“well, rex, how do you think you will like school?”
“i don?t know very much about it yet, uncle. you told me that i was to expect to be bothered and bullied a bit just at first, but it was not so bad as i supposed. i was asked a lot of questions, and when i said i had been taken to china when i was a year old and lived there ever since, they gave me the nickname of the heathen chinee at once. of course i did not mind that at all. you told me that probably they would give me a nickname of some sort, and that was just as good as another. anyhow, after the first two days they let me alone. i came off better than some of the other new boys, who got out of temper to begin with; so i expect it is all over as far as i am concerned now.”
“i expect so, rex. the boy who takes things good–temperedly is soon left alone.”
the speakers were mr. bateman and his nephew reginald, who was always known as rex. they had landed at southampton a month before. mr. bateman, who was a member of a firm of merchants at tientsin, had returned to england to take up the management of the london house, the senior partner having died. rex was the son of james, the younger brother of the two remaining partners. as soon as it had[2] been arranged that the elder brother should return to england, it was agreed that he should take rex with him. it had for some time been a settled thing that the boy should come home for three or four years in order to associate with english boys and learn their ways, and at the end of that time should return to china and begin to learn the business. robert, now the chief partner, was unmarried, and as it was therefore probable that rex would some day become in turn the head of the firm, both his father and uncle were anxious that he should be prepared as far as possible for that position.
rex would have been sent over sooner had they not been afraid that he might altogether forget chinese, which he now spoke as well as english. from his early childhood he had been principally under the charge of a chinaman named ah lo, who had been chosen from among the chinese servants for that post. ah lo had at that time been a strong young fellow of eighteen years of age, intelligent and good–tempered. he was the son of the native storekeeper, and the child had taken to him. the choice had been a good one. the lad had watched over his charge with the care of a woman. he regarded it as a great honour to have been chosen for the post, and was never so happy as when he took the child out, perched on his shoulder, or rowed him about in a sampan. as he grew up rex had to spend half of his time at his books, and his mother kept him a good deal with her, as it was as necessary that he should speak english perfectly, and receive the usual education, as that he should speak chinese perfectly. and then, when it was decided that his uncle should return to england, it was at once agreed that rex should accompany him.
“i should be glad,” his father said, “if he could go to a great public school, and then to one of the universities; but[3] there are two objections to that course. in the first place, when he was finished he would be less inclined to settle down to office work here; and in the second place, he would entirely forget chinese. he might pick it up again, but he would never come to speak it like a native—an accomplishment which would unquestionably be a very great advantage to him in many ways. you and i, robert, can get on fairly well, but we help our chinese largely with pidgin english, and often feel the disadvantage of not being able to talk fluently to the people in their own language. of course i quite agree with you that it is necessary for rex to mix with english boys of his own age, and become in all respects like them, but i am sorry to think that in four years he will have lost a great deal of his chinese.”
“i have been thinking of that too, james, and my idea is that it would be a good thing to take ah lo to england with us. he is very much attached to the boy, and the boy to him.”
“yes,” the other said doubtfully, “that is so; but it would not be possible to have ah lo with him when he is at school.”
“quite impossible, james; the boy?s life, even if it could be managed, would be made a burden to him. no, i should propose that ah lo should remain with me. he is a useful fellow in many respects, and when rex is engaged with his lessons, he, like most of his countrymen, can turn his hand to anything. my idea is that we arrange with the master of the school to let rex off two afternoons and evenings in the week. he could then meet ah lo at the railway–station, or at some other place a little distance from the school, and could go out for walks with him, and if there is a river, go on the water, or make an excursion by rail. in that way, as they would be together for five or six hours twice a week,[4] rex could keep up his chinese. of course i should choose some school within a reasonable distance of london. i shall probably take a house eight or ten miles out of town, near surbiton, or somewhere in that direction. we have agreed that rex cannot go to one of the great public schools, as, although perhaps better read in english literature and history than most boys of his age, he is backward in latin and mathematics. still, i could find some good school, say within ten or fifteen miles of my house. moreover, the plan i suggest could not be carried out at a public school. it would not be permissible, at such an institution, for boys to break through the ordinary routine, but i have no doubt that i could make the arrangement i propose at what you may call a good school, other than harrow, or eton, or winchester.”
“it would certainly be a capital plan, robert.”
“of course i should see that his off–days were not the half–holidays, because we want him to learn to play cricket and football, and he would be out of it altogether if he were to lose the half–holidays. i see no reason why the plan should not be carried out. in that way he would keep up the language, and at the same time would take part in the games played in the school. in winter i should arrange for the use of a comfortable room in the town, where they could sit and talk. i shall let ah lo wear his native clothes, if he likes, at my place; but when he goes to meet rex i shall put him into european costume and make him twist his pigtail up and hide it under his hat. if any of rex?s school chums were to see the boy about with a chinaman, he would never hear the end of it.”
on his arrival in england mr. bateman had taken a furnished house near surbiton, and had made the arrangements he wished for rex at a large school near the river, some fifteen miles away. rex had now returned at the end of his[5] first fortnight. he was soon at home in his new life, and ere long became very popular among the boys of his own age. his good temper was unfailing, for although at first he was somewhat awkward in the games, he very speedily picked them up. as usual with new boys, he had one or two fights, and came out of them fairly well. several of the boys learned boxing from a sergeant in the guards, who came down from windsor twice a week to teach them. hex asked that he might be allowed to take lessons, and his uncle readily agreed.
“certainly you may do so, rex, and i am glad to find that you have the opportunity of learning how to use your hands. it is a valuable accomplishment for anyone, for it develops self–reliance and quickness of eye, strengthens the muscles, and improves the figure and carriage, and besides, it enables a man to hold his own in any circumstances; lastly, it is of special benefit to anyone living abroad and liable to aggression or insult. an englishman who can box well is a match for any two foreigners knowing nothing of the art, and need not fear the attack of any one man unless he is carrying firearms. i intended to propose that you should take lessons in the holidays, but as you can do so at school, by all means begin at once. keep regularly at it, and the last year before you go back to china you shall have lessons from one of the best masters i can find.”
rex found himself very backward, so he set to work hard to repair his deficiencies, and had the satisfaction, at the end of the first term, of getting a remove into a higher form, where the boys were for the most part about his own age. at first many questions had been asked as to the reason why he was allowed to get off school two afternoons in the week; and when he said that as he would return to china when he left school, it was necessary that he should keep up a knowledge[6] of the language, there was a good deal of amusement. once or twice in his walks with ah lo he came across some of the boys, who were fond of hunting for plants or insects, and he was a good deal chaffed at ah lo?s appearance.
“i thought he would have been dressed in chinese clothes,” said one of his friends, “with little turn–up–toe shoes, and a skull–cap with a peacock?s feather in it, but he is really quite an ordinary–looking chap. he is a big fellow, and of course of a yellowish–brown complexion, with queerly–shaped eyes, which make him look as if he squinted; but he seems very good–natured.”
“he has got a pigtail, but he wears it under his coat,” said another.
“i should think that he would be an awkward customer in a tussle. i had no idea the chinese were such big fellows, bateman.”
“they differ in height in some of the provinces, but a great many of them are tall, and very strong. you should see them loading a ship or carrying things through the streets. they can carry a good deal heavier weight than most english sailors. they are generally very good–tempered, but they get into a tremendous state of excitement sometimes, and holla and shout at each other so, that you would think they would tear each other to pieces; but it is not often that they really come to blows.”
at the beginning of the next term ah lo distinguished himself. he had been for a long walk up the river–bank with rex, when they saw three of the boys of the school rowing. a barge was coming down, towed by a horse. there was plenty of room inside for the boat to pass, and the rope was trailing in the water, but just as they were about to row over it the man who was riding the horse suddenly quickened his pace. the rope immediately tightened, and catching the bow[7] of the boat turned it over, throwing the boys into the water. the driver and a bargee, who was walking on the bank near them, burst into shouts of loud laughter. the boys could all swim, and as the overturned boat was but twelve yards from the bank, they soon clambered up. they at once made for the driver and furiously accused him of upsetting them on purpose. the fellows laughed boisterously, and the boys, losing their tempers, made a rush towards them. at this moment ah lo and rex arrived on the scene. they had witnessed the whole affair, and had run up. the chinaman, without hesitation, brought his stick down on the head of the driver of the horse, levelling him to the ground, but breaking the weapon in his hand. the bargee made a sudden rush. ah lo had no idea of fighting, but with a wild shout he threw himself upon the man, striking, shouting, scratching, and kicking.
the bargee was taken wholly by surprise at such a novel assault, and stepped farther and farther back till ah lo, seeing his opportunity, clasped him by the waist and hurled him into the river.
“you bery bad man,” he exclaimed, “to strikee lillee boy! you upsettee piecee boat; you comee out ah lo breakie you head.”
the bargee stood with the water up to his waist. he did not like the look of this strange adversary, who had, moreover, allies in the shape of four boys, all of whom were evidently prepared to take their part in the fray.
“tompkins,” rex said, “you might as well swim in and get those two oars that have drifted down. you cannot be wetter than you are, and if these fellows want any more the oars would come in wonderfully handy.”
“now then,” shouted the bargee with a string of the strongest possible language, “how long are you going to keep[8] me standing here, and my mate a–lying there with his brains half knocked out?”
“he is all right,” rex said; “he will come round soon without your help, i dare say. he will have a lump on his head to–morrow, but he will be no worse. i don?t think he will try to tighten the rope and upset another boat. as soon as we get the oars you can come ashore, if you like, and see to him.”
in a minute or two tompkins landed with the two oars. rex gave one of them to ah lo, and took the other himself. the chinaman swung it round his head like a windmill, and then nodded with a satisfied air.
“now the sooner you three get the boat ashore and turn her over the better,” rex said. “there is no fear of this fellow interfering with us again. now you can come ashore, bargee, and look after your horse. in another minute the rope will pull him into the river if you don?t mind.”
the man came out with a growl, and then went to the horse and, taking him by the head, led him up along the bank until the stream drifted the barge alongside. by this time his companion had sat up and was looking round in a bewildered way.
“you just sit where you are,” rex said, “unless you want another crack on the head worse than the first. your mate is getting the barge alongside. it does not always pay, you see, to play tricks on boys.”
they waited until the others had got the water emptied out of the boat and put into the river again. the oars were then handed in to them and they started down the river, rex and ah lo walking quietly down the path. the bargee scowled at them as they passed him, but the specimen he had had of the chinaman?s strength deterred him from making any outward demonstration.
[9]
“you did that splendidly, ah lo,” rex said. “i had no idea that you were so tremendously strong. the way you chucked him into the river astounded me as much as it did him.”
“he was a bad man,” the chinaman said quietly. “what he want to upset boat for?”
“he will be cautious how he tries again,” rex laughed, “unless he sees that the towing–path is quite clear of anyone who might interfere.”
hitherto rex had been a good deal chaffed by the boys about this chinaman, but from this time forward ah lo was always spoken of with respect; and indeed a subscription was got up to present him with a handsome silver–mounted stick in place of the one he had broken. there was general satisfaction at the defeat of the bargee, for it was not the first time that boats had been purposely upset, and there was a standing feud between the boys and these bullies of the river.
it cannot be said that rex was in any way distinguished in his progress with his studies. he was on the modern side of the school, for his uncle did not wish him to waste his time in learning latin and greek, which could be of no possible use to him in a career in china. in his english subjects he made fair progress, and maintained a good, though by no means a high, position in his form. in all sports, however, he took a prominent place among the boys of his own age. accustomed to take swimming exercise daily, he was, when fifteen, the fastest swimmer in the school. he won several prizes in the athletic sports, and had a good chance of getting into the second eleven at cricket. it was considered certain, too, that he would have a place in the second football team. before he left, at sixteen, he had gained both these objects of his ambition, and it was generally considered that he might[10] even win a place in the first football team in the following season.
“you would be light for it,” the captain said, “but you are so fast and active that you would be more useful than many of the fellows who are a good deal heavier than you are.”
“i am sorry i am not going to return after this term, but my time is up. i have been nearly four years away from my people now, and i shall be glad to be at work.”
“i suppose it is not a bad life out there?”
“not at all. of course it is hot, but one is indoors most of the day, and they do all they can to make the houses cool. the office shuts up early. after that one takes a bath and puts on flannels, and goes for a ride or a row on the river. of course i could not do much that way then, but i have been so much on the water here that it will be much jollier now.”
“i suppose you don?t have much to do with the chinese?”
“they work as porters and that sort of thing, but otherwise we do not see much of them. the native town is quite separate from the british portion, and it is not often that europeans enter it. i expect that they do so even more seldom now, for my father?s last letter tells me that there is a general feeling of disquiet, and that letters from missionaries up the country say the same thing. but our officials at pekin do not seem to be at all uneasy. my father says that you might as well try to drive a wooden peg into a stone as to get the officials at pekin to believe anything that they don?t want to believe. that is one reason why i want to be off as soon as i can, for if things look more serious my father might write and say that i had better stay here for a time to see how matters turn out, and naturally if there is a row i should not like to miss it.”
“it would be very hard,” the other said approvingly, “if[11] there was a row and you were kept out of it. of course it would be soon over, the chinese would never stand against european troops.”
“i don?t suppose they would, milton; but they are plucky enough in their way, and they are not a bit afraid of death. my uncle says that he hears they have got no end of rifles and guns—good ones, you know; not the old gimcrack ones they used to have.”
“look how the japs thrashed them, bateman.”
“yes, but it was from no want of pluck on the part of the chinese. the japs were well disciplined, while the chinese had no discipline at all. besides, what was worse, they had no officers worth anything. all appointments there are given by exams, and as everyone who is not an ass knows, a fellow who is awfully good at books may be no good whatever as a soldier. look at our sixth form. why, among the captains and monitors, how many of them would make an officer? peebles is short–sighted, johnstone is lame, and there is not one of them who is any good at football or cricket; while many fellows who are not so high would make infinitely better officers. well, it is like that with everything in china. the great thing there is for a man to acquire what is called a classical style—something the same, you know, as cicero writes in and demosthenes talked. the romans and greeks were both pretty longheaded, but they never thought of appointing either of these men as generals in the field. why, look at our head; he is choke–full of learning. well, if he had lived in china he would have been made either an admiral or a general. just fancy him with his spectacles, a skull–cap with a peacock?s feather, and flowing robes, peering vaguely about him on the look–out for an enemy. how can you expect fellows to fight who are officered by men of that sort[12]?”
“but our army is officered by men who have passed exams.”
“yes, but at any rate the exams for the army are not very difficult, and there is time for them to play as well as work. still, i know my uncle thinks that it is about the worst way that could have been chosen for the selection of officers, and that in the next war we get into there will be no end of blunders.”
“it is likely enough that there will be; but there is one thing you must remember, and that is that, fortunately, the fellows who ?muz? at school are not the sort of fellows who go in for army examinations. they go into the church, or to the bar, or as masters in schools, or things of that sort. look at us here. lots of the fellows in the cricket and football teams are intended for the army, and i suppose it is the same in other schools, as it is from them that the officers are drawn. i don?t say that there mayn?t be a few of what you may call the grinders; still, certainly the bulk of them are not the sort of men who would ever set the thames on fire if it came to only brain work.”
“have you ever thought of going into the army, bateman?”
“no, because i have a line ready cut out for me. i think a fellow is a fool who wants to take up a fresh line for himself instead of taking that where he is certain, if he is steady and so on, to do well; and in the next place, when one is an only son, as i am, i think that, even putting aside the question of doing well, it is his duty to help as far as he can to take the burden of the work off his father?s shoulders as he gets on in life.”
“there is no doubt that you are right, bateman. that is the way to look at it, though it isn?t everyone who has the sense to do it. as i have got two elder brothers i am free to[13] choose my own line, and shall, if i can pass, go into the army; if not, i shall emigrate. i have got grit and muscle enough to do as well as most fellows in that way, and it seems to me that with good health and spirits it would not be a bad sort of life at all. if i manage to pass we may possibly meet out in china some day. there are rows in that part of the world every few years, and although from all descriptions of the country campaigning there must be unpleasant work, at least it would be a change and an interesting experience.”
“well, milton, if you are out there we shall be very likely to meet, for any force going towards pekin would be sure to pass through tientsin, and if that were the case i should try to go with it as interpreter. however, i hope there won?t be any rows, for though in the treaty towns we should no doubt be all right and the troops would be certain to lick the chinese, the missionaries all over the country would be certain to have an awful time of it. we should be very anxious about that, because my mother?s sister married a missionary and is settled a long way up the country.”
“is your chinaman going back with you?”
“yes; i should be awfully sorry to leave him behind. he has been with me as long as i can remember. my uncle only brought him over here in order that i might keep up my chinese. i am sure that he would go through fire and water for me. it is a good thing to have a man like that, for, putting aside the fact that i like him tremendously, i would trust myself anywhere with him, for he is very strong, and, as he showed when he attacked those two fellows who upset the boat soon after i came here, there is no doubt that he is plucky. i expect he will be very glad to be home again. he has got accustomed to european clothes now, but i have no doubt that he would prefer his own; and then, of course, his family are there, and in china family ties are very strong.[14] families always stick together, even to distant relations. my uncle says that the population should be counted by families and not by individuals. of course i did not think of such matters before i came away, but he says that it is like the old scotch clans: the state deals with the families and not with the different members of it. if a man commits a crime and gets away, the family are held responsible for it, and one of them has to suffer penalties and pays either a large money fine or is executed.”
“that would be very rough on a family that happens to have one scamp among the sons.”
“yes, i suppose so; but it helps to keep them all straight. a fellow who committed a crime, for which his father or any of his near relations had to suffer, would be considered not only as a disgrace to the family but as a man altogether accursed and beyond the pall of pity whatever fate might befall him. my uncle says crime is very rare in china, and that this is very largely due to the family ties.”
“but there are pirates on the coast and, as i hear, robbers on many of the rivers?”
“yes; uncle says these men are fellows who have left their native villages and have banded together, so that if they are caught it is never known to what families they belong. they are beheaded, and there is an end of them, and their family never know anything about their case. the chinese are a very peaceable lot, except that they sometimes get tremendously stirred up, as in the case of the taiping insurrection. the people hear stories that the foreigners are trying to upset their religion or to take some of the land. hideous stories go about that they have killed and eaten children or sacrificed them in some terrible way. then they seem to go mad; they throw down their hoes and take up swords and muskets, if they have them, and blindly fall upon the whites[15].”
“they call us the foreign devils, don?t they?”
“no, that is a mistake; the real meaning of the words is ?ocean devils,? which answers to our word ?pirates.? europeans were called so because the chinese coasts were ravaged, sacked, and burnt by adventurers who first sailed into the chinese seas, and the name has been applied to the whites ever since. it is the same way with the name of their country. by a misunderstanding, when we first had diplomatic relations with them the word ?celestial? was applied to their empire, and people ever since have believed that that is what they call the country. the word ?celestial? is applied only to the emperor, who is viewed almost as a god, but they would never dream of applying it to the country. because the document said ?the celestial emperor,? it was supposed that the kingdom over which he reigned was called the ?celestial kingdom.? on the contrary, they call it the ?terrestrial kingdom,? believing, as they did before they had anything to do with foreigners, that it was, in fact, the only kingdom existing on earth worthy of the name.”
“and can you write chinese as well as you can talk it, bateman?”
“i can write the ordinary chinese, but not the language of the literati class; that is entirely different, and the ordinary chinaman has no more knowledge of it than i have. i believe that it contains twenty thousand different characters, and it is very doubtful if even the most learned chinaman understands them all. even the popular language is scarcely understood in all parts of china. the dialects differ as much as some of the english dialects, and the native of the northern provinces has the greatest difficulty in conversing with a man from the south.”
“there is the bell ringing, and i must run round to the boarding–house to get my books[16].”
rex was extremely sorry when the last day of the term arrived and he had to say good–bye to his friends. ah lo, on the other hand, when he met him at the station, was in the highest spirits. he was delighted that he was henceforth always to be with his young master, and, though this was a minor consideration to him, he rejoiced at the thought that he was soon to return to his native land.
“this is a good country,” he said, speaking in his own language, “much better than i had thought, and if all my family were not in china i should not mind living here all my life. they will be glad to see me too. except that i have not been with them for so long, i have been a dutiful son, and have always sent half of my pay to my parents. they are well content with me. fortunately i am the youngest of five sons. if i had been at home i should have had to stay at home to help my parents; but my brothers are all married and live in the village, so they can look after them and help them in their labours. as i left so young they do not miss me, and the money i have saved has helped to keep them in comfort. they have indeed received much more than they would have done had i stayed at home and worked for them, for my wages have been as much as my four brothers could earn together. i have only sent from here the same as i did when i was at tientsin, although i have been paid higher, but then i shall have much to spend before we start, in buying presents for them and all my relatives. besides, i have saved half of my earnings, for i have had no occasion to spend money here, and with my former savings added to this i shall be the richest man in the village. if i were to go back i could live comfortably all my life, but i should never want to do that, master, as long as you will keep me with you[17].”
“that will be as long as we both live, ah lo; but i think that when you get back you ought to take a wife.”
“i shall think about it,” the chinaman said, “but i shall think many times before i do it. when a man is married he is no longer master of his own house. the wife is always good and obedient until she has a son; after that she takes much upon herself. if one were to get the right woman it would be very good, but it is not in china as it is here, where you see a great deal of a woman before you marry. in china i should have to say to one of the old women who act as intermediaries, ?i desire a wife,? then she goes about and brings me a list of several marriageable girls. she praises them all up, and says that they are beautiful and mild–tempered, and at last i choose one on her report; and it is not until after one is married that one can find out whether the report is true or not. altogether the risk is great. i am happy and contented now; it would be folly for me to risk so much with so small an advantage. suppose i had married before i came over here, my wife would have had to stay with my parents, and she might not have been happy there. i could not have brought her over here, for if i had done so everything would have been strange to her; the people would have pointed at her in the street, the boys would have called after her, and she would have been miserable.”
“i am sorry that you are going back, rex,” his uncle said to him, when all the preparations for the voyage had been completed, and he was to embark on the following day. “i should have liked to keep you here, but naturally your mother and father want you back, and it is certainly best for you that you should, at any rate for some years, be over there to learn the business thoroughly, so that when your father retires you can succeed him, and in time perhaps come back to take charge here, if you can find among the clerks one sufficiently[18] capable to represent us out there. but i shall miss you, lad, sorely. i have always looked forward to your being home for the holidays, and i had great interest in your life and doings at school. still, i knew, of course, that that could not last for ever. in a small way it will be a wrench losing ah lo; i shall find a difficulty in getting anyone to fill his place. a more attentive or obliging fellow i have never come across. it will be a satisfaction to me to know that he is with you, for should any troubles arise, which i regard as quite possible, you will find him invaluable.
“i only intended, when i took this house, to stay here until you returned, but i know so many people round here now that i shall probably stay on. i found it intolerably dull the first year, but now that i know all my neighbours it is different, and if i were to leave and take a house in town i should have all the work of making friends again.
“i hope that things will settle down in china. your father?s letters of late have taken rather a gloomy view of things, and he is not by any means given that way. i am more impressed by what he says than by what i read in the papers. in his last letter he says, ?i feel as if i were living in a country subject to earthquakes, and that at any moment the ground might open under our feet. it does not seem to me that our officials at pekin have any idea as to the extent of the danger, but most of us here believe that it is very real. happily we are strong enough to hold out here till aid could reach us, and this will be the case in all the treaty ports, but up–country the outlook would be terrible. emma is greatly troubled as to her sister up–country, although to some extent she shares the belief of masterton that the chinese officials will protect them against the mob if troubles should begin. although i don?t tell emma so, i do not share in that belief.
“?this boxer movement, as it is called, might be easily[19] crushed now if the chinese authorities chose, but there is good reason for believing that they have the secret support of the empress, and the men by whom she is surrounded. if so, the officials throughout the country will naturally go with the tide; and as life is thought so little of in china, few of them would bestir themselves in earnest to protect the missionaries, still less the native converts. well, i hope that i may be wrong, but i cannot feel at all comfortable in my mind as to the future.?
“knowing your father as i do, i cannot but think that the outlook is really serious. i was almost surprised that the letter did not conclude by saying, ‘i think that you had better keep rex for another year at school.?”
“i am very glad that it did not say so, uncle. for many reasons i am sorry to be going back, and i am very sorry to leave you. it has been very jolly at school, but if there is to be trouble i should like to be with my father and mother, and to do what little i can to aid in the defence of the english quarter if it should be attacked.”
