by G. A. Henty
CHAPTER X
A MISSION
The next morning there was a serious alarm. The Italians and Austriansfell back suddenly under a strong and violent attack, and had theChinese pressed their advantage the Fu must have fallen and the BritishLegation have been laid open to attack on that side. Fortunately, ona previous occasion the Japanese had made a sham retreat, and, havinginduced the enemy to follow them, had then inflicted heavy loss uponthem. Fearing a renewal of this strategy the Chinese fell back, andthe Italian commander was able to rally his forces and reoccupy theabandoned position. The result showed, however, that the Italians couldnot be trusted to hold their ground without support, and consequently asmall body of British marines were added to the garrison, an event thatcaused almost as much excitement as the return of a native messengersent 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 inby another. He said there were no soldiers in the Chinese city, thatbusiness was being carried on as usual inside the Chien Mên, the gateby which Rex had entered the city. To prove his statement he brought inwith him a couple of chickens and a few peaches. He also reported thatthe Emperor and Empress were still in the city, and that the French andnative converts still held out at the North Cathedral.
While discussing the matter afterwards Rex said to Sandwich: “Thereport quite bears out what I have said; there is no difficulty ingoing 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 toenter the Forbidden City, still less to reach the Empress. The questionis: Where is Prince Ching? It seems to me that he is the chap that wewant to get hold of.”
“It is certain that he disapproves altogether of the proceedings of theEmpress and Prince Tung, and the sounds of firing which we have heardseveral times in the city can only be accounted for by the suppositionthat his troops are fighting Tung?s. Of course Ching lives somewhere inthe 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 insome prominent position and send him word that we should cut his headoff if the troops attacking us did not withdraw. No, I had no intentionof doing any carrying–off, but I was thinking that it would be possibleto take out a message to Ching of a friendly character, of course fromSir Claude.”
“That is not quite such an impossible business,” Sandwich admitted,“though the betting would be a hundred to one against your being ableto see him.”
“Well, of course, it would be difficult, but one could not say howdifficult till one tried. Nevertheless, as that messenger went outthis morning and came in again, it is evident that things are going onpretty well as usual in the town, except round here, and that peoplewalk about without being questioned or interfered with.”
Rex thought the matter over all day while he was at work, and afterhis duty was over went into the Residency and asked to see theMinister. After waiting half an hour he was shown in.
“How are you, Mr. Bateman?” Sir Claude said. “I have not seen you forthe 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 thatyou 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 tohim. I have passed out several times as a Chinaman without excitingthe slightest suspicion, and it seems to me that I could at any ratereach Ching?s Palace without any special danger. How I should obtain anaudience with him would, of course, depend upon circumstances, and Ishould guide myself by these when I got there. I do not at all say thatI should succeed, but it seems to me that it would be well worth tryingif you are desirous of communicating with him.”
“It is a bold proposal, Mr. Bateman, a very bold proposal. CertainlyI should like to communicate with Ching, and to learn from him how hereally stands affected towards us, what the Empress?s intentions are,and to what extent Tung and his partisans influence her. Of courseit would be a joint letter, signed by all of us—but it would be afearfully dangerous service. As he is at enmity with Tung, and probablyin bad repute with the Empress, he would be sure to be surrounded withguards and soldiers. Even if you were to reach him, you might not besafe. At the beginning of the trouble, he certainly assured us of hisregard, and did his best to prevent Tung and the Boxers from attackingus, but there is no saying what his opinions may be now. Seeing howfar the others have gone, he may have ceased to oppose them, and mighteither 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 isa chance of my mission succeeding, or of conferring any benefit uponall here, I should be ready to undertake it. I do not engage to deliverthe 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 thinkthat I should be risking mine to any greater extent than the officersin the Fu, or indeed those at any of the barricades.”
“At any rate, Mr. Bateman, I thank you for the offer. We shall have, asusual, a council this evening of all the Ministers, and I will discussyour offer with my colleagues. Have you thought what character you willgo in?”
“I should say either a Chinese bonze or a Buddhist priest. It seems tome that in either of these I should find it easier to obtain access tohim than in any other character, except perhaps in that of a high–classmandarin. This would be in several respects the best, but I should haveto 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–orthird–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 theprovinces and so be unknown. Well, I will think it over, Mr. Bateman.I should certainly be very glad to learn what Ching?s real opinionsare, and how far he will be inclined to aid us. Will you look in againto–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 hehad 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?spalace, 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 wouldyou 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–roomwould be full, and my idea is that, if possible, I should slip awayfrom the crowd and gain his private apartments, so that I might meethim after he had given his audience for the day. If I found thatimpossible, 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 mycard, on which would be written in Chinese that I had come from SirClaude Macdonald and implored a private interview. Of course it ispossible that he might order me to be arrested, but it is more likelythat he would see me. It is just a toss–up. If he is really friendly tous, 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 orthe Empress for instant execution. In that case, of course, my onlychance would be that you and the three men with you could effect arescue, and that, of course, must depend on how many guards are sentwith me.”
At the appointed hour Rex again went to the quarters of the BritishAmbassador.
“We have talked the matter over, Mr. Bateman. It is not a missionthat we should think of asking anyone to undertake, but undoubtedlygood might come of it, and at any rate, you will gather much valuableinformation. We therefore do not like to decline the offer you havemade, so to–morrow morning we will have a letter to Ching written. Whatdisguise have you settled upon?”
“I think, sir, a mandarin of the third or fourth class would be themost suitable.”
“The only thing against that is that we have no appropriate clothes andno means of obtaining them.”
“I was afraid that might be so, sir. In that case I might either bea Buddhist priest, whose garments could be made out of anything, ora respectable land–owner, who might reasonably wish to hand in somepetition or complaint of bad conduct on the part of Ching?s troops, orto ask for an order of protection against them.”
“That would be certainly much easier, so far as the costume goes. Aland–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 amandarin of low rank.”
“I should be glad to have a map of the town, sir, in order that I maysee the exact position of the prince?s palace.”
“That is easy enough;” and Sir Claude opened a bureau and drew out alarge map.
“That is Ching?s palace,” he said; “it is, as you see, by the side ofthe lake, about half–way between the Northern Cathedral and the bridgeacross the lake.”
Rex examined the map carefully.
“Thank you, sir!” he said when he had finished. “I shall be able tomake my way there without difficulty.”
“I will give orders for the dress to be made; that and the letterto Ching shall be ready to–morrow afternoon, and I will request Mr.Cockburn to choose one of his most reliable men to accompany your manas an attendant. I need hardly say that it would be well not to mentionto anyone what you are going to do. We have every reason to believethat in some way or other the Chinese get accurate information of allthat passes here. Will you go out in broad daylight?”
“No, sir. I could scarcely hope to get out in that way. The Chineseare quietest toward morning, and by sallying out from the barricadenear the Russian Consulate, I may be able to pass, as Mr. Squiers?smessenger did, through the Chien Mên. Once through that, I should beperfectly safe, and could go round and enter by the Si Chi Mên. Afterthat I should be quite master of my own movements, and, making my wayround behind the city, might enter the Imperial City by the How Mên,and, passing between the Northern Cathedral and wall, make my way toPrince Ching?s palace. The fact that I was going with a petition to himwould 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 inthe usual form, asking for protection against the rough doings of someof his soldiers who had carried off several of my beasts and threatenedme 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 apass to let him through the barricade, and some clothes that had beenmade for him, appropriate to the character that he was going to assume.Going to Mr. Cockburn he found the native ready for him. He was astrong, powerful man, who carried a native shield and a long broadswordand dagger, and who would have attracted no notice as a retainer of awell–to–do farmer. Ah Lo had obtained similar weapons from a heap ofthose that had been taken from the enemy who had fallen in the attacksupon our barricades. Rex directed the Chinaman to join Ah Lo in theevening, and to keep by his side. He himself passed the evening asusual with his friends.
The next morning at four o?clock he put on his disguise. After theothers had gone to sleep he had got up and shaved his head, with theexception of a top knot, and to this, before starting, he fastened apigtail, which he curled up under a broad native hat. He placed hispistols out of sight under his girdle and put on a native sword. Thenhe made his way out to the spot where Ah Lo and the other man werelying. Both of them were awake, and at once rose and followed him. TheRussian officer in charge of the barricade made some little demur atallowing him to go out, in spite of the pass, but when Rex made himselfknown to him he changed his attitude. The officer looked at him insurprise.
“You are well disguised, indeed, Mr. Bateman,” he said; “even knowingyou as well as I do, I should not recognize you. You are going on amission, 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. Theywalked on till they were near the next gate, and when day had fairlybroken, and the country people had begun to arrive, they enteredwith them and then moved quietly along the streets, looking into theshops. No one paid the slightest attention to them. There were manysoldiers about, but few Boxers, who appeared to have fallen quite intothe background since the regular troops took the siege in hand. It wassupposed that they had been sent out of the city to be drilled anddisciplined by regular officers, as these men were far more turbulentthan the regular soldiers, whose conduct was orderly, and who in no wayinterfered with the populace. Their disappearance greatly diminishedthe danger of passage through the streets.
It took the little party two or three hours to make the circuit of thewalls of the Imperial City. When they arrived at the gate near theNorthern Cathedral Rex was glad to find that the French priests andtheir Christian converts were still holding out gallantly. Neverthelesshe could not help feeling great anxiety for them. The position wascertainly a strong one, but it seemed hardly possible that sufficientfood could have been collected to enable them to support themselvesduring a prolonged siege. From this point he went round towards PrinceChing?s palace. Many soldiers were loitering about in front of thepalace, and people of all sorts—officers, peasants, merchants, andothers—were going in and out. Leaving his followers he entered thelarge hall. No questions were asked, and after waiting a short time hewent 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 islittle chance that you will get an audience to–day.”
“This is an urgent matter,” Rex said, and slipped four taels into theman?s hand.
The official nodded significantly, and half an hour later showedhim into the apartment where Ching was sitting with two or threesecretaries.
Rex bowed to the ground.
“Your servant would request a private audience,” he said. “I haveletters of importance to submit to your Excellency, and pray that youwill receive me in private.”
After a moment?s hesitation the prince signed to the secretaries towithdraw.
“Your Highness,” Rex continued, as soon as they were alone, “I am notwhat I seem. I have come as a messenger from the British Minister, butas I could not make my way through the streets in my own costume, Ihave been obliged to adopt a disguise.”
“The disguise is good,” the prince said. “I should certainly have takenyou 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 mysoldiers from joining in the attack on the Legations. UnfortunatelyI can do little more. The Empress listens to the advice of PrinceTung and Prince Tuan. Hitherto at times she has inclined towards myadvice, but unfortunately her sympathies are the other way. At present,however, she begins to doubt whether she has been wise in incurring theenmity of all the European powers together. I had an interview withher last night, and pointed out that Japan alone had in the last warproved herself victorious over us. Since then our army has undoubtedlyincreased in strength, has obtained large quantities of modern wea
pons,and has gained in discipline. At the same time we are now opposed notby the Japanese alone, but by the Russians and all the European powers.We might, it is true, overcome the Legations, but of what real benefitwould that be to us? Before three months had passed, an army ofoverwhelming strength would advance against Pekin, and no force that wecould raise would have any chance of victory against it. What would bethe consequence? We should have to submit, as we have done in previouswars, to great losses of territory, to the payment of a vast sum ofmoney, and possibly even the dynasty would be endangered.
“The Empress listened to my arguments, but said that we had gone toofar now to draw back. However, she said that she would turn the matterover in her mind. I have seen a considerable change in her demeanour inthe last four or five days. Up to that time she would not even listento me, and although she has always shown great friendship for me, Ihave expected every day to be relieved from all my functions. But thefailure of the attempts of her troops to capture the Legations, as shehad 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 bringabout a truce, until, at any rate, the course of events at Tientsin isseen. At present there is hard fighting going on round that place. Itis difficult even for us to know what is passing, for naturally yourcommanders get the best of matters. It is certain, however, that we arenot gaining ground, and that in a very short time many troops will comeup from the ships. I am to see the Empress again this evening, and willuse all my efforts to get her to order that hostilities shall ceasefor the present. I can point out that she cannot lose by so doing; theprovisions must be running short, and your people, if they find that norelief can come to them, will be forced to surrender without furtherfighting. I shall urge upon her that these continued repulses of theirattacks can but dishearten her troops, and that in all respects shewill benefit by a cessation of the fighting. I think that she is moreand more coming to doubt whether she has acted wisely in allowingPrince Tung and the others of that party to influence her. A week agoI had lost all influence over her; now, although I am by no meansrestored 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 amstill friendly to you all, and will do my best this evening to bringabout the cessation of hostilities. Say that although I may fail thistime I feel sure that the attacks will cease in the course of a dayor two, for I know that there is considerable discontent amongst thetroops at the loss that they are suffering and their failure to makeheadway. They are also greatly dissatisfied with their leaders, andsay that if they were all ordered to attack at once, instead of merelyfiring from a distance, they would certainly succeed. Will you say tothe British Minister that I most cordially reciprocate his assurance ofgood–will, and trust that in the future I may again have the pleasureof meeting him personally. If I am successful this evening I shalltake means to inform him that all serious attacks will cease. I do notsay that there may be no more firing, for the troops are very much outof hand, and we cannot leave the Boxers out of account. There may,therefore, be desultory firing, but no real attack, unless indeed anarmy is advancing against us, in which case I fear there will be arenewal of hard fighting, in the first place because the troops willbe worked up to a state of fury, and in the second because Prince Tungand the others will desire above all things to get the occupants of theLegations into their power to use them as hostages for obtaining goodterms for themselves.”
“I am indeed greatly obliged to your Highness,” said Rex. “May I ask ifyou will place your signature to this petition of mine that my farm isto be respected by all bodies of troops or Boxers? that will secure mypassage out of the town if I should be interrogated.”
“A wise precaution,” the prince said, as he attached his signature tothe paper. “You are a brave young man; what is your name?”
“My name is Bateman,” Rex replied. “I am not a resident of Pekin, andam only here because I brought two young ladies, relations of mine,from Chafui, where they were in danger of being slain, their father andmother and the other members of the missionary settlement having beenalready murdered.”
A flash of amusement passed over the usually impassive face of theprince.
“I heard,” he said, “that the governor?s yamen was burned, and thereport of the affair stated that two female captives, who were to havebeen executed on the following day, perished. It is possible that youhad a hand in that.”
Rex smiled.
“I had a little to do with it, your Highness, and I can assure you thatthe two captives did not perish there.”
“I will ask no questions,” the prince said; “it is clear that you area brave young man, and I trust that whatever happens here you willescape.”
Rex now took his leave. The people in the ante–room looked at him withsome curiosity and not without hostility because of the time that hisinterview had lasted. He passed out quietly, however, without lookingto right or left, and made his way towards the cathedral, where he wasjoined by his followers. He had a vague hope that he might be able tocommunicate with those besieged in the cathedral and learn the stateof their supplies, but he found that the investment of the place wascomplete. The cathedral and the adjoining building, however, were verystrong, and he felt sure that they could repel every attack, and thatif they yielded it must be to famine.
Making his way through the town he was more than once stopped andquestioned by bodies of soldiers; but his story, supported as it wasby Prince Ching?s signature to his petition, at once removed allsuspicion, and he sallied out through the Si Chi Mên without hindrance.He remained in the fields until after dark, then entered by the TungPien Mên, and made his way along the foot of the wall in the Chinesecity till he reached the end of Legation Street. Shots were beingexchanged with such frequency that he did not dare to go farther, sohe and his followers lay down in the ruin of the American Methodistbuilding. Towards morning, the firing having ceased, they crawledforward to within fifty yards of the barrier, then, standing up, ranforward, 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 amission 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 lessthan no time if you stop there.”
As he spoke a rifle cracked out and the ball struck a stone within aninch or two of Rex?s head. He and his followers scrambled over thebarricade with alacrity, and, having satisfied the guard of theiridentity, passed on through the Russian Legation to the Britishhead–quarters. He went straight to the room occupied by the students.Half of his comrades were away on guard, but Sandwich was in.
“So you are back again, Bateman!” Sandwich exclaimed. “You have as manylives as a cat.”
“Well, I have run no risks this time. I have scarce had a questionasked me since I left. There is really no reason whatever why nativesfrom here shouldn?t go regularly into the city, providing they can getrid of whatever it is that shows that they are Christians.”
“And you mean to say that you really had an interview with PrinceChing?”
“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 anarmistice.”
As soon as Rex had changed his clothes he went to the Minister?s andrelated to him the interview he had had with Prince Ching.
“I am greatly obliged to you, Mr, Bateman. What you tell me confirmsthe view that we have all along held, that Ching and some of the otherChinese officials are altogether opposed to the proceedings of PrinceTung. I can only hope that his influence will this time prevail, andthat the Chinese will grant an armistice. I don?t suppose th
at such anagreement will be well kept, but at least we shall have an easier timeof 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 bewilling to hold their hands until they see the result. They must knowthat provisions here will run short soon, and as they lose heavily inevery fight it would be easier for them to wait and let famine do itswork.”
Two hours later a bugle was blown and a man came in with a letterfrom Prince Ching saying that he heard with gratification that theForeign Ministers were all well, and that he now requested them to taketheir families and the members of their staff and leave the Legationsin detachments. Officers would be waiting to give them strictprotection, and temporary accommodation would be found for them in theTsung–li–yamen pending future arrangements for their return home, inorder that friendly relations might be preserved.
The Ministers were all agreed that although this invitation couldcertainly not be accepted, it was a proof that the Chinese consideredit impossible to capture the Legations, and for a time at least nofurther serious attacks would be made. Directly the meeting of theMinisters was over and their decision known, Rex went to see Sir ClaudeMacdonald.
“I have come to ask you for permission to make my way out. I amconvinced from what Ching has said that there will be no more veryserious fighting until perhaps a relief force moves forward, when theymay make a last desperate attempt to capture the place. My fatherand mother are at Tientsin, where I am anxious to rejoin them. Ihave no fear whatever of being unable to get down, and my report ofthe situation here may have much influence upon the starting of therelief force. It is most essential that this should not be made ininadequate force. It is certain that the advance would be met with thewhole strength of the Chinese army, which is not contemptible, and thefailure of another attempt would be most disastrous for you here.”
“Yes, that is most important,” the Minister said, “and as we coulddefend ourselves here for some little time yet it is better that thecolumn should not advance until it is strong enough to overcome allopposition. After all you have already done I have no doubt that youwill be able to get into Tientsin without difficulty. When do youpropose to start?”
“As soon as it is dark, sir. I shall make my way out by the Tung Piengate, follow the canal for some distance, and then strike for theriver. I shall walk all night, lie up during the next day, and get nearTientsin by the following morning. I shall then see my best way toenter.”
“You will hardly do it in two nights? walking.”
“My man and I are both good walkers, sir. It would be aboutfive–and–forty miles each night, but I think that we can do that; I ammost 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 shallcome up with the next relief column.”
“We are very sorry that you are going, Rex, but really you do such rashthings here that I think you will be safer away. If you remain we shallhave you volunteering next to carry the Empress off.”
“There was no rashness in my going into the city, Jenny. I was dressedjust like everyone else and attracted no attention whatever. There islittle danger in going down to Tientsin, though there may be some riskperhaps in getting into the town. At any rate I can leave you here withconfidence. If I thought that there was any doubt about it I shouldtake you both down with me now; but we should be at least five daysinstead of two, and the risk would therefore be much greater, and ifthe place should be besieged I might find it quite impossible to getyou in.”
“We would much rather stay here; we are very busy and are happy to beof use. Everyone is very kind to us, and we get on much better now thanbefore we came to the hospital, for we have no time to think or grieveover the past. So you are going to–night?”
“Yes, we shall start directly the coast is clear, and we shall go outas we came in. Of course if there is heavy firing we must wait.”
Rex and Ah Lo succeeded in slipping out of Pekin without attractingattention, and set out in the direction of Tientsin with all possiblespeed. They had not gone far, however, before they were compelled tohide from a band of Boxers. This happened several times within a veryshort period, and Rex at last decided that it would be safer for bothif they were to proceed by different routes. At first Ah Lo would notconsent to such a course, but in the end Rex?s arguments prevailed,and, having arranged to meet at a point near Tientsin, they shook handsand separated.
Some hours later Rex was lying among some bushes near a river, where hehad thrown himself down to rest, when suddenly the stillness was brokenby a deep roar. Rex started and a cold shudder ran through him. He wasnot acquainted with the roar of a tiger, but had no doubt whateverwhat it was. While they were chatting together one day his father hadtold him that tigers were by no means uncommon, especially in thejungle country near rivers, and that although they occasionally carriedoff cattle it was seldom that they meddled with the natives. He feltno doubt, however, that the animal he had heard was a tiger. It hadprobably been disturbed by the firing and the movements of numbers ofarmed men, and the thought that it was probably unusually hungry cameacross 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 heremembered having heard that tigers prefer living quarry to carrion. Hehad not lain thus long before he heard the animal breathing heavily.It came closer and closer; he could hear it snuffing him from headto foot. Then it placed its paw upon him. The weight was great, butRex, who was lying on his face, still kept perfectly quiet. He heldhis breath for as long as possible and then took another breath, asgently and as silently as he could. Then he felt the animal removeits paw, and begin to walk round and round him. He remembered nowthat the river was but ten yards away, and that if he could but geta start he might possibly escape. But while he was considering theadvisability of making a dash for it the tiger returned and seized himby the shoulder. Fortunately Rex had on a thick cloak, and though thepain was considerable, the animal was apparently only endeavouring tofind out whether he were dead. The strain, however, was too great tobe borne long. He felt that at any moment the animal might bite him inearnest, and that any movement on his part would certainly cause itto do so. Quietly, and gradually, he moved his arm upwards. The tigergave an angry growl as he did so, and he felt the pressure of its teethincreasing.
There was no time for hesitation now. He raised his arm gradually tothe level of the tiger?s eyes and fired. With a sudden roar, the tigerleapt back. Rex was on his feet in an instant, and, making a dash forthe river, he threw himself in. A moment later the tiger was on thebank. 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 Rexthat 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 theordeal 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. Anumber of Chinamen on board were shouting and gesticulating, and as hewatched 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 excitednatives; then, feeling too exhausted to go farther, he climbed up bymeans of the oars, which had been left in position by the rowers, and,diving down an open hatchway, threw himself on something hard below. Ashe lay there he could hear the tiger roar terribly, but as the sounddecreased 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. Heheard a boat row ashore, but after a time this returned, having foundno signs of the tiger or its supposed victim. When they returned, thedin gradually subsided and all became quiet again. By this time Rex hadrecovered; his shoulder was almost powerless, but he managed to craw
lback to the hatchway, and, raising himself, he looked out.
The Chinamen were sitting about on the deck, some cooking and otherssmoking their little pipes. He thought it probable that after theexcitement of the night they would remain up till morning, and in thatcase his risk of discovery was great. Doubtless he might hide himselfin the cargo until that was discharged, but this might not be for somedays, and he was anxious in the extreme to reach Tientsin as soon aspossible. He therefore resolved to escape at once. He guessed that,with the exception of those who had gone ashore in the boat, the menwould not have reloaded their firearms, and that, once ashore, he wouldbe able to distance them. Several Chinamen were sitting between thehatch and the bulwark, but, climbing cautiously on deck, he reached theside of the vessel in a couple of strides and sprang overboard beforeanyone noticed him. There was a lull of surprise among the Chinese,and then a confused jabbering, followed by several musket shots. ButRex had dived, and having swum under water as long as he could holdhis breath, he felt sure, when he came up, that he could no longer bedistinctly seen in the darkness.
Then he heard some of the men try to move the boat again, and insteadof making direct for the shore, he swam along parallel to it, knowingthat the boat would go a great deal faster than he could swim. He heardthe shouts of the men as they landed, and then, turning, swam for theother side. When he reached the bank he crawled among the bushes andlay down. For some time he remained without moving, but suddenly hesprang to his feet; the tiger had begun to howl again, and it was buta short distance from him. He knew that even if the brute?s sight wasentirely destroyed its scent would bring it towards him, and havingmuch more fear of the tiger than of the men, he again jumped into theriver. He could hear the shouts of the Chinese, and, judged by theirnumber, that they had been joined by many of their companions on thejunk. He remained in the water till morning dawned, when a savage yelltold 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 moaningsnot far off. Nevertheless he felt that if he were to escape he mustrisk another encounter with the animal. He therefore made for the shoreagain, and climbed up on the bank. Looking back as he did so, he sawthat the Chinese were leaping into their boat; then, without furtherdelay he dashed in among the trees. When he reached the other side ofthe jungle he saw to his dismay a large number of Chinese soldiers in avillage 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. Afterproceeding a hundred yards or so in this way he approached the edge andlooked out. A number of Chinese were just issuing from the bush, andone of them at once ran across towards the village. Rex moved forwardagain, this time leaving the edge and plunging into the heart of thejungle.
THERE WAS A LULL OF SURPRISE, THEN A CONFUSED JABBERING,FOLLOWED BY SEVERAL MUSKET–SHOTS.]
The Chinese could not, he knew, have recognized him as a white man, buthis extraordinary conduct in hiding in the junk, and the unusual methodhe adopted of leaving it, would have shown them that at any rate he wasnot one of themselves, and would perhaps have suggested to them that hewas going down with a message from Pekin.
He was presently aware, by the loud shouting, that at least some ofthe soldiers had joined in the pursuit. The strip of jungle was of nogreat width, and as he could not therefore hope to escape by keepingto it, he made his way back towards the river. When he made the bankagain he saw, to his satisfaction, that the boat in which his pursuershad crossed was lying only some fifty yards away, with but one Chinamansitting in it. This man, he decided, must be silenced at any cost, forhe would give the alarm the moment he was in the water. He thereforeapproached him as quietly as possible, keeping among the bushes untilhe was opposite to the boat.
The Chinaman was evidently listening, for he was standing up in theboat, his attention probably attracted by the slight rustle Rex hadmade in coming along. Rex gathered himself together and sprang suddenlyinto the boat, grasping the Chinaman by the throat and rolling withhim upon the floorboards. He could have shot him easily enough, buthe knew that the sound would draw all his pursuers to the spot, andso defeat his purpose. The Chinaman was a powerful man, but Rex hadtaken such a grip of his throat that he was unable to shake it off. Thedesperate conflict continued for a minute or two. Then the Chinaman?sstruggles grew more feeble, his colour became almost black, his littleeyes began to stare; indeed he seemed at the point of death. Rex wasreluctant to kill the man, so he bound his arms tightly to his sideswith a rope which he found in the boat, and stuffed his mouth was apiece of cloth which he cut from the man?s own coat. Then, leaving himlying senseless in the bottom, he seized one of the oars.
As the channel was shallow, he was able to punt across, and as hedid so he noted with satisfaction that the junk was so far away thatthose on board would take him for a native. On reaching the otherside he jumped ashore, pushed the boat out into the stream with allhis strength, and then, turning, made off as fast as he could go.After covering some two miles he reached the edge of the jungle. Herehe halted, for he felt that he could not continue his journey by daywithout danger of discovery. He threw himself down on the ground. Theevents of the last few hours had completely exhausted him, and he nowdiscovered that he had lost his bag of provisions; probably he had leftthem where the tiger had attacked him. This was a great misfortune,for he had still, he calculated, at least thirty miles to pass beforehe reached Tientsin, and he might be kept some time outside that placebefore he could enter it. He waited until late in the afternoon, andthen he felt that he must have some food. He therefore started again onhis journey, and at last, after hesitating several times, determined torisk everything. He recharged his revolvers, and, waiting till nighthad quite fallen, made his way into the nearest village.
He congratulated himself more than ever that he was able to speakChinese, and he knew that the dialect differed so much in various partsof the country that although the peasants might see that he was not anative of their district, they would not guess that he was other than aChinaman. He therefore entered a house where a light was burning, andsaid: “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 hiswords 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 toour 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 yousee 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 thewhite devils they plunder and kill us poor villagers, who have nothingto do with the affair.”
“They act badly,” Rex said; “and it is because I know that they killbefore 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 theirlives from them by swimming across the river. They have told usterrible tales of their doings. But you are hungry; my wife will cookyou some rice.”
“Do you mind shutting the door?” Rex asked. “There might be someone inthe village who, wishing to curry favour with the Boxers, might go andbring some of them over if he saw a stranger here.”
“I will do so,” the old man said, suiting the action to the word; “foralthough I think that there is none in the village who would do sotreacherous an act, yet it is as well to take precautions.”
The old woman set some rice to boil over a small fire, while the oldman chatt
ed with Rex. In twenty minutes the rice was ready, and,sitting down, he made a hearty meal, congratulating himself that duringhis journey with the girls he had learned to eat with chopsticks.
He had just finished when the door opened and a man wearing the badgeof 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 ourcomrades. Who is this? a son of yours?”
“No,” the old man said, “he is a stranger, and bears a message from theEmpress for your general at Tientsin.”
“Let me see it!” the man demanded. “It is strange that you should comeround this way, instead of going straight.”
“My message is to the general,” Rex said, “and I give it to no oneelse.”
“But how are we to know that your story is true?” the Boxer said. “Thisis not the way that a messenger from the Empress would come, and if shesent one it would not be by a fellow like you. Empresses do not entrusttheir messages to peasants. I believe you are a spy from the whitedevils at Pekin.”
“I can?t help what you believe,” Rex said quietly, “nor do I mean toquarrel with you. I will therefore say to you, leave me alone and Iwill leave you alone.”
“Message or no message,” the Boxer said, “I will soon satisfy myself.”And he drew his sword.
Rex listened a moment through the open door. He could hear a great dinand commotion; muskets were being discharged, and flames were burstingout from among the cottages. Feeling, therefore, that the sound of apistol would hardly attract attention, he raised his weapon as theBoxer 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 itdown by the wall. The body will not be noticed there. Then I advise youand your wife to fly at once and hide in the jungle a few hundred yardsaway. There is no fear of their finding you, and in the morning you cancome out again, if, as is most likely, they have gone.”
The old man seized the dead Boxer by the legs, while Rex took him bythe head, and together they removed him from the house. Then the oldcouple hurried away, after Rex had thrust some money into the man?shand.
“That will go far to build up your cottage again,” he said; “but it ishardly likely that they will burn it when they find it empty.”
So saying he turned away and continued his journey. He had gone but acouple of miles when he came suddenly upon a group of peasants, whowere 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,” hesaid; “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 nodoubt that you are a spy of the Boxers come on in advance to knowwhether our village is worth plundering. Besides, we know that theBoxers have not yet crossed the river.”
“I can assure you that they have. That light you see there comes fromthe village three miles away. They have plundered it and set it onfire.”
“A nice story!” the spokesman of the party said. “How then did you getaway 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 mysupper the village was attacked, and I fled.”
“That will not do, my fine fellow. There is no doubt that you are aBoxer spy, and at least one of the cursed band shall die. Haul himalong, 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 deathhe should die. It was not pleasant to Rex to hear the details of hisexecution discussed, each one more horrible than another. They finallydecided to burn him alive, and were bringing the faggots out of theirhouses for the purpose, when a sound of shouting and the clashing ofweapons 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 aroseof “The Boxers! the Boxers!” and in an instant all Rex?s persecutorshad fled, each to snatch some prized valuable in his house, and to flybefore the Boxers arrived. As soon as they had left him, Rex struggledto free himself from his bonds. Fortunately the cords had not beentightly fastened, and after a prolonged and desperate effort he freedone hand; the rest was comparatively easy, and just as the Boxers wereentering the village he tore himself free. He ran at the top of hisspeed till he felt that he was safe, and then he threw himself downexhausted.
“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 thissafely, I am not likely to leave Tientsin again until I come up withthe relieving army. I have had more narrow escapes to–day than I havehad in all my life, and I have no wish for a repetition of them. I amnot 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 waytowards Tientsin. The rest of the journey was uneventful. At theappointed spot he met Ah Lo, who had managed to get down withoutadventure. After mutual congratulations, they made a hearty meal offsome provisions which Ah Lo had been fortunate enough to get at thehouse of an old friend, Rex the while recounting his experiences. Whenthey had finished, they cautiously approached the town.
Working down to the east, they saw that heavy firing was going on froma large building which had been the Chinese military college, and inother parts of the town. The military college showed signs of havingbeen 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, andthen try and make our way in. I hope that the place is held by Britishtroops, 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; the firingon the other side of the river is on the outside of the settlement.Admiral Seymour?s force can?t have retired beyond Tientsin; they mustbe holding the place, for certainly the local Europeans would not havebeen strong enough to make a sortie, or to have captured that Chinesecollege. It is either that or else troops must have come up from Taku.”
The truth was that fifteen hundred Russians had arrived after AdmiralSeymour?s force had started. It was fortunate indeed that they had notarrived in time to join it, for if they had, Tientsin could not havemade a successful resistance.
All day the firing went on. Where they lay they could see that not onlyBoxers, but regular Chinese troops, were taking part in the attack.Several times the enemy made rushes almost up to the college, but eachtime they quailed before the heavy fire and turned back. At nightfallthe fighting ceased, and Rex and his companion left their hiding–placeand made their way round to the river below the military college, onwhich side no attack had been made. Groups of men were sitting abouttalking together, but by exercising great caution they succeeded inavoiding these, and at last approached the college. When they gotnearer, 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 stopwhere 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 college. Anofficer with two men and a lantern met them.
“You may be an Englishman,” the officer said, “but you look very unlikeone.”
�
�If I hadn?t disguised myself I should not have got down here,” Rexsaid with a laugh. “My name is Bateman. I am the son of a merchanthere. I went up with Admiral Seymour?s expedition, but left them whenthey came to a stand–still, and made my way into Pekin, where I havesome relations.”
“Are they holding out all right?” the officer asked eagerly. “No newshas 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 whenI 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 hehas taken that and is defending himself.”
“And Pekin is safe still?”
“Yes. We have been fighting hard for the past three weeks, and thegarrison can hold out for some time longer; but the Chinese aregradually 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 againall will have to take to the British settlement. Now, how can I getacross?”
“Well, you can?t get to the bridge now. Your only plan is to take anative boat—several of them are lying on the shore—and row across. Weare going to blow up this place to–night, and level it to the ground;the men are all at work mining it. We only took it because it commandsmore or less all the streets running from the water. When we havelevelled it we shall probably return again to the other side. Of coursebefore going we shall also burn down all the Chinese houses on thisside of the river.”
