the next morning there was a serious alarm. the italians and austrians fell back suddenly under a strong and violent attack, and had the chinese pressed their advantage the fu must have fallen and the british legation have been laid open to attack on that side. fortunately, on a previous occasion the japanese had made a sham retreat, and, having induced the enemy to follow them, had then inflicted heavy loss upon them. fearing a renewal of this strategy the chinese fell back, and the italian commander was able to rally his forces and reoccupy the abandoned position. the result showed, however, that the italians could not be trusted to hold their ground without support, and consequently a small body of british marines were added to the garrison, an event that caused almost as much excitement as the return of a native messenger sent out in the morning by mr. squiers of the united states legation.
this man reported that he had gone out by one gate and had come in by another. he said there were no soldiers in the chinese city, that business was being carried on as usual inside the chien mên, the gate by which rex had entered the city. to prove his statement he brought in with him a couple of chickens and a few peaches. he also reported that the emperor and empress were still in the city, and that the french and native converts still held out at the north cathedral.
[181]
while discussing the matter afterwards rex said to sandwich: “the report quite bears out what i have said; there is no difficulty in going out of or getting into the city from the north side.”
“that seems to be so, but that does not show that it is at all easy to enter the forbidden city, still less to reach the empress. the question is: where is prince ching? it seems to me that he is the chap that we want to get hold of.”
“it is certain that he disapproves altogether of the proceedings of the empress and prince tung, and the sounds of firing which we have heard several times in the city can only be accounted for by the supposition that his troops are fighting tung?s. of course ching lives somewhere in the imperial city, and as the northern cathedral stands in that part, there must be some way of getting in.”
“you are not thinking of carrying him off, are you?”
“no, i should like to carry tung off, so that we could stick him up in some prominent position and send him word that we should cut his head off if the troops attacking us did not withdraw. no, i had no intention of doing any carrying–off, but i was thinking that it would be possible to take out a message to ching of a friendly character, of course from sir claude.”
“that is not quite such an impossible business,” sandwich admitted, “though the betting would be a hundred to one against your being able to see him.”
“well, of course, it would be difficult, but one could not say how difficult till one tried. nevertheless, as that messenger went out this morning and came in again, it is evident that things are going on pretty well as usual in the town, except round here, and that people walk about without being questioned or interfered with.”
rex thought the matter over all day while he was at work,[182] and after his duty was over went into the residency and asked to see the minister. after waiting half an hour he was shown in.
“how are you, mr. bateman?” sir claude said. “i have not seen you for the past fortnight. can i do anything for you?”
“well, sir, you know that this morning one of the natives under mr. squiers went into the town and came out again safely?”
the minister nodded.
“well, sir, what one man has done another might do. i have thought that you might like to communicate with prince ching.”
“i should certainly like to do so if it were possible.”
“in that case, sir, i should be glad to try to take a communication to him. i have passed out several times as a chinaman without exciting the slightest suspicion, and it seems to me that i could at any rate reach ching?s palace without any special danger. how i should obtain an audience with him would, of course, depend upon circumstances, and i should guide myself by these when i got there. i do not at all say that i should succeed, but it seems to me that it would be well worth trying if you are desirous of communicating with him.”
“it is a bold proposal, mr. bateman, a very bold proposal. certainly i should like to communicate with ching, and to learn from him how he really stands affected towards us, what the empress?s intentions are, and to what extent tung and his partisans influence her. of course it would be a joint letter, signed by all of us—but it would be a fearfully dangerous service. as he is at enmity with tung, and probably in bad repute with the empress, he would be sure to be surrounded with guards and soldiers. even if you were to[183] reach him, you might not be safe. at the beginning of the trouble, he certainly assured us of his regard, and did his best to prevent tung and the boxers from attacking us, but there is no saying what his opinions may be now. seeing how far the others have gone, he may have ceased to oppose them, and might either have you put to death or hand you over to the empress.”
“i am perfectly well aware that there is danger, sir, but if there is a chance of my mission succeeding, or of conferring any benefit upon all here, i should be ready to undertake it. i do not engage to deliver the communication, but i will at least do all in my power to do so. everyone here is risking his life every half–hour, and i do not think that i should be risking mine to any greater extent than the officers in the fu, or indeed those at any of the barricades.”
“at any rate, mr. bateman, i thank you for the offer. we shall have, as usual, a council this evening of all the ministers, and i will discuss your offer with my colleagues. have you thought what character you will go in?”
“i should say either a chinese bonze or a buddhist priest. it seems to me that in either of these i should find it easier to obtain access to him than in any other character, except perhaps in that of a high–class mandarin. this would be in several respects the best, but i should have to be attended by at least four men. of course my own man could be one, and the others could be natives got up in suitable attire.”
“that would certainly be the most appropriate. perhaps as a second–or third–class mandarin, with two attendants, you might succeed as well. if you went as a first–class mandarin you might easily be recognized; whereas, as a third–class mandarin you might have arrived from the provinces and so be unknown. well, i will think it over, mr. bateman. i should certainly be very glad to learn what ching?s real[184] opinions are, and how far he will be inclined to aid us. will you look in again to–night at ten o?clock?”
“yes, sir, and i hope you will have decided to make me useful.”
rex said nothing either to his cousins or to sandwich of the offer he had made, but he had a long talk with ah lo about it.
“i don?t think there will be any difficulty in getting to the king?s palace, master, but i cannot say whether you could get into the palace. ching will no doubt always have people with him. if he has, what would you say? you could not declare who you were before others.”
“no. i agree that that would be a difficulty.”
“i should be afraid that he would always have people with him.”
“yes. i rather reckon upon there being a crowd. i expect the ante–room would be full, and my idea is that, if possible, i should slip away from the crowd and gain his private apartments, so that i might meet him after he had given his audience for the day. if i found that impossible, i should have to pray, when my time to speak to him came, for a private audience. if he demurred to this i could hand him my card, on which would be written in chinese that i had come from sir claude macdonald and implored a private interview. of course it is possible that he might order me to be arrested, but it is more likely that he would see me. it is just a toss–up. if he is really friendly to us, i should be safe. if, on the other hand, he has only been playing, as so many of them do play, a double part, he might send me to tung or the empress for instant execution. in that case, of course, my only chance would be that you and the three men with you could effect a rescue, and that, of course, must depend on how many guards are sent with me[185].”
at the appointed hour rex again went to the quarters of the british ambassador.
“we have talked the matter over, mr. bateman. it is not a mission that we should think of asking anyone to undertake, but undoubtedly good might come of it, and at any rate, you will gather much valuable information. we therefore do not like to decline the offer you have made, so to–morrow morning we will have a letter to ching written. what disguise have you settled upon?”
“i think, sir, a mandarin of the third or fourth class would be the most suitable.”
“the only thing against that is that we have no appropriate clothes and no means of obtaining them.”
“i was afraid that might be so, sir. in that case i might either be a buddhist priest, whose garments could be made out of anything, or a respectable land–owner, who might reasonably wish to hand in some petition or complaint of bad conduct on the part of ching?s troops, or to ask for an order of protection against them.”
“that would be certainly much easier, so far as the costume goes. a land–owner might very well have a couple of armed retainers, and would, i should think, have as good a chance of obtaining an audience as a mandarin of low rank.”
“i should be glad to have a map of the town, sir, in order that i may see the exact position of the prince?s palace.”
“that is easy enough;” and sir claude opened a bureau and drew out a large map.
“that is ching?s palace,” he said; “it is, as you see, by the side of the lake, about half–way between the northern cathedral and the bridge across the lake.”
rex examined the map carefully.
[186]
“thank you, sir!” he said when he had finished. “i shall be able to make my way there without difficulty.”
“i will give orders for the dress to be made; that and the letter to ching shall be ready to–morrow afternoon, and i will request mr. cockburn to choose one of his most reliable men to accompany your man as an attendant. i need hardly say that it would be well not to mention to anyone what you are going to do. we have every reason to believe that in some way or other the chinese get accurate information of all that passes here. will you go out in broad daylight?”
“no, sir. i could scarcely hope to get out in that way. the chinese are quietest toward morning, and by sallying out from the barricade near the russian consulate, i may be able to pass, as mr. squiers?s messenger did, through the chien mên. once through that, i should be perfectly safe, and could go round and enter by the si chi mên. after that i should be quite master of my own movements, and, making my way round behind the city, might enter the imperial city by the how mên, and, passing between the northern cathedral and wall, make my way to prince ching?s palace. the fact that i was going with a petition to him would be sufficient as an answer to any enquiries that might be made. it would be well that i should be furnished with a set of petitions in the usual form, asking for protection against the rough doings of some of his soldiers who had carried off several of my beasts and threatened me with personal violence.”
“a very good idea; that shall be ready for you with my letter.”
at two o?clock the next day rex obtained the documents, together with a pass to let him through the barricade, and some clothes that had been made for him, appropriate to the character that he was going to assume. going to mr. cockburn[187] he found the native ready for him. he was a strong, powerful man, who carried a native shield and a long broadsword and dagger, and who would have attracted no notice as a retainer of a well–to–do farmer. ah lo had obtained similar weapons from a heap of those that had been taken from the enemy who had fallen in the attacks upon our barricades. rex directed the chinaman to join ah lo in the evening, and to keep by his side. he himself passed the evening as usual with his friends.
the next morning at four o?clock he put on his disguise. after the others had gone to sleep he had got up and shaved his head, with the exception of a top knot, and to this, before starting, he fastened a pigtail, which he curled up under a broad native hat. he placed his pistols out of sight under his girdle and put on a native sword. then he made his way out to the spot where ah lo and the other man were lying. both of them were awake, and at once rose and followed him. the russian officer in charge of the barricade made some little demur at allowing him to go out, in spite of the pass, but when rex made himself known to him he changed his attitude. the officer looked at him in surprise.
“you are well disguised, indeed, mr. bateman,” he said; “even knowing you as well as i do, i should not recognize you. you are going on a mission, i suppose?”
“yes, i am going to see what the state of things is in the town.”
keeping carefully in the shadow of such houses as were still standing, rex, followed by the two men, made his way along noiselessly, and, reaching the tung pien mên, passed out without interruption. they walked on till they were near the next gate, and when day had fairly broken, and the country people had begun to arrive, they entered[188] with them and then moved quietly along the streets, looking into the shops. no one paid the slightest attention to them. there were many soldiers about, but few boxers, who appeared to have fallen quite into the background since the regular troops took the siege in hand. it was supposed that they had been sent out of the city to be drilled and disciplined by regular officers, as these men were far more turbulent than the regular soldiers, whose conduct was orderly, and who in no way interfered with the populace. their disappearance greatly diminished the danger of passage through the streets.
it took the little party two or three hours to make the circuit of the walls of the imperial city. when they arrived at the gate near the northern cathedral rex was glad to find that the french priests and their christian converts were still holding out gallantly. nevertheless he could not help feeling great anxiety for them. the position was certainly a strong one, but it seemed hardly possible that sufficient food could have been collected to enable them to support themselves during a prolonged siege. from this point he went round towards prince ching?s palace. many soldiers were loitering about in front of the palace, and people of all sorts—officers, peasants, merchants, and others—were going in and out. leaving his followers he entered the large hall. no questions were asked, and after waiting a short time he went up to one of the officials.
“i desire an audience with the prince,” he said.
“well,” the man said, “you see how many there are before you. there is little chance that you will get an audience to–day.”
“this is an urgent matter,” rex said, and slipped four taels into the man?s hand.
the official nodded significantly, and half an hour later[189] showed him into the apartment where ching was sitting with two or three secretaries.
rex bowed to the ground.
“your servant would request a private audience,” he said. “i have letters of importance to submit to your excellency, and pray that you will receive me in private.”
after a moment?s hesitation the prince signed to the secretaries to withdraw.
“your highness,” rex continued, as soon as they were alone, “i am not what i seem. i have come as a messenger from the british minister, but as i could not make my way through the streets in my own costume, i have been obliged to adopt a disguise.”
“the disguise is good,” the prince said. “i should certainly have taken you for what you pretend to be.”
rex handed to him the minister?s letter. the prince read it carefully.
“i am anxious,” he said, “to bring about peace, and have kept my soldiers from joining in the attack on the legations. unfortunately i can do little more. the empress listens to the advice of prince tung and prince tuan. hitherto at times she has inclined towards my advice, but unfortunately her sympathies are the other way. at present, however, she begins to doubt whether she has been wise in incurring the enmity of all the european powers together. i had an interview with her last night, and pointed out that japan alone had in the last war proved herself victorious over us. since then our army has undoubtedly increased in strength, has obtained large quantities of modern weapons, and has gained in discipline. at the same time we are now opposed not by the japanese alone, but by the russians and all the european powers. we might, it is true, overcome the legations, but of what real benefit would that be to us? before three months[190] had passed, an army of overwhelming strength would advance against pekin, and no force that we could raise would have any chance of victory against it. what would be the consequence? we should have to submit, as we have done in previous wars, to great losses of territory, to the payment of a vast sum of money, and possibly even the dynasty would be endangered.
“the empress listened to my arguments, but said that we had gone too far now to draw back. however, she said that she would turn the matter over in her mind. i have seen a considerable change in her demeanour in the last four or five days. up to that time she would not even listen to me, and although she has always shown great friendship for me, i have expected every day to be relieved from all my functions. but the failure of the attempts of her troops to capture the legations, as she had been assured by her advisers they would do, have preyed upon her. she is restless and irritable, and i believe she begins to doubt.
“the british minister begs me to try to intervene again, and bring about a truce, until, at any rate, the course of events at tientsin is seen. at present there is hard fighting going on round that place. it is difficult even for us to know what is passing, for naturally your commanders get the best of matters. it is certain, however, that we are not gaining ground, and that in a very short time many troops will come up from the ships. i am to see the empress again this evening, and will use all my efforts to get her to order that hostilities shall cease for the present. i can point out that she cannot lose by so doing; the provisions must be running short, and your people, if they find that no relief can come to them, will be forced to surrender without further fighting. i shall urge upon her that these continued repulses of their attacks can but dishearten her troops, and that in all respects[191] she will benefit by a cessation of the fighting. i think that she is more and more coming to doubt whether she has acted wisely in allowing prince tung and the others of that party to influence her. a week ago i had lost all influence over her; now, although i am by no means restored to favour, she listens to me with more patience.
“well, will you tell your minister that i do not like to write to him, because you may be detected and seized on your way back, but that i am still friendly to you all, and will do my best this evening to bring about the cessation of hostilities. say that although i may fail this time i feel sure that the attacks will cease in the course of a day or two, for i know that there is considerable discontent amongst the troops at the loss that they are suffering and their failure to make headway. they are also greatly dissatisfied with their leaders, and say that if they were all ordered to attack at once, instead of merely firing from a distance, they would certainly succeed. will you say to the british minister that i most cordially reciprocate his assurance of good–will, and trust that in the future i may again have the pleasure of meeting him personally. if i am successful this evening i shall take means to inform him that all serious attacks will cease. i do not say that there may be no more firing, for the troops are very much out of hand, and we cannot leave the boxers out of account. there may, therefore, be desultory firing, but no real attack, unless indeed an army is advancing against us, in which case i fear there will be a renewal of hard fighting, in the first place because the troops will be worked up to a state of fury, and in the second because prince tung and the others will desire above all things to get the occupants of the legations into their power to use them as hostages for obtaining good terms for themselves[192].”
“i am indeed greatly obliged to your highness,” said rex. “may i ask if you will place your signature to this petition of mine that my farm is to be respected by all bodies of troops or boxers? that will secure my passage out of the town if i should be interrogated.”
“a wise precaution,” the prince said, as he attached his signature to the paper. “you are a brave young man; what is your name?”
“my name is bateman,” rex replied. “i am not a resident of pekin, and am only here because i brought two young ladies, relations of mine, from chafui, where they were in danger of being slain, their father and mother and the other members of the missionary settlement having been already murdered.”
a flash of amusement passed over the usually impassive face of the prince.
“i heard,” he said, “that the governor?s yamen was burned, and the report of the affair stated that two female captives, who were to have been executed on the following day, perished. it is possible that you had a hand in that.”
rex smiled.
“i had a little to do with it, your highness, and i can assure you that the two captives did not perish there.”
“i will ask no questions,” the prince said; “it is clear that you are a brave young man, and i trust that whatever happens here you will escape.”
rex now took his leave. the people in the ante–room looked at him with some curiosity and not without hostility because of the time that his interview had lasted. he passed out quietly, however, without looking to right or left, and made his way towards the cathedral, where he was joined by his followers. he had a vague hope that he might be able to communicate with those besieged in the cathedral and learn[193] the state of their supplies, but he found that the investment of the place was complete. the cathedral and the adjoining building, however, were very strong, and he felt sure that they could repel every attack, and that if they yielded it must be to famine.
making his way through the town he was more than once stopped and questioned by bodies of soldiers; but his story, supported as it was by prince ching?s signature to his petition, at once removed all suspicion, and he sallied out through the si chi mên without hindrance. he remained in the fields until after dark, then entered by the tung pien mên, and made his way along the foot of the wall in the chinese city till he reached the end of legation street. shots were being exchanged with such frequency that he did not dare to go farther, so he and his followers lay down in the ruin of the american methodist building. towards morning, the firing having ceased, they crawled forward to within fifty yards of the barrier, then, standing up, ran forward, rex shouting: “don?t fire, i am an englishman.”
“who are you?” asked the sergeant at the post.
“my name is bateman,” said rex, “and i have been to the town on a mission from the british minister.”
“well, you had better climb over, whoever you are,” the sergeant said. “we can question you when you get inside, but you will be shot in less than no time if you stop there.”
as he spoke a rifle cracked out and the ball struck a stone within an inch or two of rex?s head. he and his followers scrambled over the barricade with alacrity, and, having satisfied the guard of their identity, passed on through the russian legation to the british head–quarters. he went straight to the room occupied by the students. half of his comrades were away on guard, but sandwich was in.
[194]
“so you are back again, bateman!” sandwich exclaimed. “you have as many lives as a cat.”
“well, i have run no risks this time. i have scarce had a question asked me since i left. there is really no reason whatever why natives from here shouldn?t go regularly into the city, providing they can get rid of whatever it is that shows that they are christians.”
“and you mean to say that you really had an interview with prince ching?”
“yes, i have really done so, and i found him a very civil old chinaman, and very well disposed towards us. he is going to try to bring about an armistice.”
as soon as rex had changed his clothes he went to the minister?s and related to him the interview he had had with prince ching.
“i am greatly obliged to you, mr, bateman. what you tell me confirms the view that we have all along held, that ching and some of the other chinese officials are altogether opposed to the proceedings of prince tung. i can only hope that his influence will this time prevail, and that the chinese will grant an armistice. i don?t suppose that such an agreement will be well kept, but at least we shall have an easier time of it. it is probable that stirring events are going on at tientsin. we know that the taku forts have been taken, and the chinese may be willing to hold their hands until they see the result. they must know that provisions here will run short soon, and as they lose heavily in every fight it would be easier for them to wait and let famine do its work.”
two hours later a bugle was blown and a man came in with a letter from prince ching saying that he heard with gratification that the foreign ministers were all well, and that he now requested them to take their families and the members of their staff and leave the legations in detachments.[195] officers would be waiting to give them strict protection, and temporary accommodation would be found for them in the tsung–li–yamen pending future arrangements for their return home, in order that friendly relations might be preserved.
the ministers were all agreed that although this invitation could certainly not be accepted, it was a proof that the chinese considered it impossible to capture the legations, and for a time at least no further serious attacks would be made. directly the meeting of the ministers was over and their decision known, rex went to see sir claude macdonald.
“i have come to ask you for permission to make my way out. i am convinced from what ching has said that there will be no more very serious fighting until perhaps a relief force moves forward, when they may make a last desperate attempt to capture the place. my father and mother are at tientsin, where i am anxious to rejoin them. i have no fear whatever of being unable to get down, and my report of the situation here may have much influence upon the starting of the relief force. it is most essential that this should not be made in inadequate force. it is certain that the advance would be met with the whole strength of the chinese army, which is not contemptible, and the failure of another attempt would be most disastrous for you here.”
“yes, that is most important,” the minister said, “and as we could defend ourselves here for some little time yet it is better that the column should not advance until it is strong enough to overcome all opposition. after all you have already done i have no doubt that you will be able to get into tientsin without difficulty. when do you propose to start?”
“as soon as it is dark, sir. i shall make my way out by[196] the tung pien gate, follow the canal for some distance, and then strike for the river. i shall walk all night, lie up during the next day, and get near tientsin by the following morning. i shall then see my best way to enter.”
“you will hardly do it in two nights? walking.”
“my man and i are both good walkers, sir. it would be about five–and–forty miles each night, but i think that we can do that; i am most anxious to get home.”
after leaving the minister, rex went to the girls.
“i am going away again,” he said. “i can leave you now without anxiety, for i am convinced that the chinese can never take the place. i shall come up with the next relief column.”
“we are very sorry that you are going, rex, but really you do such rash things here that i think you will be safer away. if you remain we shall have you volunteering next to carry the empress off.”
“there was no rashness in my going into the city, jenny. i was dressed just like everyone else and attracted no attention whatever. there is little danger in going down to tientsin, though there may be some risk perhaps in getting into the town. at any rate i can leave you here with confidence. if i thought that there was any doubt about it i should take you both down with me now; but we should be at least five days instead of two, and the risk would therefore be much greater, and if the place should be besieged i might find it quite impossible to get you in.”
“we would much rather stay here; we are very busy and are happy to be of use. everyone is very kind to us, and we get on much better now than before we came to the hospital, for we have no time to think or grieve over the past. so you are going to–night?”
“yes, we shall start directly the coast is clear, and we shall[197] go out as we came in. of course if there is heavy firing we must wait.”
rex and ah lo succeeded in slipping out of pekin without attracting attention, and set out in the direction of tientsin with all possible speed. they had not gone far, however, before they were compelled to hide from a band of boxers. this happened several times within a very short period, and rex at last decided that it would be safer for both if they were to proceed by different routes. at first ah lo would not consent to such a course, but in the end rex?s arguments prevailed, and, having arranged to meet at a point near tientsin, they shook hands and separated.
some hours later rex was lying among some bushes near a river, where he had thrown himself down to rest, when suddenly the stillness was broken by a deep roar. rex started and a cold shudder ran through him. he was not acquainted with the roar of a tiger, but had no doubt whatever what it was. while they were chatting together one day his father had told him that tigers were by no means uncommon, especially in the jungle country near rivers, and that although they occasionally carried off cattle it was seldom that they meddled with the natives. he felt no doubt, however, that the animal he had heard was a tiger. it had probably been disturbed by the firing and the movements of numbers of armed men, and the thought that it was probably unusually hungry came across his mind.
he listened eagerly, and when presently he heard a stealthy footfall, he drew his pistol from his belt and threw himself down, for he remembered having heard that tigers prefer living quarry to carrion. he had not lain thus long before he heard the animal breathing heavily. it came closer and closer; he could hear it snuffing him from head to foot. then it placed its paw upon him. the weight was great, but rex,[198] who was lying on his face, still kept perfectly quiet. he held his breath for as long as possible and then took another breath, as gently and as silently as he could. then he felt the animal remove its paw, and begin to walk round and round him. he remembered now that the river was but ten yards away, and that if he could but get a start he might possibly escape. but while he was considering the advisability of making a dash for it the tiger returned and seized him by the shoulder. fortunately rex had on a thick cloak, and though the pain was considerable, the animal was apparently only endeavouring to find out whether he were dead. the strain, however, was too great to be borne long. he felt that at any moment the animal might bite him in earnest, and that any movement on his part would certainly cause it to do so. quietly, and gradually, he moved his arm upwards. the tiger gave an angry growl as he did so, and he felt the pressure of its teeth increasing.
there was no time for hesitation now. he raised his arm gradually to the level of the tiger?s eyes and fired. with a sudden roar, the tiger leapt back. rex was on his feet in an instant, and, making a dash for the river, he threw himself in. a moment later the tiger was on the bank. it fell in close to him and swam about confusedly until, at last, it regained the bank, and there it stood roaring. it was evident to rex that he had partially or wholly blinded it. he struck out down stream, but a few strokes showed him that he was so completely shaken by the ordeal he had gone through that he could not long support himself.
at this moment he saw that there was a junk lying ahead of him. a number of chinamen on board were shouting and gesticulating, and as he watched them they began to fire in the direction of the tiger?s roars. rex swam round to the other side of the junk, unseen by the excited natives; then,[199] feeling too exhausted to go farther, he climbed up by means of the oars, which had been left in position by the rowers, and, diving down an open hatchway, threw himself on something hard below. as he lay there he could hear the tiger roar terribly, but as the sound decreased he knew that the animal was moving away.
the firing presently ceased, but the talking of the chinese continued, and rex guessed that they were discussing who had fired the shot. he heard a boat row ashore, but after a time this returned, having found no signs of the tiger or its supposed victim. when they returned, the din gradually subsided and all became quiet again. by this time rex had recovered; his shoulder was almost powerless, but he managed to crawl back to the hatchway, and, raising himself, he looked out.
the chinamen were sitting about on the deck, some cooking and others smoking their little pipes. he thought it probable that after the excitement of the night they would remain up till morning, and in that case his risk of discovery was great. doubtless he might hide himself in the cargo until that was discharged, but this might not be for some days, and he was anxious in the extreme to reach tientsin as soon as possible. he therefore resolved to escape at once. he guessed that, with the exception of those who had gone ashore in the boat, the men would not have reloaded their firearms, and that, once ashore, he would be able to distance them. several chinamen were sitting between the hatch and the bulwark, but, climbing cautiously on deck, he reached the side of the vessel in a couple of strides and sprang overboard before anyone noticed him. there was a lull of surprise among the chinese, and then a confused jabbering, followed by several musket shots. but rex had dived, and having swum under water as long as he could hold his breath,[200] he felt sure, when he came up, that he could no longer be distinctly seen in the darkness.
then he heard some of the men try to move the boat again, and instead of making direct for the shore, he swam along parallel to it, knowing that the boat would go a great deal faster than he could swim. he heard the shouts of the men as they landed, and then, turning, swam for the other side. when he reached the bank he crawled among the bushes and lay down. for some time he remained without moving, but suddenly he sprang to his feet; the tiger had begun to howl again, and it was but a short distance from him. he knew that even if the brute?s sight was entirely destroyed its scent would bring it towards him, and having much more fear of the tiger than of the men, he again jumped into the river. he could hear the shouts of the chinese, and, judged by their number, that they had been joined by many of their companions on the junk. he remained in the water till morning dawned, when a savage yell told him that he had been discovered by the chinese on the other side.
the roar of the tiger had ceased, but he could hear its low moanings not far off. nevertheless he felt that if he were to escape he must risk another encounter with the animal. he therefore made for the shore again, and climbed up on the bank. looking back as he did so, he saw that the chinese were leaping into their boat; then, without further delay he dashed in among the trees. when he reached the other side of the jungle he saw to his dismay a large number of chinese soldiers in a village some three hundred yards away. he crept back again, therefore, among the bushes, and keeping just inside them moved cautiously along, taking the utmost pains not to show any signs of his presence. after proceeding a hundred yards or so in this way he approached the edge and looked out. a number of chinese were just issuing from the bush, and one of them at once ran across towards the village. rex moved forward again, this time leaving the edge and plunging into the heart of the jungle.
there was a lull of surprise, then a confused jabbering, followed by several musket–shots.
[201]
the chinese could not, he knew, have recognized him as a white man, but his extraordinary conduct in hiding in the junk, and the unusual method he adopted of leaving it, would have shown them that at any rate he was not one of themselves, and would perhaps have suggested to them that he was going down with a message from pekin.
he was presently aware, by the loud shouting, that at least some of the soldiers had joined in the pursuit. the strip of jungle was of no great width, and as he could not therefore hope to escape by keeping to it, he made his way back towards the river. when he made the bank again he saw, to his satisfaction, that the boat in which his pursuers had crossed was lying only some fifty yards away, with but one chinaman sitting in it. this man, he decided, must be silenced at any cost, for he would give the alarm the moment he was in the water. he therefore approached him as quietly as possible, keeping among the bushes until he was opposite to the boat.
the chinaman was evidently listening, for he was standing up in the boat, his attention probably attracted by the slight rustle rex had made in coming along. rex gathered himself together and sprang suddenly into the boat, grasping the chinaman by the throat and rolling with him upon the floorboards. he could have shot him easily enough, but he knew that the sound would draw all his pursuers to the spot, and so defeat his purpose. the chinaman was a powerful man, but rex had taken such a grip of his throat that he was unable to shake it off. the desperate conflict continued for a minute or two. then the chinaman?s struggles grew more feeble, his colour became almost black, his little eyes began[202] to stare; indeed he seemed at the point of death. rex was reluctant to kill the man, so he bound his arms tightly to his sides with a rope which he found in the boat, and stuffed his mouth was a piece of cloth which he cut from the man?s own coat. then, leaving him lying senseless in the bottom, he seized one of the oars.
as the channel was shallow, he was able to punt across, and as he did so he noted with satisfaction that the junk was so far away that those on board would take him for a native. on reaching the other side he jumped ashore, pushed the boat out into the stream with all his strength, and then, turning, made off as fast as he could go. after covering some two miles he reached the edge of the jungle. here he halted, for he felt that he could not continue his journey by day without danger of discovery. he threw himself down on the ground. the events of the last few hours had completely exhausted him, and he now discovered that he had lost his bag of provisions; probably he had left them where the tiger had attacked him. this was a great misfortune, for he had still, he calculated, at least thirty miles to pass before he reached tientsin, and he might be kept some time outside that place before he could enter it. he waited until late in the afternoon, and then he felt that he must have some food. he therefore started again on his journey, and at last, after hesitating several times, determined to risk everything. he recharged his revolvers, and, waiting till night had quite fallen, made his way into the nearest village.
he congratulated himself more than ever that he was able to speak chinese, and he knew that the dialect differed so much in various parts of the country that although the peasants might see that he was not a native of their district, they would not guess that he was other than a chinaman. he therefore entered a house where a light was burning, and[203] said: “i am sorely in need of feed. will you sell me some?”
the occupants of the cottage were an old man and an old woman. at his words they both looked up in some surprise.
“where do you come from?” the woman asked.
“i come from the north,” he said, “and am the bearer of a message to our general at tientsin. i have travelled a long way and am hungry.”
“are you a boxer?” the old man asked.
“no,” he replied. “my letter is from the empress.”
“well, well,” the old man said, “it makes no difference to us. did you see any boxers on this side of the river as you came along?”
“no,” said rex, “they were on the other side.”
the old man heaved a sigh of relief.
“they are terrible people,” he said, “and though they fight against the white devils they plunder and kill us poor villagers, who have nothing to do with the affair.”
“they act badly,” rex said; “and it is because i know that they kill before questioning that i am travelling on this side of the river.”
“you do well,” the peasant said. “it is true that they have no mercy. we have now in the village several who have barely escaped with their lives from them by swimming across the river. they have told us terrible tales of their doings. but you are hungry; my wife will cook you some rice.”
“do you mind shutting the door?” rex asked. “there might be someone in the village who, wishing to curry favour with the boxers, might go and bring some of them over if he saw a stranger here.”
“i will do so,” the old man said, suiting the action to the[204] word; “for although i think that there is none in the village who would do so treacherous an act, yet it is as well to take precautions.”
the old woman set some rice to boil over a small fire, while the old man chatted with rex. in twenty minutes the rice was ready, and, sitting down, he made a hearty meal, congratulating himself that during his journey with the girls he had learned to eat with chopsticks.
he had just finished when the door opened and a man wearing the badge of the boxers entered the room.
“bring out what food you have!” the fellow said roughly; “all of it. there are many of us in the village; it is of no use making resistance. we want to eat ourselves and to carry all there is here back to our comrades. who is this? a son of yours?”
“no,” the old man said, “he is a stranger, and bears a message from the empress for your general at tientsin.”
“let me see it!” the man demanded. “it is strange that you should come round this way, instead of going straight.”
“my message is to the general,” rex said, “and i give it to no one else.”
“but how are we to know that your story is true?” the boxer said. “this is not the way that a messenger from the empress would come, and if she sent one it would not be by a fellow like you. empresses do not entrust their messages to peasants. i believe you are a spy from the white devils at pekin.”
“i can?t help what you believe,” rex said quietly, “nor do i mean to quarrel with you. i will therefore say to you, leave me alone and i will leave you alone.”
“message or no message,” the boxer said, “i will soon satisfy myself.” and he drew his sword.
[205]
rex listened a moment through the open door. he could hear a great din and commotion; muskets were being discharged, and flames were bursting out from among the cottages. feeling, therefore, that the sound of a pistol would hardly attract attention, he raised his weapon as the boxer rushed at him, and shot the man through the head.
the old peasant wrung his hands.
“they will kill us all!” he cried; “they will show us no mercy!”
“quick! help me to carry the body out at the back door, and to lay it down by the wall. the body will not be noticed there. then i advise you and your wife to fly at once and hide in the jungle a few hundred yards away. there is no fear of their finding you, and in the morning you can come out again, if, as is most likely, they have gone.”
the old man seized the dead boxer by the legs, while rex took him by the head, and together they removed him from the house. then the old couple hurried away, after rex had thrust some money into the man?s hand.
“that will go far to build up your cottage again,” he said; “but it is hardly likely that they will burn it when they find it empty.”
so saying he turned away and continued his journey. he had gone but a couple of miles when he came suddenly upon a group of peasants, who were anxiously watching a light in the sky.
“who are you?” they shouted as they seized him.
“i am a stranger in these parts; i am on my way down from pekin,” he said; “but i have come to warn you that the boxers are near at hand.”
“that is a pretty tale,” one of them said derisively. “there is no doubt that you are a spy of the boxers come on in advance to know whether our village is worth plundering.[206] besides, we know that the boxers have not yet crossed the river.”
“i can assure you that they have. that light you see there comes from the village three miles away. they have plundered it and set it on fire.”
“a nice story!” the spokesman of the party said. “how then did you get away to give us word if you were not sent forward as a spy?”
“i was staying there overnight,” he said, “and while i was eating my supper the village was attacked, and i fled.”
“that will not do, my fine fellow. there is no doubt that you are a boxer spy, and at least one of the cursed band shall die. haul him along, fellows!”
the men dragged rex to the village, which was but a hundred yards away. there he was tied to a post while the villagers debated what death he should die. it was not pleasant to rex to hear the details of his execution discussed, each one more horrible than another. they finally decided to burn him alive, and were bringing the faggots out of their houses for the purpose, when a sound of shouting and the clashing of weapons was borne towards them on the quiet night air.
“listen!” he shouted, “the boxers are coming.”
everyone stood for a moment as still as a statue. then a wild cry arose of “the boxers! the boxers!” and in an instant all rex?s persecutors had fled, each to snatch some prized valuable in his house, and to fly before the boxers arrived. as soon as they had left him, rex struggled to free himself from his bonds. fortunately the cords had not been tightly fastened, and after a prolonged and desperate effort he freed one hand; the rest was comparatively easy, and just as the boxers were entering the village he tore himself free.[207] he ran at the top of his speed till he felt that he was safe, and then he threw himself down exhausted.
“i have had a hard day of it indeed,” he said; “once mauled by a tiger, and three times nearly taken by the boxers. if i get through this safely, i am not likely to leave tientsin again until i come up with the relieving army. i have had more narrow escapes to–day than i have had in all my life, and i have no wish for a repetition of them. i am not sure if i do not prefer a tiger to these fanatical boxers.”
after lying for fully half an hour, he got up and continued his way towards tientsin. the rest of the journey was uneventful. at the appointed spot he met ah lo, who had managed to get down without adventure. after mutual congratulations, they made a hearty meal off some provisions which ah lo had been fortunate enough to get at the house of an old friend, rex the while recounting his experiences. when they had finished, they cautiously approached the town.
working down to the east, they saw that heavy firing was going on from a large building which had been the chinese military college, and in other parts of the town. the military college showed signs of having been heavily cannonaded.
“it is evident,” said rex, “that our fellows have taken that place, and that the chinese are attacking it. we must wait till night, and then try and make our way in. i hope that the place is held by british troops, for if it is occupied by troops who don?t understand english, we are likely to be shot as we approach it.”
accordingly they lay down at the edge of a patch of high corn.
“at present,” said rex, “our men are taking the offensive;[208] the firing on the other side of the river is on the outside of the settlement. admiral seymour?s force can?t have retired beyond tientsin; they must be holding the place, for certainly the local europeans would not have been strong enough to make a sortie, or to have captured that chinese college. it is either that or else troops must have come up from taku.”
the truth was that fifteen hundred russians had arrived after admiral seymour?s force had started. it was fortunate indeed that they had not arrived in time to join it, for if they had, tientsin could not have made a successful resistance.
all day the firing went on. where they lay they could see that not only boxers, but regular chinese troops, were taking part in the attack. several times the enemy made rushes almost up to the college, but each time they quailed before the heavy fire and turned back. at nightfall the fighting ceased, and rex and his companion left their hiding–place and made their way round to the river below the military college, on which side no attack had been made. groups of men were sitting about talking together, but by exercising great caution they succeeded in avoiding these, and at last approached the college. when they got nearer, rex shouted: “i am an englishman with messages from pekin; don?t fire!”
“all right, mate!” came back in a hearty voice. “but you must just stop where you are until i call an officer.”
a minute later, a voice shouted: “how many are there of you?”
“only myself and one servant.”
“all right! come on. as an englishman you must be a friend.”
a couple of minutes later rex and ah lo entered the[209] college. an officer with two men and a lantern met them.
“you may be an englishman,” the officer said, “but you look very unlike one.”
“if i hadn?t disguised myself i should not have got down here,” rex said with a laugh. “my name is bateman. i am the son of a merchant here. i went up with admiral seymour?s expedition, but left them when they came to a stand–still, and made my way into pekin, where i have some relations.”
“are they holding out all right?” the officer asked eagerly. “no news has come down for the past ten days. isn?t seymour there?”
“no. i am sorry to say he is not. hasn?t he got back here?”
“no. we have not heard of him since he started.”
“that is bad news indeed. he was getting very short of provisions when i left him. we heard firing as we came down to–day, some ten miles out. i know that there is a big chinese arsenal out there. i only hope he has taken that and is defending himself.”
“and pekin is safe still?”
“yes. we have been fighting hard for the past three weeks, and the garrison can hold out for some time longer; but the chinese are gradually gaining ground. the french legation is nearly destroyed, so is the american, and the russian is a good deal damaged. i hope, however, that fighting has stopped for the present. if it goes on again all will have to take to the british settlement. now, how can i get across?”
“well, you can?t get to the bridge now. your only plan is to take a native boat—several of them are lying on the shore—and row across. we are going to blow up this place[210] to–night, and level it to the ground; the men are all at work mining it. we only took it because it commands more or less all the streets running from the water. when we have levelled it we shall probably return again to the other side. of course before going we shall also burn down all the chinese houses on this side of the river.”
