have no foreigners in a post of confidence[pg 360] on my staff. grand dieu! what have they been doing to allow such a thing? it is shameful! nom de nom!"
he almost shouted the last words, so great was his indignation, and from the expression he put into them one might have been justified in imagining that the republic was in danger owing to my presence there. i did not become naturalised, and i heard nothing more about the question; and in justice to this cantankerous officer, i must acknowledge that, during the fifteen months he commanded the brigade, he treated me with consideration on the rare occasions that i had any direct business to transact with him. he had risen from the ranks—indeed, i was told that he began his career as a sailor on a man-of-war—and it is therefore probable that his modest origin and the hard times he experienced at his début accounted for his rough and rude manners.
our new brigade major, captain bataille, was a quiet and reserved gentleman, who studied hard at his profession and was a most capable officer, having already brilliantly distinguished himself in the field, for which he had[pg 361] been decorated with the cross of the legion of honour.
we had now no intelligence department; and all questions formerly dealt with by this branch, together with those relating to active operations by the troops, were treated by the headquarters staff at hano?.
the governor had not succeeded in doing away with the brigade, but he had taken his revenge by reducing its importance to a minimum, and the r?le of its chief now consisted almost entirely in looking after the details of administration and discipline of the regiments under his orders, and in conducting the annual inspection of the troops in french indo-china. in january, 1893, we received orders to transfer our offices to hano?, and we had rather a lively time of it for several days packing up the records and stowing them away, together with all the portable furniture, into a long string of commissariat mule-carts. our march to hano? was not a fatiguing one, for the distance is not great—about 20 miles—and the road is probably the best in tonquin.
owing to the numerous carts we were escort[pg 362]ing our progress was not as rapid as it might have been, and it was late in the evening when we reached a point on the left bank of the red river, just opposite the capital. the country we had traversed during the day was perfectly flat and covered with paddy fields, and i do not think we saw the smallest patch that was not cultivated. the weather was bitterly cold, the mercury having descended almost to freezing point (the winter of '92-'93 was a record one in the colony), and thrice along the route we came upon the bodies of natives who had died from exposure. our convoy was transported over the stream—nearly a mile wide at this point—by a steam ferry. the accommodation on this ferry was so restricted that only two carts could be taken at a time, so that it was quite dark when we reached the citadel, situated some distance from the landing-stage.
our new offices were inside the fortress—a fine place, constructed on the same plan as that of bac-ninh, the difference between the two being that the superficial area of the first was twice that of the second. these fortifications, first[pg 363] captured by the french in 1872, no longer exist, and on the former site of their ramparts and ditches can now be seen one of the finest quarters of the european town.
hano?, the capital of tonquin, was important and imposing when i first saw it in 1893; and to-day, thanks to the enterprise and good taste of its municipal council, it is certainly one of the finest cities in the far east. its rapid development and flourishing condition leads one to reflect on what the colony itself might be were its destinies placed, like those of the metropolis, in the hands of a representative chamber of colonists elected by their fellow-citizens, instead of being entrusted to an army of political functionaries. the city was founded in 865 a.d. by the emperor cao-bien, and its original name was dai-la-thanh. a succeeding monarch, thay-son, constructed a palace there in 1028. hano? is admirably situated for commercial purposes, being at the extreme northern limit of the delta provinces, at a point on the river, 82 miles from ha?phong, where communication with lower tonquin, by means of the numerous estuaries and canals, is easy and[pg 364] rapid. the same may be said with regard to upper tonquin and yunan, which can be reached by the song-ko? itself. the dutch merchants established factories or trading posts here, and at hung-yen, nam-dinh and ha?phong, towards the end of the sixteenth century.
hano? has the form of an isosceles triangle, the base of which extends along the river bank for about 2 miles. the inhabitants of the capital owe a good deal to m. de lanessan, who was the first to suggest the demolition of the immense and useless citadel, which, owing to its situation, retarded the growth of the city northwards. the native quarter of the town is extremely picturesque, and the neat whitewashed houses, not two of which are alike in size or height, with their quaintly-curved, red-tiled roofs, and step-like cornices, the numerous pagodas ornamented with dragons, griffins and genii, produce a vista of pleasant aspect and great interest to the european. there are hundreds of small shops, wherein the natives squat on a piece of matting, surrounded by their wares. workmen of a like craft, merchants in similar lines of business, flock[pg 365] together and live in the same quarter, so that the majority of the streets in the annamese portion of the town are named after the objects made or for sale there. thus it is that one sees at the corners of the thoroughfares such indications as "bamboo matting street," "hat street," "fan street," "copper street," etc., etc. the main arteries of this quarter present a crowded appearance, and traffic is continual, but, contrary to the usual state of affairs in most oriental cities, the streets are clean and odourless, a fact which can be attributed to an excellent system of police supervision.
the riksha is the favourite means of transportation, although an admirable system of electric tramways has now been started. the native inhabitants of the town dress somewhat more carefully than their fellow-countrymen in the villages; that is to say, the merchants and shopkeepers do so. they all wear the big hat made of palm leaves; and the wealthier classes embellish its appearance by applying a light brown varnish to its exterior and surmounting its crest with a cap of silver scroll-work and a small spike of the same metal.
[pg 366]
the asiatic population of hano? is very dense, and in 1902 consisted of 100,000 annamese and 3,500 celestials. according to the returns, there were 6,110 native houses in the city, covering a total area of about 165 acres.
the french may well be proud of the european quarter of the capital of tonquin, for its fine, well-laid-out boulevards and streets, handsome public buildings, big shops, comfortable hotels and well-appointed cafés would do honour to the prèfecture towns of southern france, such as arles, avignon, or montpelier. though the principal thoroughfares of the town do not present the busy appearance of our eastern commercial centres, such as singapore or hong-kong, and one does not meet the hurrying throngs that give to these two cities the characteristics of anglo-saxon activity, yet the prospect of the rue paul bert, the principal street at hano?, at the hour of the aperitif, is extremely pleasing, and reminds one of the parisian boulevards. in front of the more important cafés the pavement is occupied by the numerous round marble-topped tables so dear to the boulevardier. after five o'clock every[pg 367] evening these terraces are crowded with habitués who, while sipping their iced absinthe, vermouth or bitter, sit enjoying the cool breeze, exchanging the tittle-tattle of the town, discussing the latest departmental or social scandal, or watching the passing carriages—smart little victorias or dog-carts drawn by diminutive, well-groomed ponies, and provided with yellow-skinned coachmen and "tigers," glorious in their neat liveries and top-boots. at this hour the ladies of the colony, whose means permit of this luxury, drive through the town, out to the fine botanical and zoological gardens, and alight at the kiosque, to enjoy a stroll in the fresh of the evening, and to listen to the band or partake of a cup of tea or an iced sorbet. the male sex is also en evidence at these gatherings and promenades; consequently the toilettes are brilliant and of the latest fashion, and, with a slight flight of fancy, one might imagine oneself back at the cascade or the pré catalan in the bois de boulogne. in 1893, as it is to-day, the palace of the governor-general, the residence of the commander-in-chief, and the offices of the headquarter staff are situated in a portion of the town known as the concession[pg 368]—a strip of ground fronting the river, about 1 mile long by 700 yards broad. this small territory was conceded to the french in 1882 by the emperor of annam, and, together with the concession at ha?phong, which was occupied a few years previously, it may be said to represent the first foothold of france in tonquin.
the public buildings in the concession are well built, and are surrounded by fine gardens. the town is provided with a splendid system of surface drainage; it is lighted throughout with electricity, and possesses an adequate water supply, which, however, is the cause of some complaint, owing to the fact that the water is pumped from wells situated in the native quarter of the town and close to the river, from which, it is more than probable, there exists a considerable infiltration.
in the centre of the european quarter of hano? there is a lake. the borders of this are covered with trees and shrubs and laid out with paths framed in verdure, so that the effect of the whole is charming. there are two small islands on the lake, and on each of these is a small pagoda. on the largest island, which can[pg 369] be reached by a fine native bridge, about 30 yards long, built of ironwood, is a beautiful, though small, specimen of a native temple, known as the pagoda of the isle of jade, and for the last five hundred years it has been the rendezvous for the literati of the capital. the zoological and botanical garden, to which reference has already been made, is situated in the extreme north-west corner of the city. it is splendidly laid out, and covers several acres of ground. it is here that the "society" of hano? comes to drive or promenade of an evening before dinner; and its fine avenues, flower-beds, groves and lawns compare favourably with the cinnamon gardens in colombo, or the waterfall at penang. the roads throughout the town are wide and well built, and in this respect, as in the laying out of the streets, and the style of architecture adapted for the government buildings or for private residences, the french are by far our superiors. this is due partly to the naturally artistic taste they possess, and also to the wise regulations adopted by the public works department in the colony, with regard to the construction of new buildings,[pg 370] all plans having to be approved by the department before a permit to commence building is granted.
in july, 1892, when i had arrived in bac-ninh, it seemed, after my protracted stay in the wild regions of the upper yen-thé, that at last i had returned to a large town, and the sight of a few scores of brick buildings was, for the first few days, quite a novelty; but when, six months later, i found myself in the capital of tonquin, it was like getting back to a big european city, and, though we sometimes regretted the charms of our former adventurous existence, both lipthay and myself soon began to find a new pleasure in the renewed acquaintance with the comforts and distractions of civilisation. we were not as free as we had been at bac-ninh, as we were lodged in a room set apart for us, in the barracks of the 9th regiment of infanterie de marine, and were for a few days the pet grievance of the "non-coms" of that corps, who put us on fatigue duty and made us take part in the inspections. this, however, was soon stopped by the chief of the staff, and we were allowed to continue the even[pg 371] tenour of our way. there is always a certain amount of jealousy felt for the scribes of the army, and the french sergeants were probably indignant at the thought that we were drawing as much pay as they were, that we were allowed out every night till 10 p.m., and also because we took our meals at the canteen, in a room specially reserved for us. the latter arrangement was adopted to avoid indiscretions, for a few of us were continually and unavoidably in possession of facts it was of absolute importance the majority of the troops should not learn.
for the next twelve months we continued our somewhat uneventful life as staff secretaries within the ancient precincts of the annamese citadel, the only break in the monotony of our career being my promotion to the grade of corporal, which occurred in november. i had waited a long time for my stripes, and should have had them sooner had i remained with my corps; but till then there had been no vacancy on the staff for a "non-com," so i had nothing to complain of. in february our offices were again moved, this time to the concession, in a building close to the headquarters staff, and[pg 372] we were lodged with the secretaries of that organisation. since i had come to hano? my health had considerably improved; and very soon after my arrival i was no longer troubled with the attacks of malaria, which formerly, at almost regular intervals, used to lay me up for a day, and sometimes more. the change of air was, i suppose, chiefly responsible for the amelioration, and the better food and more comfortable quarters probably helped to mend matters. life in the capital was very agreeable, though during the summer months the heat was terrible. this is due to the fact that, because of the low situation of the city, the south-west monsoon is little felt there. the french colonials i happened to come in contact with were extremely kind and hospitable, and during my military career i made several acquaintances which ripened into friendships that never failed me during the subsequent years passed in the colony as a civilian. the french settler, be he either planter, merchant, manufacturer or shopkeeper, is one of the hardest workers i have ever seen. he possesses an admirable faith in the rich country he has[pg 373] adopted, and a supreme contempt for his government, which seems to delight in throwing every possible obstacle in the way of private enterprise, and in ever increasing the number of functionaries he has to pay for.
in april, 1894, general pernot practically reached the age-limit of his rank, and returned to france, his place being taken by general coronnat. at the time he took over the command he was the youngest brigadier-general in the french army, having, thanks to the services he had rendered to the republic, and to his wide knowledge of his profession, attained that rank when most officers in france's forces esteem themselves happy if they are in command of a regiment. this distinguished soldier was by birth a basque, the son of a modest cooper, who plied his trade in a small and picturesque village situated at the foot of the rugged and majestic pyrenees; but he was in demeanour, speech and conduct, one of the truest gentlemen it has been my lot to encounter. tall, and somewhat sparse, fair, with blue piercing eyes, a straight thin nose, a small light-coloured moustache, and a very strong chin. when[pg 374] listening he was reserved, attentive and courteous; when speaking his voice was wonderfully soft for a military man, and as clear as a bell. on first acquaintance he appeared to affect a certain aloofness; but this was only apparent, and was due, most probably, to the erectness of his bearing, and to his habit of speaking but little, and of fixing his eyes on the person who was addressing him, so that, unless they were acquainted with this particularity, he would stare them out of countenance. having gained a hard-earned scholarship, the general obtained his grade of sub-lieutenant by passing through the military school of st cyr, instead of being obliged, like many of small means, to work his way up from the ranks.
the work of pacification went on steadily, but it was destined that i should remain at my post on the brigade, and take no active part in the different expeditions sent against the pirates and rebels in 1894-95. in october, 1894, i lost my friend lipthay. he died in the military hospital at hano?, worn out with fever and debility acquired during our campaigns in yen-thé. i was by him almost to the end,[pg 375] and he passed away calm and courageous, like the noble, true-hearted gentleman he had always proved himself to be. he had been promoted to the rank of sergeant, and had been made a knight of the dragon of annam shortly before his death.
on the 27th february, 1895, i was liberated, having completed a period of five years under the french flag. the experience i had gained was invaluable, and i felt no regret for the step i had taken in enlisting. nevertheless it was with an emotion akin to delight that i hailed my return to the liberties of civilian life. it should, however, be mentioned that i experienced a certain regret at severing my connection with the french army and the legion.
while serving in that corps i had learned that there were good and brave men outside my own country, and that courage, obedience, self-abnegation and national pride are not the monopoly of any one race.
by living side by side with them, fighting, and ofttimes suffering, in the same cause, i had been taught to like and respect the foreigners. the french, italian, german, austrian, or any[pg 376] other european soldier is very much like our own. he has his virtues and his vices; and the stronger his race and national character, the more likely is he to possess a superabundance of the latter.
british interests in siam and southern china render the development of the french colonies in the far east a matter of importance to us. the majority of the foreign products imported into yunan, via the west river route, or through tonquin, are of british origin. our treaty arrangements with france and the good feeling at present existing between the two nations should make it no difficult matter for frenchmen and englishmen to agree in the settlement of questions arising out of their trade relations with kwang-si, kwang-tung and yunan.
the recent concessions made by siam to france have increased the responsibilities of the latter, and it remains for france and great britain to develop the commercial resources of siam and south china.
by the aid of the railway system, agriculture and manufacturing industries are being fostered in the french colonies of the east, and a great[pg 377] future undoubtedly exists for them; but before real success can be obtained indo-china must be provided with functionaries who are not only able administrators, but who have a knowledge of the language and customs of the country. they must be workers with a single aim for the success of the colonies under their administration, and not merely politicians whose personal ambitions colour their perceptions. then the colonies, wherein i spent the years of which i have written, will have a future of constantly-increasing prosperity before them.
