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diff --git a/44256.txt b/44256.txt deleted file mode 100644 index acdf1de..0000000 --- a/44256.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,13247 +0,0 @@ - BROWN OF MOUKDEN - - - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - - -Title: Brown of Moukden - A Story of the Russo-Japanese War -Author: Herbert Strang -Release Date: November 21, 2013 [EBook #44256] -Language: English -Character set encoding: US-ASCII - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BROWN OF MOUKDEN *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines. - - - - -[Illustration: Cover art] - - - - -[Illustration: Herr Schwab under Fire] - - - - - Brown of Moukden - - A Story of the Russo-Japanese War - - - BY - - HERBERT STRANG - - AUTHOR OF "KOBO: A STORY OF THE RUSSO-JAPANESE WAR" - "TOM BURNABY" "BOYS OF THE LIGHT BRIGADE" ETC. - - - - Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. - - - - G. P. Putnam's Sons - New York and London - The Knickerbocker Press - 1906 - - - - -"To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield." - --_Tennyson's Ulysses_. - - - - -_My dear Raymond,_ - -_Last year I wove a romance about the early incidents of the great war -now happily at an end; this year I have chosen its later incidents as -the background for my hero's adventures. But while in "Kobo" the -struggle was viewed from the Japanese stand-point, in "Brown of Moukden" -(which is in no sense a sequel) you will find yourself among the -Russians, looking at the other side of the shield. It is not the -romancer's business to be a partisan; and we British people were at -first, perhaps, a little blind to the fact that the bravery, the -endurance, the heroism, have not been all on the one side._ - -_As a boy preparing for the Navy, you would have liked, I dare say, to -see Jack Brown in the thick of the great naval battle at Tsushima. But -I had three reasons for giving no space to that famous victory. First, -Jack could not possibly have seen it. Secondly, sea-fights had a very -good turn in "Kobo". Thirdly, I hope some day to give you sea-dogs a -whole book to yourselves--but that, as Mr. Kipling somewhere says, will -be another story. Meanwhile, if you get half as much fun in reading -this book as I have had in writing it, I shall count myself very lucky -indeed._ - -_Yours sincerely,_ - _HERBERT STRANG._ - -_September, 1905._ - - - - - *Contents* - -_Chapter_ I - IVAN IVANOVITCH BROWN - -_Chapter_ II - MR. WANG AND A CONSTABLE - -_Chapter_ III - DEPORTED - -_Chapter_ IV - THE GREAT SIBERIAN RAILWAY - -_Chapter_ V - A DEAL IN FLOUR - -_Chapter_ VI - IN FULL CRY - -_Chapter_ VII - A DAUGHTER OF POLAND - -_Chapter_ VIII - A CUSTOM OF CATHAY - -_Chapter_ IX - AH LUM - -_Chapter_ X - THE HIRED MAN - -_Chapter_ XI - WAR-LOOK-SEE - -_Chapter_ XII - THE RETREAT FROM LIAO-YANG - -_Chapter_ XIII - MR. BROWN'S HOUSE - -_Chapter_ XIV - A NIGHT WITH SOWINSKI - -_Chapter_ XV - COSSACK AND CHUNCHUSE - -_Chapter_ XVI - FIRE PANIC - -_Chapter_ XVII - THE WAR GAME - -_Chapter_ XVIII - A FIGHT IN THE HILLS - -_Chapter_ XIX - CAPTAIN KARGOPOL FINDS THE CHUNCHUSES - -_Chapter_ XX - THE BATTLE OF MOUKDEN - -_Chapter_ XXI - AH LUM AT BAY - -_Chapter_ XXII - CAPTURING A LOCOMOTIVE - -_Chapter_ XXIII - FROM MAO-SHAN TO IMIEN-PO - -_Chapter_ XXIV - LIEUTENANT POTUGIN IN PURSUIT - -_Chapter_ XXV - THE PRESSURE-GAUGE - -_Chapter_ XXVI - A DOUBLE QUEST - -_Chapter_ XXVII - SAKHALIN - -_Chapter_ XXVIII - THE EMPTY HUT - -_Chapter_ XXIX - THE HEART OF THE HILL - -_Chapter_ XXX - CROWDED MOMENTS - -_Chapter_ XXXI - ENTENTE CORDIALE - -*Glossary* - - - - - *List of Illustrations* - -_Plate_ I - HERR SCHWAB UNDER FIRE . . . . . . . . . _Frontispiece_ - -_Plate_ II - A SEARCH PARTY - -_Plate_ III - JACK SAVES AH FU - -_Plate_ IV - SOWINSKI'S VISITOR - -_Plate_ V - AT FULL TILT - -_Plate_ VI - "RECALL YOUR LAST WORD!" - - - - *Maps and Plans* - -Manchuria and part of Siberia - -The Battle of Liao-yang. - -The Battle of Moukden. - -The Siberian Railway from Mao-shan to Han-ta-ho-tzue - - - - - *CHAPTER I* - - *Ivan Ivanovitch Brown* - - -Scenes in Moukden--Beyond the Walls--Lieutenant Borisoff--The -Cangue--Anton Sowinski--Criminal Procedure--Mr. Brown -Senior--Schlagintwert's Representative--The Automatic Principle - - -The midsummer sun had spent its force, and as it reddened towards its -setting Moukden began to breathe again. The gildings on palace, temple, -and pagoda shone with a ruddy glow, but the eye was no longer dazzled; -garish in full sunlight, the city was now merely brilliant, the reds and -greens, blues and yellows, of its house-fronts toned to a rich and -charming beauty. The shops--almost every house is a shop--were open, -displaying here poultry, dried fish, and articles of common use; there -piles of Oriental merchandise: silks and embroideries, parasols and -screens, ornaments of silver and copper, priceless porcelain and -lacquered ware. Monsters with vermilioned faces grinned from the -poles--hung with branches and surmounted by peacocks with spread -tail--that bore the signs and legends of the merchants and shopkeepers -before whose doors they were erected: all different, yet all alike in -gorgeousness of colouring and fantasy of design. - -Two main thoroughfares traverse Moukden at right angles. Along these -flowed in each direction a full tide of people, gathering up cross -currents at every side street and alley. It was a picturesque throng, -the light costumes showing in brilliant relief against the darker -colours of the houses and the brown dust of the roadway. There were -folk of many nations: Manchus, Mongols, Tartars, Greeks and -Montenegrins, soldiers Chinese and Russian, here and there a European -war-correspondent escaping from the boredom of his inn. Pedestrians and -horsemen jostled vehicles of all descriptions. Workmen staggered along -under enormous loads; labourers of both sexes trudged homewards from the -fields, their implements on their shoulders. A drove of fat pigs in -charge of a blue-coated swineherd scampered and squealed beneath the -wheels of a Russian transport wagon. Here was a rickshaw drawn with -shrill cries by its human steeds; there a rough springless two-wheeled -mule-cart, painted in yellow ochre, hauled by three mules tandem, and -jolting over the ruts with its load of passengers, some on the backs of -the mules, some on the shafts, some packed beneath the low tilt of blue -cotton. Not far behind, a trolley, pushed by perspiring coolies and -carrying seven men standing in unstable equilibrium, had halted to make -way for a magnificent blue sedan chair, wadded with fur and silk, borne -by four stalwart servants. Through the trellised window of the chair -the curious might catch a glimpse of a bespectacled mandarin, his -mushroom hat decked with the button indicative of his rank. With shouts -and blows a detachment of Chinese soldiers, red-jacketed infantry, -carrying halberts, javelins, and sickles swathed to poles, forced a -passage for his excellency through the crowd. - -The heavy air quivered with noise: the mingled cries of street merchants -and children, the clatter of hoofs, the din of gongs at the doors of the -theatres, weird strains of song accompanied by the twanging of -inharmonious guitars, and, dominating all, the insistent strident squeak -of a huge wheelbarrow, trundled by a grave old Chinaman, unconscious of -the pain his greaseless wheels inflicted on untutored sensibilities. A -Russian lady passing in a droshky grimaced and put her fingers to her -ears, and a wayfarer near her smiled and addressed a word to the -torturer, who looked at him aslant out of his little eyes and went on -his way placid and unabashed. - -The pedestrian who had spoken was one by himself in all that vast -throng. That he was European was shown by his garments; a western -observer, however little travelled, would have known him at a glance as -an English lad. His garb was light, fitting a slim, tall figure; a -broad-brimmed cotton hat was slanted over his nose to keep the glowing -rays from his eyes; he walked with the springy tread and free swinging -gait never acquired by an Oriental. He wormed his way through the -jostling crowd, passed through the bastioned gate of the lofty inner -ramparts, crossed the suburbs, where the gardens were in gorgeous bloom, -and, leaving the external wall of mud behind him, came into the brown, -rough, dusty road, lined on both sides with booths, leading to the -railway-station. Rich fields of maize and beans and millet covered the -vast plain beyond, and upon the sky-line lay a range of wooded hills. - -By and by the walker came to the new street that had sprung up beside -the railway-station since the Russian occupation: a settlement tenanted -by traders--Greek, Caucasian, and Hebrew--dealing in every product of -the two civilizations, eastern and western, here so incongruously in -contact. Nothing that could be sold or bartered came amiss to these -polyglot traders; they kept everything from champagne to sake (the rice -beer of Japan), from boots to smoked fish. Hurrying through this oven -of odours, he passed the line of ugly brick cottages run up for the -Russian officials, and arrived at the station. It was quiet at the -moment; there was a pause in the stream of traffic which had for some -time been steadily flowing southward. Save for the railway servants, the -riflemen who guard the line, and a few officers desperately bored in -their effort to kill time, the platform was deserted. The Russian -lieutenant on duty accosted the new-comer. - -"Well, Ivan Ivanovitch, what can we do for you to-day?" - -"The same old thing," replied the lad slowly in Russian. "Can you send a -wire to Vladivostok for my father?" - -"Very sorry; it is impossible to-day as it was yesterday. None but -military messages are going through." - -"Well, I just came up on the chance." - -"When are you leaving? We shall miss you." - -"Thanks! In a few days, I hope. Father has just about settled up -everything. In fact, that consignment of flour is the only thing left -to trouble about now. I hope it will get through safely, but the -Japanese appear to be scouting the seas pretty thoroughly. As soon as -we hear from our agent at Vladivostok we shall be off." - -"Come and have a glass of tea in the buffet. It may be the last time." - -Jack Brown--known to his Russian friends as Ivan Ivanovitch, "John the -son of John"--accepted the invitation. After a chat and a glass of tea -from the large steaming samovar, always a conspicuous object in a -Russian buffet, he left the station as the dusk was falling and a haze -spread over the ground, covering up the many unlovely evidences of the -Russian occupation. For variety's sake he changed his course and took a -path to the left that skirted the native graveyard, intending to enter -the city by one of the northern gates. A line of heavy native carts, -with their long teams of mules and ponies, was slowly wending -northwards; women, their hair decorated with flowers, were taking their -children for an airing before the sun set and the gates were closed; a -beggar stood by the roadside cleverly imitating a bird's cry by blowing -through a curled-up leaf. Jack came to the great mandarin road and -turned towards the city; such evening scenes were now a matter of course -to him. But he was still at some distance from the outer wall when he -came upon a sight which, common as it was in Moukden, he never beheld -without pity and indignation. A big muscular Chinaman of some thirty to -forty years was seated on the ground, his neck locked in the square -wooden collar known as the cangue, an oriental variant of the old -English pillory. So devised that the head and the upper part of the -body are held rigid, the cangue as an instrument of punishment is worthy -of Chinese ingenuity. The victim, as Jack knew, must have sat -throughout the long sweltering day tortured by innumerable insects which -his fixed hands were powerless to beat off. At nightfall a constable -would come and release him, conveying him to the gaol attached to a -yamen within the city, where he would be locked up until the morning. -Then the cangue would be replaced and the criminal taken back to the -same spot on the wayside. - -Jack hurried his step as he approached, eager to leave the unpleasant -sight behind him. But on drawing nearer he was surprised to find that -he knew the man,--surprised, because he was one of the last who could -have been expected to fall into such a plight. The recognition was -mutual; and as Jack came up, the parched lips of the victim uttered a -woeful exclamation of greeting. - -"How came you here, Mr. Wang?" asked Jack in Chinese. - -The crime was indicated on the upper board of the cangue, but Jack, -though he had more than a smattering of colloquial Chinese, knew almost -nothing of the written language. The poor wretch could hardly -articulate; but with difficulty he at length managed, in the short -high-pitched monosyllables of his native tongue, to explain. He had been -accused of fraud; the charge was totally without foundation; but at the -trial before the magistrates witness after witness had appeared against -him: it is easy to suborn evidence in a Chinese court: and he had been -condemned to the cangue, a first step in the system of torture by which -a prisoner, innocent or guilty, is forced to confess. - -To one who knew the Chinese as Jack did, there was nothing surprising in -this explanation, except the fact that Wang Shih was the victim. He was -a respectable man, the son of an old farmer some fifteen miles east of -Moukden, and practically the owner of the farm, his father being past -work. Hard-working and honest, he was the last man to be suspected of -trickery or base dealing. Mr. Brown had done much business with him, and -only recently had had a proof of his good faith. The Chinaman had -contracted to supply him with a large quantity of fodder. A few days -before the date of delivery he had been visited by a business rival of -Mr. Brown's, a Pole, who had come to Moukden some four or five years -before, and from small beginnings had worked up a considerable business. -Almost from the first he had come into competition with Mr. Brown. The -methods of the two men were diametrically opposed,--the Pole relying on -bribery, the corruption of the official class with which he had to deal; -the Englishman sternly resolute to lend himself to no transaction in -Manchuria of which he would be ashamed at home. Anton Sowinski, as the -Pole was called, offered Wang Shih the strongest inducements to break -his contract with Mr. Brown; but finding his native honesty proof -against temptation, he had lost his temper, abused him, and finally -struck him with his whip. The Chinaman was a peaceable fellow; but -beneath his stolidity slumbered the fierce temper of his race. Under -the Pole's provocation and assault his self-restraint gave way. He -seized Sowinski with the grip of a giant, rapped his head soundly -against the fence, and then threw him bodily into the road. The -contract with Mr. Brown had been duly fulfilled; and it was, to say the -least, unlikely that a man who had thus kept faith to his own -disadvantage should have descended to vulgar fraud. - -"Who was your accuser?" asked Jack. - -"Loo Sen." - -"He's a neighbour of yours, isn't he?" - -"Yes, and has long borne us ill-will. But it was not he really. As I -left the yamen where I was tried, a friend whispered me that Loo Sen was -in the pay of Sowinski." - -"Ah! that throws a light on it. Sowinski is having his revenge. It is -a bad business, Mr. Wang." - -Jack knew the ways of Moukden magistrates too well to hope that the -conviction and sentence could be quashed. On the contrary, if the cangue -proved ineffectual in extorting a confession, there were various grades -of torture that could be applied in turn. But prisoners often escaped; -their friends, it is true, afterwards suffered. Wang Shih was so big -and strong that he might easily have overpowered his gaoler some night -when the cangue was removed; it was, perhaps, only consideration for his -family that had restrained him. Jack questioned him on this point. - -"Yes. That is the reason. The constable--wah! I could kill him -easily; but what then? I could not remain in Moukden; I am too well -known. And my father would not be safe. They would behead him, and rob -my family of all they possess." - -"Yes, I understand. I wish I could do something for you; but I see no -way. My father might have done something at one time--possibly through -the Russians, although they are unwilling to mix themselves up in -Chinese quarrels; but in any case his influence is gone since the war -began." - -"You can do one thing for me, sir, if you will; that is, send a message -to my father. Tell him to gather all his things together and leave the -district. I will never confess to a crime which I did not commit, and -there will be time for him, before I am beheaded, to get away." - -"I will do that. I would do anything I could to help you, but----" - -"Here comes the constable, sir." - -Jack looked along the road and saw, slouching up, a typical specimen of -the Chinese constable. In China the constable is universally and -deservedly detested. Sheltered by the mandarins of the yamen, he preys -upon the rich and oppresses the poor. The prisoner in his keeping is -starved, beaten, tortured until he yields his last copper cash; if he -escapes, the constable pounces upon his unhappy relatives, and their -fate is the same. This man scowled fiercely upon Jack, and the latter, -seeing that no good could come of remaining longer, spoke a final word -of sympathy to Wang Shih, and went on amid the thinning stream of people -to the city. - -"Well, Jack," said his father, as the lad entered the neat one-story -house which served both as dwelling and office; "any news?" - -"None, Father. The wires are still monopolized." - -"That's a nuisance. You'll have to pack off to Vladivostok yourself, -I'm afraid. Ten chances to one, Captain Fraser will not get through -safely; still, one can never tell. I heard a rumour to-day that the -Russian fleet has made a raid from Vladivostok; and if it keeps the -Japanese employed, Fraser may make a safe run. You've been a long -time." - -"Yes. I had a chat with Lieutenant Borisoff; but I was detained on the -way back. What do you think? Sowinski has got Loo Sen to bring a charge -against Wang Shih, and the poor fellow is in the cangue." - -"Whew! That's bad. It means decapitation in the end." - -"I suppose you can do nothing for him?" - -"Nothing, I fear. I'm sorry for the poor chap, especially as I'm afraid -it's partly through his holding to his bargain with me. But I've no -influence now, and even if I had, it would be useless to interfere in a -purely Chinese matter. We could never prove that Sowinski had a hand in -it." - -Mr. Brown reflected for some moments, Jack studying his features. - -"No," he said at last, "there's absolutely nothing we can do. This only -proves that I am right in winding things up and cutting sticks. That -fellow Sowinski is a blackguard; if I stayed here he'd find some means -of doing me an injury next." - -"But, Father, the Chinese are good friends of ours, and you've never -been on bad terms with the Russians." - -"Not till lately, it is true. But this war has brought a new set of men -here, and you know perfectly well that I've offended some of them; -General Bekovitch, for one, has a grudge against me. They don't -understand a man who won't bribe or be bribed; I really think they -believe there must be something fishy about him! However, we'll be off -as soon as you get back from Vladivostok, and leave the field to -Sowinski. I wish the Russians joy of him." - -"When shall I go to Vladivostok?" - -"The day after to-morrow; that gives Orloff another chance. And I've -several little things still to settle up. By the way, here's a queer -letter I got just now; it was brought by a Chinese runner from -Newchang." - -He handed the letter to Jack, who read: - - -"Respected Sir,--The undersigned does himself the honour to introduce -himself to your esteemed notice, as per instructions received per -American Cable Company from my principals, Messrs. Schlagintwert Co. of -Duesseldorf, namely, 'Apply assistance Brown of Moukden'. I presume -from aforesaid cable my Co. may already have had relations with your -esteemed Firma. My arrival in Moukden may be expected within a few days -of receipt. Believe me, with high esteem and compliments, - -"Your obedient servant, - "HlLDEBRAND SCHWAB. - -_"Postscriptum_.--Also representative of the _Illustrirte Vaterland u. -Colonien_." - - -"Tear it up, Jack. No doubt we shall be away when he comes." - -"Who are Schlagintwert, Father?" - -"You remember those automatic couplings we tried on the Harbin section -three or four years ago----" - -"The ones that took two men to fasten and four to release?" said Jack, -laughing. - -"Exactly. Well, they were Schlagintwert's." - -At this moment the clang of a gong, followed by the thud of a drum, -sounded through the streets. - -"They're closing the gates," said Jack. "I think I'll go to bed, -Father; I'm pretty tired." - -"Good-night, then! I shan't be long after you. I've a little more -writing to do. Send Hi Lo in with some lemonade." - - - - - *CHAPTER II* - - *Mr. Wang and a Constable* - - -The Flowing Tide--Backsheesh--At the Window--Hu Hang--Quis -Custodiet?--Mr. Wang's Grip - - -Mr. Brown, like many another active and enterprising Englishman, had -left home as a young man and done business in many parts of the globe. -He was a struggling merchant in Shanghai when Jack, his elder son, was -born. Nine years later he seized a promising opening in Vladivostok, -and removed thither with his family, now increased by another boy and a -girl. When Jack was eleven he was sent to school in England, being -shortly afterwards followed home by his mother, sister, and brother. -Then, at the age of fifteen, he was recalled by his father, who wished -for his assistance in a new business he was starting in Moukden. Jack -was nothing loth; he had a great admiration for his father, and an -adventurous spirit of his own. He had done fairly well at school; never -a "swot", still less a "smug", he had carried off a prize or two for -modern languages, and counted a prize bat and a silver cup among his -trophies. Everybody liked him; he always "played the game". - -Mr. Brown had at first prospered exceedingly in Moukden. His business -had been originally that of a produce broker; but when the Russians -extended their railway and began to develop Port Arthur, he added branch -after branch, and soon had many irons in the fire. He supplied the -Russian authorities with innumerable things, from corn to building -stones; he had large contracts with them in connection with their great -engineering feat, the construction of the Trans-Siberian Railway, and in -this part of his business Jack had taken a special interest, picking up -thus a considerable knowledge of railway plant, locomotives, and other -details. Being a man of absolute integrity, respected and trusted by -the natives, Mr. Brown before long won the confidence of the officials -with whom he came in contact. But he was a shrewd student of affairs as -well as a man of business. He had foreseen the outbreak of war, and -viewed with amazement the careless assurance of the Russian attitude -towards the "yellow monkeys", deemed so insignificant. Making many -friends among the Russians, he saw much to admire in them: their -kindliness and abounding hospitality, their perseverance in face of -obstacles, their vital faith in their country's destiny. With the -Japanese his personal relations had not been so intimate; but he had -watched their progress from afar with the keenness of a clear-eyed -observer, and he knew that when the trial came, the Russians would find -the little men of Nippon no mean foes. - -Events proved the accuracy of his forecast. The Russian fleet was -bottled up, the Yalu crossed, Port Arthur was already beleaguered, and -Stackelberg's attempt to relieve it had failed. Mr. Brown talked with -some of the wounded who had been sent back from the Yalu to Moukden, and -were now in hospital in a Buddhist monastery near the outer wall. They -were not downcast: they spoke of being outnumbered and unprepared; when -General Kuropatkin's army was complete the tide would turn, and then---- -But he got them to talk of their actual experiences in battle. Some of -them had been within arm's-length of their enemies in a bayonet charge; -and what he learnt of the eager joy, the buoyant audacity, displayed by -the Japanese, strengthened his belief that, given equal generalship, -equal numbers, equal equipment, such a spirit could scarcely be matched, -and was bound to lead them to victory. - -Prudent but not alarmist, Mr. Brown considered how the war would affect -him. The Japanese were pressing northward; should Port Arthur fall, the -besieging army would be able to strengthen Marshal Oyama's forces in the -field. If the Russians were compelled to withdraw from Manchuria, Mr. -Brown could hardly hope to save his business, and it behoved him to set -his house in order. Another consideration weighed with him. The -development of the railway and the imminence of war had brought new men -on the scene. The Russian officers whom he knew so well were withdrawn, -and replaced by men of another stamp--men who were not all so -clean-handed as their predecessors. He soon became aware that he was -expected to grease their palms, and his uncompromising resistance to -corruption in every shape and form made him disliked. Several contracts -were given over his head; he found that in many cases the new-comer, -Sowinski, of whose antecedents nothing was known, was favoured at his -expense; and it was clear that these circumstances, together with the -general Russian distrust of England and all things English, boded ill -for his business. He was turned fifty years of age, and had amassed a -comfortable fortune. It appeared the part of discretion to wind up his -affairs before it was too late, and return to England, where a man of -his wealth and energy might find occupation for his maturer years. When -he had once made up his mind, Mr. Brown wasted no time. He proceeded to -put his design into effect, and now expected in a few days to leave -Moukden for home. - -It was past midnight before he had finished sorting his papers. That -done, he smoked a final cigarette at the door, then shot the bolt, -turned out the lamp, and went to bed in the room next to Jack's. - -Jack had found it somewhat difficult to get to sleep. He could not put -Wang Shih's plight from his thoughts. He had seen something of Chinese -methods; there came before his mind the vision of a poor wretch he had -once met on his way to execution, emaciated to a skeleton, one of his -legs blackened and withered, almost fleshless, and wanting its foot, -which had dropped off as the result of his being chained by the ankle to -a ring in his prison wall. Such evidence of inhumanity was horrible; it -made him shudder to think of Wang Shih, so good a fellow, so fine a -specimen of manhood, suffering and dying thus. And he admired the -Chinaman's fortitude, his loyalty to his family, his refusal to avail -himself of means of escape lest his people should suffer. Could not -something even yet be done for him? Jack did not wish to complicate -matters; but, after all, they were on the eve of departure, and he knew -his father well enough to be sure that he would not refuse to lend a -helping hand if required. But puzzle as he might, he could see no way -of saving both Wang Shih and his family, and the problem was still -unsolved when he at length fell into a troubled sleep. - -Suddenly he awoke. The night was very close, and at the first moment he -thought his waking was due to the heat. But then he heard a slight -scratching at his left. He raised himself on his elbow to listen; he had -never seen or heard mice in the house. The scratching continued; it was -very close at hand. Surely at that time of night it could not be anyone -scratching at the paper window? He got out of bed; it was too dark to -see anything; he put his ear against the thin paper. The noise was -certainly caused by the moving of a finger-nail. - -"Who is there?" he asked softly in Chinese. - -"Wang Shih, sir." - -"Mr. Wang! You've escaped, then. All right! I'll come to the door." - -On the way he went into his father's room, and touched him on the elbow. - -"Hey! Who's that? What's the matter, Jack?" - -"Wang Shih is outside, Father." - -"By Jove! What does he want?" - -"I don't know. He has evidently escaped." - -"Send him about his business. I can't be mixed up in this sort of -thing." - -"You might see him, Father. He wouldn't have come unless he saw some -way of getting off without harming anyone." - -"Well, well! Light the lamp, and let him in. I'll slip on my -dressing-gown and follow you." - -Jack went to the door, opened it, and was confronted, not by one big -form, as he expected, but by two. - -"Who is with you, Mr. Wang?" - -"Mr. Hu." - -"Who is Mr. Hu? Come inside both of you, and let me lock the door." - -The two Chinamen entered, blinking in the light of the little oil lamp -Jack had lit. - -"Now, Mr. Wang, explain. Who is Mr. Hu?" - -"He is Hu Hang, the constable, sir." - -"The constable!" exclaimed Jack, now recognizing the low brow and shifty -eyes. - -"Yes; I had to bring him." - -"What's this, what's this?" said Mr. Brown, coming from his bedroom. -"What you two piecee man makee this-side?" - -Like almost all English merchants, he had found Chinese too much for -him, and in his intercourse with the natives made use of pidgin English, -the lingua franca of the Chinese coast. - -There was a world of humility and apology in Wang Shih's kowtow. - -"My lun wailo," he said. "My no wantchee catchee killum. Muchee -bobbely yamen-side. Allo piecee fightey-man bimeby look-see Wang Shih; -no can wailo outside that-time." - -His exceptional size was certainly against him. It was clear that -without some disguise the man could not hope to escape from the city. - -"Yes, that's all very well," said Mr. Brown reflectively. Then turning -suddenly to the second man: "But what this piecee man makee this-side?" - -"He Hu Hang; muchee bad policeyman, galaw!" - -"Policeyman! Yes, but what-for policeyman he come this-side too?" - -"Hu Hang he my policeyman. He watchee my. My hittee Hu Hang velly -muchee plenty hard, hai-yah! Hu Hang plenty silly top-side; my tinkee -lun wailo chop-chop. 'Stoppee, stoppee!' say Hu Hang; 'what-for you -makee leavee my this-side?' Ch'hoy! My tinkee Hu Hang belongey muchee -leason. Hu Hang lun wailo all-same." - -Mr. Brown still looked puzzled. - -"Don't you see, Father," broke in Jack, "Mr. Wang couldn't leave the -poor wretch to bear the brunt of his escape. They would have cut his -head off as sure as a gun." - -"Not much loss to his fellow-citizens, by the look of him," said Mr. -Brown, glancing critically at the scowling, sullen countenance of the -truant constable. "Still, it was uncommonly decent of Mr. Wang. We -must really do what we can to get him away. What you tinkee makee, Mr. -Wang?" - -The man turned to Jack and addressed him in Chinese with much movement -of the hands and frequent glances at Hu Hang. - -"He says that after I left him," explained Jack, "he heard that the -yamen runners were already ill-treating his people. That means, of -course, that they'll be stripped of all they have. His only chance was -to get away and join the Chunchuses. If he can only join Ah Lum, no -mandarin will be rash enough to interfere with them. Even the Viceroy -of Moukden is afraid of the brigands. Mr. Wang's only difficulty is to -get out of the city." - -"A rather serious one. No doubt by this time they're keeping a pretty -sharp look-out for him, and"--glancing at the man's huge bulk and -muscular development--"he's not the kind of man to pass in a crowd." - -The Chinaman, though unable to follow Mr. Brown's English, had gathered -the gist of what he said. He spoke again to Jack. - -"If only we can lend him a cart, he says, and a new tunic and -pantaloons, he hasn't much doubt of being able to get through. We can -surely manage that, Father." - -"Well, it's risky; but I can't see the man come to grief if it can be -helped." - -That Wang Shih understood this was clear, for his face beamed, and he -kowtowed with every mark of gratitude. - -"But what about the constable?" said Mr. Brown to Jack. "Suppose he -cuts up rough?" Turning to Wang Shih, he said: "Supposey policeyman -makee bobbely; what you do that-time?" - -Mr. Wang grinned. He took the constable by the scruff of the neck and -held him half-throttled at arm's-length. - -"Ch'hoy! My keepee Mr. Hu allo-time long-side: he plenty muchee 'flaid, -savvy my belongey plenty stlong, galaw!" - -He gave the gasping wretch a final shake. Mr. Brown was satisfied. The -demonstration was complete. - - - - - *CHAPTER III* - - *Deported* - - -Mesalliance--An Outing--Bonbons--"Mr. Blown"--A Northern -Frontier--Bandit and Patriot--Hi Lo--Arrested--Monsieur Brin offers -Condolences--Old Scores--General Bekovitch--Short Notice--The General -loses Patience - - -"Ah! I disturb you, Mr. Brown. I always disturb somebody. I disturb -myself! Therefore I go; another time, another time." - -"Not a bit of it, Monsieur. Sit down; I shall be through with these -papers in five minutes. What will you drink? We have a fair -selection." - -"Lemonade, my dear Mr. Brown, nothing but lemonade. It is the cool -drink." - -"Hi Lo, wailo fetchee lemonade for Monsieur." - -"Allo lightee, sah," said a little fellow of some thirteen years, -bright-eyed, rosy-cheeked, a smiling Chinese boy. - -Monsieur Anatole Brin, correspondent of the _Soleil_, sat down in a cane -chair and wiped his perspiring bald pate with a yellow silk -handkerchief. Mr. Brown continued to sort his papers. It was not -possible for Monsieur Brin to sit speechless. - -"Ah! Mr. Brown, you have things to do. You do not suffer, as we -others, from nostalgia--the home-sickness, you understand? I sigh for -Paris, for the boulevards, the cafes, the Opera, for anything, anything, -but this Moukden. It is five weeks that I am here; I have my paper, my -pencils, my authorization; I have presented to the Viceroy my letter of -credit, my photograph, as it is ordained. I have the red band on my -arm; you see it: the letters B.K., correspondent of war; also Chinese -arabesques, one says they mean 'Him who spies out the military things!' -and here I am still in Moukden. I spy out no military things; I broil -myself with sun, choke myself with dust; it is not possible to go to the -south, where the war is made; no, it is permitted to do anything but -what I am sent for; I become meagre with disappointment." - -"Cheer up! Yours is a hard lot, no doubt. The modern general has no -liking for you correspondents. But you will get your chance, no doubt, -in time. The Japanese are coming north. There has been a fight at -Wa-fang-ho, I hear." - -"What!" cried the Frenchman, starting up. "A battle and I not there! I -hear of no battle. Colonel Pestitch hear of none. I ask him just now. -Does he tell me lie--prevaricate?" - -"He probably knows nothing about it. I knew it through a Chinaman -yesterday. The natives outdo the telegraph, Monsieur, especially the -telegraph with a censor at one end. But, in fact, I have more than once -heard the result of an engagement before even the military authorities." - -Monsieur Brin walked up and down the little office impatiently twisting -his moustache. - -"Ah! It is abominable--but yes, abominable. Of what good that France -is the ally of Russia? I might be Japanese, or Englishman, with no -alliance at all. Why did I quit Paris? To put on this odious red -badge, like a convict. For what? To promenade myself about Moukden, -from day to day, from week to week, in prey to hundred Chinese diseases, -subject to thousand Chinese odours! Ah, quelle malaise, quel -desappointement, quel spleen!" - -"You're in low spirits to-day, Monsieur. Why don't you go about the -country and see the sights?" - -"The sights! I have seen them. I have seen the tombs. They do not -equal the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, Notre Dame. Pouah! My throat -fills itself with dust, or my feet stick fast in the mud. For the rest, -if I go farther I fall into the hands of the Koungouzes, the brigands; -they have asperity; I have respect for my skin." - -"Look here, Monsieur, this won't do. You'll make yourself ill if you -take things so hardly. What do you say to this, now? My boy is going -some fifteen miles out to a farm, to see some friends of ours--Chinese, -you understand. Why not go with him and see something of the Chinese at -home? Our friend Mr. Wang has an interesting family; you'll enjoy it, -and get material for one article at least for the _Soleil_." - -"Ah! it is an idea. We go--how?" - -"On ponies. They will put you up for the night. You can return in the -cool to-morrow morning." - -"It is an idea. It please me. There is no risk?" - -"None, I should think. You can take a revolver, but Jack is pretty well -known. Hi Lo, tell Mr. Jack I want him." - -In a few seconds Jack entered. He shook hands cordially with Monsieur -Brin, whom he had seen once or twice since his arrival with a letter of -introduction to Mr. Brown. - -"Jack, Monsieur Brin is making himself ill for want of something to do. -Take him with you and introduce him to Wang Shih's people. I think -he'll like them." - -"I'll be glad, I'm sure. Will you come, Monsieur?" - -"With pleasure, to pass the time." - -"I am starting immediately. Hi Lo, saddle a pony for Monsieur, quick." - -The little fellow, son of Mr. Brown's compradore, ran off, and returned -in five minutes. - -"Pony allo lightee, sah." - -"Good boy! Now, Monsieur, shall we start?" - -"Hope you'll have a pleasant day, Monsieur," said Mr. Brown. "Look me -up in the morning, and tell me how you got on." - -"Good-bye! Thanks! I have not disturb you--busy man like you?" - -"Not a bit. Good-bye!" - -Mounted on neat little ponies, Monsieur Brin and Jack set off through -the city. To the Frenchman's surprise, Jack did not choose the main -thoroughfare direct to one of the eastern gates, but turned first into -one side street, then into another. They were dusty, dirty, crowded -with people, pigs, and poultry, and Monsieur Brin held his nose and -began to expostulate. - -"Wait a little, Monsieur," said Jack. "We are coming to my street. I -never miss it when I come in this direction." - -They came by and by to a street differing in no wise from the rest, -except that in one of the paper-windowed houses a school was held. No -sooner had Jack appeared at the end of the street than the sing-song of -children at lessons ceased as by magic, and out of the school flocked a -score of little ones, who rushed towards him with loud and happy cries -of greeting, scattering the fowls and pigs and kicking up clouds of dust -as they ran. - -"Mon Dieu!" exclaimed Monsieur Brin, reining up his pony to avoid -trampling them. - -"Don't be alarmed," said Jack, laughing. "They are my little -pensioners." - -The biggest of the children were already swarming round the pony. Jack -put his hand into his pocket. Instantly there was a yell of delight. -Then suddenly a shower of sweetmeats fell on the outskirts of the crowd, -among the smallest of the children. There was a merry scramble; before -the first handful was picked up a second was scattered in the opposite -direction, and soon every child was on all-fours, hunting for treasure -in the thick brown dust. Meanwhile every door in the street had become -blocked with smiling elders,--toothless old grandames, brawny workmen, -women, girls, all enjoying the scene, chattering among themselves, some -of them giving pleasant salutation to Jack. His pockets at last were -empty; his pony was becoming impatient; and, laughingly threatening to -run the youngsters down, he moved on amid high-pitched cries of "Come -again soon, Mr. Blown!" - -Monsieur Brin was vastly entertained. The children's antics were very -droll, and Monsieur was a man of sentiment. - -"My word!" he said. "Here is something at last for the readers of the -_Soleil_. I have no victories of war to write; I write of a victory of -peace; how a young Englishman has won the hearts of all a street of -Chinese; how to them he is no longer foreign devil but sweet-stuff -saint. Eh? How became you so great a friend?" - -"Oh, it is very simple. I took a fancy one day to a little toddler; -picked him up out of the way of a boisterous pig, and gave him a sweet -to comfort him. Other children were looking on; next time I came this -way a group of them stood with their fingers in their mouths and their -eyes on my pockets. I flung them a sweet or two; they picked them up -and scampered away as though half-scared; but they were on the watch for -me after that, and now, as you see, it has become an institution. They -have very easy-going schoolmasters here; as soon as my nose is seen at -the street end the word is given and out they troop, and the elders know -the sounds and come to see the fun. They are all very good friends of -mine." - -Leaving the narrow streets, they came at length to the outer gate, -guarded jointly by several sleepy Chinese soldiers and a Russian sentry. -Jack was well known, and the two riders passed through without -difficulty. - -Having a little business to settle with Mr. Wang senior, Jack had -offered, before Wang Shih left Mr. Brown's house in the small hours of -that morning, to ride out and inform the family of his escape. A ride -of some fifteen miles brought the two within sight of the farm. It was -a brick building of one story, like all Manchurian houses, with -cow-byres, pig-sties, and poultry-houses clinging to the wall. The -farmstead was surrounded by lofty wooden palings, and Monsieur Brin's -attention was attracted by two fantastic warlike figures roughly daubed -in red and green on either side of the great gate. - -"Oh!" said Jack, in reply to his question, "they're supposed to scare -away evil spirits." - -"He! Are not the dogs enough?" - -The appearance of the two strangers was hailed by a rush of dogs, large -and small, yelping and barking fiercely, but without malice. The noise -brought the inmates to the door: an old Chinaman and his wife, and two -girls of eighteen or thereabouts, whose regular features, soft brown -eyes, and delicately ruddy complexion made an instant impression upon -the Frenchman. He doffed his hat with the most elegant and graceful -ease, and was not disconcerted when this unaccustomed mode of salutation -set the girls giggling. The mistress led the visitors into the best -room, lofty, airy, clean, with paper windows; along one side a broad -platform some thirty inches from the floor. This was the k'ang, a -hollow structure containing a flue warmed by the smoke and hot air from -the kitchen-fire; it served as a table by day and a bed by night. A -little graven image occupied a tinselled niche; and, the kitchen-fire -not being required in hot weather, a kettle stood on a small brazier, -boiling water for the indispensable tea. - -The old people were greatly distressed at the disgrace that had befallen -their only son; still more at his approaching fate, for to die without a -male child to honour one's ashes is the worst of ills to a Chinaman. -They were not aware of his escape; but when Jack told them that he was -now at large, and had gone to join the great Chunchuse chief Ah Lum, -they all, parents and girls, clapped their hands, feeling now secure -against ill-treatment by the Chinese officials. The chief would send -word from his head-quarters to his agent in Moukden that Wang Shih was -under his protection, and the terror in which the brigand was held was -so great that the farmer's family would remain unmolested. - -Jack asked where was the encampment of the Chunchuse band. It varied, -said the old man. To avoid capture by the Russians, the chief -frequently shifted his quarters. His band was constantly on the move -between Kirin and the Shan-yan-alin mountains, going so swiftly and -secretly that no one knew where it would turn up next. One day it would -be on the Hun-ho; a detachment of Cossacks would be sent to cut it off, -only to find that it had disappeared. Two or three days later it might -be heard of several hundred li away, on the Sungari. - -"Yes," said the old man. "Ah Lum is a great leader, and a great hater -of the Russians; but he hates the Japanese nearly as much. He would -drive all foreigners out of the country. I am glad my son is with him, -though I fear he will not be able to return home until the war is over." - -Jack and Monsieur Brin spent some time in rambling about the farm, the -latter smoking innumerable cigarettes, making copious notes, and every -now and then breaking forth into enthusiastic praise of the eldest -daughter, who he declared reminded him of his fiancee in the boulevard -Raspail. He watched with absorbed interest the Chinese way of making -tea: the green leaves placed in a broad saucer and covered with boiling -water; another saucer inverted over the first, and pushed back a little -way after the tea had "drawn", the beverage being sipped through the -interstice. The old farmer insisted on his guests going to see his -coffin, a very handsome box thoughtfully provided by his son and kept in -an outhouse, where Mr. Wang frequently spent an hour in meditation on -mortality. Afterwards Brin was initiated into the complexities of -fan-tan--a guessing game that was prolonged far into the night. They -slept comfortably on the k'ang, and left about eight next morning very -well pleased with their visit. - -The sun was already hot, and they rode at a walking pace, partly to -avoid the clouds of choking dust which trotting would have raised. They -were still several miles from the city when Jack saw a small Chinese boy -hastening in their direction. - -"That's young Hi Lo," he said, as the figure came more clearly into -view. "I wonder what he is coming this way for! Surely Wang Shih has -not been caught after all?" - -The boy had broken into a run, and when he met them Jack saw at once by -his face that he bore grave news. But he was not prepared for what the -little fellow told him in breathless gasps. Soon after daybreak a squad -of Siberian infantry had appeared at Mr. Brown's house, put the merchant -under arrest, ransacked his papers, and carried him off a prisoner. Hi -Lo's father, the compradore, happened to be at a window of the front -room as the soldiers came up; and suspecting, with Chinese shrewdness -and dislike of the soldiers, that something was amiss, he had run to the -inner sanctum and removed the most valuable papers from the safe before -the Russians entered. But knowing that he was likely to be searched, he -had handed the papers to Hi Lo, hoping that the boy would escape the -visitors' attentions. Mr. Brown made a vigorous protest against the -Russians' action, and demanded by what authority they arrested him and -the crime with which he was charged; but the officer in command refused -to give him any information. Before he was marched off, he was allowed -a few words with his compradore, a servant of many years' standing. -Learning that the papers were for the present secure, he had managed, -without making his meaning clear to the Russian officer, to direct that -they should be handed to Jack. They were for the most part vouchers from -the Russian authorities for goods supplied; if not concealed, they would -certainly be seized, and Mr. Brown knew how impossible it was to make a -Russian official disgorge plunder. The whole thing was probably a -mistake, at the worst a plot which could no doubt be shown up. The -first necessity was to put the securities out of harm's way; then Jack -could take whatever steps might be called for to obtain his father's -release, if he were still detained after he had met the charge against -him. - -The boy told his story rapidly in pidgin English; not that Jack did not -understand Chinese, but because, like all Chinese servants, Hi Lo made -it a point of pride to use his master's language. Monsieur Brin could -make nothing of the narrative. - -"What is the matter with you, my friend?" he asked, seeing the look of -concern on Jack's face. - -"An annoying mistake, Monsieur. My father has been arrested by the -Russians." - -"Oho! What has he been doing?" - -"Nothing, of course. Some official has been too zealous, I suppose. I -must ride on, Monsieur." - -"But may not you be arrested, too?" - -"I don't think so. If they intended it, they would already have sent a -detachment after me. You may be sure their spies know very well where I -have been. No, I'm in no danger; but anyhow I must find out what it all -means, so if you don't mind, Monsieur, we'll hurry on and chance the -dust." - -"Certainly, my friend. My word! this is an unfortunate end to our -pleasant little picnic." - -"You have the papers, Hi Lo?" - -The boy produced them from some pouch in his wadded cotton garments. -Jack looked them over. They represented a considerable sum of money. -He did not care to have them about him, in case he should be searched. -What could he do with them? For a moment he thought of giving them into -the care of Monsieur Brin, but on reflection he hesitated to involve the -correspondent in his difficulties. Hi Lo was a clever little fellow, -devoted to him; probably he would be the best custodian for the present. -He gave the papers back to the boy. - -"Keep them carefully, Hi Lo. Don't come near our house till I send for -you." - -Then he put his pony to a canter, and with Brin by his side hastened on -to the city. At the moment, as Jack knew, there were few Russian -soldiers in Moukden. General Kuropatkin was at the front, somewhere -south of Liao-yang; Admiral Alexeieff was at Harbin. The arrest must -have been made in their absence, and probably unknown to them, by the -local military authorities. But, knowing his father's innocence, Jack -expected to find that he had already been released. - -On entering the city he said good-bye to Monsieur Brin, who was full of -condolence. - -"If I can do anything, tell me," he said. "Unhappily I cannot -telegraph; the soldiers have monopoly of the wires; and, besides, there -is the terrible censor. But if I can do anything----" - -"Don't worry, Monsieur. It will be all right. My father is a British -subject; and though the Russians don't love us just now, they won't do -anything very dreadful, I imagine. Many thanks! I will let you know -how things stand." - -He rode straight home, and, finding that the house was shut and locked, -sought the compradore at his cottage at the rear of the compound behind. -Learning from him further details of the arrest, he at once set off for -the military head-quarters near the railway-station. He knew several of -the Russian officers, but those to whom he spoke had heard nothing of -the singular occurrence. One of them offered to make enquiries. He -returned by and by with the information that the order for Mr. Brown's -arrest had been given by General Bekovitch. This was not cheering, for -General Bekovitch, as Jack knew, was an officer who under a surface -polish and refinement was thoroughly unscrupulous, and one indeed whose -enmity Mr. Brown had incurred by his uncompromising attitude towards the -official methods of corruption. Some time before this, when Bekovitch -was a colonel, he had transferred to the Pole, Sowinski, a contract -which had been placed in Mr. Brown's hands. The latter protested, and -Bekovitch's superior disallowed his action and gave him metaphorically a -rap on the knuckles. The colonel was deeply chagrined, both at the -reprimand and at the loss of the secret commission arranged with -Sowinski. He was now promoted major-general; his superior was gone; and -Jack could hardly doubt that he had seized the opportunity to pay off -his grudge against the English merchant. Jack shrank somewhat from a -meeting with the general, but his indignation outweighed every other -feeling, and, plucking up his courage, he made his way to the luxurious -railway-carriage which served Bekovitch for quarters. - -He had to wait some time before he gained admittance to the general's -presence. When at last he was invited to enter, he found Bekovitch -lolling on a divan smoking a cigarette, a champagne bottle at his elbow. -He was a tall fair man, inclining to stoutness, with a long moustache -and carefully-trimmed beard, and looked in his white uniform a very -dignified representative of the military bureaucracy. - -Jack's residence as a boy in Vladivostok had given him a good colloquial -knowledge of Russian, so that he had no difficulty in addressing the -general in his own language. - -"I have recently heard, sir, of my father's arrest," he said, "and I -have come to ask if you will be good enough to tell me where he is and -what he is charged with." - -"You are Mr. Brown's son? How do you do?" said the general suavely. "I -am sorry for you. It is a bad business altogether. I should be quite -justified in refusing to give you information, but I am, of course, -willing to stretch a point in a case like this--father and son, you -know. Well, I regret to say that I had to arrest your father for giving -military information to the Japanese." - -"But, sir, that is ridiculous. My father never did such a thing. He -has had no connection, not even a business one, with the Japanese; he -doesn't like them. Besides, he would never think of doing anything -underhand. No one who knows him could even imagine it." - -If Bekovitch felt the personal application, he did not show it. - -"Very creditable, very creditable indeed. A loyal son; excellent. I -should be the last to undeceive you; therefore we will say no more about -it. Let me offer you a cigarette." - -"No, thank you, sir. Really the matter cannot end thus. What evidence -have you against my father?" - -The general shrugged. - -"Well, if you will---- We had our suspicions; your father is an -Englishman, you know; we examined his papers and found proof of our -suspicions--full, conclusive. There is no doubt at all about it." - -"But you will allow my father to clear himself. I am sure he can do -so." - -"We have no time for long-winded processes," replied the general, -throwing away the end of his cigarette and lighting another. "Moukden, -as you must be aware, young man, is under martial law." - -"Then what has become of my father, sir? Where is he?" - -"We might have shot him, you know." The general's manner was suaver -than ever. "But we are a merciful people. Your father has merely -been--deported." - -At this Jack felt that either there was a hole in the net woven around -his father, or the Russians had feared to proceed to extremities owing -to his British nationality. - -"Well, sir," he said, "I shall, of course, appeal to our government." - -"Certainly, my young friend, certainly! But on what ground? See, I -recognize your anxiety; it is perfectly natural; for that reason I am -patient with you. But we must be the judges as to who shall stay in -Manchuria, who shall leave. Your father is now on his way to--to the -frontier. You will follow without loss of time. I give you twelve -hours to quit the city. A pass shall be made out for you; you will go -by to-night's train to Harbin." - -General Bekovitch's manner was as urbane and polite as ever, but there -was in his tone a something that warned the boy that further protest -would be useless. Still, he must make one more effort to discover his -father's whereabouts. - -"Has my father gone to Harbin?" he asked. - -"I have told you, my young friend, he has been deported. I can tell you -no more." - -"But why not tell me his route, General Bekovitch? He was in any case -leaving for England in a few days. If I am to go to Harbin I should like -to know whether there is any possibility of overtaking my father and -proceeding to Europe with him." - -For answer the general summoned an attendant. - -"Michel Sergeitch, show this young man out." - -Jack gave him one look, then turned in silence towards the door. - -"One moment," called the general after him. "As I said, a pass shall be -sent you. The train leaves at eight. If you are found here to-morrow, -you will be arrested and escorted as a prisoner to the frontier. That, -I may remark, is an unpleasant mode of travelling. Remember, eight -o'clock." - - - - - *CHAPTER IV* - - *The Great Siberian Railway* - - -Duty and Inclination--A Domiciliary Visit--Monsieur Brin Protests--A -Reminder--The Ombeloke--Quandary--Salvage--A Fortune in Soles--Fellow -Passengers--From a Carriage Window--A Further Search--At the Sungari -Bridge--Off the Line--The Compradore's Brother--Consultation--A -Bargain--The Terms--The Last Load--In a Horse-box - - -Jack had rage in his heart as he walked back to the city. He was angry -and indignant, but even more alarmed. The general had told him little: -was that little the truth? What did he mean by "deported"? If Mr. Brown -had really been put across the frontier, why should the general have -refused to say by what route he had travelled? Jack feared that there -had been foul play, and his anxiety was none the less because he could -not imagine what form the foul play had taken. - -His own position was awkward. He was homeless; in a few hours he was to -be packed like a bundle of goods into a train and carried away against -his will. His father might have preceded him to Europe; on the other -hand, he might not. Was he to leave Moukden thus, in uncertainty as to -his father's fate? - -Thus perplexed and troubled in mind, he walked back to his house. At -the door he found Monsieur Brin in a state of desperation at his -inability to make head or tail of the compradore's pidgin English. - -"Ha, my friend!" he exclaimed, "I am glad to see you; I must know the -worst; I come in haste, but the Chinese man speaks a language of -monkeys; I understand it not. Tell me what is arrived." - -"I have seen General Bekovitch," replied Jack. "He told me almost -nothing. My father has been deported--for betraying secrets to the -Japanese, if you please! Did you ever hear of anything so ridiculous, -so preposterous!" - -"But that is all right. O.K. Deported! Mr. Brown is the happy man. -It would please me to be deported also. He goes back to Europe: that I -could accompany him!" - -"But that is the point. Has he gone back to Europe? The general would -not tell me. And he is packing me off too! I have to leave by -to-night's train for Harbin, or he will put me under arrest." - -"He! That is a scandal. I will expose it. I will write it all to my -redacteur. Ah! But I ask myself, will the redacteur publish my letter? -France is allied to Russia. A French publicist has to consider not -solely his own persuasions, but his duty to his country. I reflect: it -will be best actually to write nothing. But if, my friend, there needs -money, demand me; I can furnish hundred, hundred and fifty roubles: it -will be to me a pleasure." - -"Many thanks, Monsieur! I do not think I shall need your assistance. I -told the general I shall appeal to our government. Unluckily we have no -consul here; the nearest, I suppose, is at Shanghai; and being sent off -to Harbin, I don't know when I shall have an opportunity of -communicating with our authorities." - -"Truly, it is a difficult situation. And your goods here: what will -they become?" - -"They'll be confiscated, I suppose. As you see, I am locked out. -Luckily we have nothing of any great value. My father sent off in -advance all that he wished to keep, and they can't touch his account at -the Hong-Kong and Shanghai bank." - -He said nothing about the securities in Hi Lo's possession, not from any -want of faith in the Frenchman's good-will, but not entirely trusting -his discretion. - -"They have no right to lock me out," continued Jack. "And as General -Bekovitch said he'd send me a pass for the train, he must suppose he'll -find me here. So if Mr. Hi will put his shoulder to the door, I think -we'll force the lock and see what they have been doing." - -The stalwart compradore made short work of the fastenings. Accompanied -by Monsieur Brin and the Chinaman, Jack entered his father's house. -There were manifest signs of ransacking. The floor of the office was -strewn with papers; in the dining-room the drawers had been emptied; and -a large oaken press, a fine specimen of Chinese cabinet-making on which -Mr. Brown set much store, had been forced open. They were contemplating -the dismal scene when Hi Lo came running in. - -"Masta," he said hurriedly, "thlee fo' piecee Lusski walkee chop-chop -this-side." - -[Illustration: A Search Party] - -A few moments later the house was entered by four Siberian infantrymen, -headed by a lieutenant and accompanied by a tall, fair, hook-nosed man, -at the sight of whom Jack started. A light flashed upon him. Anton -Sowinski was the Russian Pole who had been doing his best to ruin Mr. -Brown's business, and had so bitterly resented Mr. Brown's successes. -It was he, too, who had instigated the charge trumped up against Wang -Shih in revenge for a business defeat. Was it unlikely that Sowinski -had been the agent in this other trumped-up charge of espionage? If -not, what was his business now? - -"I have come," said the lieutenant, "to bring you the pass promised by -General Bekovitch. Here it is." - -He drew a large unsealed envelope from his pocket, and took from it a -paper which he proceeded to read. It stipulated that Mr. John Brown, -junior, was to leave Moukden by the train for Harbin at 8 p.m., en route -for Europe. Replacing it in the envelope, the officer laid this upon the -table and said: - -"I regret, Monsieur, that I have a disagreeable duty to perform. I am -ordered to search the house and everybody in it. Mr. Brown is known to -have been in possession of certain vouchers which are now forfeit to my -government. They could not be found when he was arrested; the conclusion -is that they are in your possession. I must ask you to turn out your -pockets." - -"I have no papers," said Jack, "and I protest." - -"I am sorry. I have my orders to carry out. Resistance is useless." - -"Oh! I shall not resist. Search away." - -The lieutenant had already posted a soldier at the back entrance, and -had sent another man to bring into the room anyone whom he might find on -the premises. As Jack was being searched, Hi Lo was brought in; he had -slipped away when the Russians entered. Jack hoped that the boy had had -time to hide the papers, for though the amount they represented was -small in comparison with his father's total fortune, it was yet -considerable in itself, and he was anxious to save it, not merely for -its own sake, but because without it he would have no means of carrying -through a plan he had already dimly determined on. Hi Lo's face was -void of all expression. There were now in the room, besides the -Russians, Jack himself, Monsieur Brin, the compradore, and his son. The -door was locked. - -Jack was searched from top to toe. Nothing was found on him save -letters of no importance. The compradore and Hi Lo were examined in -turn; they submitted meekly, and Jack almost betrayed his relief when he -saw that the papers had not been discovered on the boy. Then the -officer turned to Monsieur Brin, glancing at the red band on his arm. - -"But I am a Frenchman," exclaimed the angry correspondent. "Why do you -search me? I have nothing. I know nothing." - -"I find you in Mr. Brown's house. I have orders to search everybody. I -hope you will make no difficulty, Monsieur." - -"Difficulty! It is you that make difficulty. It is an insult, an -indignity. I am an ally; peste! for what good to be an ally if I am -thus treated as an enemy! But I do not resist; no, I resign myself. -From no one but an ally would I endure such an indignity." - -"I am exceedingly sorry, Monsieur. General Bekovitch, in giving orders, -of course did not contemplate for a moment the case of a French -correspondent being present; but my instructions are positive. I have -no choice but to carry them out." - -"Well, I protest still once more. I will make the French nation know -the price they pay for this so agreeable alliance." - -Monsieur Brin was searched. No papers were found on him except his -pocket-book, a lady's photograph, and several letters, which the officer -glanced through, the Frenchman fuming with impatience and indignation. -At the conclusion of the search the lieutenant threw a meaning glance at -Sowinski, whose attitude throughout had convinced Jack of the -correctness of his surmise. The Pole's presence was in itself a -sufficient proof of his personal interest in Mr. Brown's fate. An hour -was spent in making a further examination of the scattered papers; -nothing incriminating being found, the lieutenant gave his men the order -to march. At the last moment he glanced at the envelope on the table. - -"Take care of it, Monsieur," he said; "it would be awkward for you if it -were lost." - -When the party had gone, Monsieur Brin fairly exploded with wrath. -English was too slow for him; a rapid torrent of French came from his -quivering lips. But Jack's attention was diverted from the Frenchman by -the strange antics of Hi Lo, who was dancing round his father, his face -beaming with delight. - -"You hid the papers?" said Jack. "You are a good boy. Where are they?" - -The boy pointed to the envelope on the table. - -"What do you mean?" - -"Masta, look-see. Masta, look-see." - -Jack lifted the envelope. The boy's glee puzzled him. Opening it, he -took out the Russian pass, and with it half a dozen thin slips of paper -written upon in Russian and French. He could hardly believe his eyes. -They were the very papers for which the officer had sought so diligently -but in vain. - -"How is this? What does it mean?" he said in blank amazement. - -"Hai-yah! Velly bad Lusski man look-see Masta; allo piecee bad man -look-see all-same; no can tinkee Hi Lo plenty smart inside. Hai-yah! -Allo piecee Lusski man look-see that-side; my belongey this-side, makee -no bobbely; cleep-cleep 'long-side table; my hab papers allo lightee: -ch'hoy! he belong-ey chop-chop inside ombeloke; Lusski no savvy nuffin -'bout nuffin, galaw!" - -Jack burst into a roar of laughter, and translated the boy's pidgin to -the bewildered Frenchman. While the Russians were intent on searching -Jack, and their backs were towards Hi Lo, the boy, knowing that his turn -must come, seized the opportunity to slip the precious papers into the -unclosed envelope on the table. Monsieur Brin flung up his hands and -began to pirouette, then stopped to laugh, and held his shaking sides. - -"Hi! hi! admirable! Excellentissime! Bravo! bravo! Ma foi! Comme il -est adroit! Comme il est spirituel! Ho! ho! Tiens! Le gars merite une -forte recompense. Voila!" - -In his excess of enthusiasm he took a silver dollar from his pocket, -spun it, and handed it to Hi Lo. The boy was sober in an instant. He -gravely handed the coin back. - -"No wantchee Fa-lan-sai man he dollar," he said. - -Brin looked to Jack for an explanation. - -"He is much obliged, but would rather not. You made a little mistake, -Monsieur. You can't offend a Chinaman of this sort more than by -offering him money. He is, indeed, a clever little chap. I'll take -care he doesn't go unrewarded." - -"Ha! That is another point for my chapter on the characteristics of the -Chinese. But now, my friend, what will you do?" - -"Really, Monsieur, I don't know. I must talk it over with the -compradore." - -"Very well then, I leave you. I go to write notes of this most -interesting episode. I begin to enjoy war correspondence. You go at -eight? I will be at the station to say adieu." - -Jack spent more than an hour in serious consultation with Hi An, the -compradore, a man of forty, who had served his father for nearly twenty -years, and was heart and soul devoted to his interests. There was no -question but that Jack must leave Moukden that night, and Hi An advised -him to go straight to Moscow and take the first opportunity of -communicating with the British Foreign Office. Meanwhile the compradore -himself would do what he could to trace the whereabouts of his master. -But this course Jack was very unwilling to adopt. In the first place, -he had his father's instructions to realize the securities, so cleverly -saved by Hi Lo. Then there was the consignment of flour which he hoped -might run the Japanese blockade and come safe to harbour at Vladivostok. -If it should arrive it would be worth a large sum of money, and Jack was -not disposed to yield that a spoil to the Russians. Last and most -important consideration, he was oppressed by the mystery of his father's -fate. With the likelihood of innumerable delays on the congested -railway, he might be three weeks or a month reaching Moscow; he foresaw -difficulties in inducing the Foreign Office to move in a case where -there was so little to go upon; and, above all, it was unendurable to -think that his father might, for all he knew, be still near at hand, in -danger and distress. - -He was already determined, then, that, leave Moukden if he must, he -would not leave Manchuria. But what could he do to secure his objects -and his own safety? He wondered whether the news of his father's arrest -had been telegraphed to Harbin and Vladivostok. That was unlikely, he -thought, for two reasons. It was well known that Mr. Brown had been -winding up his business; the Russian authorities, unless specially -informed, would not suppose that there was any plunder to be got apart -from what was found at Moukden. And the telegraph had been for months -past very much overworked, what with the heavy railway traffic and the -constant messages flashing to and fro between the principal depots in -Manchuria and between Manchuria and St. Petersburg. It was therefore -unlikely that the enforced departure of a Moukden merchant would be -considered of sufficient importance to communicate. If this reasoning -was correct, and Jack could contrive to reach Vladivostok before the -news filtered through, he might save the remnants of his father's -property, and turn the vouchers into negotiable securities. He would -then find himself in possession of considerable funds, which he might -use if necessary in tracking his father. - -The first thing was to get to Vladivostok. The pass stipulated that he -should go through Harbin over the Siberian railway to Moscow. To reach -Vladivostok he must change trains at Harbin, and by that very fact -become a fugitive and an outlaw. Apparently General Bekovitch did not -intend to send him north under an escort; it probably never occurred to -him that with his father deported, his home broken up, Jack would make -an effort, in face of the definite order to quit the country, to remain. -But though no escort was provided, he would undoubtedly be watched; and -to slip away at Harbin in a direction the opposite of that intended -promised to be a matter of considerable difficulty and danger. - -The compradore shook his head when Jack explained what he had in his -mind. Then, finding that his young master was determined, he did not -attempt to dissuade him, but set himself in earnest to talk over ways -and means. He had a brother in Harbin, a grain merchant, who had -dealings with the Russians. This man might be able to give Jack -information and assistance, and to him the compradore wrote a short note -of introduction. The next thing was to provide for the safety of the -Russian vouchers. Jack might be searched again _en route_, and it was -therefore inadvisable to carry them in his pocket. He pondered for a -time without finding any solution of the difficulty. He was sitting -with crossed legs, his hands clasping his knee, his eyes cast down. -Studying the heavy thick-soled boot he wore in summer, under stress of -Manchurian mud, he suddenly bethought himself. - -"You can turn your hand to most things, Mr. Hi; do you think you could -split the sole of one of my boots and put it together again?" - -"Of course, sir." - -"That's the very thing, then. No one would ever think of taking my boot -to pieces." - -Hi An very quickly and deftly performed the necessary operation. -Between the two parts of the split sole Jack placed the vouchers and -letter of introduction; then the compradore neatly stuck them together -again. He produced a roll of rouble notes, enough to pay preliminary -expenses and leave a margin for emergencies. - -"There, Master," he said. "I have done all I can." - -"You're a good fellow. I must trust to the chapter of accidents for the -rest. I may never see you again, Mr. Hi. If I come to grief, you will -do what you can to find my father?" - -"I will, Master, if I have to trudge on foot all the way to Pekin to ask -help of the Son of Heaven himself." - -Some minutes before eight o'clock Jack, by virtue of his pass, was -admitted without a ticket to the platform at which the train for Harbin -was drawn up. He had been compelled to take his farewell of Monsieur -Brin, the compradore, and Hi Lo outside, much to the Frenchman's -indignation. The line was very badly managed; the officials were -soldiers, with no technical acquaintance with railway management. -Trains were despatched from Moukden to Harbin, and from Harbin to -Moukden, at any time that suited the officials at either end, without -prearrangement, sometimes even without communication between the -stations. On this particular train there was no distinction of classes, -and Jack found himself one of some forty passengers packed into a -carriage built for thirty. The company was exceedingly mixed. Russian -officers were cheek by jowl with Chinese merchants; a huge long-bearded -Russian pope was wedged between a German commercial traveller and a -Sister with the red cross on her arm; at one end was a group of -chattering Greek camp-followers, who brought out a filthy pack of cards -long before the train started, and began a game of makao, which -continued, with intervals for squabbling and refreshment, all the way to -Harbin. Jack made himself as comfortable as he could in a corner, and -prepared to sleep if the close proximity of his fellow-passengers and -the stuffiness of the air allowed. - -It was past nine o'clock before the train steamed out. Punctuality is a -virtue non-existent on the Siberian railway. The journey taxed Jack's -patience to the utmost. The line is single, doubled at intervals of five -versts to allow of the passage of trains in opposite directions. The -train was constantly being shunted into sidings, remaining sometimes for -hours, no one could tell why; and one of the most annoying features of -the constant stoppages was that the train, after running through a -station where the passengers would have been glad to obtain -refreshments, would come to a stand several versts beyond, where they -had nothing to do but kick their heels and look disconsolately out on -the country. On one of the sidings stood a goods train, two trucks of -which were loaded with a large gun; it had no doubt been injured by a -Japanese shell, and was being returned to arsenal for repair. In -another train Jack noticed a truck crowded with poor wretches who -appeared to be chained together--misdemeanants from the army, he -surmised, on their way to one of the penal settlements in Siberia. At -short intervals appeared the little brick huts of the soldiers guarding -the line, and occasionally a group of three or four of those -green-coated guards might be seen riding along at the foot of the -embankment on their stout Mongol ponies. - -Jack had travelled many times along the line, but not recently, and he -was greatly interested in the amazing developments which it had -undergone. New buildings of brick seemed to have sprung up like -mushrooms along its course. Where formerly had been spacious fields of -kowliang--the long-stalked millet of the country--with Chinese fangtzes -few and far between, there were now wide bare stretches upon which -Russian industry was erecting storehouses, engine-sheds, tile-covered -residences for the officials. Some thirty-five miles from Moukden is -Tieling, which, when Jack's train passed through at three o'clock in the -morning--having taken just six hours to run that distance--seemed to be -nothing but a collection of scaffolding, with Chinese bricklayers -already at work, trowel in hand. Between Tieling and Harbin stretches -an immense plain, fertile for the most part, and hitherto left almost -unspoiled. Nowhere does the line pass through a Chinese village; these -were purposely avoided by the Russian engineers from motives of policy, -and in deference to native susceptibilities. They are for the most part -out of sight from the railway. All that can be seen is, on the right, -the broad rutty mandarin highway; on the left, a narrower road edging -interminable fields of kowliang. There are few stations between Moukden -and Harbin: at two, Tieling and Kai-chuang, the Russians had established -their base hospitals. - -Hour after hour passed. Jack whiled away a good part of the time by -whittling sticks with his penknife, somewhat to the amusement of the -Russian army doctor who sat next to him, and who did not appear to -notice that the sticks were shaped to a definite size, and that, after -several had been thrown away, two or three were placed in Jack's pocket. -Many times the train was halted at a doubling to allow a troop train to -pass, filled with Russian soldiers on the way to the front, shouting, -singing, in the highest spirits. At one point an empty Red Cross train -stood on a siding, having emptied its freight of wounded men at one of -the hospitals. - -During one of the stoppages the belaced official who acted as guard -politely requested Jack to step into the station-master's office, where -he was searched by one of the soldiers. He was thus left in no doubt -that he was under surveillance, and when he got back to his carriage he -found that his bag had been opened. He congratulated himself on his -forethought in concealing his papers so effectually in his boot. - -At the moment of saying good-bye the compradore had given him a piece of -news that made him anxious to complete his journey. A Chinese employed -at the station had told him that Anton Sowinski had booked a seat by the -next day's train. It was by no means impossible that this train, if it -happened to carry any important passengers, would overtake and pass the -first somewhere on the line. The Pole was likely to spread the news of -Mr. Brown's arrest, and if he should succeed in getting to Vladivostok -before Jack the game would certainly be up. - -At length, about forty-five hours after leaving Moukden, someone said -that Harbin was in sight, and there was instantly a movement and bustle -among the passengers. - -"Keep your seat," said the doctor to Jack with a smile. - -"Thanks! I know," said Jack with an answering smile. - -The train slowed down, then stopped at the southern end of the bridge -over the Sungari river. It was as though the engine were parleying with -the sentry. On the right rose the barracks of the frontier guards, -surrounded by a loopholed wall. At the bridge end were two guns framed -in sand-bags, and watched by two sentinels. Across the river, above and -below the bridge, an immense boom prevented traffic either up or down. -While the train halted, an official came along the carriages, fastened -all the windows, locked all the doors; to open them before the bridge -was crossed entailed a heavy penalty. When all the passengers were thus -secured, and there was no chance of any Japanese spy throwing a bomb on -to the bridge, the train moved slowly on, passed more guns at the -farther end, and came to rest at the spacious station in the Russian -quarter of the town. - -[Illustration: Map of Manchuria and part of Siberia] - -A train from Vladivostok was expected during the afternoon, and the -composite train would leave for the west at nine o'clock. Jack went out -with the majority of the passengers into the buffet, which is one of the -admirable features of the Russian railway system, and ordered a good -meal. Then he looked over some illustrated papers, making no attempt to -leave the station, having noticed that he was still watched by one of -the train attendants. Time hung heavily; he took a nap on one of the -seats, and when he awoke found that the Vladivostok train had arrived, -and the night train for the west was being made up. Strolling out with -his bag, he showed his pass to an official, and by means of a liberal -tip secured a sleeping compartment to himself. He explained with many -yawns that, being tired out, he intended to turn in as soon as the train -started, and asked the man to arrange his bed and lock him in. The -attendant complied, and a few minutes later Jack noticed him in -conversation with the man under whose watchful eyes he had been all day. -The latter appeared satisfied and went away. - -The train was late in starting; a high personage, it seemed, was -expected. Jack stood for some minutes at the door, watching the varied -crowd on the platform Suddenly he heard cheers; the high personage had -no doubt arrived. A warning bell rang; the officials called to the -passengers to take their seats. Jack took off his coat in full view -from the platform, then drew the curtain, opened his bag, and took from -it, not a night costume, but a brush, a comb, and a collar. Then he -turned off the light. - -But instead of throwing himself on his bed, he went to the opposite door -of the compartment and tried it; as he expected, it was locked. He put -on his coat, crammed into the pockets the articles he had taken from his -bag, and from his vest pocket took one of the sticks he had been -whittling on the way from Moukden. Leaning out of the window, he -inserted it in the lock. The train was just beginning to move. Would -this extemporized key serve? He turned it; the lock clicked; and the -next moment he was on the foot-board. Silently closing the door he -dropped to the ground, and ran alongside the moving train, stumbling and -tripping over the rugged ballast. The pace quickened and the train -began to distance him; but he made all the speed he could, and by the -time the last carriage had passed him he found, to his relief, that he -was beyond the station and in darkness. Dodging behind an engine-shed he -clambered over a fence, left the railway, and set off to find the house -of the compradore's brother. - -He had taken the precaution, before starting, to obtain very explicit -directions, in order to save time, and to avoid the risk involved in -asking questions. The Chinese part of the town is some three miles from -the station, on lower ground near the river. The streets were -abominably filthy; and by the time Jack reached the priestan or -merchants' quarters he felt sadly in need of a bath. By following the -compradore's instructions he found the grain store of which he was in -search, though with some trouble. All the business premises in the -neighbourhood were closed for the night; there were few people in the -streets: the Chinaman as a rule barricades himself in his house at -nightfall. Making sure by peering at the sign that he had come to the -right house, Jack gently knocked at the door. It was opened by a -Chinaman, whom Jack recognized by the light of the oil-lamp he carried -as the compradore's brother. - -"I am from Moukden, Mr. Hi," said Jack, "and have a note from your -brother Mr. Hi An." - -"Come in," said the Chinaman at once, without any indication of -surprise. Jack pulled off his dirty boots and followed him to a little -back shop, where he had evidently just been engaged in brewing tea. He -asked Jack to sit down, poured him out a dish of tea, and then waited -with oriental patience to hear what his visitor had to say. Prising open -the sole of one of his boots, Jack drew out the compradore's note. It -bore only three Chinese characters, and said merely that Hi An wished -his brother to give all possible assistance to the bearer. The Chinaman -looked up with an expression of grave polite curiosity and still waited. - -The compradore having said that his brother could be thoroughly trusted, -Jack explained to him, as simply and clearly as he could, the -circumstances that had brought him to Harbin, and the object of his -visit. When the Chinaman had heard the story, and learnt what was -expected of him, he looked somewhat scared. He said that the Russians -would inflict the most terrible punishments upon him if they discovered -that he had sheltered and assisted a fugitive. He spoke of his terror -of the Russian knout. But the Englishman might command him to do what -he could. Had he not himself received benefits from Mr. Brown? Five -years ago, he said, when he was on the verge of ruin, he had written to -his brother the compradore for assistance. Hi An, a born gambler, like -every Chinaman, had himself been speculating disastrously, and was -unable to give any help. But he had appealed to Mr. Brown, who had at -once advanced the sum required and set the grain merchant on his feet -again. The loan had long since been repaid: in business transactions -the Chinaman is the soul of honour: but he had never lost his feeling of -gratitude; and his recollection of Mr. Brown's kindness, together with -his brother's request, made him willing to run some risk on behalf of -his benefactor's son. - -Jack talked long over the situation with his host. His object was to -get to Vladivostok as soon as possible. Having no pass he could not -travel openly, and when breakfast-time came next morning his absence -from the Moscow train would be discovered, even if it were not found out -before; the news would be telegraphed to Harbin, and there would -instantly be a hue and cry. The Chinaman doubted whether this would be -the case; the train officials would be too anxious to screen their own -negligence. Still, it would be unsafe for Jack to remain in Harbin; as -for himself, he saw no way of helping him. - -"I must go by train," said Jack, "and secretly. Could I go hidden in a -goods wagon?" - -"That might be possible," said the Chinaman; "but goods trains are not -fast; they are often delayed for hours and even days. The journey would -take a week, and though you might carry food with you, you would have to -leave your hiding-place for water, and you could not escape discovery." - -"Still, it may be that or nothing. Have you yourself any goods going in -that direction?" - -"No. My business is chiefly to supply fodder to the Russians, more -especially for horses that are being sent south. I completed a large -contract yesterday. One thing I can do. I can go to the station in the -morning and learn what trains are expected to leave for Vladivostok. -That is the first step. You will remain concealed in my house. You -were not seen as you entered?" - -"No. The street was clear." - -"Then nobody but my wife and myself need know that you are here. I will -do what I can for you." - -"Thank you! And if it is a question of bribery, you need not be -niggardly." - -The Chinaman smiled. He had not had dealings with Russian officials for -nothing. - -Jack was provided with a couch for the night, and, being very tired -after his long journey and the excitement of his escape, he soon fell -asleep. About five o'clock he was awakened by the Chinaman's hurried -entrance. - -"It is all arranged, sir," he said, "but at a terrible price. A train -conveying horses is to leave for Vladivostok at seven. The sergeant in -charge is well known to me: I have had dealings with him. All Russians -can be bribed; but this man--sir, he is an extortioner. Still, after -what you said, I made the bargain with him. You give him at once twenty -roubles; you arrive safely at Vladivostok and give him thirty roubles -more. I tried to make him accept twenty-five for the second sum, but he -refused." - -Jack could not help smiling at this naive evidence of the oriental habit -of bargaining. He felt that if he reached Vladivostok for fifty roubles -he would have got off remarkably well. - -"But how is it to be managed?" he asked. - -"I gave him to understand, sir, that you are a foreign correspondent -wishing to see Vladivostok, and that there is a delay in the forwarding -of the necessary authorization. It was because you are a foreigner that -the sergeant was so firm about the five roubles. He talked about the -risk he ran, and said that you must leave the train some time before it -arrives at Vladivostok and walk the rest of the way. He said, too, that -if you should be discovered you were not to admit that he had any -knowledge of your presence. I promised that you would do all this." - -"Very well. I am exceedingly obliged to you. But how am I to go? What -will the sergeant do for twenty roubles?" - -"He will give you a corner in a horse-box." - -"Does the train consist of nothing but horse-boxes?" - -"Horse-boxes and the sergeant's van. You cannot go in that." - -"No. And how am I to get into the horse-box without being seen? There -are sure to be soldiers and officials about." - -The Chinaman rubbed his hands slowly and pondered. - -"If it had been yesterday," he said, "you might then have gone hidden in -a hay-cart. But my last loads were delivered yesterday." - -"Who knows that?" - -"The inspector of forage; perhaps others." - -"And is the inspector likely to be at the station this morning?" - -"Not so early as seven; he is too fond of his bed for that." - -"Where is the train standing?" - -"On a siding at some little distance from the station. You can drive -straight up to it from the road through the goods entrance. But there -is a sentry at the gate." - -"Well, Mr. Hi, I think I see a way to dodge the sentry, with your kind -assistance. I suppose you have some hay or straw in your store?" - -"Certainly." - -"Then if you will load up a wagon with several large bundles, and leave -a hole for me in the middle, I think I can get to my place in the -horse-box." - -"But you might be seen as you slip out." - -"We can lessen the risk of that. You can drive the wagon up to the -horse-box as though bringing a final load that had been overlooked. I -am covered by the bundles. You move them in such a way that the sides of -the cart are well screened, at the same time leaving a passage for me. -I ought to be able to slip into the box without being observed. And if -you are willing I will chance it." - -The Chinaman agreed, and as the time was drawing near, and the earlier -the plan was carried out the better, he went off to get his wagon -loaded. Shortly after six the cumbrous vehicle was brought up as close -as possible to a door giving into the yard of the store. Jack thanked -Mr. Hi very warmly for his services, and begged him, if he should by any -chance learn of Mr. Brown's whereabouts, to communicate with his brother -in Moukden. Choosing a moment when nobody but the Chinaman and his wife -was near, Jack slipped into the wagon, and was in a few moments -effectually concealed by the bundles of hay. He found in the bottom of -the cart a supply of food and a large water-bottle thoughtfully provided -by his obliging host. - -Mr. Hi himself mounted to the bare board behind his oxen, grasped the -rope reins in one hand and the long-thonged whip in the other, and drove -off. Jack did not enjoy the drive, jolted over the vile roads, and -half-choked by the full-scented hay. The wagon came to the gate of the -goods entrance, and the Chinaman was challenged by the sentry. He -pulled up, and with much deference explained that he had brought a last -load of hay for the horses about to leave for Vladivostok, pointing at -the same time to the long line of horse-boxes standing on the siding, -about three hundred yards away. The sentry jerked his rifle over his -shoulder and said nothing. Taking his silence for consent, the Chinaman -lashed his oxen, and the wagon rumbled over the bumpy ground and two or -three lines of metals until it reached the last carriage but one, next -to the brake-van. The Chinaman jumped to the ground, backed the wagon -against the door, and began to arrange his bundles as Jack had -suggested. He whispered to Jack that nobody was near; and next moment a -form much the colour of hay crept on all-fours out of the wagon into the -van. Then Mr. Hi built up the hay with what was already in the vehicle, -so as to conceal him and yet allow a little air-space near one of the -small windows. There were three horses in the van. Though early -morning, it was already close and stuffy, and Jack looked forward with -anything but pleasure to the heat of mid-day and the prospect of many -hours in this equine society. - - - - - *CHAPTER V* - - *A Deal in Flour* - - -Vladivostok--Orloff--Russian Resentment--Large Profits--Quick -Returns--Overreached--A Droshky Race--The Waverley--Captain -Fraser--Sowinski comes Aboard--Sea Law--Pourboire - - -It was two o'clock in the morning on the second day after Jack left -Harbin. The train slowed down as it rounded a loop, and finally came to -a stop. Jack was fast asleep in his corner of the horse-box. He was -awakened by a touch on the shoulder. - -"You get down here, sir." - -"Ah! Where are we, sergeant?" - -"Four versts from Vladivostok." - -"That's well. And what sort of a night?" - -"Fine, sir; but dark as pitch." - -"Thanks! Let me see; is it twenty-five roubles I owe you?" - -"Thirty, sir, no less; more if you like." - -"Here you are. Have you got a match? Take care: a spark, you know! -Count them; three ten-rouble notes. Now, how am I to get into the town?" - -"The road's not far on the other side of the line.--Nobody is to know -how you got here, sir." - -"I understand that. Many thanks! It has been a pretty rapid journey -for Manchuria, I think." - -"Yes. Live stock comes next to the Viceroy. Horses are none the better -for being jolted over three hundred miles of rail, so they've let us -pass several goods trains on the way." - -"Any passenger trains allowed to pass us?" - -"Not one." - -"Then I couldn't have got here sooner. Thanks again!" - -Jack dropped from the foot-board, ran down the embankment, and in a few -minutes struck the high-road. He had not thought it necessary to -explain to the sergeant that he knew the district. It was, as the -Russian had said, very dark, but Jack made his way to a plantation near -the road, through which he knew that a little stream ran. There he had -a thorough wash, changed his collar, brushed and shook his clothes, and -felt a different creature. Then he sat down on the moss-grown roots of -an oak, and ate the Chinese cakes and dried fruit that remained from the -stock of food given him by Hi Feng, the compradore's brother, washing it -down with water from the brook. Dawn was breaking by the time he had -finished his frugal breakfast, but it was useless to go into the town -until the business houses opened. He therefore determined to remain in -the secluded nook he had chosen, and sat there thinking of what lay -before him. - -About eight o'clock he rose to continue his walk to the town. It was -two years since he had last visited it, and he was struck by the -progress it had made in the interval. Founded only forty years before, -the city had grown very rapidly; but since the Russian occupation of -Manchuria it had made giant strides. New hospitals and barracks had -been erected; the surrounding hills, once decked with forest, but now -treeless, were covered with immense forts and earthworks, at which vast -gangs of coolies were still at work. The wooden shanties that formerly -lined the shore had for the most part given place to more solid and -imposing structures of brick and stone. Other signs of development -caught Jack's eye as he walked towards the harbour; but he was too eager -to complete his errand to dwell upon them, especially as he heard behind -him in the distance the rumble of an approaching train. It overtook him -just as he turned down one of the steep, narrow side streets leading to -the office of his father's agent; and as he saw the long line of -carriages, including several sleeping-cars, roll past, he could not but -wonder whether Anton Sowinski was among the passengers, and hastened his -steps. - -The office had just been opened for the day when he arrived. Alexey -Petrovitch Orloff was a big, jovial Russian of some forty years; honest, -or Mr. Brown would have had no dealings with him; a little greedy; a -good business man, and on excellent terms with his principal. But Jack -knew little about him outside their business transactions, and had made -up his mind not to trust him with his secret. - -"Ah, Ivan Ivanovitch!" exclaimed Orloff as Jack entered. "I was -expecting you or your father. You came by the night train?" - -"Yes. You must have been asleep when it arrived." - -"What sort of a journey had you?" - -"It was very hot." - -"Yes, we have been baked here. When did you leave?" - -"On Thursday." - -"A fairly quick journey, considering the state of the line. You left -before my letter arrived?" - -"Yes. Of course you guess the object of my visit?" - -"The consignment of flour? You have had great luck, I must say; but -Captain Fraser always is lucky. Of course his cargo was not contraband -according to English ideas, but we Russians have been rather strict of -late, and the Japanese will probably follow suit. However, Captain -Fraser never saw a Japanese cruiser the whole voyage. It should be an -excellent speculation for your father. Prices are naturally high just -now." - -"That is good news. We shouldn't like to wind up with a failure." - -"Of course not. It is a pity your father is retiring; we are bound to -win in the end; but I've no doubt he can well afford it. And I'm not -the man to complain, if, as I hope, I can get hold of a part of his -business. Perhaps he is wise after all. Manchuria is not the most -comfortable country to live in--just now, at any rate; and I fancy an -Englishman will have a poor time of it in Moukden, eh?" (He gave Jack a -shrewd look.) "Your newspapers have so completely taken the side of the -enemy." - -"Yes, there is a strong feeling at home in favour of Japan, and your -people resent it. That's natural enough." - -"It's rather worse than that. People here are saying that Russia and -England will be at war before a month's out." - -"Nonsense!" - -"They say so. Our cruisers have stopped a P. and O. liner, the -_Malacca_, in the Mediterranean, and put a prize crew on board. She was -carrying contraband, it appears; but your fire-eaters--jingoes, is that -the name?--are thirsting for our blood." - -"We don't all eat fire and drink blood, Alexey Petrovitch." - -"True. And you English will find you have backed the wrong horse." - -"You haven't been much troubled here, then?" - -"No. The bombardment did us no harm. Our cruisers sank three Japanese -transports the other day, and they captured another of your ships with -contraband, the _Allanton_: you'll see her lying in the harbour now." - -"Well, it appears to be lucky for us that the _Waverley_ was, in a -sense, on your side. About this consignment of flour: do you think you -can find an immediate purchaser? We want to realize and get away at -once." - -The Russian's eyes gleamed, but his reply was cautious. - -"Well, Ivan Ivanovitch, it is always more difficult to sell in a hurry -than if you can wait. A good profit can be made, but we must take our -time. It is a matter of bargaining. The man in a hurry always -suffers." - -"Yes, I know. We must be prepared to sacrifice something. At the market -rate the flour ought to fetch about 27,000 roubles; but look here, if -you can find an immediate purchaser at 25,000 I'll let it go." - -Orloff still hesitated, but Jack could see that he was making an effort -to restrain his eagerness. - -"In business," he said, "it is best to be frank. If you will give me my -usual commission of two and a half per cent--what do you say to my -taking over the stuff myself?" - -Jack smiled. - -"I say that it pays very well to be principal and agent at the same -time. But we won't quarrel about the commission. If you'll write me a -cheque for 24,375 roubles, we'll call the matter settled. I've full -authority to act." - -The Russian, looking as if he was sorry he had not improved the -opportunity still further, sat down at once and made out the cheque, -adding: - -"There will be one or two papers to sign. I will get them from the -dockyard people." - -"Very well. In the meantime I'll pay this into the bank and call back -as soon as I can." - -"What is the hurry? Business is slack, and I suppose I shan't see you -again for a long time." - -"Probably not. But there's a ring at your telephone. Evidently someone -wants to do business. I'll see you again shortly." - -Orloff was disposed to be talkative, but Jack was on thorns lest the -train he had seen come in should have brought Sowinski. He had the -cheque; while in the train he had taken the vouchers from the sole of -his boot; he wondered whether he could complete his business at the bank -before Sowinski, supposing him to be in Vladivostok, should come upon -the scene. He hurried to the branch of the Russo-Chinese bank, where he -was well known to the officials. Business there also was slack; the -manager said indeed that trade in Vladivostok would be ruined if the war -continued much longer. Within half an hour, Jack left the building with -bills on Baring Brothers for the amount of the cheque and the sum -represented by the vouchers, less 2000 roubles in notes which he kept -for his immediate and contingent expenses. - -He hurried back to Orloff's office, keeping a wary eye on the people -thronging the streets, among them many soldiers in the _pashalik_, their -characteristic peaked cap. When he entered the room, Orloff flung down -his pen and gave a shout of merriment. - -"I must tell you the joke, Ivan Ivanovitch. Not five minutes after you -left, who should come in but Sowinski!" Jack repressed a start. "He -had happened to hear, he told me, that the _Waverley_ had arrived with a -consignment of flour for your father. Was I empowered to sell? Ha! ha! -It was not a matter of much consequence, he said. Ha! ha! I know -Sowinski. But, having a small contract to fulfil in a month's time at -Harbin, he could do with the flour, if it was to be had cheap. 'Mr. -Brown is leaving the country, I understand,' says he. Ha! ha!" - -Sowinski had evidently not told Orloff of the arrest. Jack wondered for -a moment why. But the explanation at once suggested itself. If the -fact were known, the consignment would no doubt be impounded by the -Russian authorities in Vladivostok, and then the Pole would lose his -chance of making a profitable deal. - -"I assure you I was not eager," continued Orloff, still laughing. -"Sowinski is no friend of mine. In the end he went down to the harbour, -inspected the consignment, and bought it for 27,000 roubles, the market -price, as you yourself mentioned." - -"Quick returns and by no means small profits," said Jack. - -"Yes. But--ha! ha!--what makes me laugh is something else. I was rung -up at the telephone--just as you went, you remember; two vessels had -been signalled from the mouth of the harbour carrying flour--not a -moderate consignment like yours, but a whole cargo each. You see, Ivan -Ivanovitch? The market price of Sowinski's lot will fall in an hour to -20,000 roubles, and it serves him right. How your father will laugh -when he learns how his rival has overreached himself! By the way, the -_Waverley_ is sailing this morning, in ballast of course." - -"Indeed!" No information could have pleased Jack more. "Captain Fraser -is an old friend of ours. I should like to see him." - -"Then you haven't much time to lose. But you may as well sign these -papers to complete our little transaction--the last, I am sorry to say. -You will be back again?" - -"I am not sure. I am not staying in Vladivostok long, and I'll say -good-bye in case I don't get time to run in again." - -"And when do you leave for home?" - -"As soon as possible." - -"By the Trans-Siberian, I suppose?" - -"Probably; unless we can get through the lines to Newchang." - -"That will be easy enough soon. Reinforcements are pouring in for -General Kuropatkin, and he'll soon be strong enough to drive those -waspish little yellow men into the sea." - -"Perhaps. Well, good-bye, Alexey Petrovitch!" - -"Remember me to your father." - -"I will, the moment I see him. Good-bye!" - -Leaving the office Jack hailed a droshky, and ordered the man to drive -down to the harbour. Knowing that Sowinski was actually in the town he -felt insecure with such valuable property in his pocket. As he stepped -into the vehicle he glanced round, and, forewarned though he was, he -started when he saw, a few yards up the street, the man he was anxious -to avoid hurrying in his direction. By the look on the Pole's face, and -his quickened step, Jack knew that he had been recognized. It was touch -and go now. - -"Quick, my man!" he said quietly to the driver, "time presses." - -The man, scenting a tip, whipped up his horse, and it sprang forward, -throwing Jack back into his seat. At the same moment he heard the Pole -shouting behind; but his voice was at once drowned by the clatter of the -wheels, and the droshky man, standing in the car, and driving with the -usual recklessness of the Russian coachman, was too much occupied in -avoiding the traffic to turn his head. Jack, however, a minute later -looked cautiously over the back of the vehicle. Sowinski, with urgent -gestures, was beckoning a droshky some distance up the street. He was -now nearly a quarter of a mile behind; and, turning a corner, Jack lost -him from sight. But the street he had now reached was a long straight -one, leading direct to the shore, and almost clear of traffic. In a few -seconds the pursuing droshky swung round the corner at a pace that left -Jack amazed it did not overturn. To throw the Pole off the scent was -impossible now; it was an open race. In two minutes Jack's droshky -rattled down the incline to the shore. He had the fare and a handsome -tip in readiness. Springing from the car almost before it had stopped, -he paid the man, leapt down the steps into a sampan, and called to the -burly Chinaman smoking in it: - -"The English ship _Waverley_! A rouble if you put me aboard quickly." - -The Chinaman looked stolidly up. - -"She is about to sail, master. See! And they will not allow you on -board. There are difficulties. The port officers----" - -Jack waited for no more. Taking a rouble note from his pocket, he -cried: - -"Here is six times your fare; this or nothing!" - -At the same time he seized the yuloh,--the pole that does duty for a -stern oar, and shoved off. There is nothing a Chinese coolie will not -do for a rouble. The man sprang to the oar, worked its flat end -backwards and forwards with all his strength, and sent the sampan over -the water at a greater speed than its clumsy build seemed capable of. -Jack kept his head low in order to be sheltered as long as possible by -the shanties on shore and the sampans crowded at the water's edge; -Sowinski, he felt, would not hesitate to take a shot at him. He could -see the Pole spring from his droshky and rush at break-neck pace towards -the waiting row of craft. He leapt into one, pointed Jack out to the -coolie, and in a few moments started in pursuit. - -The _Waverley_ had left the inner harbour where merchant vessels drop -anchor, and was steaming dead slow out to sea. The captain stood on the -bridge, and the vessel hooted a farewell to the cruiser _Rurik_ that lay -in the middle of the channel. Suddenly Captain Fraser became aware that -the voice sounding clear across the still water was hailing him. -Glancing round, he saw a sampan making rapidly towards him from the -shore, and in it a youth with one hand to his mouth, the other waving -his hat. The captain first swore, then signalled half-speed ahead; it -was some Russian formality, he supposed, and as a British sailor he'd be -hanged if he delayed another moment for any foreign port officer. But -next moment he heard his own name in an unmistakably English accent, -and, looking more closely at the shouter, recognized him. - -"Young Mr. Brown!" he muttered. "What's he wishing?" - -At the same time he jerked the indicator back to "stop", a bell tinkled -below, and the vessel came to a stand-still. - -"Ay, ay!" he shouted. "And be hanged if there isn't another man -bawling. What's in the wind, anyway?" - -The first craft was soon alongside, a rope was heaved over, and in a few -seconds Jack stood on deck. - -"Pleased to see you, Mr. Brown," said the Captain. "Ay, and I wouldna -have sto'ped for no ither man." - -"Thanks, Captain! I want your help." Jack spoke hurriedly; the second -sampan was but a biscuit-shot distant. "The Russians have collared my -father on a charge of spying for the Japanese; I don't know where he is; -that fellow in the boat is at the bottom of it. I've managed to steal a -march on him and sell the flour you landed the other day, and I want you -to take charge of these bills and deposit them at the Hong-Kong and -Shanghai Bank for me." - -"Eh, laddie, is that a fact? And what'll you do yersel' the now?" - -"Oh, I'll stay and find my father. Here's Sowinski. I'm jolly glad I -got here first." - -The other sampan was by this time under the vessel's quarter. A seaman -came up to the captain. - -"A furriner, sir, talking double Dutch." - -"Quay." - -He left the bridge and went to the side. - -"What might you be wishing the now?" he said. - -Sowinski began to address him in very broken English, eked out with -French and Russian. - -"I'm no' what you might ca' a leenguist," said the Captain, after a -patient hearing. "What'll he be meaning, Mr. Brown?" - -"He says I'm a fugitive, and insists on your giving me up. If you -don't, he'll have the boat stopped at the signal station, and you'll be -heavily fined." - -"He's a terrible man, yon; there's nae doot about it. Just tell him to -bide a wee, Mr. Brown, until you an' me has had a wee bit crack. Now, -sir," he added in a lower tone, when this had been interpreted to the -Pole, "hadn't ye better come wi' me now ye're aboard? If you go ashore -you may be caught. I'm no sure but we'll be overhauled by a Russian -cutter as we gang out, but I've no contraband aboard; in fact, I've run -a cargo in for the Russians, an' well they know it. Your father may be -half-way to Europe by this time; I canna see there'd be ony guid biding -to look for him." - -"That's good of you, Captain, but I must stay. They say they've -deported my father; but somehow I feel sure he is still in the country, -and I shall try to hang on here by hook or crook till I find him." - -"Aweel; then the best thing will be to get yon terrible Turk aboard. -Just ask him to step up, sir." - -As Sowinski was clambering up the side the captain signalled the -engine-room to go ahead dead slow. He invited the Pole to join him on -the bridge. Captain Fraser looked him critically up and down; then said -blandly: - -"And is it a port officer I'm to understand you are, Mister?" - -"A port officer! Not so. I am man of affairs, business man. But in -name of his majesty ze Imperator I--I arrest zis young man." - -"Just exactly. But I beg your pardon, Mister--Mister--what?" - -"Sowinski." - -"Just exactly. Well, then, Mr. Sowinski, do ye happen to have about ye -a warrant for the arrest o' this young man in the name o' the Imperator, -by which, I preshume, you mean the Czar? Where's your authority, man?" - -The Pole looked puzzled. - -"Audority! I have no audority. But I tell you, zis young man is -deported; he escape from arrestation; he----" - -"Tuts! And you have the impidence to come aboard my ship: to haud me -up, a British subject; to cause loss to my owners--to my owners, I -say--without authority? I'll learn you, Mister, what it is to haud up a -British ship without authority. Hi, Jim! lug this man below, and if he -doesna behave himsel' just clap him under hatches." - -Sowinski, wriggling desperately, and volubly protesting in half a dozen -languages, was bundled from the bridge. - -"He's got the wrong sow by the lug in Duncan Fraser," said the captain, -with a grim tightening of the lips. "I'll just tak' him along to -Shanghai if the coast is clear, Mr. Brown, though I may have to drop him -a few miles lower down if I see signs of any Russians being -inqueesitive. And if you must go ashore, laddie, tak' a word frae -me--keep out o' the road o' the Russians." - -"I'll be careful, Captain. When you get to Shanghai you'll tell our -consul all about it, and ask him to wire to England? The newspapers -will take it up, and I should think Lord Lansdowne will make official -enquiries at St. Petersburg." - -"Ay, I'll do what I can. You're quite determined to bide?" - -"Oh yes! And another thing, Captain: I think, if you don't mind, you'd -better let my mother know; she expects us home, and not hearing, would -be alarmed. Tell her not to worry; it's sure to come all right in the -end." - -"Ay, I'll do that. I never heard the like o't. What the ballachulish -will the Russians be doing next! I needna say I wish ye good luck, sir. -Will you take a wee drappie?" - -"Not to-day, Captain, many thanks all the same! A pleasant voyage to -you!" - -Both sampans had kept pace with the steamer; the coolies were beginning -to be anxious about their fares. Jack bade his friend the captain a -cordial farewell; the vessel stopped; and, dropping into his sampan, -Jack ordered the man to put him ashore at the nearest point. Within a -yard of the shore the Chinaman brought the punt to a stop and demanded -two roubles. - -"But the bargain was one." - -"I did not know, Master. I do not risk offending the Russians for a -rouble. Give two, or I will not let you land." - -He looked at Jack with victorious malice in his beady black eyes. For a -moment Jack hesitated; he did not wish to have an altercation with the -man; at the same time he objected to be "done". He stood up in the -sampan and drew a bundle of notes from his pocket. Selecting one, he -folded it; then, flinging it to the coolie, he sprang suddenly -overboard, giving the sampan a kick which sent it backwards. The man -also had risen; the sudden movement made him lose his balance, and he -fell over the yuloh into the water. Jack quietly walked away. As he did -so he heard loud laughter on his left hand. Turning, he saw that the -incident had been witnessed by two Russian officers who had been walking -towards the mouth of the harbour. Knowing the ways of the Chinese -coolie, they were much amused at the readiness with which Jack had -disposed of the boatman. One of them shouted "Well done!" in Russian. -Jack smiled, and replied with a couple of words in the same tongue; then -hurried on, thanking his stars that the matter had ended so well. - - - - - *CHAPTER VI* - - *In Full Cry* - - -In Chinatown--A Deal in Horseflesh--North and by East--A Korean -Host--Across the Line--Buriats--Father Mayenube--Gabriele--A Shot--Hard -Pressed--In Hiding--Suggestio Falsi - - -Jack's business in Vladivostok was now completed. He had secured the -last of his father's property; bills representing several thousands of -pounds were in the safe hands of Captain Fraser, soon to be confided to -the Hong-Kong and Shanghai Bank. So far his task had been unexpectedly -easy; his difficulties, he felt, were now to begin. During the long -journey from Harbin he had spent hours endeavouring to think out a plan -to adopt if his secret visit to Vladivostok proved successful. By hook -or crook he must get back to Moukden and learn the result of the -compradore's enquiries; the question was, how? The return journey would -be attended by many difficulties; even if he should reach Moukden in -safety it would only be to find himself encompassed by danger. Yet he -saw no other chance of tracing his father, and whatever the risks and -perils, he felt that his duty called him to face them. - -The first thing, then, was to make his way back to Moukden. To return -by the railway was out of the question. He dared not go openly, and he -knew no one in Vladivostok whom he could trust to negotiate for a -clandestine passage. His only course was to slip away, gain the -Manchurian frontier, and cross the Shan-yan-alin range of mountains--a -long and difficult journey at the best, and in the present circumstances -hazardous in the extreme. If he evaded the Russians in and around -Vladivostok he would still be exposed to capture by Chinese bandits, to -say nothing of the tenfold risks as he neared his journey's end. - -His difficulties were intensified by the desperately short notice at -which he must now quit Vladivostok. Sowinski, furious at being -outwitted in the matter of the bills, would be goaded to madness by his -detention on board the _Waverley_, and as Captain Fraser would probably -consider it prudent to put him ashore at no great distance, it might not -be long before he telephoned to head-quarters and thus raised the hue -and cry in Vladivostok itself. To the natives Jack might easily pass -for a Russian; carefully made up, he might, with his smattering of -Chinese, be taken by the Russians for a native. But there was no time -for such preparations; and a Russian policeman on the hunt for an -Englishman, with the Pole's description of him, must be an exceptionally -incompetent member of his class if he failed to recognize the fugitive. -Speed was thus the first essential. - -Hurrying up from the shore he made up his mind what to do. Fortunately -he was in the Chinese quarter of the town; it was the part of prudence -to avoid the Russian settlement on the hill. He remembered a Chinese -horse-dealer with whom Mr. Brown had done business when he lived in the -town years before. The Chinese had altered less than the official city, -and he thought he could find his way to the merchant's house. Taking -his bearings, he walked rapidly through several streets, and found to -his delight that his recollection had not failed him. The horse-dealer -was at home; he did not recognize Jack, who was a boy of eleven when his -transactions with Mr. Brown had taken place; but he well remembered the -English merchant. And when he learnt that Jack wished to purchase a -pony he rubbed his hands together and led him at once to the stables to -view the stock. They were a weedy lot, like most of the native animals. -Jack was careful to show no haste or eagerness; he looked them over -critically, rejected one after another in spite of all the flowery -things the Chinaman found to say in their favour, and finally refused to -buy. As he expected, the merchant then managed to find a better -beast--a beautiful little Transbaikal pony, sturdy, well-made, and -evidently full of mettle. Jack could not have wished for a better -animal; but, experienced in the ways of Chinese business men, he gave no -sign of his approval. The merchant quoted a price; Jack hemmed, -hesitated--he knew better than to close at once; and then offered half. -Eager as he was to get away, he patiently chaffered for nearly an hour; -then, when the Chinaman was beginning to think he had lost his customer, -Jack suddenly closed with the last offer, and the pony became his at -two-thirds of the price first asked. The purchase of a saddle did not -take so long; and when he rode off, both dealer and customer were -equally pleased. - -In the street Jack stopped a young Chinese boy and sent him to a -purveyor's shop for a small supply of portable food. The messenger -returned with some dried fish and stale cakes of potato-rice, all he -could procure. With this tied behind his saddle Jack set off. It was -an anxious moment when he passed a brown-coated Cossack policeman, and a -little farther on he gave a jump when a squadron of Cossacks swung round -the corner of the street. But they rode on without giving him more than -a casual glance. Not daring to hasten, he slowly made his way through -the city and out into the country. It was still only eleven o'clock; he -had nine or ten hours of daylight before him, and though the pony was -somewhat soft for want of exercise, it was no doubt good for thirty -miles at a pinch. - -Vladivostok stands at the end of a narrow peninsula, with the Amur Bay -running for several miles into the land on the west, and the Ussuri Bay -on the east. To gain the Manchurian frontier Jack would have to ride -northwards, cross the railway at the head of the Amur Bay or beyond, and -then turn to the south-west. It was obviously unsafe for him to ride -parallel with the railway line, for his escape, if discovered, would no -doubt be telegraphed ahead, and the road would be watched, especially in -the neighbourhood of the stations. His best course, therefore, would be -to strike up eastwards towards the head of the Ussuri Bay, away from his -ultimate destination, and trust to luck to find a hill-path leading back -that would enable him to cross the line somewhere between the head of -the Amur Bay and the garrison town of Nikolskoye. His way led through -the plantation where he had made his toilet early that morning, then to -the right towards the hills. - -Though Vladivostok itself has sprung up with marvellous rapidity, the -country is as yet sparsely peopled. At one time the town was closely -surrounded by magnificent woods; but the axe of the lumberman has been -busy, and the same work of deforesting that has robbed the town of -picturesqueness is now being pursued inland. One of the few people Jack -met along the unfrequented road he had chosen was a Russian colonist -riding behind a cart laden with pine logs and driven by a coolie. Jack -threw him a friendly "Good morning!" as he passed, and received a -feeling "Very hot, barin" in return. It was indeed hot; the almost -naked Korean labourers in the fields were streaming with sweat; and Jack -was glad to halt at a little brook to refresh himself and his beast. - -After riding for some three hours, and covering, as he guessed, about -eighteen miles, almost entirely uphill, he saw the sea below him on the -right, and the far coast-line running to all appearance due south. This -must be Ussuri Bay. He had evidently come far enough east; it was time -to change his course to the north-west. Swinging round, he had not -ridden far before he came to a small farm, the house surrounded, like -all Chinese isolated country buildings, with a mud wall. His pony -required food, and though he felt some misgivings he thought this too -good an opportunity to be neglected. He rode up. The owner, he found, -was a Korean; Jack did not speak Korean; but by the help of Chinese and -pidgin Russian he succeeded in making the man understand what he wanted. -He then asked how far it was to Nikolskoye, and learning that it was -thirty versts, roughly twenty miles, he decided to give his pony a good -rest and start again about six o'clock, so that darkness would have -fallen by the time he came to the neighbourhood of the railway. Having -seen that the animal was rubbed down and provided with a good feed of -hay, he joined the farmer in a game of _wei-ch'i_, a difficult variant -of chess, and with this and a slow laborious conversation, in the course -of which his host expounded his hazy ideas of the war, he managed to get -through the hot afternoon. - -Soon after six he set off again. The way was mainly downhill now, and -easier riding. About nine o'clock he saw in the gloaming a little -settlement ahead, and beyond it the hexagonal water-tower and timbered -store-house of the typical Siberian railway-station, but on a small -scale. The path he was following led direct to the hamlet, and the sight -of several small knots of people at that hour of the evening showed that -a train would shortly be passing; the peasants have not yet lost their -curiosity about the iron horse. He thought it well to avoid observation -by leaving the track--road it could not be called--and striking across a -bean-field. Making a wide sweep he came to the railway some three -versts north of the station. He rode very cautiously as he approached -the line, tied his pony to a tree, and scouted ahead to make sure that -the line rifle guard, whose hut might be expected a few versts beyond, -was not in sight. Suddenly he heard the distant rumble of a train--the -night train for Harbin. In a moment he saw that the passage of the -train would give him an opportunity of crossing the line unobserved. He -went back to his pony, led it as near as he dared to the embankment, and -waited. - -The engine came snorting along at a fair pace, the fire throwing a glow -upon the darkling sky. The train clattered by. Immediately after the -last carriage had passed, Jack mounted the embankment, dragging his -pony, crossed the single line, and descended on the other side. - -With a lighter heart he got into the saddle again, and rode his -excellent little steed across the fields in the hope of ere long -striking a road. Pursuit would be difficult in the darkness; the -greatest danger was to be expected with daylight, and it was very -necessary that he should put as many miles as possible between himself -and the railway before dawn. His course must be mainly south-west; the -nearest town of any size was Hun-chun, some sixty miles in that -direction; but having a vague idea that the Russians had erected a fort -there, he had already made up his mind to avoid that town itself. Four -or five hundred miles and countless perils lay between him and Moukden; -but with the hopefulness of youth he rode confidently on. Danger and -difficulty were only incentives to caution; if he anticipated them, it -was merely that, being prepared, he might be the more ready to grapple -with and overcome them. Ever present in his mind was the belief that -his father's fate hung upon the success of his enterprise. - -Coming by and by to a rough track between the fields, he followed it -until past midnight. Then, feeling that his pony could do no more, and -being unable in the darkness to guide himself by the little compass he -wore on his watch-chain, he left the track, rode into a plantation to -the right, off-saddled, and, hitching the bridle to a tree, threw -himself on the ground and fell asleep. - -During the short hours of darkness his slumbers were disturbed by -dreams. Sowinski, Orloff, Monsieur Brin, the Chinese horse-dealer--all -figured in a strange phantasmagoria. Monsieur Brin had lost his pass, -and was shedding tears because he could not tear the red brassard from -his arm, when Jack awoke with a start. Looking at his watch he found it -was five o'clock. He must be up and away. He ate the last of his food; -the pony had already made a meal of the shoots of creeping plants; then, -with the instinct born of his fugitive condition, Jack approached the -edge of the plantation to spy out the country. Before him, not many -yards away, was a narrow river; behind--he gave a great start, for -little more than half a mile distant he saw a troop of Russian horsemen -trotting smartly along the road towards him. They might be going, of -course, to Possiet Bay, or Novo Kiewsk, or the Korean frontier. But he -noticed at a second glance that the leading man was bending low in his -saddle, as though following a trail. He distinguished their uniform now; -they were Buriats, Mongols by race and Buddhists by religion, hard -riders, excellent scouts, the most reckless and daring of the Russian -cavalry. Without a moment's hesitation he went back to his pony, -snatched from the ground the saddle that had formed his pillow, threw it -over the animal's back, and, tightening the girths with hands that shook -in spite of himself, he plunged with the pony into the thickest part of -the plantation. - - -At seven o'clock that morning, in a neatly-thatched, white-washed brick -cottage, surrounded by a luxuriant and well-kept garden, in the -hill-country above the Chuan, a little group sat at breakfast. The room -was plain but spotlessly clean. The wooden floors shone; the white -plastered walls were covered with coloured lithographs representing the -seven stations of the Cross; the little windows were hung with curtains -of Chinese muslin. A narrow shelf of books occupied one corner, a stove -another; and the table in the centre was spread with a snow-white cloth, -dishes of fruit, and home-made bread. - -At the table three persons were seated. One was a tall man of fine -presence, with clear-cut features, soft brown eyes, long white hair and -beard. He wore the loose white tunic and pantaloons of a Chinaman, but -the cross that hung by a cord round his neck was not Chinese. Jean -Mayenobe was a Frenchman, a priest, one of those devoted missionaries -who cut themselves off from home and kindred to live a life of -self-denial, peril, and humble Christian service in remote unfriendly -corners of the globe. - -His companions were a woman and a girl. The former was plain-featured -and plainly dressed, with placid expression and humble mien. The latter -seemed strangely out of place in her surroundings. She was young, -apparently of some seventeen years. Her features were beautiful, with a -dignity and a look of self-command rare in one of her age. Her -complexion was ruddy brown; her bright hair, gathered in a knot behind, -rebelled against the black riband that bound it, and fell behind her -ears in crispy waves. Before her on the table was a samovar, and she -had just handed a cup of tea to the missionary. - -"Father," she said in French, "I am so tired of waiting. I am beginning -to think that permission will never come. But why should it be refused? -It is not as if I were seeking some benefit. In appearance I lose, not -gain." - -"True, my child, you have nothing personally to gain. I have said -before, it is not every daughter who would come thousands of miles and -suffer hardship in order to bear her father company in exile and -imprisonment. And such exile! The little I know of Sakhalin is -frightful. It gives me pain to think of your knowing even so much." - -"I am not afraid. And if the treatment of prisoners in Sakhalin is so -bad, that is all the more reason why I should be at my father's side, to -help and comfort him a little. Why do they refuse to let me go?" - -"Probably they have forgotten all about you. The war occupies them -completely. And I repeat, if you have patience your father may come to -you. I have no belief that the Russians will win in this terrible war. -I heard but a little while ago from a brother priest near the scene of -operations at Hai-cheng, who has studied the combatants, that he is -convinced of the ultimate success of the Japanese. If they are -victorious they will probably demand that Sakhalin shall be restored to -them, and it will no longer be a place for Russian prisoners. Rest in -the Lord, my child; wait patiently for Him, and He will give thee thy -heart's desire." - -Gabriele Walewska was silent. Father Mayenobe sank into a reverie. The -elderly woman looked sympathetically at her mistress, laid her hand on -hers, and murmured a few words in Polish, to which the girl responded -with a grateful smile. The sound of a distant shot coming through the -open window shook the missionary from his musing. - -"Russian officers out snipe-shooting again, I suppose," he said. "It -reminds me I must go, my child. That poor Korean convert of mine is at -the point of death, I fear. I must go to him. I may be absent all -day." - -"We shall be quite happy, father. I shall pick the last of your -strawberries to-day, and make some of your favourite tartlets for -supper." - -"You will spoil me," said the priest with a smile. "Dominus vobiscum." - -When the missionary had gone, Gabriele left the Korean servants to clear -the table, and, accompanied by her old nurse, went out into the garden -with a light wicker basket. As she did so she scanned the surrounding -country for signs of the shooting party. The mission station was at the -summit of a low hill, and below it, towards the east, stretched a tract -of sparse woodland, alternating with cultivated fields. A stream bathed -the foot of the hill, and wound away to join the Hun-Chuan, its course -traceable by the thickness of the wooded belt and the more vivid green -of the fields. - -While the girl was still picking the ripe red berries she heard another -shot, this time closer at hand. She rose, and out of pure curiosity -searching the landscape she saw, about two miles away, a band of -horsemen galloping through a field of kowliang, already so well grown -that the stalks rose almost to the horses' heads. There were some -thirty or forty of the riders, at present little more than specks in the -distance. It struck her as rather a large hunting party, and she -wondered what they were chasing, big game being unknown in the -neighbourhood, and the time of year unusual for such sport. As she -stood looking, the horsemen left the field and disappeared into the -wooded belt bordering the stream. - -Expecting them to come again into sight a little higher up, Gabriele -remained at the same spot. It occurred to her that one of them might be -bringing the written permission she desired, and had taken advantage of -his errand to organize a hunt. Suddenly she was startled to see a -figure on horseback emerge from the copse but a few yards below her. It -was a young man, a European; he was swaying in his saddle; and she -noticed with feminine quickness that one arm was supported in a sling--a -handkerchief looped round his neck. The next moment the rider caught -sight of her; his eyes seemed to her to speak the language of despair. -He swayed still more heavily, and was on the point of falling from his -horse when Gabriele sprang down the slope and caught him. Calling to her -nurse and a Korean man-servant near at hand, with their help she lifted -him from the saddle and loosened his shirt-collar, then sent the Korean -for water. - -Jack was dazed at first, all but swooning. - -"Thank you!" he said in Russian. "I was almost done, I think. But -please help me to mount again. I must ride on." - -"Impossible, gospodin!" she said. "You are hurt, I see; the injury must -be seen to." - -"It is good of you, but my arm must wait. Please help me to mount my -pony." - -His wounded arm, his urgent manner, recalled to Gabriele the shots she -had heard, the band of horsemen she had seen galloping in the distance. - -"You are in danger?" she said quickly. "Is it not so?" - -"Yes. There are Buriats behind me; they are close on my heels. -Indeed"--he smiled wanly--"it is your duty, as a Russian, I suppose, to -give me up." - -"I am not a Russian," she exclaimed. "And if I were, I should not -lightly give up a fugitive to the Russian police. You can go no farther; -what can I do? There is so little time." - -For a few seconds she appeared to be considering. Her brow was knit; -she looked at him anxiously. Fully trusting her, he made no further -effort to continue his flight, for which, indeed, he was manifestly -unfit. Half-reclining on his pony's neck, he waited, panting. - -Then she spoke rapidly to the Korean. - -"Take the pony, unsaddle him, and turn him loose in the kowliang yonder. -Saddle the Father's pony, ride a few yards in the stream, then gallop -past the edge of the copse, through the hemp field, up to Boulder Hill. -If you are followed by horsemen, throw them off the scent. Don't let -them see you closely. Return after dark, but make sure the Buriats are -not here before you come in." - -An unregenerate Korean would probably have hesitated, but this man had -been for some time under Father Mayenobe's training, and in a few -minutes he had brought out the pony and cantered away. Meanwhile -Gabriele, asking Jack to lean upon her arm, had led him into the copse -to a large beech, the lowest branch of which sprang from the trunk about -twelve feet from the ground. Asking him to remain there, she ran off -with the fleetness of a doe, and soon returned with a light ladder. -Setting this against the tree, she assisted Jack to mount; when he -reached the fork he saw that the interior of the trunk was hollow. Then -she pulled up the ladder, lowered it into the hollow space, and helped -Jack to descend. Drawing up the ladder again, she let it down outside, -ran down, and carried it swiftly back to the house, leaving Jack inside -the trunk, where he stood upright, supporting himself with his uninjured -arm. - -Scarcely five minutes had passed since his first appearance. The -Buriats had not yet come in sight; they had clearly been checked by the -fugitive's sudden divergence from his previous line of flight, and -nonplussed by his precaution in riding for some distance through the -stream. But in another five minutes half a dozen horsemen, with a -handsome young Russian lieutenant at their head, drew rein in front of -the house. Gabriele was unconcernedly shelling peas at the window of -the little dining-room. - -The officer was evidently surprised to see a young European lady. With -heightened colour he bent over his saddle and addressed her in Russian. - -"Have you seen a man on horseback in (he neighbourhood, Mademoiselle?" - -Gabriele looked up, with a puzzled expression. - -"Monsieur parle-t-il francais?" she said. - -"Oui, Mademoiselle," returned the officer, then repeating his question -in French. - -"Yes," she replied. "A few minutes ago a man galloped from the stream, -past the copse, and rode auay along the side of the hill." - -"Merci bien, Mademoiselle," said the lieutenant, translating the -information for his men. - -They at once began to hunt for the tracks, and in a few moments spied -the hoof-marks of a galloping horse. One of them discharged his rifle -to bring up the rest of the troop, who had scattered over the face of -the country, endeavouring to pick up the trail of the fugitive. Some -were already galloping off in the direction indicated by Gabriele. Soon -the rest of the Buriats came riding by in twos and threes, until the -whole band was in full cry up the hillside. - -Gabriele remained at the window shelling peas until she was sure that -the last horseman had passed. Then she took a bottle of home-grown wine -from the missionary's store, filled a cup and gave it to her old nurse -to carry, and returned with the ladder to the tree. - -"It is I," she said as she approached. "I am bringing you wine." - -Mounting into the tree, she handed down the cup. Jack drained it at a -draught. - -"You are suffering?" said the girl. - -"Not much. It is a flesh wound; I have lost some blood, and was faint. -I am better now." - -"You must remain in the tree. The danger is not yet past; but have -patience. I dare not stay longer; they will come back soon. Hope on." - - - - - *CHAPTER VII* - - *A Daughter of Poland* - - -Suppressio Veri--The Keys--At Fault--A Polish Patriot--A Daughter's -Love--A Common Sorrow--A French Mission--A Council of War--From -Canton--A Surprise Visit--Hide and Seek--Ladislas Streleszki - - -All was silent for nearly an hour. Slowly the minutes passed. Jack -felt he had never been so wretchedly uncomfortable. His legs ached; his -arm throbbed with pain; there was not room in his hiding-place to sit; -the stuffiness of his prison and the attentions of innumerable insects -so tortured him that he could hardly refrain from crying out to be -released. Eagerly he listened for the return of the tall strong girl -whose quick wit had thrown the Buriats off his track. When would she -come again? At last, after a period of waiting that seemed ten times as -long as it really was, he fancied he heard her footsteps. He listened; -yes, it was certainly someone approaching; his long imprisonment was -ended. But just as the footsteps, now distinctly audible, neared the -tree, his ears caught the heavy thud of horses galloping, and a few -moments afterwards an angry voice saying in French: - -"The man you saw, Mademoiselle, is not the man we are searching for. My -sergeant, who is following him up, sends me word that he got a clear -view of him as he breasted the hill. The dress is different, the horse -is different----" - -He broke off as if expecting an explanation. - -"How unfortunate, Monsieur!" exclaimed Gabriele in a tone of concern. -"I fear you must have come a long distance out of your way." - -"That is as it may be, Mademoiselle," replied the lieutenant, somewhat -nettled. "Perhaps not so far either, for we tracked our man to within a -few hundred yards of your house." He paused a moment, then added -suspiciously: "What was he like, the man you saw galloping?" - -"What was he like?" she repeated reflectively. "I think he was about -your height; but then you are mounted, and so was he, and it is so -difficult to judge when a man is mounted, is it not, Monsieur? And then -he was going so fast; in a flash he was by; there was his back -disappearing into the copse. It was a broad back; yes, certainly a -broad back; and he was hitting his pony; yes, I remember that clearly, -poor thing! and it was going so fast, too." - -All this was said with the most artless simplicity, and Jack was amused, -though his heart was beating hard with apprehension. - -"But, Mademoiselle, what was he like?" repeated the officer, finding -some difficulty in repressing his anger. - -"The man I saw, Monsieur, or the man you saw, or the man your sergeant -saw? There are so many--they confuse me." - -"The man you saw. Come, Mademoiselle, we are wasting time. Was he a -white man, or a Chinaman, or what?" - -"Oh, his colour! Really, I cannot say. You see, Monsieur, the sun was -in my eyes. I saw his back plainly, a broad back; but he was riding -fast, and hitting his pony; yes, poor thing! he was hitting it very -hard." - -The lieutenant hesitated; Jack held his breath. - -"You will pardon me, Mademoiselle, if I ask you to let me search your -house." - -"Not my house, Monsieur. It belongs to Father Mayenobe." - -"Peste!" he exclaimed as he dismounted. "This house, whosesoever it is. -The man gave us the slip in this neighbourhood, and my orders are to -capture him." - -"Certainly search, Monsieur. Father Mayenobe is away from home, or I am -sure he would receive you as the occasion demands. The house is open to -you. Perhaps a few of you would enter at a time?" - -The frowning officer glanced at her, unable to decide whether she was -mocking him. But her face was perfectly grave. - -"Certainly, Mademoiselle," he replied a little uneasily. "Two will be -sufficient; and with your permission I will accompany them. Doubtless," -he added, as by an afterthought, "it will prove a mere form." - -"I suppose it is quite right, Monsieur. I know nothing about these -things. Perhaps I ought to say no until Father Mayenobe returns. But -then I couldn't prevent you, could I? So you had better go in and do -your duty. Let me see, you will want the keys." She took a bunch from -her pocket. "There are very few. This is the key of the larder." - -She innocently handed him the bunch, indicating the one she had -mentioned. - -"Only the larder is locked," she added. "The natives, you are aware, -Monsieur, will overeat if one is not careful." - -The young officer, looking very much ashamed of himself, took the bunch, -and having no answer ready, moved towards the house. - -"Will you show us the house, Mademoiselle?" - -"Oh no, Monsieur! that would be to countenance your intrusion. I cannot -be expected to do that." - -The conversation had been carried on throughout within a few feet of -Jack. In spite of his wound, his uncomfortable position, and the danger -of discovery, he found himself shaking with silent laughter, imagining -the play of expression on the faces of Gabriele and her victim. - -The lieutenant with two of his men went into the house. There was -silence for a while, broken only by the champing of the Buriats' ponies -and the rattle of accoutrements, the men sitting their steeds mute and -motionless. Then the voice of the officer could be heard interrogating -the old nurse, who merely shook her head to every question. She knew -nothing but Polish, and the officer's Russian was as incomprehensible to -her as his French. After a few minutes he returned. - -"Accept my apologies and my thanks, Mademoiselle," he said, as he handed -her the keys. "We must pursue our chase elsewhere. Bonjour!" - -"Bonjour, Monsieur!" - -The troop rode away, taking a different course. Gabriele's lips curved -in a smile as she watched them. The officer glanced back just before -riding out of sight. She was walking slowly towards the house. - -Half an hour afterwards the missionary returned. - -"Father," said Gabriele, "I have played the good Samaritan since you -have been away." - -She explained to him rapidly what had occurred. - -"My daughter," he said gently, "I cannot blame you, but you acted -rashly, very rashly indeed." - -"What would you have done, Father?" she asked archly. - -"Just what you did, my dear," he replied with twinkling eyes. "But we -must be careful. The Russians look askance at our missions as it is; -they only want a pretext to expel us." - -"And the poor young man is all the time in the tree! He must be nearly -dead with fatigue." - -"But we cannot release him yet. Some of the Russians may return this -way from their chase of Min-chin. I hope they will not shoot the poor -fellow by mistake." - -Jack waited, feeling more and more exhausted, and wondering how long his -irksome durance was to last. By and by he again heard horses galloping. -The Buriat sergeant and one of his men had returned from their fruitless -chase. Min-chin, the Korean servant, had outridden them, and they had -lost trace of him. They pulled up at the missionary's house to ask the -whereabouts of the remainder of the troop, then they rode on. Watching -them out of sight, and waiting for some time to assure himself that -danger was past, Father Mayenobe carried the ladder to the tree, and -soon Jack, pale, worn, and hungry, lay in the priest's own bed. The -father, like most of the French missionaries in China, knew something of -medicine and surgery; he examined Jack's wound, dressed and bound up his -arm, and said that he was not to think of getting up for several days. -It was in fact nearly a week before he was allowed to leave the bed, and -the missionary saw that watch was kept night and day to guard against a -surprise visit from the Russians. - -During this period of enforced seclusion Father Mayenobe learnt Jack's -story. Though it made him feel more than ever the gravity of his -position if his guest should be discovered, it did not abate by a jot -his determination to do what he could for him. Indeed, his sympathy for -Jack was enhanced by a certain similarity between his circumstances and -Gabriele's. He told Jack her story. Her father was a large land-owner, -the descendant of a great Polish family, a man of noble character, -greatly beloved of his tenants and respected by his peers. Like every -true Pole he was a strong patriot, and had been a member of one of the -secret associations that have for their object the restoration of Polish -liberties. Some six years before, the society had been betrayed by one -of its members; Count Walewski, with several of his compatriots, was -arrested and sent without trial into exile; and as a deterrent to other -Poles who might contemplate revolt, the place selected for his -punishment was the bleak barren island of Sakhalin, the farthest eastern -limit of the Russian empire. There was special cruelty and indignity -involved in this choice, for the island was reserved as a rule for -murderers and the lowest class of criminals; and his friends in Poland -were aghast when they heard to what a living death he had been -condemned. - -At the time of the count's arrest and banishment, his daughter Gabriele -was only eleven years of age. Her father's estates being confiscated, -and she a motherless child, she was adopted by her paternal aunt, an -unmarried lady of ample means, who took her to her home in Paris, -educated her, and treated her with a mother's care. But as the girl -grew older and learned to understand more fully the hopelessness of her -father's fate, she resolved at all costs to share his exile, and to do -what lay in her power to alleviate and sweeten his terrible lot. Her -aunt, fearful of allowing a young girl to undertake a mission so -terrible, and being too infirm to accompany her, did all that she could -to turn her from her purpose. But with increasing years the girl's -determination became ever stronger. She grew up quickly into a -thoughtful strong-willed maiden, full of patriotic ardour, of passionate -resentment against the Russian government, and of an overflowing love -for the father whose affection she remembered so well, and whose noble -qualities she had not been too young to appreciate. While grateful for -all the kindness her aunt had showered upon her, she was possessed by an -overmastering sense of duty to her father. At last, when she was nearly -seventeen, but in looks and mind older than her years, she threatened to -set forth without assistance if her aunt refused her assent and help. -Having no alternative the poor lady yielded, only stipulating that -Gabriele's old nurse should accompany her. For some months they vainly -tried to get permission from St. Petersburg for the girl to join her -father. In the case of ordinary criminals no difficulty was usually -made; it was clear that, as happens so often in Russia, the political -offence was to be visited more heavily than the worst of crimes. Then -she started without permission, hoping to obtain the necessary -authorization at Vladivostok. She was provided with letters of -introduction to a Polish family in Siberia, and one to Father Mayenobe, -whose sister had been a teacher at the pension Gabriele had attended in -Paris. But the outbreak of the war had so much disorganized things that -the Polish friends were not to be found. She arrived in Vladivostok; -there her request for permission to go to Sakhalin had been referred by -one official to another, shelved, and finally ignored. Then, friendless -and despairing, she had written to the missionary asking his advice. He -had already heard of her from his sister. Riding at once into -Vladivostok he endeavoured to get the required permission; but the -governor and officials had something more important to consider than the -romantic impulses of a Polish school-girl, and they politely shunted all -his representations. At his suggestion Gabriele and her nurse had -returned with him to his little mission station in the hills, where they -had since remained, hoping that in course of time they would gain their -object. - -When Jack was well enough to leave his bedroom and share the simple life -of the missionary and his household, it was apparent that the two young -people were drawn together by the common circumstances of their fate. -From the first moment Jack had felt a strong admiration for the girl -whose resourcefulness had saved him from capture; while Gabriele -regarded his position as even worse than her own, for she knew at any -rate where her father was. They had many long conversations together; -the girl put her own sorrows into the background, and entered heartily -into Jack's perplexities and plans. Father Mayenobe often joined them -in talking things over, and soon won Jack's admiration for his -character, and respect for his wise counsel. - -Jack had opportunities of seeing something and learning more of his new -friend's mission work. Jean Mayenobe had been a favourite pupil of -Monsieur Venault, the young nobleman who gave up his career as a -courtier of Louis XVIII, and devoted his whole fortune and forty-two -years of his life to his labour of love in Manchuria. A great part of a -French missionary's work consists in relieving the poor and sick and -caring for orphans. He does little actual preaching of the Gospel; he -conducts service in a small church or oratory attached to his house, but -converts are made chiefly through the agency of native Christians, and -through the training of orphan children from tender years. The priest -dresses and fares little better than the poorest of his flock, and is -never absent from his charge, fulfilling with absolute literalness the -Divine command. - -One day a Korean youth in training for the priesthood came in with a -message from the Sister in charge of the orphanage at Almazovsk. He -remained for several days in the house. Observing his manly open -countenance and his air of energy and enthusiasm, so much in contrast to -the average Korean's flabby effeminacy, Jack understood what an -influence for good the Christian missionary can wield. - -The talk in the little mission-house turned again and again upon the -mystery of Mr. Brown's fate. - -Father Mayenobe confessed that he was unable to make a likely guess as -to the merchant's whereabouts. - -"There are so many places in Siberia to which he may have been sent. -Sakhalin, you suggest? Sakhalin is little used now for political -prisoners, although, as in Count Walewski's case, some few are still -sent there." - -"How am I to find out? It is the uncertainty that is so terrible." - -"I can think of no safe means. If the Russians are determined to keep -his whereabouts secret----" - -"That is itself an admission that they are in the wrong," interrupted -Gabriele. - -"It may be. I was going to say that if that is their determination it -will be very difficult to trace him, and the only likely course would be -to follow up enquiries along the railway." - -"That is almost hopeless in present circumstances. The war has -disorganized everything. Besides, how am I to get into Moukden again?" - -"Why attempt it? Why not try to gain the coast and make for home, and -trust to diplomatic representations at St. Petersburg?" - -"No, no, father, I certainly disagree with you," cried Gabriele. "You -know how slowly diplomacy works. Think of it; Monsieur Brown may pass -months, perhaps years, in the most terrible uncertainty and suspense. -No; if I were in his place I would do as he means to do. Oh, I wish I -were a man!" - -"But think of the danger! If he were to go as a European, he would be -set upon by Chinese in the out-of-the-way parts through which he must -pass. In the towns the English and the French are respected when other -Europeans are not, but in the country parts all alike are foreign -devils, of less account than pigs. If he got safely within the Russian -lines he would probably be arrested as a spy and shot. His only chance -is to go as a Chinaman." - -"As a Chinaman?" - -"Yes, disguised to the best of our ability." - -Gabriele looked dubiously at Jack, as though questioning whether any -disguise would serve. - -"What do you say yourself, Monsieur Brown?" asked the missionary. - -"I must risk it, father. I have been long enough in China to know the -difficulties and dangers in my way; I don't underrate them, I assure -you. But anything is better than this harrowing uncertainty. I could -not remain idle; I feel I must do something to clear up the mystery, -even though I should be venturing on a forlorn hope." - -"Well, my son, I will not dissuade you. Fortune favours the brave, they -say. You are determined to go; God go with you! But we must think of -how it is to be done." - -"I must go as a Chinaman, that is certain. It had better be as a -southern Chinaman. Mademoiselle perhaps does not know that the spoken -language of the north and south are so unlike that natives of the one -can only communicate with the other by written characters or by pidgin -English. I can't write Chinese, and if I pretend to be quite illiterate -(as indeed I am from the Chinese point of view) I may hope to pass -muster. I can speak pidgin English. We had a Canton servant in -Shanghai with whom I spoke nothing else, and we use it still with the -servants in Moukden." - -"But there is a greater difficulty--the difficulty of feature. You would -pass better in Canton as a Manchu, than as a Cantonese in Manchuria." - -"I can only risk it. A little saffron and henna----" - -"And a pigtail, Monsieur Brown?--will you have to wear a pigtail?" said -Gabriele. - -"Yes, unluckily," said Jack with a rueful smile. "My own hair won't -suffice. But false pigtails are common enough in China. I shall ask -your help with that, Mademoiselle." - -"It would amuse me--if it were not so terribly serious." - -"You will go as a Chinaman, then," said the priest. "But you must have a -story to tell on the way if you are questioned: have you thought of -that?" - -"Yes. Suppose I give out that I am the servant of a Moukden mandarin, -returning from a special mission to Hun-chun, hinting perhaps at -anti-Russian intrigue?" - -Father Mayenobe stroked his beard. - -"It is inevitable," he said. "For you this is a state of war, and in -war the first principle is to deceive the enemy. Still, I do not like -your venture. The more I think of it, the more heavy do the odds appear -against success." - -"Father, do not let us go into that again," pleaded Gabriele. "Can you -suggest any better plan for Monsieur Brown?" - -"I confess I cannot. Well, let it be so, then. I will do all in my -power to help you, my son." - -A fortnight passed away. The wet season had begun, and though the -rainfall was not so continuous as is commonly the case, the streams were -swelled to overflowing and the rough tracks rendered impassable. The -mission station, being on a hillside, suffered less than huts on the -lower ground. During the unfavourable weather much anxious care was -given to Jack's preparations. The costume was got ready in every -detail; Gabriele with her own hands plaited the pigtail and wadded the -loose tunic and pantaloons. At last all was in readiness, and Jack only -awaited a fine day to set off. - -One afternoon, when the sun was hot, raising a thick vapour from the -sodden fields, Min-chin came running into the house with the news that a -party of Buriats were riding up the hill. It happened that Father -Mayenobe had taken advantage of the change of weather to visit some of -his little flock a few miles off. Without a moment's delay Jack -hastened to the hollow tree, and was safe inside by the time the -horsemen rode up. They surrounded the house, and the officer, an older -man than the lieutenant whom Gabriele had discomfited, alighted at the -door and called for the priest. Gabriele appeared. It was evident from -the officer's manner that he had heard of her. - -"Mademoiselle," he said in French, "you will please give me a plain -answer. A stranger has been seen in and about this house. Who is he?" - -"Oh! you mean the catechumen from Almazovsk?" - -The captain looked hard at her. - -"Come, Mademoiselle, where is the man?" - -"The catechumen? He is gone. He went three days ago, all through the -rain. He would not remain, though Father Mayenobe pressed him to wait -in hope of finer weather. You seem to doubt me," added the girl. "The -house has been already searched once, in Father Mayenobe's absence; I -assure you there is nobody in it but our servants; if you will not -accept my assurance you had better search again." - -She moved away, and began to occupy herself with simple household -matters, completely ignoring the Russians. The captain did not go -shamefacedly about his work as the lieutenant had done; he searched the -little house thoroughly, ransacking every hole and corner. The task did -not take him long; he found nothing. Coming out again, he beckoned to a -man in civilian costume whom Gabriele had not previously noticed. As he -rode forward, she started; but in an instant recovered herself. He -spoke a few words to the captain; then the latter, with a curt word of -farewell to the girl, gave his men the order to ride away. Gabriele did -not like his look; he had seemed too easily satisfied, and consulted -with the civilian; and she sent two of the servants to keep watch at the -only convenient approaches to the settlement. Her precaution was -justified. Two or three hours later the party rode back at a gallop. -The alarm was given by one of the sentinels, and Jack had time to get -back into the serviceable beech before they arrived. A second search -was made, this also fruitless; then the horsemen finally departed, -convinced against their will that they had come once more on a false -scent. - -When Jack left his hiding-place he saw by the expression of Gabriele's -face that she had something to tell him. A red spot burned on each -cheek, and her eyes were blazing. - -"How dare he! How dare he!" she exclaimed. "Oh, if I could have killed -him! It was Ladislas Streleszki, the traitor, the villain, the man who -betrayed my father. He was our steward; we did not know for a long time -who had done that foul deed; but when my father was arrested Streleszki -disappeared, and it was many months before we understood." - -"Do you mean, Mademoiselle, that he is now a Russian officer?" - -"No, no; but when they came the second time he was with them." - -"Did he not recognize you?" - -"No; it is six years since he saw me, and I have changed very much. I -was afraid he might; I thought perhaps a chance word from one of the -officers in Vladivostok through whom my applications have passed, had -brought him here to persecute me. But it cannot be so; he hardly looked -at me. I knew him at once; he has altered little; his hair is turning -grey; but I could never mistake him; one eyelid droops and----" - -"Indeed!" cried Jack with a start. "Is it his left eyelid?" - -"Yes. Oh, why do you ask?" - -"Sowinski, my father's enemy, has the same defect. Did you hear him -speak, Mademoiselle?" - -"Yes; his voice is gruff and coarse." - -"Then Streleszki and Sowinski are the same man. Good heavens, we have -indeed had a narrow escape! It would have been all up with me if I had -been found, and I fear your fate would have been sealed too. I am to -blame for staying here so long. I must not bring you into danger again. -I will go to-day." - - - - - *CHAPTER VIII* - - *A Custom of Cathay* - - -The Forbidden Mountain--Two from Canton--Clutching at Straws--Ipsos -Custodes--A Question of Dollars--The Yamen--The Majesty of the -Law--Judge and Jury--The Cage--Torture--Mr. Wang--Benevolence and Aid - - -"Hai-yah!" - -"Ph'ho!" - -"Fan-yun!" - -"Fan-kwei!" - -"Look at his eyes! How big! Round as the moon. See how they goggle and -glare!" - -"Yah! Ugly beast! His nose! Look at it! Like the beak of a hawk." - -"And his hair! Ch'hoy! Like the fleece of a sheep." - -"And his clothes! Ragged as a quail's tail." - -"No doubt of it, he is a foreign devil, ugly pig." - -"Why still alive? Kill him at once, say I. Foreign devils are -dangerous to keep. One come, thousands follow. Kill at once; if we had -done that with the Russians, no more trouble. He will bring ill-luck on -the village. What luck have we had since the Russians came digging into -the Hill of a Thousand Perfumes? Who can say how many demons they let -loose?" - -"Yah! Who has found ginseng since then, who? Nothing but ill-luck now. -An Pow dead, strong as he was; Sun Soo drowned in the river; all our -oxen carried off by Ah Lum and his Chunchuses. Hai! hai! And this -foreign devil will make things worse. Why did they not chop off his -head at once?" - -To this conversation, carried on within a few feet of him, Jack listened -in a somewhat apathetic spirit. He was utterly dejected, worn out, -humiliated. He lay in a large wooden cage near the headman's house in -the village of Tang-ho-kou in the Long White Mountains. It was a -secluded spot, in a district supposed to be sacred to the emperor's -ancestors, where it was sacrilege even for a Chinaman to tread. The -inhabitants were an exclusive community, ruled by a guild, owning only -nominal allegiance to the emperor, and essentially a self-governed -republic. They were unmolested, for government is lax in Manchuria, and -the Long White Mountains are far from the capital and difficult ground -to police; theoretically the guildsmen went in danger of their heads, -practically they were monarch of all they surveyed. - -A group of the villagers was collected on this July evening about the -cage, discussing the foreign prisoner, interrupting their conversation -to snarl at him. - -"It is true; his head ought to be chopped off, but they were afraid." - -"Afraid of what?" - -"Of what might be done to them. The illustrious viceroy at Moukden is -very strict. Even a foreign devil may not be killed without leave. -Why? Because if one is killed, there is trouble. The kings of the -foreign devils are angry, and many good Chinese heads have to fall. They -have sent to ask leave to behead the barbarian: better still, to slice -him. He fought like a hill tiger when they caught him, and two men even -now lie wounded." - -"How did they catch him?" - -"A Canton man, mafoo to his excellency General Ping at Moukden, overtook -him riding in the hills. He was making a bird's noise with his lips; -that was suspicious. But the Canton man was wary. He spoke to him as a -friend, and rode alongside. Where did he come from? Thus asked the -Canton man. The barbarian shook his head and answered in pidgin, the -tongue of the foreign devil in the south. Yah! That was his ruin. Our -Canton friend also speaks pidgin. 'You come from Canton?' says he. -'Yes.' 'What part? Where did you live? Do you know this place or -that? What is your business?' Those were his questions; a shrewd -fellow, the Canton man. He left him at the next village; then followed -with six strong men. They got ahead of him, hid in a copse by the -roadside, and when the foreign devil came up, rushed out upon him. They -were seven; but it was a hard fight. Ch'hoy! These barbarians are in -league with a thousand demons; that is why they are so fierce and -strong. But they got him at last, and brought him here; worse luck! he -shall suffer for it yet." - -The crowd drew nearer to their helpless prisoner, stared at him, jeered, -cast stones and offal, and, worked up by the teller of the story, were -only kept from tearing him to pieces by the guard and the bars of the -cage. Exposed without shelter to the broiling sun, Jack was dizzy and -faint. His clothes had been torn to tatters in the struggle, his -pigtail wrenched from his head. He had had no food for many hours, and, -what was worse, no water. - -He had been able to catch the gist of what the chief speaker in the -crowd had said. How stupid of him to whistle--a thing a Chinaman never -does! How unlucky that he had met a man from Canton! The dialects of -the north and south differ so much that by professing to be a Southerner -he had come so far on his journey undetected; but in conversation with a -Cantonese his accent had inevitably betrayed him. And now he knew that -he could expect no mercy. A European carries his life in his hands in -China whenever he ventures alone out of the beaten track. In Manchuria -just then, with the natives embittered by the wanton destruction of -their towns and villages, the chances of a captive being spared were -infinitesimal. Only fear of the mandarins had apparently caused them to -hold their hands in his case; but Jack had little reason to suppose that -the mandarins would interfere to protect him. No order would be issued; -but the villagers would receive a hint to do as they pleased; and Jack -well knew what their pleasure would be. In the unlikely event of -diplomatic pressure being afterwards brought to bear, the mandarins -could still repudiate responsibility, and the villagers would suffer; -several, probably the most innocent, would lose their heads. But Jack -knew that he had placed himself outside the protection of the British -flag. Neither the mandarins nor the villagers had anything to fear. - -The sun went down; the village watchman beat his wooden gong; and the -group gradually dispersed. Only the guard was left. Parched with -thirst, Jack ventured to address him, asking for a cup of water. The -man, with more humanity than the most, after some hesitation acceded. -He was generous, and brought also a mess of rice. Greatly refreshed by -the meal, scanty though it was, Jack felt his spirits rising; with more -of hope he began to canvass the possibilities in his favour. But he had -to admit that they were slight. There was just one ray of light, dim -indeed; but a pin-point glimmer is precious in the dark. He had heard -the villagers mention the brigand Ah Lum, the chief of the Chunchuses, -who had levied upon their oxen. This was the chief whom Wang Shih had -left Moukden to join. If Jack could only communicate with Wang Shih -there might still be a chance for him. - -He began a whispered conversation with his guard, and learnt that, a few -days before, Ah Lum's band was known to be encamped in the hills some -twenty miles to the south-west. It was resting and recruiting its -strength after a severe brush with a force of Cossacks, who had almost -succeeded in cutting it to pieces during a raid on the railway. - -"Do you know Wang Shih?" - -"No; Ah Lum has several lieutenants. His band numbers nearly eight -hundred; there were more than a thousand before the fight with the -Russians." - -"You know what a dollar is?" - -"It is worth many strings of cash." - -"Well, if you will take word to Mr. Wang about me, I will give you fifty -dollars." - -"Where will you get them from?" asked the man suspiciously. "Were you -not searched, and everything taken from you?" - -"True, I was searched; but the foreign devil has ways of getting money -that the Chinaman does not understand. It is a small thing I ask you to -do. The reward is great; fifty dollars, hundreds of strings of cash. -You will never get such a chance again." - -True to the oriental instinct for haggling, the man argued and discussed -for some time before he at last agreed to Jack's proposition. - -"You must make haste," said Jack. "If the messenger to the mandarin -returns before you, I shall be killed and you will get no money." - -The man at once explained that it was impossible for him to leave the -village; he must find a messenger. - -"Very well. He is to find Wang Shih and say that Jack Brown from -Moukden is in peril of death. You can say the name?" - -"Chack Blown," said the man. - -"That will do. Now, when can you send your man?" - -The guard said that he would be shortly relieved; then he would lose no -time. In a few minutes a man came to take his place, and Jack, with -mingled hopes and fears, settled himself in a corner of the cage, to -sleep if possible. Half an hour later the guard returned with the -welcome news that a messenger had started, after bargaining for twenty -of the fifty dollars, and would travel all night on foot, for he had no -horse, and to hire one would awaken suspicion. - -"But," added the guard, "he is a trusty man, much respected, and a great -hater of foreign devils, like all good Chinamen. If he had had his way -the honourable foreign devil would have been executed this afternoon." - -"Then how comes it," asked Jack, "that he is willing to go as -messenger?" - -The guide looked puzzled. - -"Surely the honourable barbarian understands? Did I not explain that I -promised Mr. Fu twenty dollars?" - -Even in his misery Jack could not forbear a smile. His messenger was -doubtless the man who had led the chorus of threats and insults a few -hours before. The man's convictions were no doubt still the same; but -the prospect of a few dollars had completely divorced precept from -practice. - -Then Jack reflected that the enterprise was a poor chance at the best. -There was little likelihood of the man finding Wang Shih in time, and if -he found him, it was uncertain whether his sense of gratitude was -sufficiently keen to bring him to the rescue. Yet, in spite of all, -Jack's impatient eager thought followed the messenger, as though hope -could give him winged feet. - -He spent a miserable night. In that hill country even the summer nights -are cold; and his clothes having been well-nigh torn from his back, he -had scant protection. He slept but little, lying awake for hours -listening to the mice and rats scampering around the cage, and to the -long-drawn melancholy howls of the village dogs. - -Soon after dawn he heard a great commotion in the village. His pulse -beat high; he hoped that Wang Shih had arrived. But when his friendly -guardian came to resume duty, his heart sank, for he learnt that the -headman's messenger to the local mandarin had returned, bringing word -that the barbarian should be suitably dealt with by the guild. The -mandarin had evidently washed his hands of the matter; the guard had no -doubt that when the headman was ready Jack would be taken before him, -and he must expect no mercy. The people had never ceased to grumble at -the delay in executing him; and nothing could be hoped of the headman, -for he was a native of Harbin, and bore a bitter grudge against the -Russians, who in constructing their railway had cut through his family -graveyard, and in defiling the bones of his ancestors had done him the -worst injury a Chinaman can suffer. Jack was to have no breakfast; his -captors were so sure of his fate that they thought it would be a mere -waste to feed him. - -An hour passed--a terrible hour of suspense. The villagers began to -gather round the cage, and their looks of gleeful and malicious -satisfaction struck Jack cold. All at once they broke into loud shouting -as a posse of armed yamen-runners forced their way through. Jack was -taken out of the cage, and, surrounded by the runners and followed by -the jabbering crowd, was marched to the headman's house. He there found -himself in the presence of a dignified Chinaman, a glossy black -moustache encircling his mouth and chin, his long finger-nails denoting -that he did not condescend to menial work. He was in fact a prosperous -farmer, who, besides possessing large estates (to which he had no title) -in the Forbidden Country, carried on an extensive trade in ginseng, a -plant to which extraordinary medicinal virtues are attributed by the -Chinese, and so valuable that a single root will sometimes fetch as much -as L15 in the Peking market. The headman, feeling the importance of the -occasion, had got himself up in imitation of a magistrate, wearing a -round silk buttoned cap and a blue tunic. - -He had evidently made a study of the procedure in a mandarin's yamen. -He was the only man seated at a long table; at each end stood a scribe -with a dirty book, which might or might not have been a book of law, -outspread before him; at his right hand stood a man with a lighted pipe, -from which during the proceedings the headman took occasional whiffs; in -front stood a group of runners in weird costumes, wearing black cloth -caps with red tassels. From the sour expression on the Chinaman's face -Jack knew that he was already judged and condemned; but he held his head -high, and gazed unflinchingly on the stern-visaged Chinaman. - -It is proper for a prisoner to take his trial on his knees, and one of -the runners approached Jack and sharply bade him kneel. He refused. -Two other men came up with threatening gestures, and laid hands on him -to force him down. He resisted; he had the rooted European objection to -kowtow to an Asiatic. With too much good sense to indulge himself in -heroics, he yet recalled at this moment by a freak of memory the lines -written on the heroic Private Moyse of the Buffs. His back stiffened; -there was the making of a pretty wrestling match; but the headman, -mindful of the stout fight when the prisoner was arrested, and desiring -that the proceedings should be conducted with decorum, ordered his men -to desist. Then he began his interrogatory. - -"You are an Russian?" - -"No, an Englishman." - -"Where have you been living?" - -"In Moukden." - -"What have you been doing there?" - -"I lived with my father." - -"Who is he?" - -"He is a merchant." - -"What is his name?" - -"He is known as Mr. Brown of Moukden." - -"What did he trade in?" - -"In many things. He supplied stores of all kinds." - -"To the Russians?" - -"Yes." - -"Assisting them to build the iron road that is the ruin of Manchuria?" - -"I believe your august emperor gave the Russians permission." - -"Do not dare to mention the Son of Heaven. Do not dare, I say, you -foreign devil! Where is your father now?" - -"I do not know. He was arrested by the Russians." - -"Why?" - -"They accused him of giving information to the Japanese." - -"Did he give information?" - -"No." - -"Ch'hoy! Then clearly he was in league with the Russians. He, too, is -worthy of death. What brought you into the Shan-yan-alin mountains?" - -"I am trying to find my father. I was on my way to Moukden." - -"Do you know that the Ch'ang-pai-shan is sacred to the emperor? Nobody -is allowed to tread these hills, on pain of death." - -"I am in your honour's august company." - -The headman winced and blinked. That was a home-thrust. He grew angry. - -"Enough! You are a foreign devil. By your own confession you have been -in league with the Russians, assisting them in their impious work, -disturbing the feng-shui in the most sacred city of the virtuous Son of -Heaven. You are found in insolent disguise within the limits of the -Forbidden Mountains; you resisted lawful arrest, to the severe injury of -two of my officers. It is clear that you are a vile example of the -outer barbarians who are scheming to drive the Manchu from his -immemorial lands, defiling the graves of our fathers, and bringing our -sons to shame. You are not fit to live; every one of your offences is -punishable with death; in their sum you are lightly touched by my -sentence upon you, that you suffer the ling-ch'ih, and then be beheaded. -Confess your crimes." - -Jack had answered the man's questions briefly and calmly, and listened -with unmoved countenance to his speech. The decision was only what he -had expected. The worst was to come. He knew that by the laws and -customs of China he could not be executed until he had acknowledged the -justice of the sentence and made open confession of his crime; he knew -also that, failing to confess voluntarily, he would be tortured by all -the most fiendish methods devised by Chinese ingenuity until confession -was extorted from his lacerated, half-inanimate frame. The end would be -the same; for a moment, in his helplessness and despair, he thought it -would perhaps be better to acquiesce at once and get it over. But then -pride of race stepped in. Could he, innocent as he felt himself to be, -act a lie by even formally acquiescing in the sentence? He did not know -how far his fortitude would enable him to bear the tortures in store; -but he would not allow the mere prospect to cow him. He had paused but -a moment. - -"I have nothing to confess," he said. - -The headman gave a grunt of satisfaction. - -"Put him in the cage," he said. - -Jack's blood ran cold in spite of himself. The word used by his judge -was not the name of the cage in which he had already been confined, but -meant an instrument of torture. Amid the exultant hoots of the crowd of -natives, who spat on the ground as he passed, he was hauled from the -presence and taken to a yard near by. In the centre of it stood a -bamboo cage somewhat more than five feet high. Its top consisted of two -movable slabs of wood which, when brought together, left a hole large -enough to encircle a man's neck, but too small for his head to pass -through. The height of the cage was so adjusted, that when the prisoner -was inside with his head protruding from the top he could only avoid -being hung by the neck so long as his feet rested on a brick. By and by -that would be removed; he might defer strangulation for a short time by -standing on tiptoe, but that would soon become too painful. Jack had -never seen the instrument in use, but he had heard of it, and he quailed -at the imagination of the torture he was to endure. - -His arms were bound together; he was locked into the cage; his head was -enclosed; and the mob jeered and yelled as, the brick being knocked away -after a few minutes, he instinctively raised himself on his toes to ease -the pressure on his neck. How long could he endure it? he wondered. -Had the messenger failed to find Wang Shih? Had some perverse fate -removed the Chunchuse band at this moment of dire peril? Humanly -speaking, his salvation depended on Wang Shih, and on him alone: was his -last hope to prove vain? Should he now yield, confess, and spare -himself further torture? Already he was suffering intense pain; he -gained momentary relief for his feet by drawing up his legs, a movement -which brought his whole weight upon his neck; but that was endurable -only for a few seconds. He closed his eyes to shut out the sight of the -yelling mob; pressed his lips together lest a moan should escape him: "I -will never give in, never give in." he said to himself; "pray God it -may not be long." - -The pain became excruciating; he no longer saw or heard the yelling -fiends gloating over every spasm of his tortured body; he was fast -sinking into unconsciousness, and the headman, fearful of losing his -victim, was about to give the order for his temporary release, when -suddenly his ears caught the sound of galloping horses. The noise -around him lulled; he heard loud shouts in the distance, and drawing -ever nearer. Then the crowd scattered like chaff, and through their -midst rode a brawny figure brandishing a riding-whip of bamboo. Dashing -through the amazed throng at the head of thirty shouting bandits he -leapt from his horse, sprang to the cage, tore away the catch holding -the two panels together, and Jack fell, an unconscious heap, to the -bottom of the cage. - -The first alarm being now passed, the villagers raised a hubbub. They -clustered about the new-comers, protesting with all their might that the -prisoner was merely a foreign devil, an impious pig. But Wang Shih -cleared a space with his whip; then, springing to the saddle again, he -raised his voice in a shout that dominated and silenced the clamour of -the mob. - -"Hai-yah! What are you doing, men of Tang-ho-kou? Is this foreigner a -Russian that you treat him thus? A fine thing truly! You skulk in your -fangtzes, afraid to come out with the honourable Ah Lum and me and fight -the Russians, and yet you are bold enough to catch a solitary man, a -friend of the Chinaman, and to misuse him thus because he is alone! -Know you not that he is an enemy of the Russians? They have imprisoned -his father; it is reverence for his father that brings him here. Is -filial piety so little esteemed in Tang-ho-kou to-day? Ch'hoy! I see -your headman aping a lordly mandarin; let him listen. I say you are -lucky I do not burn your village and execute a dozen of you as you were -about to execute the stranger. But I will be merciful. I will take -from you a contribution of five thousand taels for my chief; and your -headman--ch'hoy! he shall stand for half an hour in the cage. That -shall suffice. But beware how you offend again. Learn to distinguish -your friends from your enemies--an Englishman from the Russians whom the -dwarfs of Japan are helping us to drive back to the frozen north. Take -heed of what I say--I, Wang Shih, the worthless servant of his -excellency Ah Lum, the virtuous commander of many honourable brigands." - -This speech made an impression upon the crowd. The headman was -beginning to slink away, but Wang Shih noticed the movement and sent one -of his men after him. In spite of his protests he was dragged to the -cage, from which Jack, now fully conscious, had been removed; he was -fastened in it, and compelled to tiptoe as his erstwhile prisoner had -done. But after some minutes Jack, with a vivid remembrance of his own -sufferings, interceded for the wretched man, and Wang Shih released him, -bidding him collect from the villagers the tribute he had demanded. The -presence of the thirty well-armed Chunchuses was a powerful spur to -haste, and within half an hour the amount was raised. Meanwhile Jack's -neck had been bathed, and his muscles were beginning to recover from the -strain to which they had been put. He declared that he was well enough -to ride away with his deliverers. He had first to pay the guard the -fifty dollars agreed upon. Not wishing to disclose the hiding-place in -the soles of his boots where he kept his notes, he borrowed from Wang -Shih the necessary sum in bar silver. Then, mounted upon a horse -borrowed from the headman's own stables, he rode with the brigands from -the village. - - - - - *CHAPTER IX* - - *Ah Lum* - - -Ishmaels--The Chief--Fair Words--Wise Saws--Ah Fu's Tutors--An Honorary -Appointment--Chopping Maxims--A Deputation--Hunting the Boar--A Forest -Monarch--Charging Home--The Knife--A Close Call - - -The Chunchuse camp, Jack learnt as he rode, was some thirty miles -distant in the hills. It had been shifted; it was always shifting; that -was why the intervention of Wang Shih had been so nearly too late. - -Jack was somewhat amused when he reflected on the strange company in -which he found himself. He had heard a good deal about these -redoubtable bandits, but never till this day had he seen any of them. -Their bands were, he knew, very miscellaneous in their composition. -Escaped prisoners, whether guilty, or innocent like Wang Shih, -frequently sought refuge with one or other of the brigand chiefs. Men -who had been ruined in business, or were too indolent for regular work; -men possessed of grievances against the mandarins, or by a sheer lust of -adventure and lawlessness; helped to swell their numbers; and Mr. Brown -had once remarked that they reminded him of the motley band that -gathered about David in the cave Adullam: "Every one that was in -distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was -discontented". - -The name Chunchuse means "red beard", and was originally applied by the -natives to any foreigner. Since the bandits were almost all -clean-shaven, like the majority of Chinamen, Jack could only conjecture -that they were styled "red beards" from some fancied resemblance of -their predatory ways to the methods of the hated foreigners. They were -held in terror by all the law-abiding inhabitants, and the machinery of -the Chinese government was totally unable to keep them down. Since the -coming of the Russians they had grown in numbers and in power. Knowing -every inch of the country they were able to wage an effective guerrilla -warfare against the invaders, often surprising scouting parties of -Siberian riflemen or Cossacks, raiding isolated camps, damaging the -railways, and capturing convoys. - -Jack was interested in taking stock of his strange companions. They -were tall strapping fellows, powerfully built, with muscular and -athletic frames, and they included men of every race known in Manchuria. -Their costumes differed as greatly as the men themselves. Some were -clad in the usual garb of Chinamen; others had black cloth jackets with -brass buttons, tight-fitting trousers, and long riding-boots reaching to -the knees. Their heads were covered with knotted handkerchiefs of red, -black, or yellow cotton, beneath which their pigtails were coiled up out -of sight. Each carried a rifle and a revolver stuck in his leather -belt. - -On the way to the camp Wang Shih gave Jack a few particulars about the -band, in which he had already risen to a high position. Ah Lum, the -chief, had been for many years notorious for the daring with which he -would swoop with a few men on rich merchants travelling through the -country, even though they might be escorted by Chinese soldiers. But -since the outbreak of the war such sources of gain had ceased, and he -had gradually collected a very large following for the purpose of -conducting irregular operations against his country's despoilers. All -were magnificent horsemen; the Russians had in vain endeavoured to hunt -them down; and the very rifles they carried were the spoil of successful -raids. - -After a ride of about five hours through the hills, Wang Shih's party -reached the Chunchuse camp. It was a strange mixture of shelters, many -of them huts built of the stalks of kowliang, yet arranged, as Jack -noticed, in a certain order. Conspicuous in the middle of the camp was -a large tent, in which, as they approached, Jack recognized the Russian -service pattern. This too was evidently part of the spoil of a raid. - -At the outskirts of the camp Wang Shih dismissed his men, proceeding -alone with Jack to the tent. It was the head-quarters of the chief. -There was no sign of state, no sentinel at the entrance; Wang Shih rode -up unquestioned, and unceremoniously shouted into the tent for Mr. Ah. -If Jack had expected to see the typical brigand of romance he must have -been disappointed. Ah Lum was the shortest member of the band, a wiry -figure with a slight stoop. His appearance was that of a university -professor rather than a warrior. He was apparently between forty and -fifty years of age, with an intelligent and thoughtful cast of -countenance, enhanced by a pair of horn spectacles over which he looked -searchingly when Jack was introduced to him. Ah Lum was, in fact, a man -of considerable education and even learning. He had taken the highest -honours in the examinations for the successive degrees of Cultivated -Talent, Uplifted Literary Man, and Exalted Bookworm; and the poems he -composed when competing for a place in the Board of Civil Office were -acknowledged as superior to anything recently written in the Mandarin -language. But his success on this occasion awoke a bitter jealousy in -the breast of a "same-year-man" who had kept pace with him throughout -his career until this last promotion. The disappointed candidate -adopted a characteristically Chinese mode of wreaking vengeance. He -committed suicide on Ah Lum's door-step. According to Chinese belief Ah -Lum would not only be haunted ever after by his rival's spirit, but -would also have to clear himself before the mandarin's court of a charge -of murder. Unluckily the mandarin was an enemy of Ah Lum; his price for -a favourable judgment was more than the Exalted Bookworm could offer; -and the latter, seeing that his condemnation was certain, discreetly -vacated his desk at the Board of Civil Office and betook himself to the -mountains. - -Jack only learnt all this gradually. His first impression of Ah Lum as -a spectacled, courteous, polished savant left him wondering how such a -man had succeeded in imposing his authority on the hard-living, -hard-faring, reckless set of outlaws who composed his band. That he had -some personal force of character was a foregone conclusion, for his -position could depend on nothing else. He received Jack very kindly, -and, having Heard his story from Wang Shih, promised to do all he could -to help him. - -"Mr. Wang," he said, bowing to his lieutenant, "does me the honour to be -my friend. Has he not rendered me great services? Surely it becomes me -to serve his friends when my insignificant capabilities permit. -Meanwhile deign, sir, to regard all our contemptible possessions as your -own, and excuse our numberless shortcomings. Where good-will is the -cook, the dish is already seasoned." - -He paused, as though expecting a comment on the proverb. - -"Quite so," said Jack, feeling that he ought to say something. - -The chief proceeded at once to warn him of the danger of pursuing -further his attempt to enter Moukden in disguise. If he tried to pass -as a Canton man he might at any moment meet a real Cantonese, as had -already happened to his cost; and, besides, the Cantonese were not loved -in Manchuria. As a Manchu, on the other hand, he would be apt to betray -himself in endless little ways. However, if he were bent on it, Ah Lum -would do what he could to secure him good treatment. Meanwhile, after -what he had gone through, a few days' rest in camp would do him no harm. - -"Haste is the parent of delay," he said; "whereas if one has a mind to -beat a stone, the stone will in due time have a hole in it." - -Again he paused, like an actor waiting for the gallery's applause to his -tag. - -"A very sound maxim," said Jack, thinking it well to humour this -singular moralist. - -The chief concluded with an offer of hospitality so cordial, that Jack, -anxious as he was to pursue his mission, could not well decline it. - -Wang Shih, Jack found, was third in command. His enormous strength, -allied to a bull-dog courage, had enabled him to force his way to the -front in a community where those qualities were esteemed above all -others. That they were not the only titles to respect was proved by the -position of the chief; and the longer Jack stayed in the camp the more -he was impressed by the ease and firmness with which Ah Lum swayed his -band. - -The chief had a son, a boy of twelve, who from the first took a great -liking to Jack. Ah Fu was a bright boy, vivacious for a Chinese; and Ah -Lum loved him with even more than the usual Chinaman's devotion. He -doted on the child. He never tired of talking about him to Jack. - -"If," he said, "a man has much money, but no child, he cannot be -reckoned rich: if he has children, but no money, he cannot be reckoned -poor. And I am blessed in my son: he is dutiful, respectful, voracious -of knowledge. 'A bad son', says the Sage, 'is as a dunning creditor; but -a good son as the repayment of a long-standing debt'." - -At great pains he had kidnapped two graduates for the express purpose of -having Ah Fu carefully trained in the elements of Chinese culture. -Himself a man of education, he set the highest value on learning. -"Weeds are the only harvest of an untilled field," he would say. -"Though your sons be well disposed, yet if they be not duly instructed, -what can you expect of them but ignorance?" In addition to his daily -instruction in the philosophers and poets, the boy went through all -kinds of physical exercises--practising with the bow and the rifle, -riding a spirited little pony, learning fearless horsemanship from the -best rider in the band; and the Chunchuses rival the Cossacks in the -superb management of their steeds. Before Jack had been a day in the -camp he was requested by the chief to teach his son English. He agreed, -though he thought that in the short time he was to spend with them not -much could be done. Ah Lum was very pressing in the matter. Jack, he -was sure, had all the learning of the west (this tickled Jack; how the -fourth-form master at Sherborne would have roared!). The learning of -the east Ah Lum himself could get for the boy. In addition to the -kidnapped graduates he had his eye on an astronomer of distinction at -Kirin, and at Tieling there lived a very learned man, skilled in the -casting of horoscopes. But he had naturally few opportunities of -providing European instruction. "True doctrine cannot injure the true -scholar," he said. "An ounce of wisdom is worth a world of gold." He -was particularly anxious that Ah Fu should lack nothing in education -through his father's outlawed condition. Himself a poet, he set much -store by poetry; and having learnt from Jack that the most popular -English poet was Tennyson, he made it a special point that the boy -should from the first learn some of his poems. Jack was amused; he did -not tell the chief that poetry was not so highly esteemed in England as -in China; but happening to know a few odds and ends of Tennyson's verse, -he got Ah Fu to repeat them after him until the boy could recite them -faultlessly. Jack had his doubts whether the poems thus recited would -have been recognized by an Englishman, but that was nothing to the -point. - -After a week, when he felt his strength thoroughly recruited, Jack spoke -of continuing his journey. But Ah Lum, in his politest manner, urged -excellent reasons why he should remain a little longer. It had been -raining almost continuously since his arrival; the streams were in -flood; the rivers were not fordable. Moreover, a large body of Russian -troops was moving between the camp and Moukden; and Chinamen were being -narrowly questioned and examined under suspicion of being Japanese spies -in disguise. Day after day passed; every hint of Jack's that he wished -to be off was met by some new excuse enforced by maxims, and turned by a -question as to how Ah Fu was getting on with his poetry. At last Jack -grew uneasy and suspicious; it appeared as if Ah Lum intended to keep -him as an additional tutor, unpaid. He began to think of taking French -leave, but was restrained by several considerations: the fact that he -owed his life to the brigands; the danger lest his disappearance should -cause a quarrel between Wang Shih and the chief; the hope that he might -find the Chunchuses useful in prosecuting his search; and the risk of -recapture, for he knew that the country people would certainly give him -up to the chief if they caught him. - -He abandoned therefore the idea of flight, resolving to stay on with -what patience he could muster, and hoping to obtain his end by mild -persistence. But his courteous and repeated applications were met by -still more courteous and equally firm refusals--not direct refusals, but -regrets that on one pretext or another the "Ingoua superior man" could -not safely leave the camp. Ah Lum's stock of proverbs and maxims was -again drawn upon. "Though powerful drugs be nauseous to the taste, they -are beneficial to the stomach. So, candid advice may be unpleasant to -the ear, but it is profitable for the conduct. The carpenter makes the -cangue that he himself may be doomed to wear." - -"Exactly." - -There was a want of conviction in Jack's stereotyped reply. He was -growing tired of these eternal copy-book headings, which seemed to him -often the merest platitudes--tired of expressing the assent which his -sententious host always looked for. He asked Wang Shih to expostulate -with the chief; but when the Chinaman ventured to suggest that the young -Englishman's dutiful regard for his father ought to be respected and his -errand furthered, he got a good snubbing for his pains. - -"It is easy to convince a wise man," said Ah Lum with a snap; "but to -reason with fools, that is a difficult undertaking. You cannot turn a -somersault in an oyster-shell." - -Greatly daring, Wang Shih cited a maxim very pertinent, he thought, to -the case. - -"True, honourable sir; but is it not written: 'Of a hundred virtues, -filial piety is the best'?" - -"No doubt," retorted Ah Lum, still more snappishly. "But remember that -if a man has good desires, heaven will assuredly grant them." - -And Jack had to kick his heels, and drum poetry into Ah Fu, thinking -disrespectfully of proverbial philosophy. - -Thus three weeks passed. During this period the band grew steadily -stronger. Jack reckoned that it now numbered at least eleven hundred. -The rains having ceased, the camp was moved some twenty miles to the -north-west, not in a direct line to Moukden, but nearer to that city. To -Jack this was a crumb of comfort; but there were disadvantages in the -change, for with the finer weather and the removal to somewhat lower -ground, the midges and mosquitoes became more lively and troublesome, -and he spent many a hot hour of pain and smart. - -Another fortnight went by. The Chunchuses had been inactive so far as -brigandage was concerned, and, except that they did no work, they might -have been nothing but a peaceful mountain tribe. But one day a -deputation came to the chief from a village lying in the midst of a -woody and well-cultivated valley a few miles from the camp. They -announced that their plantations of young bamboos were being devastated -by a herd of wild boars with which they were unable to cope, and they -had been deputed to beg the Chunchuse chief to come to their assistance. -Ah Lum was never unwilling to please the country people when he saw a -chance of gaining a substantial advantage. "Let no man," he would say, -"despise the snake that has no horns, for who can say that it may not -become a dragon?" Food was running short, and but for the deputation it -was probable that some fine night the village would have been raided and -plundered. But the request for assistance opened the way for a deal; Ah -Lum consented to organize a battue in return for a large supply of food -and fodder; and after half a day had been spent in haggling, the -deputation returned, promising to send in the quantity first demanded. - -The chief was exceedingly pleased. - -"Do not rashly provoke quarrels, but let concord and good understanding -prevail among neighbours. Seeing an opportunity to make a bargain, one -should think of righteousness." - -Jack welcomed the impending hunt as a pleasant change, and appeared to -gratify the chief when he asked to be allowed to join in it. As a -diversion from the sugared sweetness of Tennyson, he bethought himself -to teach Ah Fu Fielding's fine song "A-hunting we will go"; and when the -boy learnt the meaning of the words, he was all afire to share in the -chase. Ah Lum was pleased with his spirit; but being unwilling that his -only son should run any risk, he at first declined his request. The boy -persisted, pointing out that he was already a good shot, and asking what -was the good of his learning poems of hunting if he was not allowed to -express in action the ardour thus fostered. This argument appealed to -the chief's sense of the fitness of things; he would have agreed with -Socrates that action was the end of heroic poetry; he yielded, -stipulating, however, that throughout the hunt the boy should remain at -his side. - -Jack soon found that the hunt was not to be conducted on the lines of -pig-sticking in India. He remembered the vivid account of such an -adventure given him by a Behar planter whom he had once met on board a -steamer between Shanghai and Newchang. Nor were the animals to be -caught in artfully-contrived pits, as is the custom in Manchuria. The -chief was ignorant of the Indian method, and was possessed of too strong -a sporting instinct to be content with the work of a trapper; it was to -be a real hunt, as he understood it. The cover in which the boars were -known to lurk was about a square mile in extent. Ah Lum intended to take -advantage of the large force at his disposal and arrange for beaters to -drive the animals to a comparatively open space, at the end of which he -and a select few would take up their positions and shoot down the boars -as they emerged from cover. This seemed likely to be a safe way of -effecting the desired object; and though not sport in the British sense, -it would at any rate make some demand on their nerve and their -marksmanship. - -The important day came. On a bright fresh morning, soon after the sun -had gilded the hilltops, when the air was clear and a cool breeze -tempered the summer heat, Ah Lum, accompanied by seven of his best -marksmen and by Ah Fu and Jack, rode down to skirt the base of the hill -and gain the northern side of the clearing to which the boars were to be -driven. Jack had been provided with a rifle and a long knife; his pupil -rode at his side, armed with a carbine; and very proudly the boy bore -himself. At the foot of the hill the party were met by some of the -villagers, come to guide them to their destination. When they reached -the spot they found that the clearing was about a furlong across, with -thin plantations behind them and on either side, and in front a mass of -dense, almost impenetrable scrub interspersed with trees. - -The party of ten took up their position in line facing the scrub, -standing a few feet apart; Ah Lum was in the centre, with the boy on his -left, and Jack one place farther in the same direction. Jack felt that -if the Manchurian boar was anything like the Indian specimen of which -his planter friend had told him, the party might have a lively time -should two or three of the beasts break cover at the same moment, -especially if they should charge down through the plantations on left -and right. The Chunchuses, however, were evidently secure in their -numbers and the stopping power of their military rifles. - -The beaters, nearly a thousand strong, had been sent to their allotted -positions earlier in the morning. They formed a rough semicircle more -than two miles in length. When all was ready, the chief sent a horseman -to the farthest point with orders to begin the beat. The clang of a -gong soon rang out in the still morning air; immediately the sound was -taken up all along the arc; drums, gongs, rattles, shrill yells combined -to form a pandemonium of noise. Flocks of birds clattered out of the -tree-tops and flew in consternation over the country; hares and rabbits -darted out of the underwood as the beaters closed in; a fox or two, even -a wolf, came padding out, stopped at the edge, gave a glance at the line -of men, and disappeared on either side. All these passed unmolested; -the ten stood in silent expectation, ready to bring their weapons to the -shoulder. - -Suddenly from the centre of the scrub pounded with lowered tusks a large -boar. He had advanced some yards into the open before he was aware of -the ten human figures ranged opposite to him. Then, swerving heavily to -the left, he trotted towards the plantation. At the same moment two -shots rang out as one; the chief and his son had fired together, the -others waiting in courtesy. Ah Lum, for all his spectacles, his poetry, -and his sentences, was an excellent shot; the boar fell within a yard of -the trees; the chief's bullet had penetrated his brain. - -Hardly had the smoke cleared away when two other boars appeared at -different parts of the scrub. Eight rifles flashed; the boar to the -right fell; but the other, unhurt, instead of making towards safety in -the plantation, dashed straight across the open. As by a miracle it -survived a volley from the whole party of ten, and had come within -twenty yards of them before it was struck mortally and rolled over. The -hunters, their attention fixed on the gallant beast that had just -succumbed, did not notice that he was followed at a few yards by a huge -tusker, the glare of whose red eyes sent a thrill through one at least -of the party. Dashing at headlong speed through the plantation almost -in a line with the hunters, the boar came on unswervingly, heedless of a -scattering fire. The hunters impeded each other; Ah Lum and the men on -his right could hardly fire as they stood without hitting their -companions. There was a moment's hesitation; then the chief, with a cry -to his boy to run, stepped calmly to the front, preparing to fire at a -range of only a few yards. But one of his men on the left, in a nervous -anxiety born of the emergency, rushed forward, and, stumbling against -his leader, spoilt his aim. The shot flew wide. The unfortunate man -paid dearly for his clumsiness. In another moment the boar was among the -party, making frantic rushes, ripping and tearing with his formidable -tusks, his bloodshot eyes glaring with the concentrated fury which only -a wounded boar can express. Several shots were fired, but the beast's -movements were so rapid that they either missed him, or, hitting him at -a non-fatal spot, served only still further to infuriate him. The -inexperienced hunters, indeed, were in greater danger than the boar from -each other's firearms. They hesitated in confusion, moving this way and -that to avoid each other; then, in a sudden panic, several of them took -to their heels and made for the shelter of the trees. - -But Ah Fu stood his ground, as though fascinated. His father and Jack -perceived at the same moment that the boar in desperate and vengeful -rage was heading straight for the boy, who held his carbine at the -slant, looking on as at some fearful thrilling spectacle. Ah Lum and -Jack, separated from the boy in their movements for securing good aim, -sprang to his assistance. But before they could reach his side the -beast was upon him. Awake to his danger, the little fellow raised his -carbine to his shoulder and fired almost point-blank; but the Russian -service bullet has no stopping power to check a wild boar in full -career; the boy was toppled over, receiving a gash in the leg from the -mighty tusk. Then the animal wheeled in his tracks to pursue his -vengeance. Jack's rifle was empty; even if it had been loaded he could -hardly have fired without running the risk of hitting the boy. The -chief was still a few yards away, he, too, rendered helpless by the same -appalling danger. Jack saw that in an instant his little pupil, now -gamely struggling to his feet, must be gored to death. Dropping his -rifle, he drew his knife, and flung himself upon the blinded, maddened -brute, driving the weapon between its shoulders. So great was his -impetus that he stumbled full across the boar, which, intent upon its -purpose, struggled on a foot or two, staggering under the blow, but -making light of Jack's weight. Even as Jack was wondering whether his -stroke had failed, the beast uttered a long squealing grunt, fell on its -knees, then rolled over stone-dead within a few inches of Ah Fu. - -[Illustration: Jack saves Ah Fu] - -The chief caught the boy in his arms and held him in a warm embrace; the -runaway Chunchuses, no more boars being visible, came dropping back from -the plantations; and Jack, his coat covered with blood, rose panting -from the back of the victim. - - - - - *CHAPTER X* - - *The Hired Man* - - -Gratitude--On Humanity--A Broken Thread--The Hill Country--Nearing -Moukden--The Compradore--News at Last--Sowinski's Address--Burnt -Offerings--A Little Black Box--Toitshe!--Pidgin--Excellence--Herr -Schwab--Photographabbaratus - - -After the rescue of Ah Fu, Jack stood in a new relationship to Ah Lum. -The boy was the apple of the chief's eye; nothing was too good for his -deliverer. When the party reached camp after the memorable adventure, -Ah Lum paraded his whole band, and, his voice broken by unwonted -emotion, proclaimed the Englishman his friend. In all such moments of -ceremony the literary man, the university graduate, appeared through the -brigand chief. After reciting the heroic deed in the flowery language a -scholarly Chinaman always has at command, he continued: - -"Forgetfulness of a favour received is a sure sign of a bad heart. Let -me speak in a similitude. A man is on a long journey; his money is all -spent; he is destitute, far from home, without friends, and perishing -from want. To him comes a stranger whose goodness of heart leads him to -present the wanderer with a few hundred cash, thereby preserving his -life. Should he afterwards see this man, his benefactor, ought he not -to make some expression of gratitude? It is a common saying, if we -receive from others a favour like a drop of water, the return should be -as an overflowing fountain. How much more when a man snatches from -death a male child! Does not the Sage say: 'The three greatest -misfortunes in life are: in youth to bury one's father; at the middle -age to lose one's wife; and, being old, to have no son'? Heaven has -already afflicted me with the first and the second of these -tribulations; the honourable foreigner by his magnanimous courage has -spared me the last. It is a true saying, 'The brave act like tigers, -not like mice'. Some of you, to the shame of your ancestors, acted like -mice; the Ingoua leapt forth like a tiger and saved my pearl from the -snout. He is my friend; whosoever does him a service does a greater -service to me. As the Poet says: - - "'The Spring that feeds the Mountain Rill - Helps the great River to grow greater still'." - - -Making allowances for the chief's surcharged emotion, Jack felt that -there could be no longer any obstacle to his departure. Ah Lum, indeed, -was torn between two impulses. He wished to keep by his side the youth -who had shown that he could not only teach English poetry, but display -courage and readiness in a moment of danger. He wished also to show his -gratitude practically, and knew that he could do so in no more -acceptable way than by furthering Jack's search for his father. After a -night of indecision his generosity prevailed; he called Jack into his -tent, and promised, if he still wished to go, to do all that he could to -help him. But he pointed out that it would be very dangerous for him to -venture into Moukden. There were both the Chinese and the Russians to -reckon with. As for the former, he could furnish Jack with a pass which -would probably secure him from molestation; but if it were found upon -him by the Russians, it would in itself be sufficient to hang him. -Jack, however, felt that there was little chance of tracing his father -except by beginning at Moukden and working along the railway, and he -once more expressed his unalterable determination to face whatever risks -this course might involve. - -Ah Lum then settled down to a serious discussion of ways and means. He -agreed that Jack's best plan would be to try his luck again as a -Chinaman; but not this time as a Cantonese; there were too many -Cantonese about. It would be better to pass as a native of one of the -interior provinces, such as Sz-chuen. The dialect was not likely to be -known to anyone in Moukden, so that the matter of speech would not be a -difficulty. He might be supposed to have come down the Yang-tse-kiang -on river boats, and to have drifted to Manchuria with an Ingoua; the -Ingoua, as every Chinaman knew, were great travellers; this would -explain his knowledge of pidgin English. - -The chief spoke with great simplicity and earnestness; evidently he was -sincerely anxious on Jack's behalf. It was only at the end of the -conversation that he reverted to his academic manner. - -"Prudence," he reminded Jack, "is what is most necessary to be -cultivated by the young. Your path will be beset with perils; a chance -word may be your undoing. When you converse in the road, remember there -are men in the grass. For myself, I am old enough to be your father; -this and my affection must be my excuse for offering words of advice. -What says the proverb? 'In a melon-patch, do not stoop down to arrange -your shoes; under a plum-tree, do not lift your hand to adjust your -cap.'" - -Jack knew from experience that, being fairly mounted on his hobby, the -chief could not easily be stopped, and settled himself to listen in -patience. - -"There are three things mainly to strive for: filial piety, that is the -most important; integrity; and humanity. Let us take the last first. -Humanity is among the greatest of the virtues. If a man wish to attain -the excellence of superior beings, let him cultivate the attributes of -humanity. They include benevolence, charity, clemency----" - -At this moment a voice was heard at the entrance: "The august decree is -fulfilled." - -The curtain was parted, and there entered the chief's second in command, -a big ferocious-looking fellow, holding up to Jack's horrified gaze two -ghastly blood-stained human heads. Ah Lum looked at the hideous objects -with unmoved countenance. - -"That is well," he said. "Affix them on poles, and set them in the -centre of the camp, with this scroll in large characters from the poet -P'an T'ang-she'n: - - "'Virtue is best; hold Knavery in dread; - A Thief gains nothing if he lose his Head.'" - - -The incident interrupted the chief's homily before his first heading was -developed. The flow of his ideas seemed broken, for on the departure of -his lieutenant he turned the conversation into another channel. - -Jack afterwards learnt that the unfortunate wretches decapitated were -two members of the band who had stolen fowls from a farmer. Since -robbery was a principal reason of the Chunchuses' existence, Jack was -amazed at such an offence meeting with so terrible a punishment, until -he heard that the farmer thus robbed had purchased immunity from Ah Lum -by a gift of fodder, and the chief was inexorably merciless to any who -were guilty, or who made him appear guilty, of a breach of faith. Jack -was now convinced, if he had not been before, that Ah Lum was no mere -spectacled pedant. - -One fine morning Jack set off on his long journey to Moukden. His -appearance was indistinguishable from that of a well-to-do Manchu. -Every detail of his costume was correct, from the round black hat and -glossy pigtail to the cloth boots with white felt soles. He was mounted -on a good pony, and accompanied by a trusty Chunchuse. Ah Fu shed tears -at parting; Ah Lum and Wang Shih were undisguisedly sorry to lose him, -and the former indeed declared his willingness at any time to welcome -him back, and even to give him a command in his band. Jack thanked him -warmly, pressed his closed fists to his breast in Chinese salutation, -and rode away. - -It was nearly a thousand li--more than 300 miles--from the camp to -Moukden; not as the crow flies, for in that country of forest, mountain, -and river a straight course is impossible. The traveller has to proceed -by pack roads, to ford streams deep and swift, to ascend and descend -rugged forest-clad slopes; and if his journey is timed in the rainy -season he suffers inconveniences and perils without number. It was -fortunate for Jack that the rains were not so persistent and continuous -this year as is sometimes the case. He was delayed at one or two stages -of his journey by thunder-storms and swollen rivers; but, thanks to his -guide, who knew the country perfectly, he was able to cover an average -of about twenty-five miles a day. At another time nothing would have -delighted him more than to take things easily, for he passed through -some of the most magnificent scenery in the world, a country teeming -with game of all kinds, and dotted at out-of-the-way spots with -interesting monuments. But, determined to reach Moukden as soon as -possible, he was not to be allured by the cry of pheasants or the trails -of the tiger and the deer. - -Furthermore, unequipped for such travelling as attracts the -globe-trotter, he found the inevitable discomforts of the route somewhat -trying to his patience. On fine days he was plagued for hours at a time -by myriads of midges, which swarmed about his head, biting with fiendish -ferocity. But his own sufferings were slight in comparison with his -pony's. From sunrise to sunset huge gadflies infested the poor animal, -settling upon its tough hide, and piercing it till the beast was -streaming with blood. Jack spent the greater part of the day in -smashing the terrible insects with his whip, slaying hundreds and still -leaving hundreds unslain. The nights also were times of torment. -Putting up at some inn, he had to pass the hours in a crowded room, -sealed up to prevent the ingress of midges, filled with smoke and the -sickening odours of stewed pork and rancid vegetables. He slept on the -k'ang, sometimes wedged in among a crowd of natives by no means too -clean, never knowing but that he might have the dangerous company of an -adder before the morning. He had to put up with such food as the inn -afforded, mostly Chinese pork and salted eggs, with an occasional bonne -bouche in the way of a trout when there happened to be Korean fishermen -in the neighbourhood. But night by night he rejoiced in the completion -of another good stage of his journey; and, thanks to his prudence and -the clever management of his guide, he aroused no suspicions, and was -accepted as a native, morose and uncompanionable indeed, but excused as -being a wanderer from a distant province. - -At length, on the fourteenth day after leaving the Chunchuse camp, the -two travellers reached a village some twelve miles from Moukden. They -were squatting at dinner in an inn when a detachment of Cossacks rode -up, in the course of a foraging expedition. Jack felt a little anxious -as they entered, but to them he was a mere Chinaman like the rest; he -escaped notice, yet was relieved when they rode off in the direction of -Moukden. When they were well on their way he suggested to his guide -that it would be good policy to follow hard on their heels; entering the -city in their wake he might hope to pass without attracting special -attention. - -It was late in the day, near the time for the closing of the gates, when -the Cossacks approached the city. To Jack's disappointment, instead of -entering they rode off to the north-west, in the direction of the -railway. He thought it advisable to put up in a little hamlet some two -miles from the walls and wait till morning. There was sure to be a -considerable crowd of country people awaiting the opening of the gates, -and in the crush he was likely to pass unrecognized. Early in the -morning, therefore, he took leave of the Chunchuse and turned his pony's -head towards Moukden. Though outwardly calm, he had many an inward -tremor as he joined the crowd of people--labourers, farmers with carts -loaded with beans, drovers with black pigs, women with fowls and geese -slung round their necks--a miscellaneous throng, all too intent on their -business, however, to give more than a passing glance to a rider hardly -distinguishable from themselves. - -The gates were thrown open, and Jack passed through with the rest, -feeling tolerably secure now that he was at last within the walls. -Turning off from the main road, he made his way by narrow and tortuous -alleys to the street where the compradore lived in his cottage at the -foot of Mr. Brown's garden. The man was smoking at the door, and his -son Hi Lo was playing at knuckle-stones on the ground near him. Jack -reined up and dismounted, saying nothing at first in order to test the -efficacy of his disguise. The compradore looked up, but did not -recognize him. The boy was quicker. At the first glance he jumped up, -ran to his father, and whispered in his ear. The man started, kowtowed, -then, looking hurriedly and anxiously around and up and down the street, -invited Jack to enter. When the door was shut he expressed his delight -at seeing his young master once more. He had heard from his brother at -Harbin of the successful stratagem by which Jack had managed to start -for Vladivostok, but, knowing what risks the journey involved, he had -ever since been fearful lest some harm should have befallen him. - -"I have had some narrow escapes," said Jack, "but here I am, you see, -safe and sound. I'll tell you all about it by and by; but first tell -me, Mr. Hi, have you discovered anything about my father?" - -The compradore's face fell as he related the result of his enquiries. A -Chinaman once in Mr. Brown's employment had been working at the -railway-station at Shuang-miao-tzue, about half-way between Moukden and -Harbin, when, on a siding in an open truck, among a crowd of malefactors -in chains, he had been amazed to recognize his former master. The truck -had remained there for two days; the man had tried to get speech with -Mr. Brown, but in vain. By questioning and comparing notes Jack came to -the conclusion that this was the very truck he had seen from the window -of the train on his way to Harbin. His blood boiled at the recollection -of the miserable wretches and the thought that his father was among -them; he felt an insane desire to rush off at once and confront General -Bekovitch with the discovery; but he knew how fatal such a step would -be; and after an explosion of wrath which he could not control, and at -which Hi An looked on with every mark of sympathy, he regained his -composure, and, recognizing that there was no hope save in patience, -settled down to discuss his future course of action. He knew full well -that an unlucky accident might at any time put an end to his quest and -perhaps his life, and resolved that so far as in him lay he would not -fail through lack of caution. - -After the first moment of relief and happiness at seeing Jack again, the -compradore showed himself seriously concerned for his young master's -safety. If he were detected by the Russians he ran the risk of being -shot as a spy. His disguise was perfect; Moukden was probably the last -place where his enemies would expect to find him; but while the Russians -were in possession there would always be found Chinamen ready to curry -favour with them, and earn a little cash. After some discussion it was -arranged that the compradore should give out that Jack was a distant -relative from Sz-chuen, and Hi An himself suggested that he should feign -illness for a time until his future movements could be carefully thought -out. - -"I shall want a name," said Jack with a smile. "What can you call me?" - -"Sin Foo, master. I had a nephew of that name; he is dead, poor boy; it -is a good name." - -"Very well. Now we must make further enquiries along the line to see -what has become of that truck. I have plenty of money; the flour we -expected came safely to Vladivostok, and I sold it. You have friends -you can employ?" - -"Yes. But it will take a long time." - -"Of course. I wish I could go up the line myself. Is it impossible?" - -"You must not think of it, master. If it were known that questions were -being asked about an Englishman arrested by the Russians, suspicion -would be awakened, and what could you say if you were caught? No, leave -it to my countrymen; they will know exactly how to enquire, without -seeming too curious. As for you, it is best to remain in Moukden, and -wait until we get more news." - -"I'm afraid you are right. Well, let it be so for the present. Tell -me, is Sowinski in the city?" - -"Yes, he is living in your father's house." - -At that Jack fired up again. Red with anger he strode up and down the -room, itching to do something, yet feeling all the time his -helplessness. Then he checked himself with a laugh. - -"I'll never do for a Chinaman," he said, "if I show temper so easily. -You must teach me to fix my face, Mr. Hi." - -"Yes, master," said the compradore seriously. "I will buy a little -image of Buddha, and put it in a corner of the room. If you look at it -for two hours every day your face will be as calm as a still pool." - -The compradore's house was very small, and before a week was out Jack -was terribly sick of being cooped up in it from morning till night. -Only after dark, when the quarter was quiet--and that was at a very late -hour, for when Chinamen start playing fan-tan it becomes a trial of -endurance--only then did the compradore think it safe for his guest to -issue forth for a breath of air. The proximity of Sowinski was itself a -danger. Moreover, his acquaintances, among them Sowinski's Chinese -servants, were becoming curious. It was impossible to harbour a -stranger long in secret; for a couple of days the story of a sick cousin -passed muster, but the compradore had omitted to state the nature of the -illness, and his friends began to enquire whether they might not be -allowed to see the sick man and join Hi An himself in the charms and -exorcisms proper to cure him. Thus pushed into a corner, the worthy man -drank in their sight the ashes of burnt yellow paper, and whispered that -he feared his relative was sickening for a fever; it would not be safe -to admit visitors. He was about to sacrifice to the divinities on the -sick man's behalf; and, taking his courage in both hands, he invited a -number of his friends to accompany him. - -Jack rolled with laughter when he afterwards learnt what had happened. -His amusement was all the greater because the compradore was so -obviously ill at ease lest he should have incurred the displeasure of -the divinities by sacrificing for a man who was not ill. Professing to -be not quite sure of the disease, he had gone first to the roadside -shrine of his Excellency the Small-Pox and burnt incense there; then to -the Honourable Divinity the Plague; finally, to make short work of it -and cover all imaginable complaints, he had proceeded to the deity known -as Mr. Imperfect-In-Every-Part-Of-His-Body, a hideous idol with sore -eyes, hare-lip, and ulcerated legs. Convinced now that the travelled -relative must be in a desperately bad state, the inquisitive neighbours -gave a wide berth to Hi An, and no longer desired to cross his -threshold. - -But when a week had passed, Jack, finding his inactivity intolerable, -came to the conclusion that it would really be safer if he moved about a -little. The neighbourhood would expect to be invited either to his -funeral or to a feast in celebration of his recovery, and the talk that -would ensue when neither event happened might develop danger both for -himself and for his host. One evening the compradore, on returning -home, chanced to mention that during the day he had been asked by a -foreign war-correspondent if he could recommend a servant. The stranger -already had a capable mafoo, or groom, but this man had absolutely -refused to carry or have anything to do with a little black box on which -his master set great store, and the foreigner had met with the same -refusal from every native to whom he applied. Hi An himself was -somewhat amused at the situation. Having served Mr. Brown for so many -years, and in so many different places, including the southern treaty -ports, he was well aware that the black box was a harmless photographic -camera: had not Master Jack himself possessed one in Shanghai? But the -Moukden natives, not yet accustomed to the kodak of the globe-trotter, -were convinced that the mysterious box was choke-full of little black -devils impatiently waiting for any confiding Chinaman simple enough to -be lured within their influence. The correspondent, being somewhat -stout and far from active, was loth to carry the camera himself, and had -almost resigned himself to the dead-lock. - -"Poor fellow!" said Jack, laughing. "How did you come across him, Mr. -Hi?" - -The compradore explained that the correspondent appeared to be a -business connection of Mr. Brown's, for he had tried to find the -merchant when he arrived in Moukden some weeks before, and was greatly -disappointed and distressed when he learnt what had happened. - -"How should I suit?" said Jack, as an idea struck him. - -"Ch'hoy!" exclaimed the compradore. "Master a servant?" - -"Why not? I should be able to move about then; as the servant of a -European I should run less risk of being suspected either by Russians or -Chinese than if I were a masterless man; and I might--the chance is -small, but still it is a chance--I might come upon some trace of my -father if attached to a foreign correspondent, whose duties will surely -take him from place to place." - -"But, master, a servant! And to a foreigner; not even a Yinkelis or a -Melican man, but a Toitsche! Ch'hoy!" - -There was a world of contempt in the Chinaman's tone. To the average -Chinaman all "foreign devils" are alike; only those whose business -brings them into relations with Europeans recognize degrees. - -"I know you don't like the Germans; but what does it matter, Mr. Hi? A -German is less likely to see through my disguise than an Englishman. -Besides, of a hundred virtues, filial piety is the best. You know the -maxim?" - -The compradore scratched his head. He found these ideas difficult to -reconcile. But after some further talk he yielded, and promised to go -to the correspondent early next morning and offer the services of Sin -Foo, a young man whose honesty and industry he could guarantee. - -A little before noon next day he returned. The correspondent was -delighted with the prospect of engaging a suitable man, but must see the -candidate first. He was living with a number of other correspondents at -the Green Dragon Hotel, and wished to see Sin Foo at once. - -"Is Monsieur Brin there?" asked Jack instantly. - -"No, master. He went to Harbin a week ago. He was very sad." - -"Lucky for me! Then we'll go at once, Mr. Hi." - -The neighbours had already been prepared to see Hi An's relative -out-of-doors at last; the application to Mr. -Imperfect-In-Every-Part-Of-His-Body had been abundantly successful. -Most of them were engaged in their usual occupations at that time of -day, and Jack attracted little notice as he walked through the streets -at Hi An's side. At the hotel he was presented to a short, corpulent -German, wearing gold spectacles and a battered wide-awake, and smoking a -huge pipe. - -"He belongey Sin Foo," said Hi An. - -Jack made the kowtow in the most approved style. The German looked him -up and down. - -"So!" he said. "You been servant before?" - -"Suttingly," replied Jack, remembering his fagging days at school. - -"So! You strong?" - -"My plenty stlong, masta!" - -"Not afraid of little box?" - -"No fea'! My cally littee box this-side, that-side, allo-side, -all-same." - -"Goot! You are shust ze man I seek. Now to fix ze so imbortant -business of vages. Business are business. Vat you say to ten yen--ach! -I zink still I am in Japan: vat say you to ten dollar per mensem--ze -monce?" - -"Allo-lightee--" began Jack, but the compradore interposed. - -"Ch'hoy! Ten piecee dollar! Ph'ho! My hab catchee Sin Foo--one piecee -first-chop man; he numpa one boy; my fetchee he this-side; no can makee -pidgin so-fashion for littee bittee cash. Sin Foo, come wailo -chop-chop; folin genelum no savvy pidgin China-side fashion." - -The compradore's intervention showed Jack that he must needs exercise -every care if he was to play his part properly. To have accepted the -German's first offer without bargaining would have betrayed him to any -travelled man. After an hour's discussion an arrangement was concluded -between the stranger and Hi An. Sin Foo was to have nothing else to do -but to take charge of the photographic apparatus. The terms agreed upon -were so high that the German declared that he must dismiss his mafoo and -engage a cheaper man. Whereupon the compradore suggested Hi Lo to fill -the place, and Jack regarded the opportunity as almost a special -providence, for he had been dreading the discomforts and dangers that -might arise from enforced companionship with a Chinese mafoo. With Hi -Lo for a fellow-servant, however, he need fear neither danger nor -discomfort, and he was pleased when the German accepted the boy, but at -ridiculously low wages. - -Jack was to enter upon his duties at once. As soon as the compradore -had gone to fetch Hi Lo, the German took the opportunity to explain who -and what he was. - -"I cannot shpeak your bidgin talk," he said. "You understan' blain -English, boy?" - -"My savvy littee bit Yinkelis; my tly understan' masta--he talkee -Yinkelis first-chop." - -"Ver' vell. Now you call me Excellenz; you can say zat?" - -"No, not a bit of it." - -The phrase slipped out before Jack could check it. Luckily the German -was not aware of the _lapsus linguae_. - -"Zat is not bolite English; you should say, 'No, sir, I am sorry, or I -regret, zat I cannot say Excellenz.' Vell, can you call me 'mein -Herr-r-r'?" - -"He no belongey lightee China-side. My no can talkee so-fashion. China -boy tly; he say 'mine hell'." - -"Ach!" grunted the German. "Zat vill nefer do, not at all. But I -cannot vaste ze time to egsblain. You must zen call me--master. Ver' -vell. Now, my name is Schwab--Hildebrand Schwab." Jack suddenly -remembered the letter his father had shown him on the day before the -arrest; this, then, was the representative of Schlagintwert & Co. and -correspondent of the _Illustrirte Vaterland und Colonien_. "And -remember zis," continued Schwab. "If you meet any man vat vant -Birmingham screw, Manchester soft goots, Viltshire bacon, or hair-oil, -superfine, you vill let me know at vunce--at vunce. Ven ze var is ofer -I shall do goot business in all zose zinks--ja, and many more. It is -only in var zat I am gorresbondent; in beace I rebresent ze solid firma -Schlagintwert Gombany of Duesseldorf. You understan'?" - -"Allo lightee, Herr." - -"Ver' goot, ver' goot inteed. You say it not so bad. Now I tell you -ozer zink. I haf come at great egsbense from San Francisco to take -photographs of ze scenes of var. I am already some veeks here, vaiting, -vaiting, for bermission to go to ze front. You understan'? At last it -come. I haf it now in my pockett. How do I get it? Ach! it vas qvite -simble. Ven I am tired of vaiting, I go to Herr Oberst Pesteech, -bresscensor, and I say: 'Your servant, noble sir; Hildebrand Schwab. -Entweder you give me ze bermission to see zis var business, or I vire to -our Kaiser who is in Berlin. At Berlin, and viz ze Kaiser, business are -business.' Zat is ze vay I shpeak. So I return to my hotel: siehe da! -ze bermission is already zere. Zat vere business. Ver' vell. Now I -tell you vat ve do. To-morrow ve go to ze front, vere ze var is. You -vill haf ze camera; you vill assist me to make my photographs. I vill -learn you how. And give notice, boy, zat I am not bermitted to -photograph ze bositions of ze Russian army; nor Russian troops on ze -march; nor Russian troops in action, egzept I get anozer bermission from -ze Russian general. Vat is zat for a kind of bermission I do not say. -Zerefore you vill take photographs ven I tell you, and no ozer time. -You understan'?" - -"Savvy allo masta talkee; my tinkey velly nice." - -"So; come zen viz me; I vill learn you ze--ze--ze control of ze -photographabbaratus." - - - - - *CHAPTER XI* - - *War-Look-See* - - -Schwab is Shocked--Snapshots--The Coming Battle--To Liao-yang--Schwab's -Opportunity--Carpe Diem--Suobensius--Shimose--Last -Wishes--Stackelberg--Something Accomplished--Rhapsody--Two-Piece Pony - - -That night Jack shared a tiny room with Hi Lo. The boy had become -accustomed to see his master in Chinese dress, but the situation was -entirely changed now that he had to regard him as an equal and address -him as Sin Foo. Jack impressed on the little fellow that everything -depended on his caution--Jack's own safety, and the prosecution of his -quest; and Hi Lo showed a quite painful anxiety to behave with -discretion and yet with naturalness. - -Next day Schwab spent several hours in explaining to Jack, not too -lucidly, the working of the camera; the development of the negatives he -reserved for himself. Then he prepared to sally forth to make a few -experiments. An American correspondent, standing with his hands in his -pockets at the door of the little Chinese hotel, observed Jack as he -passed. - -"Hello, Schwab!" he shouted. "Caught a Tartar at last, eh?" - -"Yes, Mr. Vanzant--if zat is not a shoke. Zis man is not afraid--he gif -sign of modicum of intelligence; I zink he vill do." - -"I guess he will do for your camera; well, so long!" - -Walking out of the city, Schwab set Jack to take photographs of a few -prominent objects--the Temple of Earth beyond the eastern gate, the Tomb -of Wen-Hsiang, the statesman who rose from being a table-boy to the -highest official appointments, Dr. Christie's Hospital, where the little -Scots doctor had dispensed the blessings of Western surgery and medicine -to thousands of grateful patients. Schwab was delighted with Sin Foo's -rapid progress; it amazed him. - -"Truly I zink ze Manchu is not such a fool as he look," he said. - -"My plenty muchee glad masta likee Sin Fool," said Jack gravely. - -"Ach! You do so vell zat to-morrow ve go to take var pictures. Zere -vill soon be a great battle; ze Russians shall at last do goot -business." - -In the afternoon they went up to the railway-station to see if seats -could be booked in next morning's train, Jack carrying the camera in -case anything of interest should offer. The station was crowded. For -many days troops had been passing towards the south; the platform was -now thronged with soldiers, surgeons, nurses, camp-followers. Schwab -was amazed, his German sense of discipline was shocked, to see colonels -walking arm in arm with lieutenants; still more when he noticed a -placard stuck up in the buffet, signed by General Sakharoff, threatening -with dire punishment any officer who should presume to criticise his -superiors or their conduct of the operations. He was disgusted also to -observe, in a siding, a superb dining-room car in which a company of -officers and ladies were eating and drinking with a light-hearted gaiety -that ill matched the occasion, if the rumours of the stupendous battle -approaching were well founded. - -"You, Sin Foo," said Schwab, "I tell you zis; zat is not var. Zat is -not ze vay ve Gairmans shall behave ourselves ven ve go to invade -England; zen you vill see var zat _is_ var. You understan'?" - -Seeing little probability of obtaining a seat in the train, Schwab -decided to return to the hotel and journey south on ponies. - -As they left the station a number of Russian soldiers who had just -marched in were lying dead-beat in a sort of trench parallel with a -siding. A troop train was being slowly made up, doubtless to convey -these and other men southward to the front. Schwab stood contemplating -them for a moment. Then he turned to Jack. - -"Boy, upfix ze camera; ve vill take schnapshot of zese men." - -"Allo lightee, masta," replied Jack, wondering at the German's choice of -a subject. He was to be enlightened on that point later. - -It was late in the day by the time they reached the city. Passing along -the principal street, they saw a crowd of natives hurrying down a side -alley uttering piercing shouts. Jack noticed that two or three of them -had buckets suspended from the ends of a long bamboo pole carried on the -shoulder. - -"My tinkey house hab catchee fia." - -"A gonflagration in Moukden! Zat vill be ver' interesting to ze -abonnenten of my baber. Ve vill take it on ze hop." - -Schwab led the way, his tall bulky form making a path through the crowd. -A pawn-shop was ablaze. The roof had already fallen in. Siberian -infantrymen were trying to keep order in the crowd--hundreds of Chinamen -yelling, jostling each other, going hither and thither with their -buckets, splashing through the mud. Many of them were laughing -uproariously; to the Chinaman a fire is purely a spectacle, to be -enjoyed without any disturbing sympathy for the victims, whose efforts -to save themselves and their goods are greeted as the most enjoyable -farce. Some of the crowd were waving bright-coloured flags; in the -glare from the burning house it was like a scene from a country fair. -Here and there Chinamen were squirting feeble and futile jets of water -on the house from tiny copper pumps, like the syringes used at home for -watering flowers. An old mandarin in yellow silk forced his way through -the press, paying no heed to the fire, anxious only to get home without -soiling his white socks. But the throng was becoming unwieldy; there -was danger of the whole quarter being set ablaze; and at last a Russian -captain came up with a squad of men at the request of the Chinese -Viceroy himself, and set about clearing the street in a business-like -way. For a few minutes the confusion seemed redoubled; the Chinamen -scampered this way and that as the Russians came at the double along the -street. This moment was seized by Schwab, who evidently had a keen eye -for a tableau. At his bidding Jack took a snap-shot of the strange -scene--a scene that would have been appropriate to the stage of a comic -opera. Then he returned with his employer to the Green Dragon. The -correspondents there--French, Italian, English, and American--were in -the bustle of preparation for moving out next day to Liao-yang, where a -big battle was expected to take place. - -Jack, it must be confessed, was considerably excited at the prospect of -seeing something at close quarters of this terrible war, which had -brought forth so many surprises for the world. Hitherto he had seen -nothing but its fringe; and of the many contradictory rumours he had -heard he was not disposed to believe too much. The Russian officers -with whom he had talked were divided into two classes: the partisans of -Alexeieff and those of Kuropatkin. The majority pinned their faith to -Kuropatkin. If he had been left alone, they said, the war would have -followed an entirely different course. He would have waited patiently -at Harbin until his army had been raised to overwhelming strength; then -he would have taken the offensive and driven the Japanese into the sea. -But his strategy had been dictated either by Alexeieff or from St. -Petersburg. Worse than that, he had not been able to devote his whole -energies to the proper work of a commander-in-chief. That in itself was -a stupendous task for one man, afflicted with a poor staff. But the -general had been compelled to attend to details of commissariat, -hospital arrangements, the supply of clothes, the preparation of maps. -His was a harassing struggle against corruption, incompetence, and -drunkenness. Once, alighting at a railway-station to make an -inspection, he found the platform strewn with intoxicated officers. -With a burst of anger, unusual in a man habitually patient and calm, he -ordered the wretched men to be sent on by the first train to the front. - -What had been the course of the war since that memorable May day when -the invading army crossed the Yalu? General Kuroki's brilliant dash was -followed by several weeks of what to the outside world seemed -comparative inaction. But during that period both sides were straining -every nerve: the Russians to hurry forward reinforcements and complete -the great fortified positions along the railway; the Japanese to perfect -the arrangements for the three great armies which were, first, to cut -off Port Arthur, and then to move northwards against the main Russian -forces concentrating in the neighbourhood of Liao-yang. General -Stackelberg having failed at Wa-fang-ho in his forlorn hope against the -army investing Port Arthur, the northward movement of the Japanese was -slowly resumed, the Russian right being steadily driven back along the -railway with occasional half-hearted attempts to stem the Japanese -advance. Meanwhile General Kuroki on the east had forced the mountain -passes at Motien-ling, and General Nodzu, in command of the centre, was -preparing for the attack on the Russian position at To-ma-shan that -resulted in the evacuation of Hai-cheng. The beginning of August found -the three Japanese armies relentlessly driving the Russian forces -towards the fortified positions south of Liao-yang which General -Kuropatkin had prepared as the scene of his first serious attempt to -roll back the tide of invasion. - -It was a warm, dry morning, the 29th of August, when Schwab, Jack, and -Hi Lo, mounted on hardy ponies, hit the Green Dragon for their forty -miles ride to Liao-yang. - -Just before they reached the gate, Jack had an exceedingly uncomfortable -moment when he noticed his father's enemy Sowinski hurrying in the -opposite direction in a Pekin cart. The Pole passed without recognizing -the tall figure in Chinese dress, though he gave a nod to Schwab. Jack -knew that to the European all Chinamen look pretty much alike; but he -did not wish to come to too close quarters with the Pole, and was glad -that for a time at any rate he would run no risk of being recognized in -the streets. - -The rains had ceased some days before; the wind was beginning to dry the -mud which in the wet season renders all traffic impossible. The other -correspondents had already gone to the front, and when our riders left -the mud walls of Moukden behind them they saw nobody on the road except -a regiment of Cossacks marching off behind their band, and a number of -Greek camp-followers going south in the hope of reaping some profit from -the battle. - -As they approached Liao-yang they heard the dull boom of guns in the -distance. For several days the three Japanese armies under Generals -Kuroki, Oku, and Nodzu had been marching through mountain passes and the -valleys opening upon the Tai-tse-ho, and the Russians had been falling -back on the circular line of defences which for three months they had -been strengthening. As he heard the thunderous reverberations, Schwab -exulted. - -"So!" he exclaimed, "I haf vaited long time. At last my obbortunity haf -come. Zis are business. Ze _Illustrirte Vaterland und Colonien_ shall -haf fine bictures taken egsbress by a Gairman viz native assistance on -ze sbot. Famos!" - -Liao-yang is a walled city lying on the direct road from Moukden to -Newchang and Port Arthur, and even more picturesquely situated than the -capital. Three miles north of the city flows the Tai-tse-ho, taking a -northerly course by the north-east corner of the walls. The railway -passes at some distance to the west, making an acute angle with the -western end of the city. Southward the ground rises gradually. Here -the Russians had prepared their defences; the crests of the hills were -scored with several lines of trenches, the result of three months' -diligent spade-work. - -Schwab and his two companions, entering the city from the north, found -themselves in the midst of great bustle and activity. The streets were -thronged with soldiers; long lines of transport wagons were arriving; -and the merchants, native and foreign, were plying a brisk trade. Schwab -had some difficulty in finding a lodging; the hotel, kept by a Greek, -was full; but he at length secured a small cottage near the wall at an -exorbitant rental. It was evening when they arrived; Hi Lo prepared a -supper consisting of tinned sausages and biscuit brought from Moukden, -and pears purchased from a local fruiterer. The booming of artillery had -ceased, but the city was full of noise, and Jack was amazed at the -careless light-hearted mood in which the soldiers, officers and men, -were preparing for the struggle. - -Before seeking repose on his frowsy k'ang that night, Herr Schwab went -out to prospect for a spot on which to place his camera next day. He -returned in a state of exaltation. - -"Zere shall be colossal combat," he said. "I haf shtood on ze blatform -by ze reservoir, and zere I converse viz high Russian officer, his -gloves vite as snow. No more shall zere be evacuation, he tell me; ze -fight shall now be to ze death. Boy, ve shall see shtubendous zinks. -You are afraid?" - -[Illustration: Map of Battle of Liao-Yang, Aug-Sept. 1904. Map of Battle -of Moukden.] - -"My no aflaid this-time, masta; allo-same my tinkey no hab look-see -bobbely yet; what-time guns makee big bang-lo, that-time masta talkee -'bout Sin Foo he belongey aflaid." - -"Vell, you muss screw your gourage to ze shticky place, for vizout doubt -ve shall be in ze midst of schrapnells. It insbires me: I breeze deep. -I zink of my ancestor Hildebrand Suobensius, a great fighter, a -Landsknecht, in ze Middle Age. Vun say zat I am ver' like." - -Herr Schwab struck his chest, and continued: - -"It is in ze blood. Zerefore vake me early in ze morning; ve shall be -early out to secure a goot blace." - -But there was no need for Sin Foo to wake his master. Before day had -fully broken, Herr Schwab was shocked from his sleep by the boom of -heavy guns--the opening of a cannonade that broke the paper windows and -set the crockery rattling. Springing up, he bade Hi Lo saddle the two -ponies, and, stuffing some biscuits into his pocket, set off with Jack -and the camera, leaving Hi Lo to guard the house. - -He led the way to the north-west of the town, past the reservoir and the -brick-built government offices near the railway-station, which was -already crowded with officers scanning the horizon through their -binoculars. On the previous night he had marked a solitary hill, known -as the Shu-shan, some distance south-west of the city, as an ideal place -for a general view of the battle-field. An old Korean signal-tower -crowned its summit; it was approached on two sides by easy slopes, but -on the north was precipitous, its rocky face cut by ravines dark with -overhanging clumps of firs. At the western base a battery of artillery -was posted. - -Arriving at the hill, Schwab saw that it was impossible to ride up its -northern face, while to ascend on either side would be to court death -from the Japanese shells. But in his zeal on behalf of the _Illustrirte -Vaterland_ he was determined to gain the summit. Hitching the pony's -reins to a tree, he bade Jack follow him up the steep acclivity nearer -the road, warning him to be very careful of the camera. After a stiff -climb they, panting, reached the top. Just as they appeared there was a -prolonged whistle followed by a sharp crack; the new-comers were -assailed with loud shouts; several hands seized upon Schwab and forced -him into a trench cut in front of the tower, and rough Russian voices -informed the puffing German that he had narrowly escaped a shrapnel. He -did not understand what they said; but Jack, who had slipped into the -trench behind him, whispered: - -"My tinkey this plenty nasty place. Japanese he shoot too stlaight." - -Herr Schwab mopped his face with a red bandanna and glanced somewhat -nervously around. But the shock wore off, and finding himself to all -seeming well protected, his courage soared into antiquity. - -"My ancestor, Hildebrand Suobensius----" he began. - -There was a shriek above him; another shell had burst but a few yards -away. He dropped flat in the trench. Twisting his neck until one side -of its fleshiness was creased with deep furrows, he said: - -"Tell me, boy, do you see any more shells goming?" - -Jack peeped cautiously over. - -"My no look-see no mo'e, masta. He come long-long chop-chop all-same." - -Schwab slowly rose to his knees, again mopping his brow. - -"Zis is most terrible. Never did I zink zat var vas such a business! -Gnaediger Himmel! vy haf I gome? Boy, I haf a bresentiment." His voice -sank on a tragic note. "I feel it here." He laid his hand on the lower -buttons of his ample waistcoat. "I, Hildebrand Schwab, shall vizout -doubt be killed." He wrung the bandanna out. "Listen, boy, gif notice: -ven I am killed you shall send all my goots to Schlagintwert Gompany in -Duesseldorf, all egzept ze letter to Schneiders Sohne, vich gontain -order for vun dozen trouser stretchers for General Belinski; zat you -shall bost. And listen, boy:"--here his voice sank to a confidential -whisper--"in my writing-desk zere is a visp of my hair tied up viz bink -ribbon, and a boem, a boem of lov; zese you vill send to ze Frau Jane -Bottle, at ze address on ze envelope, and you vill register ze packett. -Yes--and insure it--you shall insure it for hundert dollars." - -Herr Schwab sighed deeply, at the same time keeping an eye on the -direction whence the last shell had come. - -Another shrapnel burst a few yards in his rear. He groaned, lamenting -bitterly. The men of Stackelberg's 1st Siberian Infantry paid no -attention to him; in the trench they were secure. General Stackelberg -himself was at the other end, grimly peering through his glasses over -the epaulement. - -Suddenly the projectiles ceased to pass over them. Jack ventured to -raise his head and scan the surrounding country. Before him stretched a -plain dotted with villages, the fields covered with the waving green -stalks of kow-liang. On the crests beyond, some two miles away, lay the -batteries of the Japanese; their infantry was swarming in the -intervening level, but concealed by the kow-liang. To the left, -separated from the Shu-shan hill by the An-shan-chan road, was an -irregular line of lower heights, stretching as far as the eye could -reach and out of sight. Here were posted the main forces of the Russian -infantry, ensconced in cunningly devised trenches. In every gap between -the rocky hills batteries were placed, concealed by every possible -device. To the west of Shu-shan the Russian cavalry, with a portion of -the 1st Siberian Army Corps, was stationed to protect the railway and -the right flank. Behind, between the hills and the town, large forces -of infantry were held in reserve, with the hospital tents and field -ambulances. Temporary lines of rail had been laid from the station to -the rear of the hills, and on these trolleys containing ammunition were -pushed along by men. - -Jack explained as much of the position as he could see to Schwab, who, -in the security of the trench, took diligent notes, for reproduction in -the _Illustrirte Vaterland_ as first-hand evidence. - -"But tell me, boy, do you see General Kuroki? I do not lov General -Kuroki; he ill-use me, he gif me vat zey call beans, ven I vas in Korea -last year. Is he in sight?" - -"My no can look-see one piecee Japanese. Allo hidee inside kowliang." - -"So! I make a note of zat. All ze Japanese hide. Ver' goot." - -Jack now became aware that General Stackelberg was standing erect at the -end of the trench, fully exposed to the Japanese gunnery. The general, -in hooded cloak, wearing white gloves, spick and span as if on parade, -was calmly sweeping the plain with his glass, issuing orders, dictating -telegrams, slowly, deliberately. Shells again began to fly around; but -Stackelberg, summoned to the telephone installed behind the tower, -walked erect towards the spot heedless of a shrapnel that burst within a -few yards of him, bespattering his clothes with black dust. Jack felt a -thrill of admiration; the general was giving the lie to the slanderers -who said that at Wa-fang-ho he had skulked in his carriage. - -Now the sharp crackle of musketry was mingled with the shrieking of the -shells. Long lines of Japanese were threading their way through the -fields, endeavouring to turn the Russian right. Stackelberg marked the -movement; he gave an order; the Russians in the trenches sprang to their -feet and ran down the slope to reinforce the threatened position. Rain -began to fall, and Schwab raised his head from the trench. - -"Ach! it rains. Vill it shtop ze battle, zink you?" - -"My no tinkey so," said Jack. "Japanese, he fetchee plenty big guns; he -come this-side chop-chop." - -"Ach, ich Ungluecklicher!" Schwab hastily dropped back into safety. -"Nefer shall I leave ze Vaterland again. But I shall not return; -Duesseldorf shall zee me no more; no; I haf a bresentiment; I feel it -here." - -Jack, following the movement of his employer's hand, made a suggestion. - -"P'laps masta he belongey hungly; p'laps he want-chee chow-chow." He -offered him a biscuit. - -Schwab shook his head dismally. - -"No, no; I haf no abbedide." - -"My eat he." - -Nibbling the biscuit, Jack, in a lull of the firing, ventured to leave -the trench. A moment later he called to Schwab. - -"My hab catchee one-piecee pictul. Japanese lunning long-side kowliang; -littee littee black t'ings inside gleen stalks." - -"Gott sei dank! I shall not die vizout agomblishing somezink for ze -Vaterland. Ach! zere is anozer!" - -There was a gentle sound overhead, like the cry of a wounded bird. An -aide-de-camp crossing the hill-top fell with a groan. A bearer-party -marked with the Red Cross appeared from behind the tower and swiftly -bore him out of sight. - -Schwab flattened himself as much as his rotund form permitted against -the floor of the trench. The cannonade was resumed with redoubled fury. -The din was incessant; shells whistling and shrieking; musketry -crackling; the Russian batteries in their emplacements thundering as -they replied to the Japanese. - -Whole ranks of the Japanese were mowed down in the fields; still they -pressed on. They were attempting to turn the Russian right. -Reinforcements were hurried to the threatened regiments; battery -answered battery; the ground trembled under the repeated shocks. The -attack was repulsed, and long blood-stained tracks marked the path of -the bearers as they conveyed thousands of wounded to the rear. -Stackelberg had held his own. - -Dusk was falling, the rain ceased, and a steaming mist rose over the -ground. There was a lull in the firing. Jack stood upon the epaulement. -To the left he saw a village in flames. - -"My hab catchee nuzza velly good pictul, masta," he said. - -"Goot boy! Zink you it is now safe for me to shtand opp?" - -"My tinkey so. He fightey man tinkee hab plenty nuff." - -Schwab got up slowly on his knees, peered over the edge of the trench, -then stood upon his feet. He was beginning to regain his spirits. - -"So! Famos!" he exclaimed. "I see all ze whole fielt of battle; I see -burning villages, black fielts, hundert or tousand dead men. Zis is -var. Vat a--vat a"--Herr Schwab was at a loss for words--"vat a zink is -var!" He threw out his chest and snuffed the smoke-laden breeze. "But -I muss go and describe ze battle for my journal, illusdraded viz -photographs taken by a Gairman sobjeck on ze sbot. My ancestor -Hildebrand----" - -They were turning to walk down the hill; a belated shrapnel shell burst -within a few yards of them, peppering the ground in all directions. A -splinter shaved off an inch or two of the leather cover of the camera. -Schwab cut short his reminiscence by dropping flat upon the rain-soaked -ground. When he arose, a pitiable object, after a short period of -self-communing, without further words he hastened towards the path. - -Another shell crashed upon the rocks to the left, hurling a lofty -fir-tree into the ravine. - -"Ach! gome alonk, gome alonk! Ve shall be killed. Let us go to find our -bonies." - -Scrambling down to the spot where they had left the animals, Schwab -uttered a woeful cry; they had disappeared. A Siberian infantryman was -passing; him the German interrogated. But the Russian shook his head; -he knew no German. Jack ventured to question him in broken Russian. - -"Yes, I did see two ponies. A Chinaman led them. That was long ago." - -"He say-lo China boy hab catchee two-piecee pony, wailo long-time." - -Schwab lifted up his voice in bitter lamentation. It was growing dark; -the ground had been made a miry swamp by the rain; there was no -alternative but to tramp back through it to Liao-yang. They reached the -mandarin road. Their feet sank ankle-deep in mud; at every step they -almost left their boots behind. Long stretches of the road were under -water. Carts were passing drawn by long teams of mules. Schwab tried -to bargain for a seat, but the drivers refused to listen to him; their -loads were wounded men, who at every jolt uttered heart-rending moans. -Jack suggested that they should leave the road and cut across the fields -to the railway; they would find the embankment easier walking. This -they did, pursued, as it seemed, by the whistling bullets of the -Japanese. At length, unharmed, untouched, they reached the northern -gate, and, entering, made their way all bemired, weary and famished, to -the cottage where Hi Lo awaited them. - - - - - *CHAPTER XII* - - *The Retreat from Liao-yang* - - -Rifle and Bayonet--Kuroki--Schwab's Strategic Movement--The Moukden -Road--At Yentai--One of the Wounded--Pawns in the Game--Our Friends the -Enemy--Story and Song--Schwab Smokes - - -Next day dawned bright and clear. The fusillade had continued almost -throughout the night, and the Japanese had made repeated assaults on the -Russian trenches in the centre, only to be driven back every time with -enormous slaughter. The first day's battle had no decisive result; the -Japanese had failed to dislodge the Russians from any part of their line -of defences. Jack was eager to go out again; his excitement had been -kindled by what little he had been able to see of the opposing -movements; after the first tremors, the shriek of shells and whistling -of bullets had left him unmoved, and he was all afire to witness the -continuation of the great struggle. But Schwab absolutely refused to -budge. - -"It vas not a bresentiment," he said. "It vas a bileattack. Zose -shells, zeir schmell vas vorse zan Schwefelwasserstoffgas--I forget ze -English name, but ze schmell is ze same; it is a schmell of eggs -suberannuated. I suffer egstremely. Besides, zey haf shtole my bonies. -And vat do I discover? I discover a damage in ze ubber egstremity of ze -camera. Vy you tell me nozink about zis? I discover it, I say. Who -done zat? Vy you bermit it? It is not business: it annoy me egstremely. -I lose many dollars ven I shall gome to sell ze photographabbaratus. My -gustomers vill now see it is not new. Venever I zink of it I suffer -bile. I go not again to zis battle, no more does ze camera; I vait for -ze next. I vill stay and cure ze bileattack. You shall see ze battle; -I vill take notes ven you return." - -Jack had no intention of running unnecessary risks in order that Schwab -might make "copy" out of his experiences. But he made his way towards -the railway-station, expecting to obtain from the embankment as good a -view as was possible without venturing again on the shell-swept hills. -His choice was fortunate, for it happened that the closest fighting of -the day took place west of the railway. General Oku had made up his -mind to force this, the weakest spot in the Russian position. While, -therefore, General Nodzu in the centre was repeating the first day's -bombardment, the Russian right, throughout the day, was the scene of as -terrible a series of infantry attacks as the world's history has known. -Time after time the Japanese advanced to storm the trenches; time after -time they were mowed down by the pitiless bullets of the enemy; but -again and again they returned to the charge, recking nothing of death or -wounds, thinking it a privilege indeed to end their lives in their -country's cause. On both sides the bayonet did its fell work; at one -point a trench was captured by a company of Japanese, but their -ammunition was spent, they were unsupported, and their plight being -perceived from a Russian trench a hundred yards distant, they were -bayoneted to a man. As the hot day wore on, the Russians were driven -back against the railway embankment; streams of wounded, their cries of -agony mingled with the horrid sounds of war, flowed incessantly towards -Liao-yang; and when sunset put an end to the firing, the bearer-parties -went about their awful work on the battle-field. - -Except for the slight impression made on the right, the Russian position -was intact. The Siberian regiments had held their own with splendid -tenacity, and were almost recompensed for their terrible sufferings by -the message of thanks from General Kuropatkin, who had witnessed their -heroic resistance from his train beyond the railway-station. Jack -started to return to Schwab with the impression that the force of the -Japanese attack was broken, and that on the morrow the Russians would -take the offensive. The day closed with a terrible rain-storm that -turned the fields and roads into a quagmire. The streets of the city -were thronged; soldiers, Chinamen, camp-followers, pedlars improving the -occasion, all jostling one another in noisy confusion. - -Standing at the door of his cottage, Schwab hailed an American -correspondent who was passing just as Jack appeared. - -"Is ze battle finished gomblete?" asked Schwab eagerly. - -"Yes; the Russians have won. It is their first victory. I am on my way -to telegraph the news to New York--if I can get a wire." - -"Zen I vill write my account of ze closing scenes," said Schwab to Jack. -"To-morrow, if ze sun shine, you can take more pictures of ze Japanese -defeat." - -But half an hour later the American looked into the house on his way -back to his own quarters. - -"I was mistaken, Schwab," he said; "it is not a victory after all." - -"Eh?" said Schwab, looking up from his papers. - -"The Russians are leaving their positions; evacuation has begun." - -"Himmel! Vat is ze meaning of zat?" - -"Kuroki has crossed the Tai-tse-ho, and is threatening our -communications. You had better clear out." - -Schwab might well be amazed. During the desperate and persistent -attacks on the Russian right and centre, General Kuroki had crept -steadily round their left, and forced a passage at a ford twenty-five -miles east of the town. The news, as conveyed to Kuropatkin, was that -the Japanese general had four divisions; he had, in truth, only two; -and, misled by the exaggeration, Kuropatkin had felt it necessary to -detach some of the seasoned Siberian regiments from Stackelberg's -command in order to reinforce the less trustworthy European corps whom -Kuroki was attacking. But the American was mistaken in speaking of -evacuation. The commander-in-chief had only decided to abandon his -advanced position, which had always been too widely extended for -effective defence, and to withdraw his forces to the inner -entrenchments, forming a large arc almost encircling the town, and -resting at each end on the river. - -Overpowered by the terrors of "war that was real war", Schwab was goaded -into feverish activity by the news of the withdrawal. His own pony was -gone; so was Jack's; but Hi Lo's remained, and this the German ordered -to be instantly prepared for himself. Whether the interest of the -Schlagintwert Company or the safety of his own rotund skin was the more -important consideration did not appear; but it is certain that, within -half an hour after receiving the news of Kuropatkin's order, Schwab was -riding as fast as the congested traffic would allow towards the north. -He carried the precious camera and the negatives with him, leaving the -tripod with Jack. - -"You muss shift for yourself," said he at the moment of leaving. "You -and Hi Lo muss gome on behind. I muss go qvick; it is a matter of -business. Vun bony vill not carry zree, and if I do not arrive in -Moukden before ze Russians zere vill be no money left to bay your vages. -Take most egstreme care of ze dribod." - -Jack was not ill pleased to see the back of his employer. In other -circumstances he might have been amusing; as it was, he was a trial of -patience. - -"I think we will wait till morning," said Jack to Hi Lo. "I am not sure -all is over yet. In any case the Japanese won't come into the city in -the dark; the firing has stopped; and we shall see our way better by -daylight." - -So they stretched themselves on the k'ang and slept until the dawn. -When they arose it was obvious that Schwab's flight was premature. -True, the roads northward were crowded with fugitives, but they were in -the main natives; the Russians held their positions; and Jack saw a fine -regiment marching, not northward, but southward, in the direction of the -enemy, singing the Russian national anthem with a spirit that little -betokened a failing cause. But Jack felt that Schwab would expect his -two servants to follow him; he would be helpless without them. The -exodus from the city was already so great that it seemed best to go -northwards by the pontoon bridge while it was possible. He therefore -started on his way back to Moukden. Hi Lo had managed to secure a -mule--Jack did not enquire how; and on this, with the boy trudging by -his side, Jack crossed the river by the pontoon and gained the mandarin -road. - -He found himself in a scene of terrible confusion. The road was blocked -with vehicles of all descriptions,--droshkies, Pekin carts, ammunition -wagons, country carts with their unwieldy teams; and crowds of -camp-followers and Chinese tradesmen. Drivers were shouting, soldiers -cursing, women shrieking. Chinamen staggered along with poles over -their shoulders, a basket slung at each end containing a child barely -awake, but laughing with glee at what seemed to its innocence a novel -and pleasing adventure. Women passed, bent under heavy bundles -containing their household gear; carts were heaped with bits of -furniture, ambulance wagons with wounded and dead; here was a soldier -leading a little donkey with a battered drum upon its back, there a -farmer whose clumsy cart was filled with cackling ducks and squealing -pigs. Now an axle would break, and the contents of the wagon were -scattered over the ground; now the wheels of one cart would become -locked with those of another, and the tangled teams plunged and kicked -in the mud. Then the uproar became still more furious; riders, careless -of what damage they might do, pressed their horses through the throng in -haste to make good their escape from the terrible shells whose coming -was announced from afar. The Japanese had begun to bombard the station. - -Jack saw that he had little chance of making his way through the crush. -Calling to Hi Lo, he turned aside into a field of kowliang, already -trampled, and rode on over the ruined crop. In the distance, on the -left, he caught sight of train after train steaming northwards. Behind, -dense clouds of smoke obscured the city: the Russian quarter of -Liao-yang was in flames. Ever and anon a detonation shook the air, and -by and by the whistle of bullets was heard; the Japanese had occupied -the Shu-shan hill, and with their terrible long-range weapons were -firing into the Russian settlement. - -The fourteen miles from Liao-yang to Yentai took Jack six hours. It was -evening when he arrived--too late to go farther; and he put up for the -night in a ruined hut. Russians were massed in the town, and covered the -slopes towards the mines. The Russian left wing had been driven back in -this direction, and it was to reinforce the hard-pressed troops here -that Kuropatkin had withdrawn Stackelberg with his Siberians. But it -was too late. Next day Kuroki flung his divisions upon the Russian -entrenchments. At a critical moment General Orloff, professor in a -Russian military college, attacked, contrary to his instructions. The -Japanese hidden in the kowliang awaited the onset, then poured in a -terrible fire, which threw the first regiment, composed of raw recruits, -into confusion. They broke and fled; the regiment behind, prevented by -the high stalks from seeing what had happened, opened fire upon their -own comrades; a third was led into the same fatal error; and the entire -left wing, bewildered, disorganized, sought safety in flight. Yentai -was filled with the Russian wounded; surgeons, with coats off and shirt -sleeves tucked up, went about their work in the open streets; the air -was filled with the screams and groans of men in agony. - -Jack hurried through the town, and came again into the open country. A -mile north of the town he overtook a bearded veteran crawling painfully -along; he was wounded in the chest. He looked with haggard, covetous -eyes on Jack's mule; his face was drawn and white; sweat was streaming -from his brow. Jack stopped and sprang to the ground. - -"Get on my mule," he said in Russian. "Hi Lo, help me to lift him up." - -The man broke into sobbing exclamations of thanks. Supported by Jack on -one side, by Hi Lo on the other, he rode on during the rest of that hot -day. At dusk they entered a straggling village, and Jack was thinking -of looking for a shelter for the night when a rough voice from a cottage -cried: - -"Ach, Strogoff! come here, comrade." - -"Nu, Chapkin," said the wounded man. "I am wounded, old friend." - -Jack led the mule to the door, and helped to carry the man into the -cottage. It had been appropriated by a group of Russian soldiers who -had become separated from their regiment. They received their wounded -comrade with rough expressions of sympathy; and, learning from him of -the Chinaman's kindness in lending his mule, they invited Jack and Hi Lo -to stay with them. Jack was nothing loth. He shared his few remaining -biscuits with the men, and sent Hi Lo out to buy some fruit if possible. - -The boy returned with some pears and peaches, which formed a welcome -addition to their black bread and cakes of buckwheat. - -Sitting on the k'ang, Jack was an interested listener to the soldiers' -talk. He did not understand all they said; they were simple moujiks, -whose broad dialect was not easy to follow; but he picked up a good deal -of their conversation. - -Strogoff had to relate how he had received his wound. His story was long -in the telling, punctuated by many an "Ach!" "Och!" "Eka!" "Nu!" from -his comrades. - -"Ach!" he concluded, "the Japanese are fine fellows, but they are too -little to use the bayonet. A bigger man would have made a better job of -it, and I should be dead now." - -"Da! But you'd rather be alive, Strogoff?" - -"How can I tell, Kedril? Will the doctors be able to mend my wound?" - -"Not if they're such fools as the generals," grunted Kedril, a big, -shaggy rifleman who had lost an arm. - -"True, there are some fools among them. But better be a fool than a -knave, like the commissaries. Why, half the biscuits served out to us -to-day were full of maggots, and my boots--look at them!--are made of -paper. Do you think the Little Father knows how we are cheated?" - -"No, no; the Emperor does not know, Almazoff. He would not suffer these -evils if he knew them. Nu! he cannot be everywhere, like the Lord God." - -"Things will be better some day. We've done our part, little pigeon. -But the Emperor would not like it if he knew what lies they have told -us. Why, they said the Japanese were dirty little men like monkeys; but -they're cleaner than you and me, Strogoff." - -"And they said they walked with their heads downwards." - -"No, Chapkin, that's the English. They say the English walk upright in -their own country, but when they go to another place of theirs called -Australia they turn upside down and walk on their heads." - -"That can't be true, because Australia belongs to Germany. It's a part -of America, I believe." - -"Nu! America belongs to England, so I dare say I was right after all. -Anyway, the Japanese walk on their feet like us, and they fight well. I -wonder what made them so angry with us?" - -"I don't know. What do we get angry about when we're at home? Perhaps -the Little Father called the Emperor of Japan a sheep; if you called me -a sheep I should fight you; but emperors can't fight; of course not, for -they've no one to give them orders except the Lord God, and He couldn't -give orders to both at once." - -"But if they quarrel, why should they make us fight in thousands? It -would be much better if his excellency the general and the Japanese -marshal took off their coats and fought, just they two. That would be a -fight worth seeing, eh, comrades?--a fight after the old style, before -they did everything by machinery." - -"Da! It wouldn't matter so much if they made each other's nose bleed, -instead of us shooting at the little Japanese and them shooting at us. -Why, think of the thousands of widows there must be in Little -Russia--da! and in Japan too, for I expect they have a kind of marriage -there." - -"True, we haven't any quarrel with the little men; and they're not very -angry either. When I was wounded in the bayonet charge, and lay on the -ground, a Japanese came up and gave me a cigarette; ach! the sun was -hot, and I was fanning myself with my cap, and he made me take a little -paper fan he had. Here it is: I shall give it to my little Anna, -dushenka! when I get home again." - -"Ach! shall we ever get home again? Look at the thousands of versts we -are away; and we've got to stay till we beat the Japanese! Sing us your -song, Chapkin--you know, the one that always makes me cry." - -The big veteran addressed took a sip from his half-empty flask of vodka, -and began, in a fine baritone every note of which was charged with -pathos-- - - "No more my eyes will see the land - Where I was born. - I suffer at my lord's command; - My limbs are torn. - Upon my roof the owl will moan; - The pigeon for her mate will yearn; - My heart with grief is broken down: - No, never more shall I return!" - - -The simple words brought tears to the eyes of all those rough soldiers. -Kedril grunted and growled. - -"Don't make us more sad. Almazoff, you're the only fellow among us who -can read: read us something out of your English book; the piece about -the great fight in heaven; that's the stuff for a soldier." - -Almazoff took from his pocket a dirty dog-eared paper-covered book, and -turned over the leaves. Having found the place, he began, in a slow -sonorous chant-- - - -"Then rose a storming fury, and such uproar as never yet had been heard -in Heaven. Arms clashed on armour, a din of horrible discord; the -furious wheels of brazen chariots roared with rage; dire was the noise -of battle. Overhead with awesome hiss flew fiery darts in flaming -volleys, and their flight covered either host with a vault of fire. -Beneath this burning dome the embattled armies shocked together, with -deadly onset and unquenchable rage: all Heaven resounded; and had earth -been then, the whole earth had quivered to her centre. What wonder, -when on both sides millions of angels fought, fierce foes, of whom the -feeblest could wield the elements and arm himself with the might of all -their regions!----" - - -Thus he read on, and through the rough prose of the Russian translation -Jack caught echoes of the famous passage in _Paradise Lost_. - -Far into the night the reading, story-telling, singing, went on. In the -morning Jack took leave of the simple brave fellows and resumed his -journey. On the way he learnt that the Russian army was in full -retreat. General Kuropatkin's able dispositions had extricated his worn -troops from the danger of being surrounded, and they were falling back -in good order, disappointed but not disheartened, towards Moukden. -Thither Jack made with all speed; and entering the city with Hi Lo by -one of the south gates in the evening, he found Schwab placidly smoking -his pipe at the door of the Green Dragon. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIII* - - *Mr. Brown's House* - - -Schwab and Sowinski--Extempore--The Camera cannot Lie--Sowinski -Suspicious--Shadowed--Short Notice--Run to Earth--A Hole in the -Fence--Lares et Penates--The Press--Sowinski's Supper - - -Weeks passed. Moukden was no longer the city Jack had known. Hitherto -but few Russian troops had been seen in its streets; now these were -thronged from morning till night. Regimental wagons, ammunition carts, -rumbled hither and thither, raising clouds of dust. Officers strolled -about, buying knick-knacks of the curio dealers; war correspondents -kicked their heels in the hotels; droshkies, rickshaws, troikas, flew -this way and that, to the disturbance of the placid people of this -ancient city. - -There were already signs of winter in the streets. The seasons in -Manchuria do not shade off one into another; summer heat stops, almost -at one stride comes winter cold. One morning the shops in the principal -streets were hung with furs--the skins of wild cats, foxes, martens, -otters, sheep, raccoons; fur caps, lined coats, woollen hoods, sheepskin -leggings, stockings of camel's hair. The Chinese merchants near the -eastern ramparts plied a brisk trade with Russian officers, offering -their customers cups of tea with true oriental politeness, and raising -their prices a hundred per cent. - -They had been weeks of idleness for Jack. The Japanese had occupied -Yentai; the Russians had thrown up entrenchments to the south of -Moukden. There was talk of their taking the offensive; but warlike -operations had ceased for a time, and Schwab had been too busy -developing his negatives to think about taking more photographs. Jack -spent much of his time with the compradore, hoping day after day, but in -vain, for news of his father. He had caused money to be forwarded to -Mr. Hi Feng in Harbin for the purpose of pushing enquiries in the north, -through Chinese channels, and two trusty Chinese had been sent to make -investigations along the Moukden-Harbin section. The latter returned -quite baffled. But Jack sent them out again; he chafed at his own -helplessness: meanwhile no stone must be left unturned. Once or twice -he had seen Sowinski in the streets; once he met him face to face near -the palace; but the Pole passed by without giving any signs of -recognition. - -Schwab had become tired of the Green Dragon, and now lived in a little -house which he rented from a Chinese grocer. He was waited on by Hi Lo, -who shared with Jack a room looking on the street. One day Jack was -standing at the window, watching the thronging traffic. He was in low -spirits: he had been so hopeful when he left Father Mayenobe; was he to -endure a long suspense like Gabriele Walewska, but in more pain even -than she, not knowing whether his father was alive or dead? Suddenly, -behind a string of carts he saw Schwab approaching in company with -Sowinski. Schwab was talking eagerly. Jack knew that his employer had -had several interviews with the Pole; he had probably been establishing -business relations between him and Schlagintwert in anticipation of the -close of the war. The two entered the house, and Jack, with a certain -tingling of the nerves, betook himself to the kitchen. Presently Hi Lo -came in to prepare dinner; Sowinski was dining with his master. The boy -waited at table, and, coming in and out of the kitchen, he gave Jack -from time to time information of what was going on. The Pole knew a -little German; both he and his host knew a little English; and as they -eked out their acquirements the quick-witted China boy picked up scraps -of their conversation and reported them to Jack. - -"He piecee Polo man talkee; say-lo what plice Melican lails? Masta he -say velly cheap; he sellum evelyting cheap; he say belongey plenty -pidgin what-time fightey man all wailo." - -"Boy!" shouted Schwab from the other room. - -"Hai-yah, masta!" replied Hi Lo, hurrying away. He returned in a few -seconds. - -"Masta say wantchee Sin Foo chop-chop." - -Jack whistled under his breath. For a moment he thought of slipping out -of the room. But Schwab knew he was there. To leave without -explanation would cause trouble. It would perhaps be best to brazen it -out. He had already met Sowinski several times without being -recognized. Yet he regretted that he had not taken French leave the -moment he saw the Pole coming. He obeyed the summons. - -"You Sin Foo, bring ze photographs, zose I haf developed." - -"Allo lightee, masta." - -Jack went out conscious that the Pole's eyes had been fixed on him. -Returning with the photographs he gave them to Schwab, and was on the -point of leaving the room when the German bade him wait. Schwab -unrolled the papers and spread them before his guest. - -"Zere! Vat you zink of zat? Zose I took at ze battle of Liao-yang. -Ach! zat, mein frient, vas a fearful time. You vere not zere? No--you -are a man of beace; ve gorresbondents are men of var. Picture ze hill -of Shu-shan, schrapnel burst here, zere, everyvere; ze bullet fall zick -as leaves of Vallombrosa. Zat hill, mein frient, vas target for hundert -fifty guns. Zere am I, at ze top, fixing ze Japanese batteries in my -focus. Danger! Donnerwetter! It vas truly bandemonium. But vy am I -zere? Duty, mein frient, calls me; business are business; my duty, I am -baid to do it; but not enough, no, certainly not enough. Vy, I write -zis mail to Duesseldorf and say I can no longer encounter such danger -for ze brice. I muss haf increase of screw. Boy, fetch ze camera." - -Jack laid it on the table. - -"See, mein frient," continued Schwab. "Gontemblate zat hole! -Schrapnel! Anozer inch, or inch and half--ach! it is all ofer viz -Hildebrand Schwab. Ze var gorresbondent run colossal risk, true; but ze -var gorresbondent vat is also var photographer--vy, his risk is--vat -shall I say? it is schrecklich, furchtbar!" - -Jack was aghast at Schwab's magnificent assurance. If he had been alone -with the Pole, that would have been another matter; but to dilate upon -his exploits in the presence of one who knew exactly what heroic part he -had played was astounding. Jack reflected, however, that he was merely -a Chinese servant, and as such of no importance. - -Finding that his invention was more than equal to the strain, Schwab -proceeded with even greater confidence. - -"Look at zis, mein frient. Here ve haf terrible scene of carnage in a -Russian trench, a whole gombany is viped out by vun shell." Herr Schwab -handed his guest the photograph of soldiers sleeping in the ditch near -the Moukden railway-station. "And zis--vat zink you of zis?" He picked -out the snap-shot of Siberian infantry before the blazing pawn-shop. -"Here, mein frient, ve see Russian infantry vat make nightattack on -village near Yentai: zey set on fire house full of Japanese." - -"Ver' good, ver' good," remarked the Pole with an acid smile--"for a -photograph made by night." - -Schwab shot a suspicious glance at his guest. - -"Ja!" he said, "it is vonderful. Zese vill abbear in ze bages of my -baber, ze _Illustrirte Vaterland und Colonien_, zey vill give true -account, shpeaking better zan volumes of gorresbondence, of ze horrible -scenes vat zeir rebresentative haf beheld at ze bost of danger." - -Sowinski's attention had been flagging; perhaps his intuition had -detected the artistic temperament. At any rate Jack felt that his eyes -were once more fixed on the silent Chinese boy--fixed in a puzzled, -scrutinizing gaze. The epic of the camera being completed, and Schwab -turning the conversation once more to business, Jack took the -opportunity of slipping away. Hi Lo remained in the room to replenish -the glasses. When Jack's back was turned, Sowinski, as Hi Lo reported -later, leant forward and asked quietly: - -"Tell me, where did you get your boy?" - -"Vich? Sin Foo? Oh! I tell you. I got him to carry ze camera. Ach! -zese Chinamen! Zey are above all zinks suberstitious. Zey zink ze -camera hold tousand defils; not one haf ze gourage to undertake it till -I abbly to ze gompradore of a Mr. Brown, for whom I had a letter. Mr. -Brown is a bad lot; he is gone, none knows vere--ze Russians haf him put -out of sight for because he haf betrayed zem to ze Japanese. Perhaps -you know him, mein frient? Vell, ze gompradore recommend me zis boy, -Sin Foo, vat haf some intelligence and do not fear ze defils. He is of -use--yes, of use; he is not afraid to follow me in ze zick of ze battle. -Vere ze gombat rage, zere is Schwab and his camera. It is in ze blood. -My ancestor Hildebrand Suobensius vas a great fighter--a Landsknecht. I -vill tell you his history----" - -Hi Lo's report made Jack uneasy. Sowinski was evidently suspicious. If -his suspicions took definite form, it was scarcely likely that a man of -his rancorous disposition would leave things as they were. In the dusk -of the evening Jack hurried to his friend the compradore; he felt that -at this critical moment he needed advice from a Chinaman of experience. -When Hi An heard what had happened, he said at once that it would be -madness for Jack to remain longer in Moukden. Sowinski would certainly -seek a resolution of his doubts; he would in any case have Jack -arrested; and being in disguise, Jack would in all probability, if -arrested, meet the fate of a spy. - -While they were talking, Hi Lo came in hurriedly to report that one of -Sowinski's servants was hanging about Schwab's house, apparently on the -watch. That clinched the matter. Jack must make himself scarce, and as -speedily as possible. Where was he to go? In the confused state of the -country he might easily disappear; he could become a camp-follower, or -mafoo to some European. But this would have its dangers; a Chinaman, as -he had already proved, would soon penetrate his disguise; with a -definite purpose before him, he did not care to be the sport of chance. -He might take refuge for a time with Wang Shih's people; but it was not -improbable that search would be made for him there, and he did not wish -to involve them in the escape of a spy. There was his friend Ah Lum; he -remembered the chief's invitation, and bethought himself that the -Chunchuses, moving constantly about the country, enjoyed the best -opportunities of learning his father's whereabouts. His mind was made -up; he would join the brigands. - -But unluckily the city gates were now shut. Since the war had come -nearer to the walls, the entrances had been guarded more strictly. No -one was allowed to go in or out after nightfall unless he wore a uniform -or had a pass. The inner wall was too high to climb over; if by any -chance he could slip through the gates, traverse the suburbs, and climb -the outer wall, he might be shot; if he waited till morning, he ran the -risk of arrest. Yet, all things considered, it seemed better to wait. -Sowinski was apparently not quite sure of his ground. Then, to ensure -his escape, a pony was needed; and he would have to enquire of Ah Lum's -agent in the city, from whom alone could he learn the present -whereabouts of the band. Finally, he was disinclined to leave Schwab -without personally informing him of his approaching departure. This was -perhaps in the circumstances a small matter, but it had more weight with -Jack than he was probably aware of. - -Taking leave of Hi An, he set off to return to Schwab's house. Hi Lo -had preceded him. As he walked he felt that he was being dogged. He -did not care to assure himself by looking back; but he took the first -opportunity of slipping into a side street, and hurrying to his -destination by a short cut. Schwab was writing, alone. - -"My velly solly, masta," said Jack, kowtowing with even more than usual -humility. "My wantchee wailo." - -"Vat you say? Already vant holiday? No, no, boy. You haf been viz me -not yet vun monce. I do not gif holidays so soon." - -"My no wantchee holiday; my wantchee wailo allo-time; no come back; hab -catchee muchee plenty leason." - -"Donnerwetter! Vat is zat for a kind of business? Zat is desertion; -infamous! Who zen vill carry ze camera? No, I cannot let you go; no, I -refuse, I vill bay you no vages." - -"My velly solly. My likee masta first-chop; wantchee wailo all-same. -Masta no say Sin Foo belongey tellum what-time he wantchee go. Masta no -wantchee pay-lo wages? all-same; my no makee bobbely. Suttinly my wailo -chop-chop." - -"Ach! Zat is ever so; ze goot servant cut his shtick; ze bad servant -shtick fast. Vell, if I say no, vizout doubt you vill run avay?" - -"No fea'." - -"Vell zen, I let you go. You haf done me vell; zat is ze truth. But -business are business; you haf served me vun monce less two days. I bay -you zen fifteen dollar less ze vorth of two days. Vat is zat?" - -"My no savvy, masta; my no hab catchee t'ings so-fashion China-side." - -"Vell, I vill gif you fifteen dollar, and zay nozink about vat you owe -me. Vere you go?" - -"My go look-see flend long long wailo." - -"So! I tell you zis; if again you gome back to Moukden vile Hildebrand -Schwab is var gorresbondent, he alvays gif you job." - -"Masta too muchee velly kind. My tinkee Toitsche genelum numpa one -chappee, galaw! My say-lo by-by, masta; so long!" - -The farewell interview had taken longer than Jack anticipated. He was -anxious to be gone, feeling insecure in Schwab's house. Giving the -hard-earned dollars to Hi Lo, he hastened back by side streets to the -compradore, with a suspicion that he was watched as he left the house by -two Chinamen whom he caught sight of on the other side of the road. He -peeped back at the first corner, and saw that one of the men was coming -in his direction; the other had disappeared. On reaching Hi An's house -he found that the man was absent; he had spoken of making enquiries of -Ah Lum's agent. Jack waited rather anxiously. Twenty minutes passed, -then the compradore came in very hurriedly. - -"Sowinski is coming with Russian soldiers!" he gasped. "They will be -here in five minutes. I found Ah Lum's man, Me Hong; he will send a -guide to Hsien-chia-kou, ten miles away. You must not go near Me Hong. -But how to get away!" - -Jack fortunately could keep his head. He had but a few minutes to -decide on a course, and he made the most of them. If he went into the -street he would be at once seen; probably there were already men on the -watch at each end. The only other way out was by the back. The -compradore peered out; as Jack expected, he saw several figures lurking -in the shade of the wall. Jack remembered that in the fence separating -the compradore's garden from Mr. Brown's there was a narrow gap through -which Hi Lo had been wont to creep as a short cut to the house. Between -the fence and the house there was a line of shrubs about two and a half -feet high. It was growing dark; if he could creep away under cover of -the bushes to the hole in the fence he might gain his father's house. -There he would in truth be in the enemy's country; but the attention of -the watchers would probably be engrossed by the soldiers whose tramp was -now heard approaching, and his own house would be the last that Sowinski -would suspect as the fugitive's hiding-place. What the next step might -be Jack could not imagine; the first was risky, but he saw no other. In -a word he told the compradore of his intention. The man gasped; then -with a rapid movement took a revolver from a shelf and pressed it into -his young master's hand. - -"Good-bye, Mr. Hi! I will let you know. Don't forget Father." - -He slipped to the back door, dropped on all-fours, and wriggled along -the ground close to the line of shrubs. He had barely started when he -heard Sowinski loudly summoning Hi An to open the door. The compradore -made some reply, apparently temporizing; the answer was an angry shout, -followed by a soothing response from the faithful servant. Jack heard -no more; in another moment he reached the gap in the fence. He wriggled -through; the garden had been neglected since Mr. Brown's arrest, and the -undergrowth was rank; this was fortunate, for only a few feet away he -saw, leaning on the fence, the form of a Russian soldier, and a yard or -two beyond him another. They were talking together, or they might have -heard the rustle as Jack squeezed through the hole and made for the -house. - -In these few moments he had been rapidly thinking. He could not hope to -hide in the house, but he might pass through it, gain the front door, -and escape by the street. Naturally he was so familiar with the house -that there was no danger of his going astray. But, slipping in by the -back door and turning into the passage leading to the front, his hope -was suddenly dashed. Three Chinamen stood at the open door, completely -barring his egress. They were talking excitedly and in loud tones. Jack -overheard one of them say that the Russians were arresting a supposed -Chinaman, actually an Englishman who had come to spy for the Japanese, -the very man who had been living in Hi An's house behind, and whose -illness had given them such concern. Evidently they were servants of -the Pole, stationed at the door to keep watch. The three men blocked up -the doorway and stood facing the street. - -Jack noiselessly slipped into the dining-room, lit by a single lamp. He -felt like a fox in a hole, with dogs all round ready to snap him up if -he showed his nose. He looked round the familiar room with a curious -sense of aloofness. Had this been for so long his home? It was the -same room, the same furniture--a table, a few chairs, engravings on the -walls, the large oaken press; but a different air seemed to pervade it -now. For a moment he thought of hiding in the press until dead of -night, and then slipping away. He opened the door; the lock had been -forced; the press was empty save for a few bottles of wine. Clearly -this would not be a secure refuge; a bottle might be required at any -moment. What else could he do? He could open the window--the only -glass one in the house--and drop into the street; but he would certainly -be seen by the men at the door or by a casual passer-by, though there -were few people about at that hour of the evening. Yet no other course -suggested itself, and he was moving towards the window when he heard -soft footsteps in the passage outside. Quick as thought he sprang -behind the open door, listening with thumping heart. - -One of the servants passed by on the way to the kitchen. He had left the -others at the door to keep watch while he prepared his master's supper. -The cloth, Jack noticed, had been left on the table. In a minute or two -the man would come into this very room, and Jack must be seen. With -nerves tingling he waited, setting his lips as a plan of action was -suggested to him by the emergency. Soon he heard the clink of glass. -The servant was returning. He came from the kitchen carrying a tray with -a glass jug, a tumbler, and a plate. He entered the room, walked to the -table, and set the tray upon it. At that moment Jack stepped quietly up -to him from behind, brought one arm round over his mouth to stifle any -cry, and with the other held the cold barrel of his pistol to the man's -temple. - -"Keep silent, for your life!" he whispered. - -The Chinaman, with fear in his eyes, made no sound or movement, but -stood as still as his trembling limbs allowed. Still keeping the pistol -pointed at the man's head, Jack quietly closed the door. Then he said: - -"I will do you no injury, but your safety and mine require that you -should be out of harm's way for a time. I have business with your -master. Go into that press. So long as you are quiet and do what you -are told, you have nothing to fear. But if you make the slightest -sound, that moment will be your last. You understand me?" - -He spoke very low and rapidly, but distinctly. The man nodded; there -was no mistaking the grim meaning with which this tall foreigner who -spoke Chinese fingered the trigger of his revolver. Crossing the room -to the press, the Chinaman stepped into it, and Jack closed the door. - -He wondered if he could slip out of the house before Sowinski returned. -Before long the Pole must discover that the bird had flown; he would -realize the hopelessness of searching the whole of Moukden at night for -a man disguised as a Chinaman, and, furious as he might be, he would -doubtless accept the situation for the moment, and return to his evening -meal. Once more Jack was making towards the window when he heard -footsteps again, this time approaching from the back of the house; not -the shuffling felt soles of Chinese, but the tramp of heavy European -boots. At the same moment there came from the street the clatter of -several feet marching in time. Jack stepped back from the window. He -heard a gruff voice, the voice of Sowinski, say in Russian: - -"Sergeant, there is no more to be done. The spy has got away. Inform -the sentinels at the gates. He cannot leave the city to-night; we may -trap him yet. Report to General Bekovitch; I will see him in the -morning. Good-night!" - -The sergeant responded, and marched his squad away. - -"Where is Ming Fo?" demanded Sowinski of the servants at the door. "Why -is he not watching with you?" - -"He is preparing your supper, master; we are keeping watch for him." - -"You have seen no one pass?" - -"No one." - -"Very well. Go and get your supper." - -[Illustration: Sowinski's Visitor] - -Then Jack heard Sowinski's footsteps approaching the room and the two -Chinamen shuffling along behind towards the kitchen. His chest heaved; -the crisis was at hand. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIV* - - *A Night with Sowinski* - - -The Persuasive Pistol--A Pass--Thorough--Captain Sinetsky--The Eastern -Gate--An Empty Pistol - - -Jack had intended to deal with the Pole as he had dealt with his -servant; but the fact of the two other Chinamen passing the door of the -room close on his heels had thrown out his calculations. He could not -afford to run the risk of the slightest struggle; it would certainly be -heard. He had but an instant to decide on his course. - -Behind the door was a chair. To this Jack tiptoed, and he had just -seated himself when Sowinski opened the door. The Pole flung his hat on -a chair, and moved towards the press, doubtless with the intention of -getting a bottle of wine. He almost had his hand on the knob when he -became aware, rather by instinct than by perception, of a movement -behind him. Jack with his foot had gently swung the door to. Turning -sharply round, Sowinski saw the red light of the shaded lamp reflected -from the barrel of a pistol in the hand of a young Chinaman seated -composedly within five feet of him. For a moment he was motionless; he -was too much surprised for speech; a second glance showed him who his -visitor was, and Jack, watching him keenly, saw his face go pale. He -stood irresolute; the ominous pistol, not held rigidly, but moving -gently from side to side, seemed to hold him spell-bound, as the swaying -head of a snake fascinates a hare. - -"Yes, Mr. Sowinski," said Jack quietly, though his pulse was galloping; -"yes, it is I, Jack Brown. You were looking for me? Speak low, or the -pistol may go off." - -"You would be arrested at once," said the Pole in a hard whisper. - -"Possibly, but that would not help you. You would be dead." - -Sowinski ground his teeth. Rage and fear struggled for the mastery; but -fear, as Jack had calculated, was the stronger. The man's eye never -left the barrel. - -"First, Mr. Sowinski," continued Jack, rising, and now pointing the -revolver steadily at his head; "first, I wish to know where my father -is." - -"Your father? How should I know? Am I your father's keeper? He was -deported." - -"You lie!" said Jack, his voice vibrant with anger. "Come, your reply; -your life depends on it." - -Visibly cowed by Jack's menacing look and tone, the Pole replied -sullenly: - -"Well, it is true; he was taken to Harbin, to be delivered to General -Kriloff." - -"And where is he now?" - -"I do not know. I swear that is the truth. General Bekovitch----" - -"Does he know?" - -"I cannot say. I do not know what message he sent to General Kriloff. -I have heard nothing of your father since he went away." - -"He went in chains; did you know that?" - -"Yes," replied the Pole hesitatingly. - -"Then where is he? You know that; you know more; a man is sent away in -chains, herded with foul criminals; it is your doing; what have you done -with him?" - -"I don't know; may I never speak again if that is not true. He is -probably in the mines." - -As he said this, even the imminent pistol could not prevent Sowinski -from betraying his rancorous satisfaction in a mocking curl of the lip -and a half-suppressed chuckle. Yet Jack felt intuitively that in this -case the man was speaking the truth; that he really did not know what -had become of his victim after he had seen him safely wedged in the -cattle-truck. There was scorn as well as a white heat of anger in -Jack's reply. - -"You infamous scoundrel! You would be justly served if I shot you where -you stand, and for my own part the satisfaction would be worth the risk. -But I can't kill even such vermin as you in cold blood; and if I spare -you, be sure the day of reckoning is only deferred. There are a -thousand Poles waiting to kill the traitor Ladislas Streleszki at -sight." - -The amazed and wretched man swayed as he stood; his hue turned still -more ashen than before; his whole body seemed to shrink together with -craven fear. - -"Now, choose," continued Jack after a pause. "The pistol, or instant -compliance with my demands.--Silence!" He heard the two Chinamen -approach the door, and noticed a twitching of the Pole's mouth -suggesting a cry for help. The impulse, if impulse it was, was -immediately checked by Jack's stern command. - -"Send them home." - -Sowinski called to the men that they might go; he would require them no -more that night. - -"Now close the shutters. Thank you! I see pen, ink, and paper on -yonder shelf. Seat yourself at the table and write in Russian from my -dictation." - -The Pole moved mechanically, under the spell of the covering revolver. - -"'To Lieutenant-Colonel Gudriloff,'" dictated Jack. "'Please supply -bearer, Chang Sin Foo, with a pass for the gates, and two good ponies; -debit the charge to my account.' Now sign your name--your present name. -That is right. Now, Mr. Sowinski, you have been so obliging that I -trust you will excuse what must seem a poor return for your -complaisance. But my position in your--that is to say, my father's -house, being somewhat delicate, I have no alternative." - -The two Chinamen having gone away, Jack no longer subdued his tone. He -had the whip hand. Still keeping the revolver steadily pointed at the -scowling Pole's head, he stepped to the press and, Sowinski looking on -in amazement, called to the Chinese servant to come out. The man was as -pale as his master; he was stricken with the very ague of fear. - -"You have nothing to fear," said Jack, pitying the fellow. "Do what I -tell you quickly. Tear up that cloth." He pointed to the none too -clean cover on the table. "Tear it into six strips." - -The man tried, but the material was too tough, or his hands too much -enfeebled from fright. - -"Take the knife, but remember, at the first movement in this direction I -will shoot you." - -With some difficulty the man did as he was bid. - -"Now bind your master's legs--first round the ankles. Quick!"--as the -man recoiled before the glare in Sowinski's eyes. Jack jerked up his -pistol, and the trembling wretch hastened to obey. The Pole made no -resistance; but if looks could have slain, both Jack and the Chinaman -would have been killed on the spot. - -"Now the arms," said Jack, when, under his supervision, Sowinski's legs -had been securely trussed. "No, behind him--not in front: that is -right. Now the knees. Now tie the wrists to the ankles. Now a gag; -that fur cap will do. We are going to place your master in the press. -You take the head; I will take the feet." - -Jack felt that he was giving the Chinaman a bare chance to close with -him; but the man seeming so cowed, he took the risk, careful, however, -to keep the revolver conspicuous. As they lifted the Pole they saw his -face distorted with rage and hate. They stood him upright in the press, -and closed the door, leaving sufficient space between it and the sides -to admit air. Then with a feeling of relief after the tension of his -perilous situation, Jack took up the order signed by Sowinski, and was -wondering how to dispose of the Chinaman, when there was a loud knock at -the outer door, followed immediately by footsteps in the passage. Jack's -heart beat violently; he caught a malicious look of triumph in the -servant's eyes. But he recovered his _sang-froid_, and at the same -moment made his decision. A voice in Russian was calling for Sowinski; -just as the footsteps approached the inner door Jack pushed the Chinaman -in front of him. - -"Send him away," he whispered. "Remember the pistol." - -He had no time for more. The visitor was at the door. It opened. - -"Ha, Sowinski!--" said the new-comer, a captain of Cossacks. Then he -paused, seeing only two Chinese servants. - -"Where is your master?" - -"He is away, Excellency," faltered the man; "not at home; he will not be -back for some hours." Jack touched his heel to quicken his invention. -He continued: "He said he was going first to the Green Dragon, then to -the railway-station. He expected to meet a friend. Can I give him any -message?" - -"It is very annoying," said the officer. "I must see him to-night. The -Green Dragon, you say? I will see whether he is there. If he returns, -say that Captain Sinetsky called, and that he is to come and see me at -my quarters at once." - -He turned on his heel and left the house. The tension was relaxed. The -immediate danger was past, but Jack saw that his escape was still to be -deferred. The captain's look and tone of vexation showed that his -business with Sowinski was important. Failing to find the Pole at the -hotel he might return himself or send a messenger, and then, if Jack -were absent, the prisoner would be discovered and released, and the hue -and cry after the disguised Englishman would be hot before he could get -his pass and be clear of the city. The gates would not be opened before -daybreak. It would hardly be safe to leave the house much earlier. He -made up his mind to wait. - -Creaking and groaning, the massive gates barring the eastern entrance to -Moukden swung back on their hinges; the squatting crowd patiently -awaiting the opening awoke to sudden activity; there was a general -movement of foot-passengers, chairs, and carts towards the archway. In -a moment the rush was checked: a Cossack officer with a dozen sturdy -troopers barred the way--one man only might pass at a time, and that -after careful scrutiny. - -When some two or three score had run the gauntlet, the officer, whose -patience seemed to be sorely tried, permitted himself a hearty Russian -oath, and growled to the sergeant at his side. - -"These Chinese are all alike. What the goodness is the use of asking us -to stop--what is it?"--he glanced at a paper in his hand--"'a young -Englishman, tall, slim, cleverly disguised as a native'? It's -absurd--it's a job for a Chinaman, not for us." - -"But, little father, it must be quite easy to recognize an Englishman. -They are all red-faced, with long noses, and big teeth, and side -whiskers--I have seen pictures of them in the papers in Petersburg. -They are ugly, the English--one would know them anywhere." - -Captain Vassily Nikolaeitch Kargopol, his feelings relieved by his brief -outburst, smiled condescendingly. He recognized the sergeant's -description of the familiar continental caricature of John Bull; but as -the crowd surged through he had no time for correcting his subordinate's -impressions. An old man, riding one pony and leading another, -dismounted at the gate as the crowd thinned, and with elaborate kowtows -presented his pass. The shadow of a wide-brimmed hat seemed to deepen -the wrinkles of his parchment skin; but there was an alert look in the -eye, and a nervous energy in the carriage, that told of a spirit still -young. - -"Pass the bearer, Chang Sin Foo, and two ponies. -Gudriloff--Lieutenant-Colonel." The captain read out the instructions, -handed back the document, and signed to the Chinaman to proceed. -Leading his ponies through the gate, the old man mounted, and rode -slowly on. A mile out he quickened his pace, and struck off into a side -track winding towards the hills that bounded the horizon north, south, -and east. As he left the main road, the more rapid movement jolted a -pistol from the folds of his voluminous garments. He glanced back and -saw it lying on the track, but did not check his pace, though an odd -smile disturbed the wrinkles of his mouth. - -"It's a good job," he muttered in unmistakable English--"a jolly good -job, Sowinski didn't know it wasn't loaded!" - - - - - *CHAPTER XV* - - *Cossack and Chunchuse* - - -The Road in China--A Change of View--Looking Ahead--A Cold -Welcome--Beleaguered--The Part of Prudence--Smoke--Beaten Back--The -Water Supply--An Inspiration--Ch'hoy! - - -At Hsien-chia-kou the strangely young old man with the two ponies met -not only the guide punctually furnished by Ah Lum's agent, but also Mr. -Hi and his son. The compradore explained that after what had happened -he no longer felt safe in his little cottage, and had made up his mind -to join his brother in Harbin and do what he could there to further the -enquiries for Mr. Brown. As for Hi Lo, the boy had for the first time -shown a most reprehensible and unfilial spirit of disobedience. He had -declared that the Toitsche genelum's service, now that Sin Foo had left, -had no further attraction for him. If he must serve someone, it should -be Mr. Chack Blown; and he would much rather serve Mr. Chack Blown than -accompany his father to Harbin, for he did not like his Aunt Feng. - -Jack laughed. - -"Let him come with me, Mr. Hi. He saved those papers so cleverly that I -think a great deal of him, and I'll really be glad to have him with me." - -The compradore would not oppose his young master's express wish; -accordingly, Jack, when he rode off, had two companions. - -Jack had learnt from his guide that Ah Lum's camp was situated in the -hills south of Kirin, at a point many miles due north of the spot where -he had left the chief. He had before him, therefore, a journey of -nearly three hundred miles. Fortunately the rainy season was past; a -few days of brilliant sunshine and bustling winds had worked a -marvellous transformation. The road that only recently had been a pulp -of liquid mud was now thick with soft brown blinding dust, clouds of -which were blown by the north-easter full in the travellers' faces, -covering them from head to foot. Unpleasant as this was, it was less -troublesome than the continual assaults of midges which Jack had -suffered on his previous journey. The autumn air, already nipping out -of the sunshine, had annihilated these pests, and the only trouble of a -similar kind that Jack experienced was from some black ants whose nest -his pony disturbed, and which bit with terrible ferocity. - -For more than a week the three riders pursued their journey almost -without incident. After the first few days they came into a country of -hill and forest, broken by richly cultivated valleys and large swift -streams. They had to climb ridges, to cross ravines, to ford rivers, -sometimes fording the same river a score of times, so serpentine were -its windings. Here and there were settlers' huts, where they found -scanty accommodation, but a warm welcome; here and there also a hillside -inn, at which they spent the night on the floor of a tiny room, with -perhaps a dozen Chinamen packed like sardines in a box on the k'ang -above them. - -During these days and nights Jack had many opportunities of thinking -over his position. He wondered sometimes whether the course he had -decided on was the best he could have taken; but his ponderings always -converged to the same point--that his only chance of obtaining news of -his father and procuring his liberation lay in remaining in Russian or -Russo-Chinese territory. For himself, hunted and outlawed as he was, -capture might well mean death, and nowhere was he so likely to be safe -as among the Chunchuses. But he saw that in seeking an asylum among -them he was in a sense casting in his lot with the enemies of Russia and -espousing their quarrel. That consideration gave him food for thought. -He had no concern with the great struggle then in progress. It was -nothing to him whether Manchuria became the spoil of either Russia or -Japan. Up to the time of his father's arrest, indeed, his sympathies -had inclined to the Russian side. He had made many friends among the -Russians during his stay in Moukden, especially among the engineers and -officials connected with the railway. He had found them amiable, -courteous, and singularly free from what, for want of a better word, the -Englishman calls "side". Of the Japanese, on the other hand, he knew -almost nothing. His impressions of the few he had met in the course of -business were not wholly favourable, which was perhaps little to be -wondered at, for the trading classes of Japan, with whom alone Mr. Brown -had had relations, were only just beginning to emerge from the condition -of a despised and, it must be admitted, despicable caste. Japanese of -the Samurai class looked down on a merchant with far more disdain than -an English aristocrat shows towards a petty tradesman; and it would have -seemed incredible to them that an English marquis should become a coal -merchant or a dairyman. It was natural enough that a class thus -despised should not be greatly hampered with self-respect; and their -business methods did not commend themselves to Mr. Brown, with whom, as -with every British merchant, his word was as good as his bond. - -But the black sheep whom Jack had come across recently had brought about -a change in his feeling towards the Russians generally. He saw them now -as grasping adventurers, and the Chunchuses as patriots waging a lawful -warfare against invasion and oppression. He had no very kindly feeling -for the men who were treating his father with such abominable injustice. -He did not disguise from himself that in joining the Chunchuses he could -not remain a passive spectator of the struggle. He must be prepared to -identify himself completely with the fortunes of Ah Lum's band, and -become to all intents and purposes as lawless a brigand as themselves, -But he hoped it would not be for long. If the tide of success upon -which the Japanese arms had been borne from victory to victory did not -turn, the Russian domination must ere long be shattered, and in some -vague undefined way he felt that the fortunes of his quest were bound up -with the discomfiture of the Russians. But in thus throwing in his lot -with their enemies he reserved one point: he would steadily refuse to -have any part in such excesses as were from time to time reported of the -Chunchuses. It was likely enough that as a very unimportant individual, -incurably a "foreign devil", he would be laughed to scorn for his -scruples by Ah Lum. The custom of torturing prisoners was so deeply -rooted in Chinese methods of warfare that Ah Lum, even if he so desired, -might be unable to control his followers and prevent atrocity when they -were not under his immediate observation. This would make it difficult -for Jack to remain with them; but he put the matter from his thoughts: -he would not meet difficulties half-way. - -Now and again, as with his guide and Hi Lo he passed through isolated -villages, he heard of small bodies of Cossacks having been seen in their -vicinity. From the general talk at inns and farmhouses he gathered that -the Russians, alarmed for their communications after the battle of -Liao-yang, were about to make a serious attempt to deal with Ah Lum and -one or two other Chunchuse chiefs who threatened the railway between -Harbin and Vladivostok. The Cossack parties whose movements the -villagers reported, were presumably scouting to ascertain the exact -position of Ah Lum's band preparatory to a concerted attempt to entrap -him. - -One afternoon, as they climbed a rugged slope towards a village nestling -among trees at the top, the travellers heard the rattle of musketry in -the distance, and saw a couple of Russian horsemen riding away in the -direction whence the sound came. At first Jack thought of avoiding the -village altogether, and making a detour; but he had been riding since -early morning over difficult country, the sun had been hot, and he was -very hungry; so that after consulting with his guide he decided to go -on, the man thinking there was as great a risk of encountering Russians -the one way as the other. They proceeded, therefore, but cautiously, -keeping a sharp look-out. The guide knew the headman of the village; if -he could get speech with him they might obtain useful information. - -Firing could still be heard fitfully; it was impossible to tell how far -away, but it seemed at a considerable distance from the village. When -they entered the street, they came upon a knot of villagers in voluble -discussion. They were instantly the object of a narrow scrutiny; but the -guide had already marked his friend the headman among the group, and -called him by name. The man came forward to meet the riders; the guide -explained in a sentence that he wished to have some private talk with -him, and he at once led the way to his house. - -Thinking that frankness was here the best policy, Jack asked his guide -to explain briefly who he was and what had brought him to the village. -The headman was perturbed, almost incensed, when he heard the story. He -had suffered already from depredations by the brigands; if the Russians -knew that he had harboured a fugitive, he could only expect to suffer -even more seriously at their hands. And there was great danger that -they would discover the new-comers' presence. A squadron of Cossacks -about two hundred strong was at that moment besieging some fifty -Chunchuses in a farm three miles away. The brigands had been shut in -for three days, and it was expected that they must yield shortly, -perhaps before another day was past. The owner of the farm had come -into the village when the Chunchuses appeared. He said that there was -plenty of grain in his barns; the brigands could not be starved; but the -water supply was likely to give out. The farm being situated less than -half a mile from a river, the store of water kept in it was only -sufficient for his family and servants, and could not meet the -requirements of the company of Chunchuses, to say nothing of their -horses. Behind the walls they might succeed in keeping the Russians at -bay unless artillery were brought against them; but lack of water must -inevitably cause them to surrender. They had made a good fight; the -besiegers had lost a good many men; two Cossacks had come into the -village only a short time before Jack's arrival, with orders to the -headman to prepare quarters for the wounded. But they so greatly -outnumbered the defenders that they could afford to lose heavily without -seriously reducing the odds in their favour; and, taught by experience, -they would probably not attempt to storm the place, but would sit down -and leave its reduction to the work of time. - -These explanations were given by the headman, who concluded by earnestly -entreating Jack and his companions to depart. If the Cossacks suspected -that any of the villagers had been in relations with the brigands they -would certainly burn every house in the place, and in all likelihood -slaughter the inhabitants. Jack sympathized with the man in his terror; -he said at once that the village should suffer no harm through him; and -after buying a little food to carry him to the next stage, he rode out -with his two companions. - -But the news he had just heard was not of a kind to pass unconsidered. -He was on his way to join Ah Lum's band; it was a part of that band that -was now in such desperate straits, and he felt a personal interest in -their fate. Word had been sent to Ah Lum, as the headman had informed -him; but Ah Lum was at least two days' march away, and another two days -must pass before help could come from him, even if he found himself in a -position to send assistance. If this siege of the farm were a part of -an organized movement against the Chunchuses, it was not unlikely that -Ah Lum himself was hard pressed. - -Jack was in a quandary. Prudence bade him press on without delay; the -convoy with the Russian wounded was no doubt already on the way to the -village, and might meet him or cross his path at any moment. But he -felt an overpowering curiosity, natural in one of his active spirit, to -see for himself the place where the brigands were so stoutly keeping up -a fight against odds; and his curiosity was reinforced by another -motive: the desire to see whether there was any possibility of their -escaping from their peril. He felt the natural impulse of youth to "do -something", even though he recognized how hopeless it was to imagine -that he, with but two companions, could intervene between the Chunchuses -and their fate. Still, the impulse was overmastering; he must see with -his own eyes how they were situated; and having availed himself of Ah -Lum's protection in placing himself in the hands of his agent, he -thought it his duty not to leave the neighbourhood without at least -assuring himself that rescue was out of the question. - -He announced his intention of riding to the farm. His guide vigorously -protested; it was absurd, he said, to go into the very jaws of danger; -much better hurry on and reach safety with the chief. - -"And what would Mr. Ah think of you if he heard that?" - -"But I don't know the way, master." - -"No matter. The firing was to our right; we saw the way the Cossacks -went; no doubt the wounded will come the same way, so we must avoid -that; but if we work round gradually under cover of that copse yonder, -we shall be going in the right direction. They're firing again. You -will come with me," he added sternly, divining an inclination to bolt, -"or you will no longer be Mr. Ah's man, and you know what that means." - -The three turned off to the right, skirting the beech plantation of -which Jack had spoken, the guide resigned but sullen. It was now about -five o'clock in the afternoon; in an hour and a half it would be dark. -Riding cautiously, keeping a keen look-out on all sides for signs of the -Russians, they gradually made their way across country, guided by the -firing that was still heard at intervals. They were crossing a hilltop -some three miles from the village they had left behind, when Hi Lo -suddenly declared that he saw smoke in the distance. - -"You have sharp eyes," said Jack. "We had better dismount. Being on -the sky-line we shall be easily seen if the Russians look this way. Let -us hope they are giving their whole attention to the farm." - -They tied up their ponies to trees some distance from the hill-path they -had been following. Jack wished to leave Hi Lo in charge of the -animals, but the boy pleaded hard to be allowed to accompany his master. - -"Masta say-lo my hab plenty good look-see. My walkee long-side masta; -plaps my can helpum masta." - -"Very well. Now show me where you saw the smoke." - -The boy pointed to a hollow nearly a mile away, where at first Jack -could see nothing but fields of hay and over-ripe kowliang. The smoke -of course had now disappeared; but, following Hi Lo's finger, Jack -presently saw the dull mud-coloured walls of a farm enclosure, barely -distinguishable from the brownish vegetation around. A moment later Hi -Lo's keen glance lighted upon the low shelter-tents of the Russian -encampment, some distance to the left of the farm, apparently situated -in a field, recently cropped, near the bank of the river, of which a few -yards could be seen. Not a man was in sight; but beyond the camp was a -clump of brushwood, at the edge of which Jack fancied he saw the black -forms of two or three horses. Probably the rest were tethered in the -copse. - -As Jack and his two companions, standing motionless on the hilltop, -looked across the valley they suddenly saw a score of men rush out from -the tall kowliang in which they had been concealed, and dash forward -against the far corner of the wall surrounding the farm. At the same -moment, from the fields around puffs of smoke were seen rising in the -air, and a few moments later the sharp rattle of musketry, like the -sudden shooting of pebbles from a cart, reached their ears. But the -defenders had not been caught napping. A withering fire met the -Russians as they charged up the slight slope leading to the farm; only a -few gained the crest, and these fell to the Chunchuses, who all at once -appeared as by magic in the courtyard. The survivors hesitated for a -moment; then they turned and plunged into cover of the long grass and -kowliang. In a few seconds every man had disappeared from view; peace -reigned over the scene; there was nothing to show that the farm was the -centre of a bitter struggle. - -But for the scarcity of water Jack had little doubt from what he had -seen that the Chunchuses would be able to hold their own indefinitely -against the Cossacks, unless siege operations of a regular kind were -adopted. He could see no trace of trenches, such as, with their -numerical advantage, the besiegers could easily have constructed if they -had been so minded and possessed the requisite knowledge. But they were -a mounted force, unused, no doubt, to any tactics but the simple Cossack -evolutions. The average Russian soldier has little adaptability. The -construction of trenches is not a horseman's business; it would not -enter the head of a Cossack captain to employ a device so far removed -from his routine. Yet with the aid of a trench the besiegers could make -short work of the Chunchuse defences, which consisted simply of the mud -wall surrounding the farm, and the farm itself--a thatched cottage with -byres and pig-sties adjacent, flimsy structures at the best. - -Under cover of the tall shrubs that crowned the hill, Jack looked long -and searchingly at the beleaguered farm. He tried to picture the -defenders within the walls, hoping for relief, watching the inch-fall of -their water supply, tantalized by the sight of the full stream flowing -so near, and yet as distant as though it were in another continent. To -Jack it appeared that there was no chance whatever of doing anything to -assist the Chunchuses, among whom doubtless were men whom he had seen in -Ah Lum's camp. He asked the guide whether he could suggest a way. The -man replied that the only course was to hurry on and inform Ah Lum of -the desperate position of his men. Inasmuch as a messenger had gone on -the same errand two days before, the guide's suggestion was not very -helpful. And Jack was possessed of the feeling that to act thus would -be equivalent to leaving the trapped band in the lurch, a thing that -went very much against the grain. Yet what else could he do? If he -could give no help in the actual, pressing emergency, there was nothing -to gain by remaining on the scene--not only nothing to gain but -everything to lose, for he would run the risk of being snapped up by the -Cossacks. - -"There's no help for it, I suppose," he said half-aloud. Very -unwillingly he turned his back on the farm, and retraced his steps down -the hillside towards the copse where the ponies were tethered. Just -before the farm was wholly shut from his sight by the crest of the hill, -he turned again and swept the country with his eye, as though to take a -last look at the scene of an approaching tragedy. It happened that in -his movements upon the hill he had reached a point where a somewhat -different view was obtainable, and he now noticed for the first time, -half a mile away to his left, an open space in which a group of men, -Russians no doubt, were busy around a number of tripods with big -cauldrons suspended. Smoke was rising from one or two; the men were -evidently lighting fires to prepare their evening meal. - -"Strange," thought Jack, "that the cooking place should be so far from -the shelter-tents and horses. It must be nearly half a mile from the -farm. Do the troops march to the food, I wonder, or is the food carried -to the troops? Probably the former. But why so far away?" - -Even as the question occurred to him the answer flashed upon his -mind--and not only the answer, but a possible means of doing what he so -much longed to do. Was it possible? He felt his pulse quicken at the -mere thought. The dusk was fast gathering over the scene; the farm and -its surroundings must soon be shut altogether from his gaze; before that -came about, he must take one more look. Bidding Hi Lo and the guide -remain where they were, he went back to his former post of observation, -moving very carefully so as not to be seen from the quarter where he had -not previously suspected the presence of an enemy. Once more he scanned -the landscape; then he returned to the two Chinese, who looked at him -questioningly, wondering at the change of expression on his face. - -"Back to the ponies!" he said briefly. As they went they saw the glow -of the Russians' fires in the glooming sky. The sight brought a smile -to Jack's lips, but he said nothing to his expectant companions. They -found the ponies where they had left them; they took from the saddles -the food brought from the village--a little rice, some bean sprouts, and -a small heap of monkey-nuts, all that they had been able to get at short -notice. As they munched their frugal meal Jack could not but wish for -five minutes by the steaming cooking-pots on the other side of the hill. -When their hunger was satisfied, and the dusk had deepened into night, -Jack suddenly looked up from the brown study in which he had appeared to -be absorbed and said: - -"Now, listen to me." - -His two companions listened with all their ears; Hi Lo soon became -restless with excitement; the guide, though his Chinese stolidity was -not so easily broken through, at length gave utterance to the -exclamation "Ch'hoy!" which signifies approbation or disdain, pleasure -or misgiving, according to the inflection of the voice. What Jack had -to say took some time; it was quite dark when he finished; then he got -up. - -"Remember," he said, "not a movement nor a sound. Do exactly as I have -told you; then make for this spot again." - -Then he slipped away into the darkness. - -Slowly, with infinite caution, he crossed the brow of the hill, struck -off towards the right, and descended the slope on the opposite side. It -was so dark that he had no fear of being seen; but, his view of the camp -fires being intercepted by the hill, he could not make sure of his -direction, and knew that at any moment he might stumble upon a sentry. -The only chance of escape for the Chunchuses being to take advantage of -the darkness, he had no doubt that the Russians would keep the strictest -watch at night. He had to guess his way; he was going to the farm. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVI* - - *Fire Panic* - - -Sentry-go--Beneath the Wall--An Old Friend--Thirst--A Way Out--Three -Shots--The Signal--The Reply--A Countryside in Flames--At Full -Gallop--Alarms--Stampede--Chow-chow - - -At the most, the distance Jack had to traverse was but a short mile, yet -so slow was his progress that nearly two hours had elapsed before, from -the vantage-ground of a hillock a few feet above the surrounding fields, -he caught a dim glimpse in the starlight of the farm buildings looming a -short distance in front of him. His intent ears had already caught the -measured tread of a sentry just ahead; stealing along for another few -yards he could now see his head and shoulders and the end of a carbine -projecting above the high grass. Jack stopped and watched. The -sentry's beat seemed to be about thirty yards; to his right Jack could -hear the hum of several low voices, no doubt from a picket. He had -taken the precaution of approaching the farm at the point farthest from -the main gate. The Chunchuses, if they made a sally, would not leave -their horses behind, for on foot they would be at the mercy of their -enemy. Since they could not leap their steeds over the wall, they were -bound to issue from the gate if at all; the exit, therefore, was sure to -be closely guarded, though no doubt there were sentries all round the -farm. - -To the left of the sentry Jack had first seen there was another, whose -beat met that of his comrade. Jack could barely discern him in the -darkness, but he fancied that the man, on reaching the nearer end of his -beat, awaited the arrival of the other before turning. That would -evidently be the best point at which to attempt the passage to the farm; -and the best time would be a second or two after they had turned their -backs upon one another, when any slight noise Jack might make would -almost certainly be attributed by each man to his comrade. Jack went -down on hands and knees and crawled very slowly to within a few paces of -the meeting-place. Then he lay still, hoping that he had not -miscalculated and that there was no danger beyond. He listened -intently; on both sides he heard the men approaching; to the left the -sound was fainter; the beats were evidently of unequal length. One man -came to a halt; in a few seconds he was joined by the other; they -exchanged a remark in a low tone, then separated and tramped in opposite -directions. Instantly Jack glided across their trail, and, still on -hands and knees, crept towards the farm, which he distinguished as a -blacker patch against the sky perhaps a hundred yards away. - -He soon found that between him and the wall lay a stretch of almost bare -ground, no doubt made by the traffic around the farm. How was he to -cross this? He might be seen by both Cossacks and Chunchuses, and if -seen he would be the target for perhaps scores of rifles. - -All was still within the farm; from the distance came faint -sounds--voices from the Russian camp; behind he heard the tramp of -sentries. Flat on the ground, already cold with the autumn night frost, -he eagerly scanned the prospect for some cover by favour of which he -could creep across to the wall. His heart gave a jump as he noticed, a -few feet to his right, what appeared to be a ditch running from the wall -across the bare patch and into the fields. Crawling noiselessly to it, -he found that it was a shallow cutting, intended, as he judged by the -smell, to carry off the drainage from the courtyard. There was no help -for it; he sidled into the channel, luckily dry, and wormed his way -along it until he came to within a few feet of the wall. As he -expected, the drain passed through a hole in the wall, sufficiently deep -for a man to crawl through. - -But the wall gave him pause. He dared not creep through; he would be -taken for an enemy and shot. He must seek a means of communicating with -the garrison without drawing their fire. He crawled to the hole, -hesitated for a moment, then, making a bell of his hands, sent through -the shallow tunnel a low hiss, loud enough to awaken attention; soft -enough, he hoped, not to create alarm. Breathlessly he waited; there -was no response. Again he hissed; this time somewhat louder. There was -a quick footstep within; then silence. A third time; he heard a foot -strike against the wall, and next moment became conscious that someone -was looking down at him over the wall. He lifted his head. - -"I am a friend," he said in deliberate clear-cut Chinese. "I have news -for your captain." - -The man uttered an exclamation under his breath; then bade him remain -perfectly still or he would shoot him. In a low tone he summoned a -comrade and sent him for the commander. Jack heard a little bustle -within, not loud enough to catch the attention of the sentries. A few -minutes later a second voice spoke from the top of the wall. - -"Come through." - -Jack wriggled through the narrow opening. Only his head projected -within the wall when he was told to stop. - -"Who are you?" - -"Mr. Wang, is that you?" - -"Ch'hoy! It is Mr. Chack Blown. Rise, sir!" - -All bemired and dishevelled, Jack sprang to his feet. The Chinaman -kowtowed, uttering an incoherent welcome; then led the way to the -farmhouse. - -"That's the most ticklish half-hour I ever spent in my life," said Jack, -when he was seated opposite to Wang Shih on the k'ang in the -living-room. "And I'm pretty hungry. I've had nothing but rice-cakes -and monkey-nuts since morning. Have you got anything to eat?" - -"Plenty, sir; it is water we are in straits for. I will get you -something." - -In a few minutes a hot dish of boiled chicken and rice, with a couple of -clean chop-sticks, lay before Jack. He ate the meal with keen relish, -while Wang Shih at his request gave a rapid narrative of the events that -had led to his present predicament. With a small force he was beating -up recruits in the district when he suddenly came upon a troop of -Cossacks outnumbering him by two to one. Knowing the country so well, he -could easily have got away, but unluckily he was sighted by a second -troop, which cut across his line of retreat so rapidly that he had only -time to throw himself and his handful of men into the farm before the -two hostile bands united and closed upon him. He had kept them off for -three days; there was food enough to last another week, but his -ammunition was running short, and, worst of all, the water supply had -almost given out. His men had been put upon the smallest possible -allowance, but in spite of their care and self-denial there was barely -enough left to last for another twenty-four hours, and the horses were -already suffering terribly. He had been hoping that Ah Lum would send a -force to relieve him; but the chief was moving northward when he last -saw him, and he doubted whether the man he had sent could reach him in -time. In default of relief, his only course when the water failed would -be to make a sortie by night; but the odds against him were so heavy -that very few of his men could possibly escape. - -"That is why I am here," said Jack. "I was on my way to join Mr. -Ah--the reason I will tell you presently--when I heard of your plight, -in the village yonder. I came to see for myself how you were placed; -your danger had not been exaggerated; and I was on the point of going -off in despair when I had a sudden idea; it was suggested by something I -saw in the enemy's camp. I think there is a bare chance of escape if -you will act on my plan." - -There was a look of mingled eagerness and anxiety on Wang Shih's face as -he begged Jack to tell him what he had in mind. - -"I am not alone," continued Jack. "I came up with a guide given me by -Mr. Ah's agent Me Hong in Moukden, and Hi Lo, our compradore's son, you -remember. They are waiting on the hill less than a mile away. When I -was looking out over the country I saw the Russians light fires for -cooking their supper, and at first wondered why their kitchen was so far -away from the farm. But I saw the reason. As you know, there's a -strong north-easter blowing; the smoke from their fires floated this -way, towards the farm. They had been prudent in selecting a spot away -from the fields, for a spark in the long grass might start a blaze, and, -spreading through the kowliang, it would destroy their cover and make -them easy targets for your marksmen. What would happen if the grass -chanced to burn in the night, eh?" - -The Chinaman's expression changed; his chest heaved. - -"We have tried to fire the grass more than once, but they always stamped -it out. Go on, sir," he said. - -"Well, you see, if a match were put to the grass to windward of the -farm, in several places, and if the wind held, the flames would sweep -upon the Russians in a very few minutes. Their horses would stampede; -the men would be so startled that probably they would be quite unable to -think of anything but their own safety; and while they were scattered -and disorganized, you could sally out of the gate and get so good a -start that, even if they caught their horses, you would be out of harm's -way before they could pursue." - -"But the flames would set fire to the farm. We should be burnt alive; -our horses would be frightened too, and we could never get them to face -the fire and smoke." - -"I had thought of that. The thatch will probably catch fire; but the -open space outside the wall will prevent the flames from actually -touching the wall, and that will serve as a partial protection. Then -you can blindfold the horses so that they don't see the glare; they'll -have to risk suffocation by the smoke, but the men can avoid that by -lying flat on their faces and holding wet rags to their mouths. If I'm -right, the crops will burn very quickly and not smoulder; you must, of -course, wait until the fire has swept by the farm; but then dash out -without losing a minute. I think you can rely on the Russians getting a -terrible fright, and that will be your opportunity." - -"But how is the fire to be lighted at the right place, and how are we to -know when it will be done?" - -"I left instructions with my guide. If he hears three rifle-shots in -succession at noon to-morrow he is to creep down with Hi Lo at dusk and -choose two spots about half a mile apart, just beyond where the -Cossacks' horses are picketed. They will set fire to the grass where it -is thickest, then run towards each other and fire it in two other -places, and make their way as rapidly as possible back to the copse -where our ponies are. The only risk is that they may be discovered -before they can complete their work; but it's to their own interest to -be careful, and I think I can trust Hi Lo, at any rate, to outwit any -Russian." - -Wang Shih was convinced. Greatly impressed by the care with which Jack -had thought out the details of the stratagem, he smiled and rubbed his -hands together with gleeful satisfaction. Suddenly he checked these -signs of pleasure; he rose from the seat, pressed his closed fists to -his breast, and bent over until his brow all but touched the ground. - -"I thank you, sir," he said. "I am grateful; Mr. Ah will be grateful; -you have risked your life for us, and we Chinamen never forget a -benefit." - -"You saved me from death, Mr. Wang; look at it as an acknowledgment if -you like. Besides, we are not out of the wood yet; the farm may be -stormed to-morrow before the time for trying our little plan." - -The Chinaman scoffed; he had held the Russians off for three days, and -it was not to be supposed that, with an additional motive for a stout -resistance, his men would fail at the last. - -"But what if the wind drops? We require the wind to make the blaze a -short and merry one." - -"No, no, sir. At this time of year the wind when it sets from the -north-east blows for weeks at a time----" - -"Bringing snow as often as not. A snow-storm would spoil it all." - -Wang Shih's face fell; he looked so much distressed that Jack laughed. - -"I was only imagining the worst, Mr. Wang. The sky is clear and the air -as dry as a bone. Barring an accident, or some very sudden and unlikely -change in the weather, there will be a pretty bonfire to-morrow night." - -"Shall I tell the men to-night, sir?" - -"On no account. Let them sleep. The place is carefully watched, of -course?" - -"Yes. Six men are on duty for two hours at a time; the watches are -carefully arranged." - -"That's all right, then. Now I'm pretty tired; this k'ang is very warm -and cosy, and if you don't mind I'll coil myself up on it and go to -sleep. Don't wake me unless anything happens." - -Jack slept like a top till ten next morning. It was bright and clear, -and he was delighted to find that the wind had increased in force. Wang -Shih had been self-restrained enough to withhold the details of Jack's -plan from his men, curious as they were to learn what had brought the -Englishman into their midst at such risk to himself. They had merely -been told that there was a prospect of escape. At noon the three shots -arranged as a signal were fired by Wang Shih himself. The Russians took -no notice of them. Hidden by the kowliang they were content to wait, -knowing that the water supply must ere long fail. In the afternoon the -men were informed of the scheme and given their instructions. They -became voluble as they discussed the plan among themselves. There is a -bed-rock of stoicism in the Chinese character; these brigands were not -given to a facile display of emotion; they showed little surprise, -little pleasure, but talked over the approaching event almost -dispassionately, as if it had been an academic problem. They prepared -material for blindfolding the horses, and rags to steep in the last inch -of turbid water in the tank; then the most of them settled down to -beguile the remaining hours with fan-tan. - -Jack could not achieve such composure of mind. He gave no outward sign -of his feelings; but as the hours passed and the time drew near for the -execution of his plan he began to feel restless and impatient. He was -amused at himself, remembering how his father had been wont to poke fun -at him for this very characteristic. "It's only in the Arabian Nights -that an acorn becomes an oak in a moment," Mr. Brown once said. But -though he could smile at himself he did not become less impatient as the -day wore on. As the sun crept round towards the west, and sank over the -purple hills, he looked anxiously from a secure corner of the wall -towards the spot whence he expected the flames to spring. The twilight -thickened; there was no sign. All at once he thought he saw an object -moving down the opposite hillside. Surely the guide could not be so -arrantly stupid as to approach in full view of the camp! In a few -moments Jack's anxiety was relieved, and at the same time increased, -when he found that the moving object was a Cossack slowly riding towards -the farm. He was a messenger, perhaps; probably his approach had -delayed the execution of the scheme; Jack could only hope that this -would not be frustrated entirely. The rider came nearer and nearer; he -might discover the man and the boy lurking in the long grass, for he was -approaching the very spot that Jack had pointed out as an excellent -place for the first match to be struck. An intervening hillock now hid -the Cossack from view; Jack waited; it was growing darker; would the -expected flame never spring up? The minutes passed, lingeringly; all -was quiet; nothing could be heard but the rustle and clash of the grass -and stalks as the wind struck their tops together. - -Suddenly, from a spot somewhat to the right of the place where the -Cossack had disappeared, a thin spiral of smoke shot up into the indigo -sky. Almost simultaneously another appeared, far to the left; in the -dark they could scarcely be detected except by eyes so intently looking -for them as Jack's. They grew in volume; other spirals rose between -them; fanned by the steady wind they swelled into a bank of smoke, -through which Jack's anxious gaze now discerned tongues of flame. - -"Now!" he cried to Wang Shih at his elbow. - -The word was given to the men; in a few seconds the horses were -blindfolded; and by the time the rags were steeped a vast blaze -illuminated the sky; the four fires, spreading with amazing rapidity, -were sweeping towards the farm at the rate of a trotting horse. Shouts -broke the stillness; amid the crackling of the flames the clatter of -metal, the shrill whinnies of terrified horses, then the thunder of -hoofs. From the fields men ran helter-skelter, some attempting to catch -their horses, others in their confusion rushing towards the open space -before the farm, careless whether the rifles of the Chunchuses marked -them down. Onward came the dense volume of smoke bellying towards the -farm. Jack already felt the heat; above his head red wisps of grass -were streaking the sky; one fell upon the thatch, extinct; another -followed, dying before it could kindle the straw; the next was larger, -burned more brightly; it held; the thatch was alight. - -The men were prone upon the ground, pressing wet rags to their mouths. -Their horses were snorting, whinnying, straining on their halters; one -had broken loose, and was madly dashing round the courtyard when Jack -seized it by the broken halter and endeavoured to soothe it. The mud -wall beat off the flames; but the smoke enveloped the whole farm in a -dense cloud, pungent, spark-laden, becoming every moment more stifling. -Jack was forced to earth; he could not breathe; still clutching the -halter he crept under the lee of the wall, and there lay fighting for -breath. The thatched roof was now ablaze; the fields were a mass of -fire; would the smoke never pass and leave a passage for the almost -suffocated men? - -A red glare lit up the farmyard. The flames had devoured the thatch, -and were licking the joists. Jack glanced round the scene, his eyes -smarting so keenly that he could scarcely see. The horses were -shivering with terror; two or three of the men, braving the smoke, were -endeavouring to calm them; the rest of the Chunchuses were still flat on -the ground. But to the north-east the smoke was thinning. Jack rose to -his feet and looked over the wall. The fields between the farm and the -river were black, with here and there a smouldering stalk. On the other -side the flames were still raging; there was nothing to check their -fury. The passage from the gateway was now open; the ground indeed was -very hot; but it would be folly to wait for it to cool. Jack called for -Wang Shih. - -"Now is the time," he said. - -Wang Shih gave the word; the men sprang to their feet and vaulted into -the saddle; the bar across the gate was let down; and then, tearing the -bandages from their horses' eyes, the men dashed out at a furious gallop -across the still scorching soil. Jack, mounted on a spare horse, led -the way towards the river, making for the bridle path which must have -been followed by the Cossack just before the match was struck. For the -first half-mile it was a terrible race; sparks and smoke flew up as the -horses stirred the smouldering embers; the poor beasts screamed with -pain as their unshod hoofs felt the heat; the men breathed stertorously, -half-choked by the acrid fumes. Then, in an instant as it seemed, they -passed from an inferno into the elysian fields. They had reached the -limit of the burnt grass, the keen cold wind struck their faces; men and -animals took deep breaths; they were free, and in the pure air again. -Floundering through the fresh-ploughed field where the Russians had left -their cooking-pots, they came to the river. For one moment they halted -to allow men and horses to slake their thirst; then they pushed on, up -the northern slope, in the direction of the place where Jack hoped to -find Hi Lo and the guide. - -On the crest of the slope he reined up for a moment and looked to the -left. The sheet of fire was still sweeping on towards a plantation on -the south-west side. It seemed that the whole country in that direction -must be devastated; nothing could stop the flames but the bare rocky -ridge a mile or more away. Faint shouts came from the distance; then a -fitful succession of shots scarcely audible through the crackle and -roar. Who could be firing? Jack was puzzled to account for the sounds -until he guessed that the Cossacks in their headlong flight had flung -away their loaded carbines, and that, as the fire swept over them, these -were exploded by the heat. - -With a glow of content at the success of his scheme, Jack hastened on -after the brigands, now walking their horses towards the uplands. There -was no fear of pursuit; the Russians were far too much demoralized, and -their horses were gone, none knew whither. When Jack overtook the band, -Wang Shih suggested that they should follow up their advantage and -destroy the enemy. But from this Jack dissuaded him; there were -probably other detachments of Cossacks in the neighbourhood; it was best -to let well alone, and rejoin his chief as soon as possible. Ah Lum -might himself be hard pressed by the encircling movement which the -Russians had apparently begun. The Chunchuses therefore rode on, still -at a walking pace. - -The moon was rising, throwing her silvery mantle over the quiet country. -Skirting a black clump of trees the riders were startled to hear the -distant clatter of a large body of horses galloping towards them. -Moment by moment the sound grew louder. Had another troop of the enemy -learnt of what had happened and started on their tracks? Wang Shih -looked anxiously around; nothing could be seen, but the sound appeared -to come from beyond a stretch of rolling country to the left of their -line of march. Giving a brief word of command, Wang Shih wheeled his -horse towards the copse; and his band following him at a quick trot, -they were soon in the cover of the leafless trees, waiting in anxious -silence for the appearance of the enemy. - -Nearer and nearer came the thud of hundreds of hoofs. Wang Shih ordered -his men to maintain absolute silence; he hoped that the enemy, unaware -of his proximity, would pass by and give him the opportunity to slip -away undetected. A few minutes passed; Jack was wondering why he could -not hear the rattle of sword-cases on the horses' flanks, when on the -crest of the low ridge opposite appeared the head of the column, and the -earth seemed to shake as score after score of dark forms swept forward -towards the path the Chunchuses had so lately left. The brigands had -much ado to quiet their ponies, which were pricking their ears and -snuffing with distended nostrils in restless excitement. Then, as the -moonlight fell upon the advancing mass, every man in the copse heaved a -sigh of relief--and something more. Their pursuers were not horsemen, -but horses, every one of them riderless--clearly the stampeded horses of -the enemy, rushing blindly into the night, the fire panic at their -heels. - -"We ought to catch them," said Jack to Wang Shih as they thundered past. - -The Chinaman smacked his lips with approval. Such a capture would be a -turning of the tables indeed. But how was it to be done? One of his -men, knowing in the ways of horses, proposed a plan. The principal -thing was to prevent the fugitives from heading back towards the -Cossacks. Let the brigands then extend on a wide front and follow; the -runagates would keep together, and by and by, when their flight was -past, come to a halt. Adopting the suggestion, Wang Shih led his men at -a smart trot up the slope. For a long time the beat of the runaways' -hoofs could be heard in the night air--the more clearly because they -were to windward. Then the sound gradually died away. Wang Shih was -anxious not to outrun them in the darkness; the country was uneven, with -patches of timber here and there, and the animals if they stopped in the -shelter of the hills might easily be passed. But with the number of men -at his command it would not be difficult to find the most of them, at -any rate, with the morning light. He pushed on, therefore, until he -reached the spot where Hi Lo and the guide were eagerly awaiting Jack's -arrival. There the band off-saddled, and, worn out with fatigue and -excitement, the men flung themselves down on the leaf-strewn ground and -sought their much-needed rest. - -Jack did not fail to bestow warm praise upon the man and the boy who had -so faithfully and cleverly carried out their part of the scheme. Hi Lo -had been just on the point of striking his match when the Cossack -messenger whom Jack had seen came riding behind him. The boy had barely -time to slip into the tall kowliang, whence he had watched the -unsuspecting horseman ride past. - -"You did very well," said Jack. "Your father will be pleased when I -tell him." - -Hi Lo beamed with delight. - -"My hab makee velly big fire; my look-see allo-piecee Lusski man -belongey velly muchee 'flaid; my walkee long-side chow-chow pots; -catchee plenty muchee bellyful, that-time lun wailo." - -Jack laughed, and bade the boy make a pillow of his pony's saddle and go -to sleep. - -Next morning the stampeded horses were discovered peacefully cropping -the grass in a narrow valley about a mile from the Chunchuses' bivouac. -They allowed themselves to be caught easily; and with the booty of -nearly two hundred Transbaikal ponies in excellent condition Wang Shih -pursued his march. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVII* - - *The War Game* - - -An Offer--Conditions--The Sweep of the Net--Military Instructor--The -Spur of Competition--Birds of a Feather--Short Commons--A Trap--More -Cossacks--Ah Lum in Danger--Initiative--A Race for Position--Sword and -Pistol--Driven Off - - -For four days Wang Shih and his band marched through the hills without -hearing anything of Ah Lum. Their progress was somewhat hampered by the -additional horses, and Wang Shih chose devious and difficult paths in -order to evade scouting parties of Cossacks; for he had little doubt -that when the news of the recent incident reached the Russian general in -charge of the lines of communication, he would issue orders to his -lieutenants to hasten their movements against their daring and elusive -enemy. On the fifth day it was reported by a peasant that Ah Lum, after -a continuous march northward, was now turning south before formidable -Russian forces that were threatening to enclose him. He had felt their -strength in one or two slight engagements, and found that they greatly -outnumbered him; but, owing to his superior mobility and his knowledge -of the country, he had been able to escape without serious loss. - -Next day, as the band was threading a defile leading to a well-watered -valley, there was a sudden stoppage of the column. It turned out that -the advanced patrol had been halted by Ah Lum's scouts, who, however, as -soon as they learned the identity of the new-comers, allowed them to -pass. The Chunchuse chief was found to have encamped by the river-side, -in the valley, the three exits to it being carefully guarded. When he -learnt that Wang Shih had returned, with a welcome supply of remounts, -he rode forward to meet his lieutenant. Great was his amazement to find -among the band the young Englishman who had served as unpaid tutor to -his son. His surprise was greater still when Wang Shih recounted the -part Jack had played; and the narrative did not minimize his -achievement; Wang Shih declared plainly that but for Jack's timely -arrival, quick wit, and fearlessness of character, the band must -inevitably have been wiped out. Ah Lum made no effort to conceal his -pleasure. He had the soldier's delight in a brilliant feat; the -brigand's delight in a good haul; and the mere man's delight in the -chance of again securing tutorial services for nothing. He warmly -congratulated Jack, and insisted on knowing all the circumstances that -had led up to the great event. When the story was fully told, his -little black eyes gleamed through his goggles with undisguised -satisfaction. - -"Irresistible destiny has fulfilled her own decree," he said. "All -events are separately fated before they happen. I repeat the offer I -made to you on the eve of your departure. If there be no faith in our -words, of what use are they? I will give you a command in my army; you -will come next to my trusty lieutenant, Mr. Wang; he has muscle, you -have mind: both inestimable qualities in a warrior. Did not the poet -Wang Wei write in his _Essay on Military Matters_: - - "'Know then the Proof: that Leader is most fit - Who Thought to Valour joins, and Strength to Wit'?" - - -"Thank you!" said Jack gravely; "I accept your kind offer; but, to be -frank, there are one or two points I think I ought to mention. As I -said, our compradore has gone to Harbin to make enquiries for my father; -if I hear from him, I may have to leave at any moment." - -"That is understood. The son that forgetteth his father, shall he not -die childless?" - -"And there is another point. As you know, Mr. Ah, it is not the English -custom--nor indeed the custom of any western nation--to torture -prisoners. I have heard that the ways of Chinese warriors are not like -ours in that respect. You will pardon me if I say that it will be -difficult for me to take service in a force to whom such excesses are -permitted." - -Somewhat to Jack's surprise the chief did not take offence. - -"In that also," he said, "my mind is equally yoked with yours. As -Confucius says, 'The intelligence of the superior man is deep'; the wise -man is he that is ever learning. I have watched this war; I see that -the Japanese have won their successes by adopting the red man's methods. -I will make a decree that no prisoner shall suffer inordinate -correction. But I must beg you to be patient. When water has once -flowed over, it cannot easily be restored; when the passions have once -been indulged, they cannot easily be restrained. Water must be kept in -by dykes, the passions must be regulated by the laws of propriety. I -will impress these laws on my men; they shall know what is right; and I -will make them understand that knowing what is right without practising -it denotes a want of proper resolution." - -"Thank you, Mr. Ah! that is a relief. For myself, I can only say that I -will do my best to be worthy of your confidence." - -"Now, is it not written, 'He that gives willingly is himself worthy of -gifts'? I beg of you a favour in return; it is that you will continue -to give my son lessons in your honourable language. And, further, I -shall be grateful if you will deign to teach me something of the -barbarian's art of war, the learning of which has made the Japanese so -victorious." - -"I will go on with Ah Fu with pleasure," said Jack, adding with a smile: -"but I'm afraid I can't do anything in the other line. I have made no -study of warfare; my father has trained me to a commercial career." - -"But you have seen the barbarian armies at their exercise?" - -"I admit that." - -"Well, I am sure you can be of great service to me if it is your august -pleasure." - -"I will do what I can, Mr. Ah,--if your men will carry out instructions. -I'm a 'foreign devil', after all." - -"'In the world there are many men, but few heroes', as the proverb says. -I know your worth; do I not remember the boar, and the saving of my -son's life? surely it would ill become me to forget; and this late -employment of fire against our enemies? Modesty is attended with -profit; whereas arrogance courts destruction. My men, those that I -place under you, will obey you. I will see to that." - -Jack thus found himself lieutenant in a regiment of some twelve hundred -men, armed for the most part with Mausers, and well mounted. Except for -a wholesome dread of their chief, however, they had very little -discipline, and but scant military cohesion. Although there was no lack -of arms and ammunition, Ah Lum was not too well provisioned. He had been -driven by the encircling Russian movement into a somewhat poor district, -the hills being more fruitful in forest trees than in grain. The valley -of his encampment was fertile enough, but its products would soon be -exhausted, and it was separated from the grain-bearing plains to the -west by a chain of barren heights. The bandits were being driven -farther and farther into the mountainous regions, where it would become -increasingly difficult to feed so large a force. Messengers had -recently come in, reporting that Russian troops operating on the -northern frontier of Korea were pushing reconnoitring parties into the -hills in their rear with the object of locating them. There were many -smaller parties of Chunchuses scattered over the country, but Ah Lum's -was the only considerable band left in the angle between the two railway -lines connecting Harbin with Kirin and Vladivostok respectively. The -lull after the battle of Liao-yang had enabled the Russians to devote -more attention than heretofore to clearing their flanks of these -troublesome irregulars. Ah Lum was well served by scouts, the country -people being anxious to purchase immunity by giving such information as -they could without risk; and from them the chief had learnt that the -largest force opposed to him was at this time about two marches away. -Some days would probably pass before they came on his trail. It had -been throughout the war the Russians' experience that the Chinese were -very reluctant to give them news of any kind, and this reluctance had -been still more marked since the unbroken success of the Japanese had -become common knowledge through the country. - -Day after day passed, and the bandits were still left unmolested. Jack, -settling down to his new position, had his hands fully occupied. He -gave Ah Fu lessons in English daily, to his father's great delight. But -he had wider scope for his tutorial faculty. He had felt a little -natural amusement at the idea of being placed--he, a civilian, with just -as much military experience as his school drill-ground and some practice -at the butts afforded--in command of a troop of warriors--a motley -horde, indeed, but all seasoned, determined, fearless fellows. But, as -was inevitable in a force indiscriminately recruited and entirely -lacking in regular training, the men had much to learn; and Jack had not -made a whole-hearted study of the Boer war without feeling that, -civilian though he was, he was better acquainted with the general -principles of warfare than possibly any other member of the band. The -Chunchuses were little accustomed to organized movements on any -considerable scale; they were most adept in sniping at single travellers -or small bodies whom they could attack unawares from the vantage of -cover. Something more was required if they were to defeat the serious -attempts now being made to crush them, and Jack was determined to show -himself worthy of Ah Lum's confidence by his manner of handling his own -division of two hundred and fifty men. - -Marksmanship and cover: these he took to be the principal factors in -modern warfare. So far as the use of cover was concerned, he found that -his men had little to learn; several months of hard fighting against -troops carrying arms of precision had enforced the value of cover in the -most practical way. In each engagement the Russians had taken toll of -those who failed to recognize its importance: their bodies lay among the -hills from the Yalu to the Sungari. But in marksmanship the Chunchuses -were not so efficient. A large proportion of them had never handled, -perhaps never even seen, a rifle until they joined the band. Without -definite instruction they were apt to blaze away at their own will and -pleasure, absolutely reckless of the wastage of ammunition, which had -hitherto, owing to one or two lucky raids, been plentiful. Jack -suspected that the proportion of hits to misses was woefully small. He -therefore set earnestly to work to effect an improvement in this -respect. He rigged up butts, put every man in his command through a -course, and, taking advantage of the Chinaman's love of competitive -examination, started a shooting competition, with badges of different -form and colour for the prizes. This especially pleased Ah Lum; it -aroused a keen spirit among his men; the example of Jack's division was -soon followed by the rest, and the general proficiency was very largely -increased. - -Among Jack's men were the greater part of the company he had rescued. -One of them was Hu Hang, the ex-constable. This man showed -extraordinary skill with the rifle. As Hi Lo said: - -"Policeyman he can shootee allo plopa first-chop what-time no piecee man -he shootee back." - -This was a somewhat caustic remark; but Hi Lo had no love for the -constable, who indeed was not popular among the band. His comrades -would have been hardly human if they had not made the most of their -opportunities of paying off against Hu Hang the scores that many of them -owed to members of his hated class. He kept a good deal apart, finding -a congenial soul only in C'hu Tan, the former second in command, who had -been deposed for grave neglect of duty, and replaced by Wang Shih. The -two malcontents were often together, condoling with each other on their -wrongs; and their animus against Wang Shih extended to Jack, who struck -them as an additional supplanter, the more hateful from being a -foreigner. Jack knew nothing of this himself; but it did not escape the -shrewd eyes of Hi Lo, who kept quiet and unobtrusive watch upon C'hu -Tan, dogging him at every turn. - -After a fortnight's steady practice Jack felt that the fighting value of -his little force was well-nigh doubled. But at the end of that time Ah -Lum suddenly ordered the rifle practice to be stopped. A scout had -reported that the Russians had approached within striking distance, and -the chief feared lest the sound of the firing should betray his -whereabouts. - -At last one morning, after hearing a messenger who came in faint and -gasping after a long night's ride, Ah Lum felt that the coil was being -drawn too tightly around him. He gave a sudden order to decamp; the -band quitted the valley that had sheltered them so long, and set off -into the hills. Lack of provisions was beginning to be felt. The -ponies, hardy little animals, were able to pick up a subsistence on the -hillsides, sparse though the grazing was at this time of year; and for -them stalks of kowliang could always be obtained as a last resource. -But the supply of rice and buckwheat, on which the men depended, was -running short. Ah Lum somewhat dismally told Jack that it would now be -necessary to reduce the rations. He confessed that he was in a tighter -place than ever before. At no time previously had the Russians made such -determined efforts to crush him. In addition to the Korean frontier -force far to his rear, which for the present need not be reckoned with, -there were, as he had learnt, three large forces of Cossacks, each -stronger than his own band, converging upon him from north, east, and -west. General Kuropatkin had hitherto been able to make little use of -these characteristic cavalry of the Russian army, so that they were -available for the less dignified but very necessary work of -bandit-hunting. The three forces directed against Ah Lum were still a -considerable distance apart from one another, but it was clear to him -that in a few days he would have to try conclusions with one of them -before they got into touch. He had only escaped this necessity so long -because the Cossacks were unaccustomed to hill work. Matchless in rapid -furious charges on the plain, they had shown little capacity for -mountain fighting or even for scouting; and, as Jack learnt afterwards, -they were desperately chagrined at their hard luck in having so few -chances of the kind of work that suited them. - -The Chunchuses marched for several days into the hills, their condition -going from bad to worse. The rations were verging on exhaustion. The -Cossacks were no doubt well supplied, and Ah Lum felt that the moment -had come for an attack on one of their forces. The nearest was only a -long march distant. Breaking up his camp early one morning, when the -night's frost lay white on the ground, he led his men across the hills -northward, and, proceeding with great caution, located the enemy late in -the afternoon. Throwing out scouts in advance--men intimately -acquainted with the country--he sighted the Cossacks before they sighted -him, and at once fell back behind a forest-clad ridge so that his -presence might not be discovered that day. During the night his scouts -reported, apparently by a calculation from the enemy's watch-fires, that -the Cossacks were at least a thousand strong, and thus about equal -numerically to Ah Lum's effective force, with the advantage of better -discipline and training. But the chief, in common with all his -countrymen, had shrewdly studied the invaders; he had not been blind to -the Cossacks' failure in the war, and he was hardly the kind of man to -allow himself to be terrorized by the mere name of Cossack, the effect -of which was due merely to the memory of past exploits when the -conditions of warfare were different. - -An hour or two before they sighted the Russians, the bandits had -advanced through a narrow pass, enclosed between steep and rugged -bluffs. Upon this pass Ah Lum decided to fall back; it offered every -advantage for an ambuscade. Withdrawing thither during the hours of -darkness, he allowed his men a brief spell of sleep; then, while the -dawn was yet but a glimmer, he set them to fell trees in the copses that -crowned the hills, and to pile them across the pathway at the far end. -It was still early when he placed half his men in cover upon the heights -overlooking the track; the rest, consisting of the divisions of Wang -Shih and Jack, were sent to threaten the Russian rear. A mist hung over -the hills; it was bitterly cold, and the ponies often slipped on the -frosty ground. Luckily Wang Shih had with him a peasant of the -neighbourhood who acted as guide. But for him the Chunchuses could -hardly have found their way. - -It was but an hour after daybreak when they found themselves on the -right rear of the Russians about two miles from the latter's camp. Wang -Shih's orders were to wait until the Cossacks had advanced to the end of -the pass and been checked by the ambuscade there. Then, before the -enemy could recover from the confusion into which they would be thrown, -he was to follow up rapidly in the hope that a movement seeming to -threaten their line of retreat might complete their disorder. He -therefore waited until, from a secure hiding-place, he saw them quit -their camp and march out. Then he moved his men with Jack's down the -hill somewhat closer to the enemy's line of march, and awaited the sound -of firing in the distance that would announce the beginning of the fight -at the ambuscade. - -Meanwhile Jack narrowly scanned the surrounding country. The mist had -cleared away, and a bright cold October sun was painting the distant -hills with various charming tints. Suddenly Jack's attention was -attracted by a dark, narrow, tape-like something moving down a slope far -to the north-west. Before many seconds were past he was convinced that -it was a body of horsemen. The question was, what horsemen? In the -distance their character could not be distinguished; the one thing -certain was that they were not Japanese, for their clothes were very -dark; the Japanese were wearing khaki. They were scarcely likely to be -Chunchuses; from their regular even progress Jack concluded that they -could not be native carriers; surely they must be a second body of -Cossacks who had advanced by forced marches to co-operate with those now -approaching the ambush. - -Jack had moved some little distance in advance of his troop. What he -had seen sent him in haste to rejoin Wang Shih. - -"We must get our men under cover," he said. "There are Cossacks, I -believe, descending the opposite hills. They may not have seen us yet." - -The Chunchuses moved within cover of the nearest trees, and Wang Shih -sent forward his keenest scout on foot to ascertain whether the -new-comers were enemies or friends. He returned in a few minutes -declaring that even at this distance he had distinguished the -characteristic head-dress of the Cossacks. Wang Shih was disposed to -remain in cover until the time came for him to carry out Ah Lum's -orders. In his present position he ran little risk of being seen by the -oncoming party, and being entirely without imagination it did not occur -to him that the situation was now perhaps radically altered. But to -Jack the discovery seemed to be serious. The line of advance taken by -the second body of Cossacks would bring them within an hour across Ah -Lum's rear. The position had been strangely reversed. While Ah Lum -believed that Wang Shih was cutting off the retreat of the first body, -his own rear was in process of being threatened by a force twice as -numerous as the one he could dispose of. He was probably in ignorance -of the danger, for the advancing Cossacks were shut from his view by the -contours of the hills, and there was little likelihood now of a warning -being conveyed to him by a Chinese villager. It was impossible for a -messenger to reach him from Wang Shih, for the first Russian force lay -between. - -Jack pointed out to Wang Shih the peril in which his chief lay. The -Chunchuse admitted it, but asked what he could do. With his assistance -Ah Lum might beat the first body of the enemy before the second could -arrive, and then could turn his attention to it in its turn. - -"But suppose the fight takes a long time? And suppose we do not succeed -in beating the first Russian force? If they hold us until the second -arrives, Mr. Ah's men will be attacked from the rear, and they will -certainly be crushed between the two." - -"It is as you say. But the chief has given me orders; he will be angry -if I disobey. It is better to carry out orders." - -It was evident that Wang Shih was disinclined to assume any -responsibility. Jack was by no means satisfied that things must be -allowed to take their course. It appeared to him of the utmost -importance that the second Russian force should be held in check until -the first had been disposed of. He went through the clump of bare trees -until he reached the summit of the crest, and looked anxiously towards -the advancing band. - -About a mile away the hill path it was following disappeared in a cleft -in the hills, reappearing a quarter of a mile farther on. It seemed to -Jack that at this spot, resembling somewhat the position Ah Lum had -taken up, it was possible to hold the Russians in check. So far as he -could see, there was no better place along their route for such an -attempt, and he instantly made up his mind that the attempt must be -made. It was doubtful whether the Chunchuses could reach the cleft in -time to occupy it before the Cossacks arrived, but there was a bare -chance, and he resolved to take it. - -Hastening back to Wang Shih he explained that he proposed with his own -division of men to make for the cleft, leaving the rest to carry out Ah -Lum's instructions. Wang Shih raised no objection; he merely stipulated -that Jack should accept the full responsibility for his action. In a few -minutes, therefore, Jack rode off at the head of his band; almost -immediately after starting he heard the dull sound of firing in Ah Lum's -direction; the fight in the pass had begun. Clearly there was no time -to lose, for the same sound would certainly quicken the approach of the -second body of Russians. - -Keeping down the hill in order to screen his movements as long as -possible from the enemy, Jack led the way at as rapid a trot as the -rugged ground allowed. Only a few minutes had passed when the little -force rode out on to the open hillside, where they must be seen by the -Russians. Jack fancied that the enemy was at this time nearer to the -cleft than his own men; but the Chunchuses were riding downhill, the -Russians up, which gave room for hope that he might reach the position -first. He was helped also by the more open character of the ground on -his side, and by the fact that for some time the Russians failed to -recognize the object of the horsemen riding at full speed towards them. -During these precious moments Jack's party gained several hundred yards. -Keeping one eye on the rough ground and the other on the enemy, Jack -noticed that the leading files broke from a walk into a trot and then -into a headlong scramble. It was now neck or nothing. Throwing caution -to the winds, he dug his spurs into his pony, and clattered at breakneck -speed down the slope, the Chunchuses hard at his heels. Several ponies -stumbled and came to their knees, flinging their riders; but the rest, -intoxicated with the excitement of the race, rode unheeding after their -leader. A dip in the ground now hid the two forces from one another; -they would not again come in sight until the cleft was reached. Between -the Chunchuses and the point they aimed at lay a comparatively clear -space, dotted by a few single boulders without any of the smaller stones -that for most of their ride had impeded their progress. Now Jack urged -his panting steed to a mad gallop; the quarter-mile was covered in a few -seconds; he dashed into the cleft, the foremost of his men but a length -behind. - -[Illustration: At full Tilt] - -Eagerly he peered ahead through the narrow tortuous passage. None of -the Cossacks was in sight. He galloped on, hoping to reach the other -end before they arrived; it would be easy to hold the entrance against -them. He had almost reached the farther opening when he came full tilt -on the leading Russian horseman, a Transbaikal Cossack riding with loose -rein, pistol in hand. He was some twenty yards in advance of the troop. -In the heat of the race Jack had not anticipated the chance of a fight -on horseback. Before he could draw his pistol the Russian had fired: -the bullet whizzed harmlessly past Jack's head. With astonishing -dexterity the Russian whipped his sword from the scabbard; by the time -Jack had his pistol ready only a few yards separated the two. Then Jack -fired; the Russian's uplifted sword dropped from his hand, and the -ponies came together with a thud. Both riders fell to the ground, Jack -being thrown lightly on the slope to the right, thus fortunately -escaping the hoofs of the ponies following. He arose dazed, saw a -confused mass of men in front of him, heard shouts and the crack of -pistols. Pulling himself together, he ordered his men to dismount and -line the sides of the gully. In an instant some scores of them were -scrambling up the bluffs on both sides, leaving their ponies to be -gradually passed to the rear by their comrades. - -The men in front, finding themselves unsupported, began to give way, but -slowly and stubbornly. As the Russians could only advance two abreast, -and that with difficulty, two or three precious minutes were gained, -during which the crests of the slopes on either side were manned by the -Chunchuses. Now Jack gave the word to open fire. His men were -breathless; their limbs were quivering; and their hasty ill-directed -shots did little execution. But several horses and men fell in the -Russian van; the pressure on the mounted Chunchuses who were stemming -the Russian advance was reduced; and then, as the marksmen steadied and -took deliberate aim, a hot and deadly fire was poured into the enemy's -ranks. The Russians made an attempt to reply, taking advantage of cover -where they could, some of them sheltering themselves behind the ponies -that had fallen. But the bandits had all the advantage of position; the -Cossacks, after a gallant stand, were forced to give way; and leaving -more than thirty of their number on the ground they galloped back a -half-mile to a shoulder of the hill, where they found protection from -the rifle-fire of the Chunchuses. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVIII* - - *A Fight in the Hills* - - -Playing the Game--A Sprint--Hit--Waiting--Across the Open--Hard -Beset--Between two Fires--The Raising of the Siege--The Spoils--The -Rear-Guard--The Outlook - - -The onfall had been so violent and the fight so brisk and rapid that -Jack had had no time to form any plans or give any but the most obvious -orders demanded by the exigency of the moment. He was exceedingly glad -of the breathing space afforded by the withdrawal of the enemy. If he -had checked them, it was only because he was able to forestall them in -the cleft; the real struggle was to come. - -He utilized the pause to make good his position in the pass. The narrow -path was strewn with boulders. With these each bandit made his own -little fort, so arranging them, when they were not too heavy to be -moved, as to give the maximum of cover against the enemy's fire. Jack -wondered what form the Russian attack would take. The pass was so -narrow, its course so uneven, that direct fire from the farther end -would not, he thought, be very effective. That he was right was soon -proved. In about a quarter of an hour the Cossacks opened a spasmodic -rifle-fire from the rough ground about three-quarters of a mile away. -It made no impression on the Chunchuses, except that one man was shot -dead by a ricochet. - -Apparently convinced of the hopelessness of loosening the bandits' hold -upon the pass, the Russians ceased firing. As the minutes passed in -silence, Jack wondered what their next move was to be. Faint sounds of -shots came from the distance; Ah Lum's band was evidently still engaged; -surely the commander of the men opposed to Jack must know that he was -losing precious time, and would make some real effort to join hands with -the other force. Jack could not but suspect that some movement was -being developed quietly and out of sight, a suspicion strengthened when -firing again broke out, intermittent, absolutely ineffective, probably -designed to withdraw his attention from anything beyond his immediate -front. From his position in the pass he could see nothing of the -surrounding country; but about a hundred yards nearer the Russians there -was a point from which he thought a good view might be obtained. To -reach it, however, he would have to run the gauntlet of the Russian -fire; for at least thirty yards he would be fully exposed without -possibility of taking cover. Should he risk it? - -For a time he hesitated. The weighty reasons against endangering his -life flocked one after another through his mind; uppermost of all, the -thought of his father, and of his friends at home so anxiously waiting -for news of him. But he felt that having brought his men into their -present hot corner it was his duty, at whatever personal risk, to get -them out of it; and only by ascertaining the Russian plan of attack, if -they had one, could he hope with his mere handful of men to hold his -own. He hesitated no longer. Not that he was disposed to forget -prudence and play the dare-devil. He would not throw away any chance. -Shouting to the men nearest to him he told them what he proposed to do, -and arranged that when he reached the limits of cover three of the -bandits should draw the Russian fire by the old Indian trick of -displaying the corner of a garment above their lurking place, as if they -were exposing themselves to take aim. The trick when tried for the -first time was almost certain to provoke a fusillade from the enemy, and -Jack could then seize the opportunity to make a dash across the open -ground. The same device could be employed again when he signalled his -desire to return; but it was less likely to prove successful then, for -the Russians would be on the watch, and the more intelligent of them -would have seen through the ruse. Still, it would be worth the trial -even in the second case. Accordingly, having arranged for the signal -which should announce his return, he started to worm his way to the -limit of cover. - -When he arrived there he halted, turned round, and, lifting his hand to -show that he was ready, braced himself for the sprint across the open. -The appearance of a hat and portion of a coat above the rocks behind was -followed instantly by the rattle of musketry from the Russian position. -Setting his teeth, Jack sprang from cover and raced at full speed up the -hill to a little knot of boulders above him. Before he had gone half -the distance there was a second crash of volleying rifles; but the -Russians had clearly taken very flurried aim; Jack heard the hissing -flight of the bullets, but reached the shelter of the rock without a -scratch. - -As soon as he had taken breath, he set himself to make a careful survey -of the scene beneath him. There was a party of Cossacks, whose numbers -it was impossible to estimate, more or less hidden in the rough ground -immediately in front of the pass. Half a mile in their rear was another -body, apparently in reserve, numbering, as he guessed, about 300. But -the force he had seen an hour before, winding its way down the hillside, -had consisted of more than 1000 men. Where, then, were the rest? Jack's -eye travelled from the lower to the upper slopes of the hill. For a few -moments he could distinguish nothing resembling a body of men; -then--yes, about a mile and a half away was a dark object moving -diagonally across the field of view, and this soon resolved itself into -a column of horsemen. The remnant of the Cossack force, about a third -of its strength, had presumably returned some distance along the path of -their advance, then swept round to the right. In a few minutes they -disappeared from view; Jack could hardly doubt that they intended to -turn his position by following a bridle path that would probably bring -them out upon his rear. He must go back and question the guide. He -made the signal to his men; again they raised the garments; there was a -scathing volley from the Russians, but some, not to be caught napping a -second time, held their fire, and as Jack bounded forth he heard the -flying bullets whistling unpleasantly around him. One tore the felt -from his Chinese shoe; another stung him like a whip in the forearm; -but, owing, doubtless, to the fact that he was racing downhill, and that -in consequence both the range and the elevation were rapidly changing, -he reached cover in safety except for these slight mishaps. - -While his wound was being bound up, he questioned the man who had guided -the bandits to the district. The Chinaman, on Jack explaining what he -had seen, agreed that there was a path through the hills in the -direction indicated. It led to a ledge of rock jutting out from a -shoulder of the hill about half a mile in the rear of Jack's position. -An enemy holding that narrow platform could command the southern outlet -of the pass, and completely cut off the Chunchuse force. For a moment -Jack thought of stealing a march on the Cossacks and occupying the -ledge, but a little reflection showed how useless this would be. Not -only would he weaken the body holding the pass, every man of whom would -be required when the serious attack was delivered, but the ledge itself -and the path in its neighbourhood were scarcely tenable against a force -so largely outnumbering his own. - -Another move that suggested itself was to abandon the pass and fight a -rearguard action as he retraced his steps towards Ah Lum's position. -But to do this would be, he felt, to abandon his whole object, which was -to relieve Ah Lum as long as possible of pressure from the second -Russian force. After taking anxious thought, he decided that he must -stick to the pass if the chief was to have any chance of escaping the -net now closing around him. So long as there was a fighting force in -the pass the Russians would not venture to attack Ah Lum, for they could -not spare enough men to bottle up Jack's division and at the same time -strike an effective blow at the chief so strongly placed. Accordingly -Jack withdrew his men from the section of the pass likely to be covered -by the flanking force, and settled down to await developments. Sounds -of firing still came across the hills in the rear, showing that Ah Lum, -and possibly by this time Wang Shih also, were at grips with the first -Russian column. - -Fronting the southern end of the pass was a small clump of trees that -would give the Russians ample cover if they could reach it. But in -order to reach it they would have to cross a quarter of a mile of -comparatively level ground, affording little cover, and exposed to the -direct fire of the defenders. For a moment Jack was tempted to occupy -the clump; but that would involve the splitting of his force, and any -detachment he might send to hold the position would be completely cut -off from support except by rifle-fire. Fortunately the clump was not -approachable from the rear; the attempt would involve a laborious climb -uphill, the climbers all the time exposed to fire from the mouth of the -pass. This end being less defensible than the northern, Jack had -already placed the greater number of his men in cover here in -anticipation of the arrival of the Russian turning column. - -Some twenty minutes passed, during which Jack impressed upon his men the -necessity of husbanding their ammunition. They had but a small supply, -with no reserve to draw upon; it was imperative that they should not -reply to the Russian fire until they could see their enemy distinctly. -The near approach of the Cossacks was heralded by a sudden hail of -bullets falling upon the rocks on either side of the pass. This was the -signal for a warm fusillade from the original point of attack. To -neither was any reply made by the Chunchuses, among whom not a man was -touched. After a few minutes there was a sudden lull in the firing; it -had become evident to the Russians that unless they rushed the clump of -trees they could make no impression on an enemy so well protected. -Intuitively Jack knew what was impending; he called to his men to be on -the alert; and scarcely had he spoken when forty or fifty big horsemen, -in open order, dashed across the open space towards the trees. Then -Jack gave the word. The Cossacks had covered but a few yards when a -terrible fire was poured upon them from the pass. Here a man dropped -from his saddle; there a horse rolled over; but with the fine courage -that had distinguished the Russian soldier throughout the war, the -others held on in their terrible race with death. As they galloped -forward man after man fell; only a gallant remnant reached the clump, -and with it comparative safety. Scarcely a third of the troop gained the -shelter of the trees, but tactically the movement was worth the -sacrifice. There was silence for a brief space; then the men in the -clump opened fire. From their new position they were able to enfilade a -considerable section of the pass. One by one Jack's men began to fall; -then there was a second rush from the Cossack main body to reinforce the -men in the copse; and the defenders of the pass, enfiladed as they were, -were unable to stop it. Most of the Russians got across; and with the -reinforcements they had received, the men in the clump poured a still -more damaging fire into the Chunchuses, only half-concealed now by rocks -and boulders, and hampered by the necessity of sparing their ammunition. -The Russians, feeling that they had the upper hand, began to expose -themselves both in the copse and on the rough ground whence their rushes -had been made; and the bandits, with the fear of their cartridges -running short, durst not take full advantage of their opportunities of -picking off incautious individuals among the enemy; they had to content -themselves with firing whenever a group of two or more presented a broad -target, and directing occasional close volleys into the copse. Still, -the distance separating the combatants was so short--barely three -hundred yards--that even in the comparative shelter of the trees the -Russians suffered heavily; every now and then their fire slackened, and -it was necessary to reinforce them by further detachments from the main -column. - -While the battle was thus waged at the south of the pass, there had been -constant firing at the other end. Hi Lo went backwards and forwards -between the two divisions of Jack's band, with news of the enemy's -movements and the progress of the fight--a duty involving considerable -risk; but the boy could make use of rocks and inequalities of the ground -that would not have sheltered a grown man, and he was indeed exceedingly -proud of being selected to assist in this way. - -He reported now that the enfilading fire of the Russians in the copse at -the south had driven the Chunchuses from the western face of the pass at -the north end, allowing the Cossacks to creep round the hillside on the -north-east of the entrance, and gain a position from which they were -able to inflict serious loss on the defenders. Jack felt that the coils -were gradually being drawn around him; and when a number of men, covered -by a brisk rifle-fire, dashed from the copse towards the steep hillside -overlooking the pass, and in spite of the loss of several of their -number began laboriously to climb the slope, he could not but recognize -that the game was well-nigh up. The fight had lasted three hours. His -men were worn; the strain had been very great; and they were reduced to -half a dozen rounds a rifle. But they were still steady and undismayed; -how much their tenacity owed to Jack's training and how much to their -native courage it would be difficult to say; but two things were -certain: their marksmanship was distinctly superior to that of the -Cossacks, and the temptation of undisciplined troops to blaze away at -random had been quite heroically resisted. - -The men climbing the face of the hill soon passed out of sight; but in -about ten minutes they opened fire from a ridge high up the slope. In -excellent cover themselves, they had many of the Chunchuses in full -view; and the Chinamen could not move into shelter without exposing -themselves to the fire of the Cossacks in the copse. Nevertheless the -bandits, with the characteristic doggedness of the Chinese in face of -peril, clung to their positions, flattening themselves against the rocks -and boulders, which gave them less and less protection, attacked as they -now were from several sides. More than once Jack made a hazardous trip -to the northern end of the pass, encouraging his men; each time he -noticed with a sinking heart that the number of still and prostrate -forms was greater. What caused the keenest pang, it was impossible to -bring the wounded to a place of safety. As soon as a man fell, he -almost inevitably lost the complete protection of his boulder; a portion -of his body lay outside the zone of safety, and the poor wretch thus -became the mark for a score of bullets. His heart torn with pity for -the men, Jack at one time thought of surrender. But then he recollected -that they would merely exchange the bullet for the noose; and there was -always a bare chance of relief. He himself was wounded in the shoulder; -at least half his men were out of action; the Russians were gradually -closing in towards both entrances of the pass; and a simultaneous rush -at each end must finish the struggle. Jack wondered why such an assault -had not already been made. It would entail a certain loss of life; but -perhaps less in the end than would result from prolonging the struggle. -Even as the thought struck him, he saw signs of the movement he so much -dreaded, and hurrying back to the southern end, where the worst of the -fighting must take place, he was about to urge his men to sell their -lives dearly, when from the steep pathway beyond the rocky platform -previously pointed out by his guide there came the discharge of half a -hundred rifles. The combat in the pass ceased instantly; both sides -were startled and amazed--Jack wondering whether the first Russian force -had disposed of Ah Lum, and was now returning to complete the -destruction of his followers; the Cossacks apparently uncertain whether -the shots came from friend or foe. Another volley flashed from the -height; immediately afterwards a swarm of horsemen was seen to descend. -By the manner of their riding it was plain they were not Cossacks. They -were making direct for the rear of the Russian force, threatening to cut -off its retreat. The Cossacks beyond the copse waited no longer. In -one wild rush, some throwing away their rifles in their haste, they fled -towards the pathway by which they had come, hoping to reach the ponies -tethered beyond the zone of fire. The men in the copse, less -fortunately placed than their comrades, offered a desperate resistance -to the Chunchuses now enveloping them--Jack leading some of his men in a -charge from the pass, the new-comers sweeping round at headlong speed to -intercept the fugitives. A few of the Cossacks, seeing their flight -hopeless, surrendered; the rest died fighting; while those on the -hillside, taken in reverse, were shot down almost to a man. - -Thus reinforced, Jack sent a detachment round towards the northern end -of the pass, and led a strong body to make a frontal attack on the -Cossacks there. But they did not await the assault. Perceiving their -danger, they withdrew towards their reserve; and becoming aware within a -few minutes of the Chunchuses rapidly approaching on their flank, they -abandoned their position and galloped swiftly away, many of them falling -to the rifles of the bandits. - -The detachment which had come so providentially to Jack's relief proved -to be Wang Shih's force. By the time they returned from pursuing the -fleeing Russians, Ah Lum himself arrived at the pass. Jack then learnt -what had happened. The first Russian force had been completely routed. -They had lost heavily in the ambuscade, but had rallied and attempted to -rush Ah Lum's position. Then, however, Wang Shih had come down upon -their flank, and, discouraged by their heavy losses at the ambuscade, -they had retreated. Closely followed up by Ah Lum, they were taken -between two fires, and their retirement, at first orderly, soon became a -headlong flight. - -Ah Lum made the handsomest acknowledgments to Jack for the part he had -played. And his was indeed a notable achievement. Though threatened by -nearly thrice their numbers, his men by their gallant fight had -prevented the junction of the two Cossack forces, and thus enabled Ah -Lum to secure his object, and win the victory on which so much had -depended. His combined force was not strong enough to follow up the -advantage gained; for among the hills the Cossacks would easily find a -defensible position, and if they once succeeded in checking the pursuit, -the Chunchuses would soon be opposed by overwhelming numbers. But in -the hastily evacuated position the victors discovered a considerable -supply of food, fodder, and ammunition abandoned by the Cossacks, and -this proved a welcome addition to their depleted stores. - -Ah Lum had now to consider his future movements. He had learnt from a -scout, who had overtaken him as he rode towards the pass, that a strong -Cossack force was pushing northwards from the Korean frontier. To -escape the ring-fence in which the Russians were evidently determined to -enclose him, it seemed best to strike north-east, and endeavour to gain -a position that had more than once been occupied by Chunchuses in their -conflicts with Chinese troops. Arrangements were hastily made for the -transport of the wounded, on both sides unfortunately very numerous. -Mindful of his engagement with Jack, Ah Lum would not allow his men to -despatch the wounded Russians, as was their wont. Forming a long -column, he started on his march, leaving Jack with 300 men to watch the -Cossacks and hold them at bay, should they return, until the main body -had got a good start. Jack held the pass for the remainder of the day; -he was glad of the rest, for it enabled him to have his injured arm -bathed and dressed. Fortunately the wounds were slight. No sign of -further attack being seen, he thought it safe to follow up his chief. -They joined forces within twenty-four hours of Jack's leaving the pass. -Ah Lum's march had been delayed by the wounded, whom, however, he left -in groups at friendly villages en route. All the wounded having been -thus disposed of, the combined Chunchuse column regained its former -mobility, and, marching rapidly, in three days reached the hill fastness -where Ah Lum hoped to enjoy a breathing-space to rest and recruit. - -In the course of the march he gathered up ample food supplies for man -and beast, but was still beset by the scarcity of ammunition. A great -deal had been expended in the recent fight, and the wastage was by no -means made up by what had been captured from the Russians. The band, -too, was constantly being recruited, mainly from men who had been -wounded and left behind in the villages after previous engagements; and -in spite of its recent losses it was now again fully twelve hundred -strong. But when the stock of ammunition came to be examined, it was -found that there scarcely remained a dozen rounds a man. Unless, -therefore, a fresh supply could in some way be procured, it would be -necessary to disband the force. The dilemma gave Ah Lum serious -concern. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIX* - - *Captain Kargopol finds the Chunchuses* - - -Grumbles--Pai-chi-kou--The Masterful Muscovite--A Midnight Council--The -Inn--A Summons--Betrayal--Confirmation--Miss-fire--The Rounds--Ivan -Ivanovitch - - -Captain Vassily Nikolaeitch Kargopol was not in the best of tempers. -His pony, which had carried him all day over some of the worst mountain -tracks in Manchuria, slipped at the frozen edge of a rut, and nearly -rolled over. The rider, as a captain of Transbaikal Cossacks, was too -good a horseman to be thrown; but he was severely jolted, and he brought -the poor jaded beast up with a smart lash of his whip. This seemed to -relieve his feelings; and further consideration, together with a -comically reproachful look on the face of his companion, brought -repentance. Leaning forward he patted the animal's neck. - -"You needn't look at me like that, Borisoff," he said. "I know it's too -bad of me to visit the sins of this accursed country on the beast. -Never mind; he shall have an extra feed of buckwheat to-night, and I'll -see that he gets it." - -"That's more like you, Kargopol," returned Lieutenant Casimir Andreitch -Borisoff. The cloud had indeed cleared like magic from the captain's -round, jovial, somewhat rubicund face; evidently he was not a man on -whom ill-temper sat long or heavily. - -"The truth is, I am becoming a little uneasy. Isn't there something in -the Scriptures about hunting after a dead dog, after a flea? I confess -I'd rather stick to our proper work, and smash Oyama instead of running -after this Ah Lum and his Chunchuses." - -"Yes, confound the fellow! He's as agile as the little unmentionable -fellow you were beguiled into naming, though by all accounts he's more -like a live lion than a dead dog. That fight of his was a masterly -piece of work." - -"I only wish we could get to grips with him. Here have I been for -weeks--months--on the hunt, and haven't so much as sighted a bandit. Hi -there! Ivan Samsonitch, ask the Chinaman how far it is to this precious -village." - -The trooper addressed, riding beside a burly Chinaman twenty paces -ahead, translated the question into a barbarous mixture of Chinese and -pidgin Russian. The Chinaman, whose legs as he bestrode his little pony -almost touched the ground, bowed humbly upon the animal's neck, and -barked a reply. - -"He says, little father," said the sergeant, translating, "that -Pai-chi-kou is about seven li farther; that is four versts; but there is -a river to be forded." - -"Another river! That makes a round dozen since we started. And the -water's icy cold, confound it!" - -The captain had drawn up to the sergeant; only to him and the Chinaman -was his mild grumble audible. The sergeant was a man of responsibility -with whom he could to a certain extent unbend; the men must hear no -complaints. For nine hours the detachment of 150 Cossacks had marched -up hill and down dale over tracks slippery with frost, wading streams -that in another month would be deeply coated with ice. Their progress -was hampered by the necessity of watching and assisting the -heavily-laden pack-mules that formed the major part of the column. Their -destination was the village of Pai-chi-kou, where they were to be joined -by the larger force for which they were carrying ammunition and -supplies. As verst succeeded verst, the captain thought, and said to -Lieutenant Borisoff, hard things of the transport officer who had drawn -out the itinerary. The want of good service maps was a terrible -disadvantage. Once the detachment had lost its way altogether; and only -after an hour had been spent in futile search was a countryman -opportunely discovered and pressed into the service as guide. The man -was very unwilling to act; he protested his wish to go in an entirely -different direction, to a village where his grandfather awaited burial -rites. But Captain Kargopol had had enough dealings with Chinamen to -regard this grandfather as an oriental Mrs. Harris; he turned a deaf ear -to the man's protests, and was unmelted by his facile tears. Under his -guidance the troops had trudged along, the men bearing the fatigues of -the march with the fine cheerfulness of the Russian soldier, breaking -out every now and then into song, their rich voices ringing out -gloriously in the clear, frosty air. - -The twelfth river was waded, only one of the mules losing its footing -and submerging its load. Shortly afterwards, just as dusk was falling, -the column arrived at a long, straggling village. - -"This is Pai-chi-kou?" said the captain. - -"Yes, little father," replied the sergeant, after questioning the guide. - -"H'm! It seems very populous. Where do they stow all the people? And -what is the noise about?" - -The street was crowded with Chinese men, women, and children, making a -terrible din with gongs, drums, and crackers. The guide explained that -a great number of people had come into the village to keep the annual -Dragon-boat Festival; if the Russians had arrived a little earlier they -would have seen the river covered with long, narrow, gaily-painted boats -paddled by crews of twenty in fantastic costumes, the banks thronged -with onlookers. - -"A pity we missed it, Borisoff," said the captain. "However, I'm glad we -have arrived safely at last." - -If Captain Kargopol had known a little more about Chinese customs, he -would certainly have asked why in this village the Festival--a summer -festival held on the fifth day of the fifth moon--was being celebrated -four months after the proper time. Moreover, it is only celebrated -where the rivers are broad; on a hill stream the procession of boats -must be a mere travesty. But the captain could hardly be expected to -know that. - -The captain rode up to the only inn, where the one habitable room was -crammed with Chinamen. After a short colloquy with the innkeeper these -natives were unceremoniously bundled out into the courtyard; the captain -had declared his intention of occupying the room with Lieutenant -Borisoff for the night. He then sent his sergeant to find quarters for -the troopers in the village. The man reported that every house was full -up. - -"Then we must empty them," said the captain, who was tired and grumpy. -"Make the Chinese turn out. The men have more need of rest than they." - -This was unanswerable, if illogical. The sergeant went to do his -bidding, and soon the street was noisier than ever, the dispossessed -Chinamen in scattered knots cackling away in their high-pitched voices, -some of them weeping, and crowding to suffocation the few houses that -were not required by these masterful foreign devils. - -With military punctiliousness Captain Kargopol set a strong guard at -each end of the village, arranged for the single street to be patrolled, -and the inn to be watched by a sentry; then threw himself on the k'ang -with a weary sigh, and prepared to eat, if not digest, the meal which -the innkeeper soon had ready for his guests. It was quite clear that, -though the Chinamen had all been turned out, some had ventured to creep -back into the passage and a sort of shanty adjoining the room. The -innkeeper kow-towed and apologized; he hoped the honourable officer -would not object to the men occupying this shelter for the night; they -had paid their scot in advance, and if he did not give them house-room -he would have to refund the money and pay compensation in addition. - -"Poor wretches!" said the captain to Borisoff. "We're pretty hard on -them at the best. They won't interfere with us, I suppose, unless they -snore; and even then, I fancy I'm so dead beat I could sleep through -anything." - -When the officers had finished their supper, they wrapped themselves in -their cloaks, and lay, Captain Kargopol on the k'ang, the lieutenant on -the floor. Though the inn was now quiet, and the troopers were no doubt -sleeping as soundly as their superiors, it was evident from the sounds -proceeding from the houses that the Chinese were wakeful, possibly -through the excitement of their festival. - -Towards midnight, under the shelter of a low shed not far from the inn, -where they crouched for protection from a biting north wind, two -Chinamen were talking in low tones. One was the guide who had so -reluctantly accompanied the Russians; the other a much younger man. All -at once, out of the darkness crept a short Chinese boy, looking fatter -than he was by reason of his thickly wadded clothes. He came to the -younger of the two men, and addressed him in an excited whisper. To -anyone who overheard him it would have been clear that he had been -hiding, according to instructions, in the inn. He said that he had -overheard a conversation between Hu Hang and C'hu Tan, who were among -the Chinamen in the shanty. He had seemingly heard more than was -expected. The ex-constable and Ah Lum's ex-lieutenant were going to -seize and gag the innkeeper, and then to waken the Russian officers and -give them an important piece of information. The howl of a dog outside -the village was to be the signal for carrying this plan into effect. -They had said that between the first howl and the second there would be -plenty of time for what they meant to do. - -"Hai-yah!" growled the larger of the two listeners, following up the -exclamation with an oath. The other made no comment on the news he had -just heard, but, turning to the boy, he said rapidly: - -"Run and tell Pai Ting there are to be two howls, not three. What was -to have been the first will now be the second. The signal will be given -as soon as the moon goes down behind yonder clump of trees. You -understand?" - -The boy nodded, and without a word crept away, wriggling down a narrow -passage between the shed and the next house towards the outskirts of the -village. - -As soon as he had gone, the two men rose quietly and went into the -street. Dodging the patrol, they hurried to the inn, passed to the -rear, and cautiously made their way into the shanty or lean-to. There -were several Chinamen in the stuffy den, to all seeming fast asleep; but -a close observer might have noticed that the entrance of the new-comers -was at once remarked, and that, as they passed by or actually stepped -over the recumbent forms, they were the object of a keen scrutiny. The -inspection appeared to satisfy the men, for they at once resumed their -attitude of complete repose. - -To any but ears keenly alert the progress of the two men would have been -inaudible; for there was a constant noise from the courtyard and a large -open space behind the inn, where the greater number of the ponies of the -convoy were picketed under a Cossack guard. A Cossack was also doing -sentry-go in front of the inn, but approaching from the back the two -Chinamen had avoided him. - -When they came in sight of the main room they exercised the extremest -caution. The door was but half-closed, and through the opening came the -faint yellow light of a small oil-lamp. Coming to a spot whence they -could see the greater part of the interior, they halted, and peeped -within. Near the door they could just make out the forms of three -Chinamen huddled on the floor--doubtless the innkeeper, and the two men -whose little plot the boy had overheard and reported. The Russian -officers had apparently been too much fatigued to resent this invasion -of their privacy. - -Waiting merely to get a mental photograph of the position in the room, -the younger of the two Chinamen moved gently backward, and, touching one -of the dormant figures on the shoulder, beckoned him towards the back -door. Then he whispered an instruction. The man was to enter the room, -boldly but not aggressively, and summon the innkeeper to join Wang Shih -at the house of the village headman. This was but a move in the game -shortly to be played out. The two conspirators would doubtless be -relieved to find themselves--by a lucky accident, they would -suppose--free from the presence of the innkeeper; it would no longer be -necessary to dispose of him; at the same time they would be reassured as -to the whereabouts of Wang Shih. The man crept in as directed. His -entrance caused the captain to stir. - -"What is it?" he growled. - -The innkeeper explained as well as he could that he was called away. - -"Out with you, then, and tell the sentry to allow no one else in. I -want to sleep." - -He then turned over, and was instantly oblivious. The innkeeper, coming -out, was surprised to find Wang Shih at the door, but was warned by that -burly man's younger companion not to open his lips. - -He had scarcely left the room before one of the two Chinamen lying -within the room began to wriggle towards the officers. The other man, -none other than Hu Hang, once a constable, now a disappointed Chunchuse, -bent forward, intent upon his companion's progress. At a hint from the -younger of the two watchers, the elder, Wang Shih himself, slipped into -the room and stood silent and unnoticed behind Hu Hang. - -The creeping Chinaman came first to Lieutenant Borisoff, stretched on -the floor. He nudged him; the Russian grunted. A second gentle nudge -provoked another grunt. Then the officer awoke with a start, and seeing -by the dim light a Chinaman bending over him, he instinctively felt for -and grasped the revolver beneath the cloak that formed his pillow. The -Chinaman held up his hands to show that he wras unarmed. - -"What do you want, confound you?" asked Borisoff in pidgin Russian. - -"Ss-s-h!" was the answer. "Listen quietly, honourable nobility. There -is danger." - -"What is it?" asked the lieutenant, raising himself on his elbow. "Tell -me quickly, and be sure you tell me the truth, or----" - -There was an ominous movement of the revolver. He touched Captain -Kargopol's foot, and that officer, awake in an instant, sat up on the -k'ang and looked about him. - -"This village is not Pai-chi-kou, honourable nobility. It is -Ta-kang-tzue. The Chinamen here are all Chunchuses. Very soon -honourable master will hear the howl of a dog. It will not be the voice -of a dog, but of a man. It is a signal. Ah Lum's men are outside. At -the signal they will surround the village." - -Both officers were now on their feet, gripping their revolvers. - -"Afterwards another howl," continued the informer. "The Chunchuses in -the village will seize rifles and pistols hidden in the gardens and -pig-sties. Afterwards a third signal; every house with Russians in it -will be attacked, every honourable soldier captured or killed." - -The captain rapped out an oath. The Chinaman, still on his knees, -lifted up his hands and spoke earnestly. - -"I can show the honourable nobility how to cheat them; honourable master -will reward his humble slave. Is it not so?" - -The captain, none too quick-witted, nodded to the man to proceed. The -Chinaman stood erect. - -"At the first howl, master will cut a hole in the window--quickly, so -that the men in the passage hear nothing; they are all Chunchuses. He -will whisper to the sentry outside; the soldier will warn the patrol, -and they will in haste make the round of the houses where soldiers are. -Before the second signal is given, honourable master's men will be -ready; they can shoot down the Chunchuses in the village, and Ah Lum -will have to retreat, for honourable nobility's countrymen are only ten -miles away." - -For a moment the captain gazed doubtfully at the man. - -"Do you think it a trap?" he asked Borisoff. - -The long-drawn howl of a dog as if baying the moon rose and died away at -some distance from the village. The officers started. - -"Trap or not, we can't go far wrong in doing what he says. Even if he -is lying we are no worse off." - -"Honourable nobility's servant asks fifty ounces of silver for----" - -"By and by, by and by. Your story must be proved. It sounds likely -enough----" - -"You are quite right, your nobility," said another voice in good -Russian. "It is more than likely; it is literally true." - -As the figure of a young Chinaman advanced from a dark part of the room, -the startled officers backed and cocked their revolvers; the informer, -turning a sickly green under his yellow skin, stared mouth agape at the -speaker; while, from the corner where the man's fellow-conspirator had -been waiting, the sound of a choking gurgle showed that Wang Shih was -busy with his old friend the constable. - -The scene in the dimly-lit room was one not likely to be soon forgotten -by the actors in the drama. - -While the two officers stood fingering their weapons in amazed -irresolution, and the wretched traitor leant for support against the -k'ang, the new-comer continued: - -"What this man says, gentlemen, is perfectly true, so far as he knows. -But he doesn't know all. Before you do anything rash allow me to -explain. The howl you have just heard was the second, not the first -signal. Ah Lum's men have already surrounded the village, and eighty -men inside are prepared to rush the quarters occupied by your troops. -The inn is watched; the slightest commotion here will be the third -signal." - -The news was in itself sufficient to provoke the deepest wrath, but the -coolness with which the explanation was given enraged the captain beyond -all bounds. Springing forward with an oath he cried, "I will risk it!" -and snapped his revolver within a foot of the Chinaman's head. - -There was no report. - -"It is fortunate for you, sir, that we drew the charges while you slept. -But for that, your fate and that of your men would have been sealed. If -you will give me your word of honour not to make a sound, I will give -you ocular proof of what I have said. Believe me, it is only to save -your detachment from annihilation. But you shall judge." - -The officer, pale and quivering with rage and chagrin rather than fear, -threw a glance at Lieutenant Borisoff, who nodded. - -"Agreed," said Kargopol fiercely. - -Going to the door, the Chinaman said a few words to those outside. They -rose and stood, fully armed, in the passage. - -"They are Chunchuses, you observe, sir; not peaceful countrymen, as you -believed, but the men you are hunting. We will pass outside. Be careful -not to alarm your Cossacks." - -They passed by the row of silent Chinamen out into the street. The -officers were saluted by the sentry, who supposed them to be making the -rounds. They came to the largest house in the village. In front, on -the street, nothing was to be seen. But at the back, and in a dark -passage-way at the side, were at least twenty dim figures, armed at all -points with rifle, pistol, and dagger. The silent group passed to -another house, and to yet another; at each, cunningly placed out of -sight of the patrol, Chunchuses lurked, awaiting the signal for the -terrible work of the night. - -"We have but a few minutes, gentlemen, before the signal. Are you -satisfied? Nothing stands between your men and extermination, save -yourselves. What is your decision?" - -The captain bit his moustache. - -"Let things take their course," said Borisoff quietly. "We had better -die fighting than be tortured to death after surrender." - -"I can promise you and your men good treatment as prisoners of -war--always supposing your general is willing to exchange you for our -men, and does not hang any more of ours in the meantime. You need not -fear torture." - -The Russians laughed grimly. - -"What are your assurances worth--you, a Chunchuse?" - -"A Chunchuse--yes, Captain, but in this case also an Englishman." - -"An Englishman!" cried Kargopol with a start of surprise. Borisoff -stepped nearer to Jack and peered into his face. - -"An Englishman, sir." - -"And a Chunchuse?" - -"A Chunchuse, by compulsion of your countrymen. But, gentlemen, we waste -precious time. In a few seconds the matter will be beyond your -discretion--or mine." - -The captain stopped and faced the speaker. Borisoff's face wore a look -of perplexity. - -"You give me your word?" said Kargopol after a moment. - -"Yes." - -"As an Englishman?" - -"As an Englishman." - -"Then I surrender." - -"Believe me, sir, it is the wisest, the most humane course." - -"Your name is Brown?" said Borisoff suddenly. - -"Ivan Ivanovitch Brown, Lieutenant Borisoff." - -"Batiushki! I was puzzled by something familiar in your voice. What in -the world----" - -"Pardon me, the situation is still full of danger, a spark may fire the -train. I will explain everything afterwards." - -Peering into the dark, Jack in a moment beckoned to a small figure -crouching under the shelter of a wall. Hi Lo came bounding up, and to -him Jack gave a rapid order. The boy sped away at full speed. - -"I have told him that the third signal is not to be given. I hope he may -be in time." - - - - - *CHAPTER XX* - - *The Battle of Moukden* - - -Reservations--The Cupboard--Perfidious--"The Little More"--Winter -Quarters--More Perfidy--Russians Concentrating--Captured Maxims--A -Missing Messenger--The Battle Ground--Nogi dashes North--Hemmed In--Nogi -cuts the Railway--The North Road--A Carnival of Blood - - -"You have sold us completely, Ivan Ivanovitch," said Borisoff as they -walked back towards the inn. "I suppose that rascally guide of ours led -us into this trap." - -"All's fair in war, you know. He is Wang Shih, Ah Lum's principal -lieutenant." - -"He deserves to be hanged!" growled the captain. "So do you, Mr. Brown." - -"We seldom get our deserts, Captain. But I think Lieutenant Borisoff -had better make a round of the houses and tell your men of the -surrender. I will send word to our man outside bidding him keep his -Chunchuses in hand for the present. In a few minutes I will rejoin you -at the inn." - -As the lieutenant visited house after house he recognized how hopeless -resistance would have been. At the given signal every dwelling would -have been rushed, and before the Cossacks could have realized what was -happening they must have fallen to a man. The crestfallen troops were -paraded and disarmed in the street; then by the light of flares the -convoy was got ready, and an hour and a half later it set off from the -village up the hillside, escorted by the Chunchuses, to join Ah Lum some -fifteen miles away. Jack stood at the door of the inn beside Captain -Kargopol as the convoy and prisoners filed past. Nearly a hundred -pack-mules heavily laden with ammunition, winter clothing, and -provisions, and a hundred and fifty Cossacks, formed the prize of his -ingenuity. - -Several mules and their loads were left behind for the benefit of the -villagers who had assisted in the plot. - -"You had better hide them," said Jack to the headman. "There is a large -Cossack force only ten miles away: they may be down upon you at any -moment." - -He learnt later that hardly were the last of the ponies and their loads -secured in caves and hollows among the hills when, shortly after dawn, a -squadron of Cossacks galloped up--the advance guard of the twelve -hundred men whom Captain Kargopol was to have joined with his convoy. -The commander was furious when he heard the news, told him with much -sympathy by the headman, who reserved none of the details save only the -participation of the villagers. Finding the track followed by the -Chunchuses, the commander sent a galloper back with the news and himself -pushed on in pursuit. But after three hours' hard riding his squadron -was effectually checked by a handful of men in a defile, and by the time -he had received sufficient support to force the pass the convoy had -reached Ah Lum's encampment, and nothing but a battle could recover it. - -During the northward march Jack rode between Captain Kargopol and -Lieutenant Borisoff. They were eager for the promised explanation of -his partnership with brigands. Jack had already made up his mind to be -chary of details. He would give no hostages to fortune in the shape of -information that might be used against him later; nor would he say -anything about the friends whose assistance had been so valuable to him. -Of Gabriele Walewska and the missionary, of Herr Schwab and the -compradore's brother, he therefore said never a word. The gist of his -explanation was that, being uncertain and suspicious in regard to his -father's fate, he had resolved to stay in the country, and found that he -could only do so safely in disguise. This being penetrated by -Sowinski's acuteness, he had perforce taken refuge with Ah Lum, one of -whose lieutenants was an old friend of his. - -"That rascally guide of ours, I suppose," said Borisoff. "Well, it -happens that I can give you a little information----" - -"About my father?' - -"No, I know nothing about him. A few weeks ago a curious thing happened -to that fellow Sowinski, a man I loathe. Kuropatkin received a telegram -from Petersburg asking for particulars of the charges brought against -your father, and for information as to his whereabouts. Your Foreign -Office had apparently been making enquiries. Kuropatkin knew nothing -about it, of course; after some delay he discovered that Bekovitch had -dealt with the matter. Bekovitch produced a number of letters found in -your father's office conclusively showing that he had been in -treasonable correspondence with the Japanese----" - -"That's a lie!" said Jack. - -"Well, there were the letters," said Borisoff with a shrug. "Kuropatkin -asked if there was any independent evidence. Bekovitch at once sent -Sinetsky for Sowinski. He couldn't find the man, and though he left an -urgent message he didn't turn up. So he went to his house again early -next morning. There was nobody about, the door was wide open, and he -walked in. The house was empty, but he thought he heard a strange -rustling in a big press in the dining-room; Sowinski had appropriated -your house, by the way. He opened the door, and there was the Pole, -gagged, tied hand and foot, and nearly dead from exhaustion. Sinetsky -cut him loose; the poor wretch couldn't speak for half an hour, his -tongue was so much swollen. He'd been tied up by a Chinese servant, it -appeared, though the job must have taken more than one man." - -"Yes--I was the other." - -"You!" The officers laughed heartily. "You're a perfect demon of -ingenuity, Ivan Ivanovitch. Why didn't he say it was you?" - -"He had his reasons, I suppose. What happened then?" - -"He went to Kuropatkin and swore to all manner of things against your -father. The information was telegraphed to Petersburg, and that's all I -know about it." - -"But where is my father?" - -"I don't know. Bekovitch didn't know, or professed he didn't. I fancy -he had taken care not to know, in case any unpleasant questions were -asked." - -"But someone must know. Confound it, Lieutenant, is the whole Staft a -conspiracy of silence?" - -"It appears that Bekovitch sent your father to Kriloff, and Kriloff is -dead. I suppose enquiries were made, but so far as I know nothing has -come to light." - -"I never heard of such villainy!" said Jack, his indignation getting the -better of him. "I had always believed the Russian officer was a -gentleman." - -"Oh, come now!" said Captain Kargopol, "you English haven't a monopoly -of the virtues. You can't throw stones, after the dirty trick your -government has played us." - -"What do you mean?" - -"You haven't heard? I forgot: I suppose your Ah Lum doesn't subscribe -to the _Manchurian Army Gazette_. The Baltic Fleet was attacked by -British torpedo-boats in the North Sea; Admiral Rozhdestvenski very -properly fired and sank one or two. Some trawlers got in the way and -were rather knocked about: unfortunately a few men were killed, and your -canting press of course set up a howl and clamoured for war. But it's -we who are the injured party: you may be the ally of Japan, but that's -no excuse for an unprovoked attack on our fleet." - -"Really, Captain, pardon me, but the story's absurd. When did this -torpedo attack take place?" - -"At night, of course; you don't suppose they'd dare to attack -battleships in broad daylight." - -"Then depend upon it there was a mistake. Someone was scared by the -sight of a trawler. It's ridiculous to suppose that our government sent -torpedo-boats on such a silly errand as that." - -"Well, they might have hired Scandinavian boats, to save their face." - -Jack repressed a smile. It was evidently of no use to argue with the -captain. - -"Time will show," he said. "By the way, Mr. Wang," he added, seeing the -Chunchuse a few paces away, "what did you do with Hu Hang?" - -"I am very sorry, sir," said Wang Shih with a look of sincere penitence. -"It was quite a mistake--I was excited, and I squeezed too hard." - -"You strangled him?" - -"Yes. It is a pity--a great waste. I fear the chief will be angry. Hu -was a strong man--he would have lasted for days." - -"Oh!" - -Understanding what he meant, Jack thought it just as well. He doubted -whether his influence with Ah Lum and the band would have been enough to -preserve the informer from the most gruesome and lingering tortures -Chinese inventiveness could devise. - -"And what became of Ch'u Tan?" - -"He stabbed himself." - -"Anticipating a worse fate," Jack explained to the officers. - -"We are aware of our good fortune in falling into your hands, Ivan -Ivanovitch," said Borisoff gravely; "and if, when we are rescued, I can -do anything----" - -"Thanks, Lieutenant! I don't owe much to the Russians," he added -bitterly, "my father less. When he is righted I shall hope perhaps to -pick up my old friendships again." - -Towards the close of the day the convoy reached Ah Lum's mountain -fastness. The chief's little eyes gleamed when he saw the great haul -made by his son's tutor. - -"You are bold enough to stroke a tiger's beard," he said. "Where there -is musk, there will of course be perfume." - -The supplies captured were very welcome. Ah Lum had found it necessary -to lie low, to avoid the forces on the hunt for him. But after a few -days he learnt that the troops from the Korean frontier had been -recalled, and the only Russian column now in the mountains was nearly a -hundred miles away. He could therefore afford to live on his gains for -a time. - -The band settled down to a period of quiet camp life. The Cossacks were -distributed over the settlement and carefully guarded. Jack proceeded -with the education of Ah Fu, and the further training of his men. There -was considerable competition among the Chunchuses for enrolment in his -corps; he was looked upon as lucky, a special favourite of heaven. For -himself, he regarded his position differently. Harassed with anxiety as -to his father's fate; among uncongenial surroundings; an exile, without -anyone to confide in as a friend; he felt anything but lucky. As week -after week passed he grew terribly weary of his life; winter had settled -down upon the hills; the snow lay inches thick, and even the warm -clothing captured from the Cossacks--the fur caps, thick gray overcoats, -felt-lined boots, ear gloves, and what not--proved but insufficient -protection against the intense cold. He volunteered for what active work -was going; but there was little, and he did not covet the command of any -of the parties that went out from time to time to replenish the larder. -Ah Lum was punctilious in giving receipts for the supplies he -requisitioned from the country people, but Jack felt that they were -little likely to be paid for: it was a mere form at the best. And the -villagers could ill afford the contributions demanded, though after all -they were better off than their countrymen living in the main current of -the war. To all except the few merchants and contractors, who made huge -profits by supplying the rival armies, the war had brought blank ruin. - -Occasionally news of the progress of the war filtered through the -country. Jack learnt that Admiral Alexeieff, after continual wrangling -with Kuropatkin, had been recalled; that the combatants had gone into -winter quarters on opposite sides of the Sha-ho, both Russians and -Japanese living in dug-outs, called by the Russians _zemliankas_; that -Port Arthur was still holding out, though from Chinese reports it seemed -inevitable that the end must soon come; that fresh troops were -continually arriving from Europe. One day a dirty copy of the -_Manchurian Army Gazette_ was brought into the camp; the Chinese are -always loth to destroy anything written or printed. The most -interesting item of news it held for Jack, and one on which he had a -battle-royal of argument with the Russian officers, was the statement -that the _Ocean_, a British battleship on the China station, had been -sold to the Japanese, and would appear in the next naval fight as the -_Yushima_, which the Russians declared had been sunk by a mine while -blockading Port Arthur. Captain Kargopol stoutly maintained that this -was another instance of British perfidy, and came very near to losing -his temper when Jack refused to take the report seriously, and bantered -him on his anti-British prejudice. - -At last, one bright cold January day a Chinaman came in with the news -that Port Arthur had fallen. Jack could not but sympathize with the -captive officers. Personally they were the best of comrades; their -distrust of England did not alloy the cordiality of their relations with -Jack; and their air of hopeless dejection was distressing to one who -bore neither to them nor to their nation any enduring ill-will. - -A few days afterwards Ah Lum learnt that the Russian column which had -been watching him had suddenly decamped. The inference was obvious. -The fall of the great fortress had released a large number of Japanese -troops, and Kuropatkin was concentrating against the forward movement -now to be expected. This information had considerable importance for Ah -Lum. He had been canvassing the desirability of moving towards Kirin, -leaving only a small force in the hills to watch the Russians. Their -sudden retreat, however, caused him to change his plan. He resolved to -follow them. There was more chance of safety for him if he kept to the -hills within a few marches of the combatant armies than if he was -completely isolated and likely to be cut off by several mobile columns -operating against him. It was hardly likely that the Russians would now -spare any troops from the fighting line to interfere with him. He was -only a mosquito after all, though his sting had more than once proved -extremely irritating. His only concern was to be near enough without -being too near. In the last resort he could go over to the Japanese; -but he disliked the Japanese only less than the Russians, and preferred -to keep aloof. It would be time enough to approach the Japanese when -they were well on the road to Harbin and the area of his possible -operations became more restricted. - -The camp was therefore struck. By easy marches the band came to within -eighty miles of Moukden. Then, having made complete arrangements for -the approach of any Russian force to be signalled to him from point to -point, Ah Lum encamped and awaited a favourable opportunity of cutting -across the Russian line of communications. - -To none was the change of scene more welcome than to Jack. He had been -worrying for some time past at the absence of news from the compradore; -that he had sent no message made Jack fear that the man had returned to -Moukden and been made to suffer by Sowinski or General Bekovitch for his -young master's escape. Growing more and more restless, disappointed -also that no news of his father had been gleaned by any of Ah Lum's -agents in different parts of the country, he at last made up his mind to -venture once more into Moukden. It was necessary to ask leave of Ah -Lum; and Jack, in his present state of mind, was not disposed to be -fobbed off with maxims and proverbs. - -As he expected, the chief looked very solemn and endeavoured to dissuade -him from his purpose. - -"It is like a blind fowl picking at random after worms," he said. "It -is like attempting to carry an olive on the pate of a priest. You have -already had a very narrow escape. You may not be so fortunate next -time." - -"I must insist, Mr. Ah," said Jack. "Anything is better than suspense." - -"I will send a man for you. A wise man never does himself what he can -employ another to do for him." - -"Yes; but if one will not enter a tiger's lair, how can he obtain her -whelps?" - -He cited the proverb with the utmost gravity. Ah Lum was taken aback. -Were his own maxims to be turned against him? He pondered for a moment. - -"All things are according to heaven," he said with a resigned air. -"Still, I will send a man with you; let him go before you into Moukden; -then you must act as you think best on receipt of information. To die -or to live is according to fate." - -When it became known in the camp that Jack, or Sin Foo as he was there -known, was about to leave, many of the Chunchuses were eager to -accompany him. He found his popularity, and the extraordinary belief in -his luck, rather embarrassing. He thanked these willing volunteers, but -declined their company: Hi Lo and the man selected by Ah Lum were to be -his only attendants. - -Soon after dark on a bitter February night Jack, with his two -companions, rode up to the farm of Wang Shih's people, some fifteen -miles from Moukden. They were overjoyed to see him, and to hear news of -their son and brother. Old Mr. Wang, when he learnt that his son was -now Ah Lum's chief lieutenant, rubbed his hands with delight and -foretold that he would die a mandarin. It would not be the first time -in the history of China that a successful brigand had been bought back -to the cause of law and order by the bribe of high official rank. Mrs. -Wang was garrulous about a second visit paid them about Christmas-time -by Monsieur Brin, who had consoled himself for his failures as a war -correspondent by studying Chinese social arrangements at first hand. -The simple folk readily agreed to put Jack up for a few days; it would -have been impossible to find more comfortable quarters during his period -of waiting. - -Next morning Ah Lum's man went into Moukden. By mid-day he had -returned. The compradore had never been seen in the city since he left -for Harbin on the morning of Jack's departure. But the Chunchuse agent -Me Hong had learnt one trifling fact about Mr. Brown; he was surprised -that his chief was still in ignorance of it. The English merchant had -been seen and recognized among a gang of convicts at Kuan-cheng-tzue. -Me Hong had sent off the news at once by a messenger to Ah Lum; the -runner had vanished. He had not returned to Moukden; certainly he had -never reached the Chunchuse camp. Sowinski was still in the city; so, -the messenger believed, was the "Toitsche war-look-see man"; but there -were so many of the fraternity living in Moukden that he was not sure -that his information on that point was correct. - -He brought other news. Another great battle was evidently impending. -The Japanese had for weeks been steadily pushing forward. They had cut -the railway-line south of Moukden; two regiments of their cavalry had -crept round the Russian left, and had been seen within a few miles of -Harbin; and it was reported among the Chinese that Generals Nogi and Oku -were preparing a great turning movement on the right. The city was full -to overflowing with refugees; many were streaming northward; the -Russo-Chinese bank had packed up its chests and decamped; and the -Chinese viceroy was in a terrible state of anxiety for the safety of the -palace and the ancient tombs of the Manchu emperors. - -This news almost tempted Jack to venture again within the city. But on -second thoughts he decided to run no risks of meeting Sowinski. The -imminence of another great battle, however, perhaps to prove the -decisive battle of the war, created a keen longing to witness the scene; -and next day, taking leave of his kind hosts, he set off with Hi Lo for -a little village lying between the Moukden railway-station and -Sin-min-ting. Hi Lo had relatives there with whom they could safely -stay. - -The battle-ground was in essentials a repetition of that of Liao-yang, -though on a much larger scale. The Russians had thrown up an immense -line of entrenchments extending in a rough semicircle from Sin-min-ting -on the north-west of the city to Ping-ling on the east, with Moukden as -the centre. Comprising a range of low hills for the greater part of its -course, the position was naturally strong, and it had been fortified for -months with all the devices known to the military engineer--pits, -abattis, barbed-wire entanglements, forts of solid masonry bristling -with huge guns. Snow lay upon the ground, frozen so hard that the -passage of cavalry across it raised clouds of white dust. The plain to -the west and south of the city was one vast whiteness: yet that peaceful -scene was the arena on which three-quarters of a million of men were -preparing to spill their blood in blind obedience to duty--to contend -with desperate earnestness in one of the decisive battles of the world. - -The Russian right wing was composed of the Second Manchurian Army under -General Kaulbars, resting on an arc between Sin-min-ting and Moukden. -The centre, south of the city, was held by General Bilderling with the -Third Army; the left, thrown out as far south-east as Tsin-khe-chen, was -entrusted to General Linievitch and the First Army. It was here that -the first attack was made. On February 19 General Kawawura threw his -right flank detachment against the Russian works, and, after a fight -prolonged over five days, drove the Russians back towards Fa-ling. -Meanwhile General Kuroki moved forward upon Kao-tu-ling, and succeeded -in forcing his way northward, and General Nodzu, from his position on -the Sha-ho, opened a furious bombardment on the exact centre of the -Russian lines. By these movements General Kuropatkin was led to expect -that the brunt of the fighting would fall upon his centre and left; in -reality they were designed to hold his attention while more formidable -operations were developed on his right. - -It was on the last day of February that General Oku's army deployed -between the Sha-ho and the Hun-ho, and General Nogi started with -incredible rapidity on his northward march. By the time General -Kuropatkin became aware of the danger threatening his communications on -the right, Nogi had made such progress and so skilfully disposed his -forces that to crush him was out of the question; all that Kaulbars -could do was to fall back towards Moukden and oppose as stubborn a -resistance as possible. The assaults of Kuroki and Nodzu on the centre -were so fierce and persistent that Kuropatkin had no troops to spare for -the reinforcement of his jeopardized right flank. Doggedly, intrepidly, -the indomitable Japanese pressed home their attack. The Russians clung -heroically to their positions, and rolled back charge after charge; but -still the enemy returned, seeming to gain in vigour and enthusiasm after -each repulse. They charged with bayonets, with grenades, with shovels -and picks; sometimes, when they penetrated the Russian entrenchments, -flinging down their weapons and going to it with their fists. The -trenches were filled with corpses; the frozen ground all around was dyed -red with blood; there was no respite day or night; men fell, their -places were filled, and foe met foe over the bodies of the slain. - -For ten days the issue was in doubt. Then, on March 5, Kuroki was -across the Sha-ho; Nogi had swept through Sin-min-ting towards the -railway; Marshal Oyama's huge army was flinging its octopus tentacles -around the Russian position, vast as it was. Kuropatkin, most -unfortunate of generals, on March 8 found it necessary to withdraw his -centre and left behind the line of the Hun-ho, and collect every unit -that could be spared by Kaulbars and Bilderling to stem the advance of -Oku and Nogi. - -Meanwhile the Russian left had opposed a bold front to Kuroki and -Kawawura. Unable to make a successful offensive movement, Linievitch -stubbornly retreated in good order beyond the Hun-ho, and entrenched -himself in a new position there. But around Moukden the plight of the -Russian army was becoming desperate. As the terrible enemy crept on -towards the city from all sides save the north-east, the Russian troops, -packed into a constantly diminishing space, and exposed to a converging -fire, fell in thousands. More than once the Russians attempted to break -through. The gallant Kuropatkin in person led a terrific attack on Oku -at the head of sixty-five battalions, and his splendid men fought with -such courage and determination that for a while it seemed the Japanese -advance must be checked. But at this critical moment, when the Russians -were at least holding their own on the right centre and left, and Oyama -was concentrating to hurl them back, an event had taken place at the -left centre that proved to be Fortune's cast of the die. Early on the -morning of March 9, Kuropatkin received the news that Kuroki had driven -a wedge between Bilderling and Linievitch. Those generals in falling -back on the Hun-ho had temporarily lost touch: and the Japanese general, -who had never made a mistake throughout the war, was quick to seize this -opportunity of breaking the enemy's line. On the same day Nogi got -across the railway between Moukden and Tieling; nothing but instant -retreat could save the Second and Third Russian armies from annihilation -or capture; and at nightfall on that fifteenth day of the battle the -order to retreat was given. - -Next day at ten in the morning the Japanese entered the city, and with -their entrance burst the bubble of Russian domination in Manchuria. -Scattered parties of Russians fought on for several days in the -neighbouring villages; but with Nogi astride of the main line of retreat -and every northern road, the Russians were forced to abandon everything -and take to the hills. Two days afterwards the Japanese had chased -their enemy full thirty miles to the north; Kuropatkin's great army, -broken, routed, had well-nigh ceased to be. - -Jack is never likely to forget that terrible fortnight. During the first -few days he witnessed nothing of the fighting; he heard the -reverberations of the guns, and saw crowds of natives hastening from the -villages in the line of the Japanese advance, bearing with them -everything portable that could be saved from the impending ruin. At -night, standing on the broken mud wall, he beheld in the far distance a -dull glow in the sky that told of houses burning, and thought of the -untold misery inflicted upon a peaceable and industrious people by the -greed of rival governments. But as the tide of battle rolled northward, -and the roar of the guns grew louder, other evidences of the terrific -struggle came within his ken. Ever and anon a train would rumble -northward along the line, with wagon-loads of wounded. The darkness of -the nights was now illuminated with bursting star-shells, and the red -flare of burning villages nearer at hand. One morning, in the twilight -before dawn, he saw an immense column of smoke rise over the Russian -settlement by the station. It was in flames. Venturing out with Hi Lo, -he soon came upon stragglers from the army, and by and by upon a huge -block of horse and foot and artillery, field-telegraph wagons, mess -carts, ambulances--all in inextricable confusion, jammed in their -frantic efforts to escape. Trains rolled along, crowded to the roofs of -the carriages, even to the engine itself, with soldiers; carts lay -overturned, broken, wheelless, on the roads and fields; the air was -loaded with the acrid fumes from piles of blazing goods, clothing, and -forage, burnt to prevent their falling into the hands of the conquerors. - -The retreat from Liao-yang had been orderly and not uncheerful; the -retreat from Moukden was an orgy of riot and misery. There was no order -in the ranks: the officers made no efforts--made, they would have been -in vain--to check the insubordination of their men. Some as they fled -had looted the sutlers' carts and roamed at large, defenceless, -intoxicated, singing wild songs, dropping to the ground, to be frozen -stiff in a few minutes. Others tramped along, moody, taciturn, mad, -going blindly they knew not whither, they knew not why. Here a horse's -head could be seen above the crowd, its eyes bloodshot and haggard, its -nostrils dilated. There a horse fell; the throng thickened around it; -harsh voices were raised in imprecation; then the movement recommenced, -and nothing was heard but the tramping of feet and the crunching of -wheels. Wounded men dropped and froze in their blood; others staggered -this way and that, having lost all power to govern their limbs; and -still in the distance artillery boomed, flames crackled, and the smoke -of burning homesteads rose into the sky. - -Sick at heart, Jack returned to the village. That evening the Japanese -entered it, bringing with them a number of Russian prisoners and -wounded, these having been carefully tended by the Japanese ambulance -corps. Jack lent what assistance he could in finding cottages where the -more seriously injured could remain. "Strange," he thought, "that war, -which brings out the worst in men, should bring out also all that is -best." - - - - - *CHAPTER XXI* - - *Ah Lum at Bay* - - -Schwab again Retreats--A Business Friend--Reinstated--A Little Light--Ah -Lum Threatened--A Thousand Roubles Reward--The Lessening Circle--A -Mountain Tiger--Mirage--Ah Lum's Lament--A Cossack Cloak - - -It was not merely curiosity that had held Jack within the area of -fighting. He clung with a sort of superstition to the belief that his -father's fate was inwoven with the fate of the Russian army. He had a -conviction, perfectly illogical, that a victory for Japan would favour -his quest. There was so much truth in this idea as that amid the -disorders of a Russian retreat he might hope to pass undetected in his -disguise. The Russians would be too busy to look closely into the -bona-fides of a mere Chinaman, one of thousands who would be swept -northwards on the tide. He could easily keep out of sight of the few -who might recognize him. - -He thus had a purely personal interest in the result of the battle. -Convinced that the compradore must have remained with his brother in -Harbin, he had resolved to go north and learn from the man's own lips -the issue of his enquiries. When the victorious army had rolled by, he -set off with Hi Lo in its wake. - -One day, a few miles north of Tieling, he was riding slowly along, -contrasting his present position with the different circumstances under -which he had made the retreat from Liao-yang, with Mr. Schwab's precious -tripod in his care, when, a little ahead of him, he caught sight of a -solitary figure trudging wearily along. It needed but one glance at the -broad back. The tired pedestrian was Schwab himself--and he was -carrying the camera. - -Jack's lips twitched. To this had come the descendant of the great -Hildebrand Suobensius, the itinerant representative of Germany's -imperial might! There was matter for amusement in the reflection, and -for sympathy too: Schwab's patriotism was genuine; his little vanities -were harmless enough; and whatever else might be said of him, he was -devoted to the interests of the Schlagintwert company. Jack resolved to -make himself known to the correspondent, who could have no interest in -betraying him to the Russians. Cantering up behind, he heard Schwab -sighing and muttering under his breath. - -"Excellenz," he said, "my Sin Foo----" - -At the first word Schwab swung round with an alacrity that betokened as -much pleasure as surprise. - -"Ach!" he said, "I know you; you are imbostor. I am delighted. I -abologize." - -"That's very good of you, Herr Schwab, but I don't know why." - -"Vy! Vy, for my vant of gombrehension, my zickness of shkull. But you -did bretend; zat you muss gonfess; and I did bay you your vages, so!" - -Jack smiled. - -"I've nothing to complain of," he said. "To you I was a Chinese -servant, and I never want a better master." - -"Say you so? I vill shake hands viz you. Zere vas talk about you in -Moukden; vy truly, zey gratulate me for because I haf, zey say, a so -clever servant. Ach, mein freund! you see me; I am sad, I am broken; -no longer am I vat I haf been." - -Schwab proceeded to tell a pitiful story. He had started on the retreat -in company with Sowinski, with whom he had arranged a great deal of -business against the termination of the war. One night they had taken -refuge in a Chinese hovel. Schwab had carefully put the satchel -containing his papers and money under his head. In the night he had -heard and felt a movement, and, springing up in the dark, seized and -held an arm. The arm was wrenched away, then Sowinski's voice asked -whether he had heard anything. - -"'Yes, certainly,' I said, 'I zink zere is a zief. 'Shtrike a light!' I -cry. Zere shtrikes a light; I look for my zinks; siehe da! eferyzink is -gone. Against ze door had I blaced a big kettle, for to gif notice if -anyvun intrude. Zere it is, in ze same sbot. I say: 'Sowinski, you are -vun big scoundrel; gif me my money!' Zen he burst into fearful bassion; -he bresent me a bistol and demand instant abology. For myself, I am -berfeckly cool. I egsblain I am business man; certainly it is not my -business to fight, ven ze ozer man hold a revolver. I abologize; -Sowinski say he is satisfied; but zen he say I had cast asbersion on his -honour; no longer could he travel in my gompany; he demand me to get -out. Vat could I? Ze bistol muzzle vas at my head. It is gombulsion. -I vat you call clear out, viz my photographabbaratus. But my trouble -only begins. My mafoo, vere is he? Vizout doubt he has abbrobriated my -bony. Zere am I, zen, viz no babers, no money, no bony, nozink in ze -vide vorld but my camera. I cannot send a message to ze _Illustrirte -Vaterland und Colonien_: vere is ze money to gome from? Ze -Kaiser,--alas! he is in Berlin. I zink vat is var gorresbondence for a -kind of business? I try to sell my camera; no vun buys. Ze Russian -soldier is good comrade, ver' fine fellow; for zree days I eat nozink -but vat he gif me. But ze officers--ach! ven I egsblain to zem, zey are -all too busy to listen; zey tell me, abbly Colonel Egoroff. But Colonel -Egoroff, vere is he? Nobody know. Nobody know vere nobody is. All is -gonfusion and upside-down. I never see nozink so unbusinesslike novere." - -As he told his story Schwab trudged along beside Jack's pony. Jack did -not interrupt him; the man's relief in finding someone to lend him a -sympathizing ear was so obvious. - -"You have had an uncommonly hard time," he said. "I'm very sorry. What -do you think of doing?" - -"Zink! I zink nozink. My brain is no more vat it vas. All I can do, -you see it; I valk and valk; I beg my bread, vich is Russian biscuit. -Nefer shall I see ze Vaterland no more. Hildebrand Schwab is gome to an -end." - -"Cheer up! What do you say to taking me on as your servant again?" - -"Zat is unkind, to mock at me." - -"Believe me, nothing is further from my thoughts. I mean it. There -will be some risk for you and for me, but it's worth chancing. Let me -explain my plan." - -Jack saw in Schwab's plight a means of advancing his own quest, and at -the same time doing a good turn to the unfortunate representative of the -_Illustrirte Vaterland_, for whom, in spite of certain unlovely -characteristics, he had a real liking. As servant of a European, far -from any place where he was likely to be recognized, Jack thought he -would probably reach Harbin more quickly than as a masterless Chinese -fugitive. He proposed that they should make for the railway. The -nearest point was Erh-shih-li-pu, the junction of the Kirin branch with -the main line. It was not unlikely that if Schwab told his story there -the officials would give him a passage to Harbin. The German eagerly -accepted the proposal. Jack insisted on his mounting the pony; it was -necessary, he explained, to keep up appearances, but his firmness on the -point was really due to the quite obvious fact that Schwab was -completely worn out. At the first village both Jack and Hi Lo made a -few alterations in their dress, so as to look as little like Schwab's -former servants as possible; and without more than the expected -difficulties and delays, the three at length reached Erh-shih-li-pu. -Luckily at the station Schwab was recognized by a Russian officer, a -member of Stackelberg's staff, who had once dined with the foreign -correspondents at the Green Dragon in Moukden. On hearing the German's -troubles he readily agreed to give him a pass to Harbin for himself and -his servants, and would not allow the fares to be paid; Jack had -previously pressed upon Schwab some of his rouble notes. Thus on a -bright March day, when the frozen ground was sparkling in the sunshine, -the three travellers arrived in Harbin. Schwab was lucky in obtaining -quarters in the Oriental Hotel; Jack made his way at once with Hi Lo to -the house of his uncle, the grain merchant, and there, as he had -expected, found Hi An. The two brothers were delighted to see their -visitors, and there was a touching scene of welcome between Hi Lo and -his father. - -For Jack there was but one crumb of information. Hi Feng, as he had -promised, had set on foot such enquiries as seemed safe, especially -along the railway line. About a fortnight after Jack left Harbin in the -horse-box, a customer of Hi Feng came in with the news that he had seen -a man answering to the description of Mr. Brown among a batch of -prisoners at Imien-po on the Harbin-Vladivostok section. The train was -apparently bound for Vladivostok, but it had remained for twenty-four -hours on a siding, and the man's business had not allowed him to wait to -see what became of it. Hi Feng had himself travelled to the place; the -train had of course by that time departed; and the Chinese of the -neighbourhood could give him no information about it; one train was to -them like another, and delays at this siding were of constant -occurrence. - -Jack shuddered to think what his father's sufferings must have been -during the protracted journey. His blood boiled when he saw Russian -officers in the streets; his rage against Bekovitch poisoned his former -good-will towards them. He fumed under his utter helplessness; he could -do nothing. To some extent the information received narrowed the area -of search. The fact of the train having been seen at Imien-po showed -that the prisoners had been taken either to Eastern Siberia or to -Sakhalin. Whichever it might be, Mr. Brown would be equally unable to -communicate with his son, and his removal from Manchuria seemed to -destroy all chance of help from the Chinese. To them Siberia and -Sakhalin are foreign lands; and if Siberia was remote, Sakhalin was -inaccessible. Being wholly a penal settlement, there was little chance -of getting into or out of its ports undetected. - -Jack remained for several weeks with Hi Feng, hoping against hope. Herr -Schwab was still at the Oriental Hotel. Exposure to cold, lack of -sufficient food, and his mental anxieties had broken down the German's -robust health, and for a fortnight he lay at death's door. Monsieur Brin -happened to be at the same hotel; he had missed every fight, solely -through his own restlessness, which sent him backwards and forwards from -place to place--never the time and the place and the correspondent -together. He was a good-hearted fellow, and, finding a German lying ill -and not too carefully tended, he constituted himself sick nurse, and -devoted himself to his self-imposed duties with unusual constancy. He -had his reward in the patient's convalescence. As soon as Schwab was -able to sit up and take a little nourishment, Brin undertook to prove to -him that the Kaiser in Berlin was the Man of Sin, and for a good -fortnight he had much the better of the argument. - -One day Hi Feng learnt that a great effort was at last being made -against Ah Lum. He had already been defeated by a large force of -Cossacks, and driven from the neighbourhood of Kirin north-eastwards -towards the Harbin-Vladivostok railway. Strong columns were hard upon -his heels in pursuit. Through his position as forage contractor to the -Russians, Hi Feng already knew that a large body of Cossacks was shortly -to leave Harbin for a place half-way between that town and Vladivostok. -Putting the two pieces of news together, and making discreet enquiries, -he found that it was intended to make a sudden dash upon Ah Lum's line -of retreat and dispose of him once for all. The evacuation of Moukden -and the narrowing of the area of country open to the Russians in -Manchuria had made the presence of a strong guerrilla force within their -lines insupportable. Ah Lum must be rooted out. - -Hi Feng was to deliver a large quantity of forage within ten days; it -was pretty safe to infer that the expedition would start from Harbin -soon afterwards. Jack felt that Ah Lum must be warned at once. -Furthermore, he was much disposed to rejoin the Chunchuses. Without -overrating his abilities, he knew that he had been able to do something -for them, and what he had learnt about his father's treatment did not -make him more friendly to the Russians or less inclined to do what he -could to thwart them. If he had seen any chance of reaching or -communicating with his father he might have taken a different view: -having left Ah Lum with that purpose there would be no call for him to -abandon his quest. But it was now clear that his enquiries must be -pursued through Russian agents. He therefore decided to rejoin Ah Lum. -At the same time he would let it be known that a reward of 1000 roubles -should be paid to anyone giving him certain information of his father's -whereabouts. This offer, judiciously circulated through Chinese -channels among the officials of the railway, might bring definite news. - -There was another consideration. Among the Chunchuses, so long as Ah -Lum held his own, Jack would be out of reach of the Russian authorities. -If he remained in Harbin, or any other Russian centre, the news of his -offer would at once put his enemies on his track. While he was in Ah -Lum's camp Hi Feng or his brother the compradore could easily -communicate with him if they received any information. - -Once more, then, he set out to join Ah Lum, Hi Lo accompanying him. He -travelled in the guise of a Chinese farmer. Each took two ponies, and -they pushed on with great rapidity, riding the animals alternately. By -means of the secret signs used by Ah Lum, Jack soon got upon the chief's -track. Making a wide detour to avoid the Russian columns now steadily -driving Ah Lum towards the point whence the Harbin force was to complete -his encirclement, he came upon the Chunchuses from the east, and early -one morning rode into the brigand camp. - -His arrival was regarded as a favourable omen. It was likened by Ah Lum -to the delightfulness of rain after long drought. Sin Foo was lucky; -Fortune would now surely smile. The Chunchuses were, in fact, in a -somewhat critical position. The camp, only one day old, was pitched in -a valley of the Chang-ling hills some twenty miles above the Kan-hu -lake--an extensive sheet of water nearly thirty miles long and of -varying breadth. Fifty miles to the north lay the nearest point on the -railway, about 150 miles from Harbin and twice as far from Vladivostok, -the line threading a tortuous path among the hills. A considerable -Russian force sent out from Kirin was known to be at Wo-ke-chan to the -south-west; from this place a winter track led over the hills to the -head of the La-lin-ho valley, within striking distance of Ah Lum's camp. -Another column, at O-mu-so to the south, commanded the upper valley of -the Mu-tan-chiang, and while cutting off access to Ah Lum's old quarters -on the upper Sungari, threatened his left flank by the high-road to -Ninguta. At that place, some eighty miles from O-mu-so, a third column -covered the passes into the Lao-ling mountains on the east. The bandits -were thus in a ring-fence. Only the north was open, and Jack's news -confirmed the wary chief's suspicions that the apparent gap in the north -had been left with the sole object of tempting him into the -neighbourhood of the railway, on which an overwhelming force was held in -readiness. - -The confirmation of his suspicions roused the chief from the dejection -into which the gradual tightening of the coils had thrown him. From an -attitude almost of despair he now rose to a spirit of sullen -determination. The Russians were gradually closing around him; they -would drive him to bay. - -"The tiger comes to eat the fly," he said. "Wah! he may prove a wooden -tiger. The Russians shall see what it is to draw a badger. I own, -honoured sir, I thought once of disbanding my force. But on reflection -I have come to another mind. The very villagers who have been most -willing to help me would probably turn against me retreating, and sell -me to the Russians. He who advances may fight, but he who retreats must -take care of himself. It is better to die fighting. Adversity is -necessary to the development of men's virtues. I will choose a strong -position and await the flood. It will not be long in coming. The -Russians, I doubt not, when their arrangements along the railway are -complete, will advance at the same time from east, west, and south, -driving me against the spears of the Cossacks hiding behind the railway -to the north. I have only 600 men left. There has been much fighting -since you left, honoured sir; my men are exhausted with constant -marching and insufficient food. It is not easy to stop the fire when -water is at a distance." - -Jack found that the Russian prisoners were no longer with the -Chunchuses. Ah Lum had been glad to exchange them against as many of -his band captured during the recent fight. But for this exchange his -force would have been even smaller than it was. He was hopelessly -outnumbered by the Russians, each of whose columns was about 1200 -strong. Their horses were in good condition; and the work of chasing -the Chunchuses having devolved on one only of the columns at a time, the -Cossacks were not so much worn out as their quarry, who had been kept -moving constantly. - -Ah Lum and Jack discussed the situation in great detail. There seemed -indeed no way out. To fight or to disband: those were the alternatives, -each fraught with peril if not disaster. Another fight would probably -be the last, for the Russians would hardly make a serious attack until -they had the wily brigand who had given them so much trouble completely -surrounded. With perhaps 5000 men engaged on one side and only 600 on -the other there was but one result to be expected. - -If the gap to the north had really been a gap--if the Russians had been -as stupid as they wished Ah Lum to believe--there would still have been -a chance. The chief explained that far to the north, in the high hills -above the lower valley of the Mu-tan-chiang, he might hope to elude -pursuit for an indefinite period. It was a wild, mountainous, almost -uninhabited country, in which the only difficulty would be that of -subsistence, not of hiding. But a Chunchuse can live on much less than -a Cossack, little though the latter requires. If only Ah Lum could have -gained those hills, he could have shown a clean pair of heels to his -pursuers. - -Regrets, however, were useless. "It is no good climbing a tree to hunt -for fish." The appearance of the Chunchuses within twenty miles of the -railway would be the signal for a simultaneous movement of squadron upon -squadron of Cossacks from east and west, while the three columns now -closing upon them would seize the opportunity of occupying the passes in -their rear, hemming them within a small circle where they would soon be -annihilated. - -"No," said Ah Lum, "I can only eat my three meals in the day and look -forward to sleeping at night. It is impossible to stand on two ships at -once. I shall stay here, occupy the approaches on each side, and fight -to the last gasp. Death has no terror for me. I can eat my rice -looking towards heaven. My only trouble is my son, my only son Ah Fu. -If I die, he will die; who then will do honour to my bones? True, I -shall be remembered; as the scream of the eagle is heard when she has -passed over, so a man's name remains after his death. But my -cooking-range will go to a stranger; the ancestral tablets of my family -will be broken; there will be none to sacrifice to my manes. And the -boy: why should he be cut off? The growth of a mulberry-tree -corresponds with its early bent. Ah Fu is a good boy, as you know, -honoured sir. He is brave; I love him, and have been liberal in -punishment, as the sage advises; his intelligence, though but a grain of -millet, will in due time grow green to the height of a horse's head. I -looked for him to endure the nine days' examination and write verses -worthy of high office. Ai! ai!" - -Through the scholar's pedantries Jack saw the man's heart throbbing. He -expressed his sympathy. - -"Wah!" returned Ah Lum. "Calamity comes from heaven. After the pig has -been killed it is useless to speak of the price. I have done all I can. -The one thing remaining is to meet the inevitable end with dignity. But -as for you, honoured sir, you have done enough. I do not ask you to -stay. You have your own quest to follow. Let every man sweep the snow -from before his own doors, and not heed the frost on his neighbour's -tiles." - -"You are right, chief," said Jack. "But it has not come to that yet. -There may be a way out even yet, and you have been so kind to me that I -should not think of leaving you while there is any hope at all." - -Ah Lum's remark about the possibility of evading pursuit if he could -reach the farther side of the railway had set Jack thinking. Was there -no way out of his strait? Could the Russians, he wondered, be led off -the scent, thus gaining time for the band to make a dash across the -line? In the privacy of his little hut of kowliang stalks Jack pondered -the problem long. But the more he thought, the less feasible the thing -appeared. The railway gave the Russians so great a mobility: they could -move troops so quickly up and down it, and now that the main armies were -for the time quiescent, they had so many men available, that with only -600 Chunchuses there seemed no hope of such a dash being successful. He -racked his brains far into the night. As the hours drew on, it became -very cold; the north wind struck keenly. Looking around for an -additional garment, Jack saw a military cloak, part of the stock of -clothing captured from the Cossacks. He put it on, and tramped up and -down, thinking and thinking again. The fur-lined cloak warmed him, by -and by he became hot with the excitement of an idea. He rolled himself -up in the cloak and tried to sleep, but his eyes were still unclosed -when the chill dawn stole over the mountains. With racking head he -sought an interview with the chief. For some hours they remained in -earnest consultation. When the talk was ended Ah Lum rubbed his hands -together and said: - -"If you succeed, honoured friend, we shall certainly escape the net. -The task you have set yourself is difficult. It is like feeling after a -pin on the bottom of the ocean. But whether you succeed or not, we shall -owe you an unfathomable debt of gratitude. Choose what men you need; -all will be proud to serve under you." - -Then, weary but light of heart, Jack returned to his hut and slept. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXII* - - *Capturing a Locomotive* - - -Overdue--A Special--The Vladivostok Train--The Sound of a Whistle--An -Interrupted Message--A Correction--Bound East - - -"The fair at Wu-chi-mi will be well attended this month. I have not had -so many bookings for a long time." - -The station-master at Mao-shan looked appreciatively at the motley -gathering. With true oriental patience they had come at least an hour -before the train was due, and in Manchuria that was probably two hours -before it would arrive. Flanked by the enormous bundles and parcels -that in the East represent personal luggage, they were squatting on rugs -and mats under the station shed, waiting for the gates leading on to the -platform to be opened. - -"I only hope there'll be room for them all. But it's wonderful how -tight these Chinamen can pack. And they haven't far to go. The -long-distance passengers will grumble." - -The waiting crowd was not really large, but the station was small. -There might be seventy or eighty in all--men, women, and children. Some -of them were chattering volubly in their high-pitched voices; others -were stolidly smoking or doing nothing at all. One big, burly fellow -was joining in a game of knuckle-stones with a bright-looking boy, the -man playing with the deepest solemnity, the child bubbling with -merriment as he got the better of his elder. All were protected from -the cold by garments so thickly wadded that the heads of the people -looked entirely out of proportion to their bulk of body. - -"It's extraordinary," continued the station-master, who was doing the -most of the talking, his companion, a tall captain of Cossacks wearing -long felt boots, a large fur hat, and a fur-lined cloak up to his ears, -interjecting only an occasional brief word--"it's extraordinary, your -nobility, how the Chinese have taken to the railway. When I came here -four years ago, the most of them looked on it with suspicion, even -dread; now they use it as freely as the folk in Moscow or Petersburg. -But this is a poor district hereabouts, and they can't afford to travel -much, though it's cheap enough, goodness knows." - -"She's late, is she not?" enquired the captain, breaking into the -official's monologue. "It's past eight"--glancing at the station clock. - -"True, little father. Half an hour late at Hsiao-ten-shan-ling, and -that's less than usual. She may make up five or ten minutes; it is -downhill on the whole. But the government is keeping a sharp eye on the -fuel. They won't burn extra to make up lost time; and for the matter of -that, there's no need. The only train that mattered ran through two -hours ago." - -"Ah! a special?" - -The station-master dropped his voice, as if fearful of being heard by -the Chinese outside the barrier. - -"Yes, a special. We were warned by telegraph not to let the news spread -among the natives. But seeing you are an officer, there's no harm in -mentioning there were three hundred of your own men--Cossacks, and a -sprinkling of Siberian Rifles. I suppose you are going on the same -errand?" - -[Illustration: Map of the Siberian Railway from Mao-shan to -Han-ta-ho-tzue.] - -There was much curiosity in the station-master's voice. He was himself a -soldier, and keenly interested in military matters, in which, indeed, he -was more at home than in the routine of railway work. A green-coated -railway sentinel passed and saluted. The captain, who was unknown to -the station-master, had ridden in from Ho-ni-ho-tzue an hour before, and -purchased a ticket for Hai-lin, the station for Ninguta. He had been -anything but communicative, much to the chagrin of the official, to whom -a gossip was the sole distraction in a very monotonous existence, exiled -as he was in this out-of-the-way station. His curiosity had been -aroused by the fact that the captain was leaving his horse in his -charge. It was to be put on board the Harbin train when that officer -returned. - -"Yes," the captain replied, "the same errand." - -"Ah Lum?" - -"Da, da! Ah Lum. There will soon be a strong force at Ninguta." - -"There must be nearly a thousand there now, to say nothing of the three -hundred that passed through this morning, and as many yesterday morning. -They are running them very quickly, for the empty train passed here on -the way back to Harbin on the afternoon of the same day. We don't often -make such running on this railway. It's more like old days on the -Warsaw section. I was there before I came here. The Paris express--that -is a train if you like. Although they do say that they run even faster -in England. Of course that's a lie; they are all liars, the English. -That's well known, is it not, little father?" - -"What's that yonder?" said the officer instead of replying. - -The station-master looked in the direction indicated. Nearly a mile away -a cart, drawn by mules and ponies, was hurrying from the neighbourhood -of Ho-ni-ho-tzue towards the station. - -"Another passenger, I suspect," said the station-master. "And he'd -better hurry, for there's the train at last." - -A thin white riband of vapour was just visible against the blue sky, -floating above the hills to the west. - -"He won't catch it," said the officer. - -"I sha'n't keep it for him," returned the official. "But he may just do -it. He's cut it rather fine for a Chinaman. The train's late as it is; -should have been half-way to Wu-chi-mi by this time." - -As he spoke, the engine came in sight round a curve of the hilly track. -The Chinamen in waiting rose to their feet, grasped their bundles, and -closed up against the barrier. Three riflemen emerged from their little -blockhouse and began to patrol the platform; two or three station -attendants appeared. A few seconds later the huge train, looking far -too large for the station, rumbled in and came to a stop. It consisted -of several old and shaky carriages already well filled with passengers, -and one saloon in the centre. The few passengers for Mao-shan alighted -and passed through the barrier; then the waiting crowd surged through -and hurried along the platform in search of vacant places, which seemed -hard to find. - -A train attendant handed an official-looking paper to the -station-master, who passed with it into his office; there was a -signature to affix. Two of the Chinese passengers followed him as he -left the platform; two others halted near the attendant. There were -cries from the officials to the Chinamen to take their seats. Meanwhile -the Cossack captain had sauntered into the room of the telegraph -operator, and half a dozen Chinamen, having, it seemed, failed to -discover vacant places in the forward carriages, were moving on towards -the engine, followed by the voluble protest of one of the riflemen, who -hurried after them to bring them back. Two or three, among them the big -man and the boy who had been playing knuckle-stones, were peering in at -the windows of the saloon carriage, apparently in great curiosity to see -the occupants. - -By this time the rest of the passengers had squeezed themselves into the -already crowded compartments. Faces were pressed against all the -windows; there was much speculation as to the chance of the belated -passenger in the cart catching the train, its progress being eagerly -watched, and the Chinamen in the carriages betting freely on the event. - -Suddenly a shrill whistle rang out from the room of the telegraph -operator. There was an instant change of scene. Here and there along -the platform, groups of Chinamen, who a moment before had all the guise -of peaceable passengers, threw themselves with startling rapidity upon -the officials and the riflemen. There was a series of brief swift -struggles; a revolver shot was heard; but that was all. Inside and -outside of the train the guard and attendants were in a few seconds -bound and helpless; the men who had gone forward to the engine grappled -with the driver and fireman; the station-master was tied up in his own -office. The passengers, alarmed and apprehensive, were staring -open-mouthed at the proceedings. The door of the saloon carriage was -thrown open, and there appeared at it two men, one a tall long-bearded -Russian officer, whose uniform betokened high rank, the other a fair -hook-nosed civilian, who stared round the other's shoulder. - -"What is this, what is this?" cried the officer, stepping out of the -train revolver in hand. - -The last word was hardly out of his mouth when the burly Chinaman hurled -himself at the Russian's knees from behind; he fell backwards; the -revolver was wrenched from his hand, and the Chinaman held him pinned to -the platform. His companion meanwhile had run back into the saloon; -before he could slam the door the Chinese boy interposed, flinging -himself flat on the floor of the doorway. Two Chinamen forced their way -in, and did not reappear. - -The prostrate officer was now trussed up. His captor had given a brief -order to the rest of the assailants, now ranged along the platform -awaiting instructions. At once they boarded the train, and peremptorily -ordered the passengers to alight. Then the Chinamen found their -tongues; there was a great hubbub and commotion among them; their first -hesitation was quickly overcome by the pistol butts of the bandits, who -hastened their exit by ruthless and well-directed kicks and buffets. -One of the passengers, a heavy man, roared an imprecation and showed -fight; but he was matched in size by the big fellow who had tackled the -officer, and who now, his work with him being finished, seized the -protester and flung him out on to the platform. Bruised and shaken, he -rolled over and squatted on his hams; there was no more fight in him. - -As soon as the train came to a standstill the Cossack officer had -entered the little room of the telegraphist, and at a sign from him the -Chinaman close behind him blew the shrill blast on a whistle that had -been the signal for the attack. - -"Excuse me," said the captain, "I have a message to send." - -The operator, interrupted in the midst of a message, was startled by the -abrupt entrance of the soldier, the sudden whistle, and the sharp crack -of a revolver immediately following. He looked round, half-rising from -his chair, his hand still on the key of the instrument. - -"Finish your message," said the officer quietly. His uniform, his calm -air of authority, impressed the man. Dropping back into his seat he -ticked off the remainder of his message: it was merely a service -intimation of the arrival of the train. The sounds of commotion on the -platform were increasing; when the operator had finished he said: - -"Is there a fight, your nobility? Perhaps I ought to assist. We are a -small staff." - -"No. Stay where you are. It is all over. Now please, my message. To -Wu-chi-mi----" - -"But, your nobility, if you will write the despatch out--we are not -allowed----" - -"There is no time for that. At once, if you please." - -The man still hesitated: the officer sternly continued: - -"My business will not admit of a moment's delay. You can attend to -formalities afterwards." - -"Well, your nobility, if you insist---- But you will take the -responsibility?" - -"Certainly. Call up Wu-chi-mi, if you please." - -The man ticked off the call. There was an immediate reply. - -"Say this: 'Station on fire'----" - -The operator almost sprang from his stool; his eyes were wide with -alarm. - -"But----" - -"You heard what I said. 'Station on fire!'" - -A pistol's cold muzzle at the man's ear sent him cowering to his post. -Pale to the lips, with trembling fingers he ticked off the words. It -was clear that the officer could follow his rapid movements, for he -suddenly pointed the pistol full at his brow, saying: - -"That is enough: recall your last word; another mistake of the kind may -cost you your life." - -[Illustration: "Recall your last word!"] - -Seeing that his attempt to warn the operator at the other end had been -detected, the man corrected the word. - -"Now add: 'Vladivostok train can get through; expect temporary cessation -of messages: will try to save instruments'. That will do." - -The man sank back, and wiped his clammy brow. The officer turned to the -Chinaman, beckoning him forward. In his arms he bore a bulky parcel. At -a sign from the captain he placed the bundle beneath the operator's -desk; opening it, he disclosed a heap of greasy shavings. He struck a -match and set light to the pile; the man sprang from his chair and made -for the door, but was caught and held by the Chinaman. Dismantling the -apparatus, the officer gave it into the free hand of his follower; then, -the room being full of smoke, he hurried out to the platform, the cowed -and bewildered official being pushed along in front. - -Only a few minutes had elapsed since the train came to a stop at the -platform. As the captain emerged, the cart which had been sighted in -the distance had just arrived. While twenty men stood with levelled -revolvers overawing the crowd, a dozen muscular bandits hauled crowbars, -spades, and long spanners from the cart across the platform into the -brake-van, and the noticeably big man carefully carried a small box to -the saloon carriage. At a sign from the captain, a gang of the Chinamen -had hurried up the line some distance from the station and were now -cutting the wires in two places a hundred yards apart. Breaking open -the store-room, yet another group found what they were evidently in -search of: a reserve instrument and a heavy coil of wire. These, with -the wire cut from the line, with which the other men came hastening up, -were bundled into the train; and within a quarter of an hour from the -beginning of the attack the brigands were aboard, the Cossack captain -was in the cab of the locomotive, and, watched by the ejected passengers -in silent amazement, the train rumbled slowly out of the station. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXIII* - - *From Mao-shan to Imien-po* - - -Wrecking a Bridge--Through Wu-chi-mi--More Dynamite--At -Imien-po--Clearing the Line--Pelion upon Ossa--A Puff of Smoke--Two -Minutes' Grace - - -Jack felt an extraordinary sense of exhilaration as the train, gathering -speed, rolled eastward over the single track towards Wu-chi-mi. The -country was hilly. The line at this point is some 900 feet above -sea-level, but although there are steep gradients the main altitude for -a considerable distance varies little. Jack was satisfied at first with -a speed of about thirty miles an hour--a speed indeed rarely exceeded on -the railway--for the curves are at times very sharp, and not knowing the -line he felt that there was some risk of running the train off the -metals. More than once, keeping a sharp look-out, he had to shut off -steam and apply the brakes at a particularly ugly corner. His -hobnobbing with railwaymen during the construction of the line was now -bearing fruit; and he remembered with a curious pleasure, even while he -kept his hand on the regulator handle and his eye on the gauges, a -saying of his father's: "Never lose a chance of picking up odd bits of -information: you never know when they may come in handy". He had not -actually driven a locomotive before, but he had often ridden in the cab, -and watched the driver, so that he felt no nervousness at having the -Alexander the Second under his control. - -As the train rattled past the block-houses of the railway guard, placed -at every tenth verst along the line, the men stared to see it make such -unusual speed; but no doubts troubled their sluggish minds, for they -caught sight of the well-known caftan and head-dress of the Cossacks at -every window. In their innocent-looking bundles the Chunchuses had -carried the uniforms captured with Captain Kargopol's convoy, and they -had donned them as soon as the train started. - -Though he gave close attention to the engine, and saw that from time to -time the furnace and boiler were replenished with fuel and water, Jack -was keeping a sharp look-out for a spot at which he could do sufficient -damage to the line to check a pursuing train. That he would be pursued -he had no doubt; he only wondered how long it would be before news of -his escapade reached the nearest point whence a train could be -despatched after him. Mile after mile was passed, without his seeing -works of any importance. The culverts were small, the water-courses -only a few feet broad, until, about twelve miles out, the train -approached a stream of some size spanned by a small bridge. At this -point a special guard of three riflemen was stationed. The train slowed -down, ran a few yards past the bridge, and came to a stand. At a word -from Jack a dozen men leapt from the carriages on to the track, and -before the astonished guards, deceived by the Cossack uniform, knew what -was happening, they were seized, disarmed, and stretched bound upon the -embankment. - -The bridge was of brick, and consisted of two small arches, the central -buttress sunk in the stream, which here ran only a few feet deep. Jack -sent three men into the water above and below the bridge, each party -armed with a large hand drill. The water was bitterly cold, but the men -set to work quickly, both parties simultaneously attacking the buttress -near the water-line. Fortunately the brickwork was soft; Jack was glad -that his father had not had the contract for it, for then their labours -might have been indefinitely prolonged. By a system of relief gangs a -fair-sized hole was drilled at each end of the buttress in the course of -twenty minutes. Then Wang Shih brought from the saloon two articles -from the box he had so carefully carried from the cart. They were -dynamite cartridges, part of the spoil of a Russian convoy. One was -placed in each aperture, and in a few seconds two muffled explosions -sent rumbling reverberations as of distant thunder among the hills. -Jack hoped the noise would not be heard at Wu-chi-mi, about six miles -off; it could not escape the ears of the guards in the intervening -block-houses, and it would probably carry much farther. But the true -explanation was not likely to occur to the staff at Wu-chi-mi, who in -any case would be quite unable to verify any suspicions they might have. - -The result of the explosions was the collapse of the middle portion of -the bridge, only the jagged foundations of the central buttress -appearing above the water. Followed by his men, Jack ran at once to the -train, which had been taken two hundred yards away, out of reach of -harm, and started the engine full speed ahead. Although twenty minutes -had been spent at the bridge, the rate of progress from Mao-shan had -been so much above the average that the lost time might almost be made -up before the train arrived at Wu-chi-mi. - -The general trend of the line from this point was downhill, and the -train tore along at furious speed over the six or seven miles into -Wu-chi-mi. Slackening speed slightly during the last mile, it rattled -at about forty miles an hour through the station. Jack noticed that the -staff was collected on the platform, excited probably by the noise of -the explosions, and by the reported fire at Mao-shan. They evidently -expected the train to stop. But any hopes they may have formed of -authentic information were disappointed. Sounding the whistle, Jack ran -the train through the station, and it was soon lost to sight. But he -could not afford to take any risks. If the suspicions of the Wu-chi-mi -men were aroused, it was certain that they would warn Imien-po, the next -station, some twenty miles distant. In that case he would probably be -stopped at the points and questioned. About a mile beyond Wu-chi-mi, -therefore, he stopped the train and sent half a dozen men to cut the -telegraph wire, hoping that the officials at the station behind would be -still discussing the unexpected passing of the train instead of -instantly sending a message ahead of him. - -The bare hills had now given place to wooded slopes, the trees standing -gaunt and brown, awaiting the touch of spring. The line crossed several -small water-courses and irrigation ditches. Though he grudged the loss -of time Jack decided to pull up at one of the smaller culverts and -expend his last two dynamite cartridges in completing the work of -destruction begun at the bridge beyond Wu-chi-mi. Although the -explosions raised a huge cloud of dust the actual damage was not great. -But as he was about to start the train, Jack hit upon an idea for -supplementing the work done by the cartridges and at the same time -lightening the load upon his engine. Quickly uncoupling the third -carriage from the rear, he sprang into the cab and threw over the -reversing lever, setting the train in motion backwards. When it had -gained sufficient momentum, he brought the engine to a stop; the three -rear carriages rushed down the incline and dashed with tremendous force -into the wreckage. Then, relieved of nearly half its load, the engine -again started eastward. The cutting ran parallel with the Ma-en-ho, a -wide stream flowing northwards into the Sungari. Glancing at the map of -the railway which had been found in the saloon carriage, he saw that -within a few miles he would come to a short stretch of line branching -off on the right, but apparently leading to no village, and having no -station at its end. It seemed probable that it was a light line -connected with a mine. At first he thought that the junction would be a -good place to lift a few rails. But seeing at a second glance that the -station of Imien-po was not far beyond, he dared not run the double risk -of another delay. On went the train, then, past the junction, where the -single pointsman looked amazed at the speed with which it thundered by. -Passing a brief instruction along the train, Jack shut off steam and -drew up sharply at the Imien-po station. It was time, he thought, to -reassure the railway officials ahead. - -On entering the station he noticed that an empty goods train bound west -stood on a siding waiting for the passenger train to pass. Obviously he -must not leave this intact behind him. Imien-po was a place of some -size; for all he knew, it might contain Russian troops sufficient in -number to deal with his handful of Chunchuses; and the goods train, -being empty, could soon be manned and sent after him in hot pursuit. -But what could he do with it? At first sight only two courses seemed -open to him: either to take the engine with him, or to destroy some of -its working parts. Coupled to his own train, the engine would probably -be only an encumbrance, and he had almost decided to adopt the second -alternative, when, just as he drew up at the platform, a third course -suggested itself. Bidding Wang Shih take half a dozen men and secure -the personnel of the goods train, he leapt on to the platform and -accosted the station-master. - -"You will please give orders to preserve quietness. General Bekovitch, -who is in the saloon, is indisposed." The general was in fact lying -bound hand and foot on one of the luxurious divans, just able to see -Sowinski in a similar plight at the opposite side. "Be so good as to -wire down the line to shunt all traffic. We are already late; the train -has been shortened to lighten us; and it is imperative that the lost -time be made up. The service, you understand. The general"--here he -became confidential--"is in charge of the operations against the brigand -Ah Lum." - -The station-master looked duly interested and impressed, and was about -to speak when Jack moved towards the telegraph office, saying: - -"Follow me, if you please." - -Wondering what this young Cossack officer of the authoritative manner -wished to do, the station-master, a burly little man, toddled at Jack's -heels. The other officials had watched the short colloquy, and were now -approaching the carriages, surprised that none of the train attendants -had yet appeared. Meanwhile the station-master had himself ticked off -the brief message to the next station. The instant it was complete Jack -stepped to the door of the office and held up his hand. A dozen men in -Cossack uniform sprang from the nearest carriage. - -"Now, sir, you have been very obliging, and I am sorry that you and your -clerk must consider yourselves my prisoners." - -The station-master stared in stupefaction. Before his slow tongue could -find words two of the bandits ran into the room, and while their -comrades outside were dealing with the other officials, the poor man and -his equally amazed clerk were securely tied up. At the same time Wang -Shih and his men, slipping out of the opposite side of the train, had -swarmed on to the goods train and surprised the driver and fireman, the -only men to be found on it, relieving them of their coats and caps, and -tying the men up. The garments were afterwards donned by two of the -bandits who rode beside Jack on the engine. Leaving his men to destroy -the telegraphic fittings, Jack hurried to the newly-captured engine. He -released the brakes, then opened the regulator valve to its full extent. -The train began to move westwards; Jack jumped to the ground, and a few -seconds brought him to his own train. Glancing down the platform to see -that all his men were on board, he started the engine, and it snorted -out of the station just as one or two railway officials and the guard of -the goods train came running up from an outbuilding where it is to be -supposed they had been beguiling the time with vodka. - -There was a grim smile on Jack's face as, leaning from the cab, he -watched the tail of the empty goods train rapidly dwindling as it raced -away on its uncontrolled journey westward. In a few minutes it would -crash into the ruins of the bridge and the wreckage of the carriages -already cut off from his own train. The resultant block would tax all -the ingenuity of the railwaymen to clear away in time to get on Ah Lum's -track, if the chief succeeded in reaching the appointed spot at the -appointed time. - -Jack examined his stock of fuel and the water in the tender tank. There -was enough wood to serve for an hour's run, he thought; but he would -require to water in half that time at the most. This was a necessity he -had foreseen: how to surmount it must perforce be left to the chances of -the journey. He could only face each difficulty as it arose. The -pressing matter at present was to guard against an attempt to stop him -at Pei-su-ho. Two miles from the station he had just left he stopped -the train at a bridge. The half-dozen watchmen at this point were -easily overpowered, though not before one of Jack's men was wounded; the -telegraph wire was cut, and the rifles of the Russians were added to the -stock. With those already captured the little party of Chunchuses had -now some twenty Mausers and a fair supply of ammunition. - -The pause offered another opportunity for bridge destruction, but the -supply of dynamite cartridges was exhausted, and after what had been -done it was not worth while to expend precious time; there was still -ample work to do in providing against a dash of the Russians from the -neighbourhood of Ninguta. The train once again started on its -adventures, the line still clinging to the valley of the Ma-en-ho; a -gradual ascent of some thirty miles, up which the engine snorted -furiously, leading to one of the highest points touched by the railway -in this district--a spur of the Chang-ling hills some 1200 feet above -the sea. - -Five minutes after the journey was resumed, Hi Lo, who was on the -railed-in space on the right of the engine, drew Jack's attention to a -small white puff of smoke in the direction of Imien-po, apparently no -more than two or three miles behind, and easily visible from the higher -position now attained. Jack started, swung out on the foot-board, and -gazed intently down the hill. - -"They are after us!" he ejaculated. "But how in the world did they -manage it? They can never have got over the wreckage." - -He looked long and earnestly. Then he turned to Hi Lo. - -"What is it, boy?" - -"Tlain, masta, no-fea'," he replied without hesitation. - -There was no room for doubt. The Russians were on his track. Springing -back into the cab, Jack ordered the man acting as fireman to put more -fuel into the furnace, and opened the regulator valve to its full -extent. Dense spark-laden smoke poured from the wide funnel; the -pistons flew backward and forward; the great locomotive seemed to leap -over the line, and Jack wondered whether the roughly-laid track would -hold together. But, looking anxiously back, he found in a few moments -that the pursuing train had appreciably gained. It must be either -lighter or better engined, or had still the advantage of the momentum -acquired before it had been discovered. - -Danger acted on Jack like a tonic. He instantly grasped the situation -and braced himself to cope with the peril. Shouting to Wang Shih to tear -up the rails behind the train as soon as it came to a stop, he shut off -steam and applied the brakes hard, bringing the engine with a jolt and a -screech to a stand-still. Instantly the men told off leapt on to the -line; with feverish energy they loosened the fish-plates, forced up with -crowbars the spikes holding the rails to the sleepers, and threw the -lifted rails over the embankment. Glancing anxiously back along the -track Jack, though the pursuing train was as yet invisible, saw its -smoke growing larger and larger in volume over the hills. At last the -train itself came into view. Jack saw with surprise that the engine was -at the other end of it; could the goods train, he wondered, have been -stopped in some inexplicable way and started back after him? In two -minutes it would be upon him. He waited for one minute; then, seeing -that a gap of some fifteen or twenty yards had been made in the track, -he summoned his men back to the train and pressed the regulator handle. -To his eager impatience it seemed that the engine would never get under -way. The wheels slipped on the rails; he had pushed the regulator too -far; he drew it back, the wheels held, and, gathering speed every -moment, the locomotive raced on once more. - -The thunder of the pursuing train was roaring in Jack's ears. It seemed -to him, looking back, that the foremost carriage was charging at the -gap. He hoped the work of destruction had not been perceived; but in -this he was disappointed, for when the rear of his own train was barely -two hundred yards from the break, steam was shut off on the engine of -the pursuer, and, helped by the rising gradient, it succeeded in coming -to a stand-still just as the buffers of the foremost carriage were -within half a dozen yards of the gap. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXIV* - - *Lieutenant Potugin in Pursuit* - - -From a Hilltop--Mystified--In Full Chase--A Runaway--In Sight--A Railway -Duel - - -"Those Cossacks are taking their time, Akim Akimitch." - -"Yes, little father; 'tis to be hoped Ah Lum has not swallowed them." - -Lieutenant Potugin smiled. - -"Ah Lum has been a bogey to them, truly, ever since Captain Kargopol -walked into his trap. But I think we'll run the fox to earth this time. -General Bekovitch will soon start the rounding up; and 'tis high time." - -A half-company of Siberian infantry, including a few engineers, were -seated on the rocks in the hills above the Ma-en-ho, engaged in a meagre -luncheon of black bread and vodka. They had arrived early that morning -by special troop train, in company with a sotnia of Cossacks, from -Harbin. Their errand was to establish a temporary signal-station on a -convenient hilltop. The hole for the signal-pole had been dug, not -without difficulty, in the hard and frozen soil, and before the -completion of the job was taken in hand, Lieutenant Potugin, in command -of the working party, was allowing his men a short respite for rest and -food. The Cossacks meanwhile were scouting in the hills beyond--a task -they were by no means fond of,--and seeking a suitable place for the -erection of a corresponding signal some miles distant, whence -communication could be established with the height now occupied by the -infantry. - -Lieutenant Potugin was very popular with his men, largely because he -never overworked them and was quite content when on duty to share their -humble rations. He was seated now beside the sergeant, in the midst of -the circle, munching his bread, and every now and then raising his -field-glass to scan the surrounding heights. It was a fine morning; a -breath of spring was already in the air, even in these heights; the -atmosphere was clear, and the outlines of the country were sharply -defined against the unclouded sky. - -Over the shoulder of a low hill beneath him he could just see a stretch -of the main railway line, some three miles away. The little branch line -along which his train had come that morning was out of sight immediately -below; but he expected every moment to see the empty train reappear on -the main line. It was to return to Harbin; rolling stock was urgently -needed on all parts of the system; and when his work was done Lieutenant -Potugin was to report himself to General Bekovitch and join that -officer's carefully-planned expedition against the Chunchuses. The -branch line ended at a disused quarry which had been largely drawn upon -when the main railway was under construction; and there was no -telegraphic communication between the main line and the terminus of the -branch--if, indeed, the latter could be said to have a terminus: it -simply left off. The empty troop train would doubtless remain at the -junction until it was signalled by trolley-car from Imien-po to proceed. - -The sergeant, a famous raconteur, was telling a story, long-winded, not -at all humorous, yet received by the men with shouts of laughter. -Lieutenant Potugin smiled good-humouredly at the naive amusement of the -honest fellows, and once more idly scanned the panorama beneath him. In -the far distance he saw a dense line of smoke lying flat in the still -air, betokening a train travelling eastward at a high speed. He watched -it with languid curiosity as it appeared in the open and vanished into -cuttings in the winding valley of the river. It passed the junction, -slackening speed, and then, to his surprise, pulled up. Distant though -it was, he could distinctly see through his powerful glass a little knot -of men hurrying from the train up the line. They disappeared for a -time, apparently beneath a culvert. The circumstance awakened -Lieutenant Potugin's curiosity; he watched with a certain eagerness for -the men to reappear; one or two small groups could be seen against the -snow, but a considerable time elapsed before the most of the men joined -them and the whole party ran back to the train. Scarcely had they -reached it when a cloud of dust rose high into the air above the bridge, -and a few seconds later the sound of two dull explosions reached the -lieutenant's ear, followed by miniature echoes from the rocks. - -The lieutenant sprang up and gazed intently through his glass. The -sounds had been heard by the men also; they turned their heads for a -moment, but, seeing nothing, resumed their conversation. But Potugin -stood as if stupefied. An attempt had been made to wreck the culvert; -that was clear. But who were the wreckers? Were they Russians, cutting -the railway to check pursuit by the Japanese? Surely the enemy was not -already at Harbin? Accustomed as he was in this terrible war to sudden -and startling movements, the lieutenant could not believe that the -Japanese had made such strides. No, he thought; it was more likely to -be a party of Japanese who had captured the train and were engaged on a -wrecking foray. Such things had happened south of Moukden; a flying -squadron might have evaded the Cossacks and made a daring attack on some -inadequately protected train. - -The train was moving forward. But what is that? It has stopped again; -it is running back towards the stream. The madmen! Are they going to -hurl themselves to destruction on the ruins of the culvert? Potugin's -gaze is fascinated. Ah! he sees through it now; three carriages have -left the rest of the train, which is again at a standstill; they are -rushing down the gradient, faster, faster. Good heavens! they have -crashed into the culvert, piling themselves one above another, and the -sound comes to him like the breaking of some giant's crockery afar. - -Then Potugin found his wits. Nothing in the whole course of the war had -given the Russians so much anxiety as their railway. Depending on it -for the rapid transit of reinforcements and munitions of war, they were -constantly in nervous dread of this their sole communication with St. -Petersburg being cut by Japanese or Chunchuses. The dreaded thing had -happened. Fully realizing the situation, Lieutenant Potugin was prompt -to act. - -"Fall in!" he shouted. - -The men sprang from their seats and were aligned in a twinkling. - -"Sergeant, signal the Cossacks that a train is in the hands of the -enemy, and going eastward. Men, follow me." - -He led the way at a breakneck pace down the hill towards the spot where -they had left the empty troop train. Three minutes brought them within -sight of the train; at that moment the engine whistled and began to puff -along. The officer shouted, waving his hand; the engine-driver saw his -urgent gesture, and shut off steam. In another ten minutes sixty -breathless men, heated with their headlong scamper, were on board the -train; the lieutenant was beside the driver; and the engine was steaming -as rapidly as the crazy irregular track permitted towards the main line. - -Arrived at the junction, Lieutenant Potugin himself leapt down and -switched the points close. The pointsman had apparently been startled -by the crash and run off to inform the guardsmen at the nearest -block-house. The troop in was just moving forward to cross the points -when a tremendous rumbling was heard from the direction of Imien-po, -moment by moment increasing. The engine of the troop train was already -on the main line. But the lieutenant, standing with his hand on the -switch and looking down the track, was horrified at what he saw rapidly -approaching. - -"Reverse the engine!" he shouted; "for God's sake reverse the engine!" - -The driver with frenzied haste threw over his reversing lever and put on -more steam; the engine stopped, moved slowly backward; it had reached -safety by only a few inches when a goods train came thundering past at -furious speed, and disappeared in the direction of the bridge. As it -flashed by, Lieutenant Potugin was almost sure that the engine had -neither driver nor fireman. Startled though he was by the -hair's-breadth escape from destruction, he immediately recovered his -presence of mind. Setting the points, he ran to his retreating train, -clambered into the cab, and before the driver had pulled himself -together the lieutenant seized the lever, reversed the engine, and drove -the train on to the main line, then sprang down, unlocked the points, -and in two minutes was running the train backward towards Imien-po. - -The engine was a powerful Baldwin; the train though long was nearly -empty; it gathered way, and with the regulator fully open had soon -attained a high speed. But the engine was at the wrong end; it was -difficult to see ahead. The lieutenant was now outside the engine, -hanging on to the rail, and bending outwards in order to get a clear -view down the line. Half-way to Imien-po he caught sight of a trolley -approaching. He called to the driver to shut off steam and apply the -brakes. The man working the trolley stopped the moment he caught sight -of the train, and seemed in doubt whether to go back or to remain. The -train had almost come to rest; the officer bellowed a few words to the -trolley-man; he sprang to the ground, promptly tipped the trolley off -the track and over the embankment, and, running to the engine, climbed -up beside Potugin, the train still moving. Again the brakes were -released and the regulator opened, and as the train forged ahead the -trolley-man explained in a few words to the lieutenant what had -occurred. - -At Imien-po a few minutes' stop was made while appliances for repairing -the line were hastily brought on board and a number of skilled -platelayers taken up. The opportunity was taken to shunt several of the -carriages on to a siding. The engine could not be transferred to the -front of the train without a serious waste of time, and every second was -precious. A fresh start was made; greatly lightened, the train made -fine running for some miles. Then the lieutenant, using his glass, saw -the smoke of a train about five miles down the line. As he watched it, -the smoke ceased; the train must have stopped, for the gradient was -rising. A few minutes more and the runaway came in sight. But the -fireman, stooping from his side of the engine, observed with his trained -eyes that a portion of the track had been torn up, and steam was shut -off and the brakes applied only just in time to avert a disaster. -Jumping from the train, half a dozen platelayers hurried with their -tools behind the engine, and, spurred by the voice of the officer and -helped by his men, in an incredibly short space of time they had -wrenched up some rails from the track already covered, and bridged the -gap at the other end. - -Slowly and carefully the train was run over the shaky metals only -half-secured to the sleepers. When the danger point was passed, the -driver opened the valve and the engine pushed along at full speed. It -was to be a trial, not only of speed between the two magnificent -engines, but of wits between the two leaders: between the ingenuity of -the pursued in obstructing the progress of the pursuer, and of the -pursuer in overcoming the obstacles raised by the pursued. It was more; -it was a competition in daring and the readiness to take risks. The -track was hilly, winding, roughly laid; not intended for, wholly -unsuited to, great speed; with steep gradients and sharp curves never -rounded by the regular drivers of the line but with caution. Over this -track the two trains were leaping at a pace unknown on the Siberian -railway--a pace that would have turned the chief engineer's hair white -with dismay. On the one train Jack Brown, on the other Lieutenant -Potugin, had to think out their decisions, or rather to flash them -unthought, clinging to the outer rail of a rattling, swaying, jolting, -throbbing engine threatening at any moment to jump the rails, with the -noise of escaping steam, the roaring of the furnace heaped to the mouth -with fuel, the whistle constantly sounding to warn off any obstruction -ahead, small though the chances were that the signal, if needed, could -be heard and acted on in time. Accident apart, the race would be to the -coolest head and the quickest wit. On the one side the stake was life -or death. Into whose hand would fortune give it? - - - - - *CHAPTER XXV* - - *The Pressure-Gauge* - - -Timber on the Track--Fuel and Water--The Station House--A Trap--Neck or -Nothing--Screwing down the Valve--A Slip Carriage--Nearing the -End--Kao-ling-tzue--Indiscreet Zeal--A Lady Passenger--Traffic Suspended - - -Jack glanced anxiously back along the line; his engine was jolting, -bumping, up the incline at the rate of forty miles an hour; steam was -escaping from the safety-valves; the gauge registered over 10 -atmospheres, considerably above working pressure; yet to his impatience -it seemed to be moving with exasperating slowness. Dust was whirling -behind; through the cloud, five minutes after he started, he saw a puff -of steam in the distance; the pursuing train was again under way. -Turning to see if he could put on more steam, he was dismayed to find -that the water was just disappearing in the gauge glass. In a few -minutes--he could not tell how few--the water would be below the level -of his fire-box crown, the fusible plug would drop, and the fire would -be put out by the escaping steam. This was ominous indeed. - -There were, he saw, two conditions in his favour: he had a start of -nearly five minutes; and he could choose his own place to obstruct the -pursuer. But the other conditions were all against him. He must needs -stop for water, and at the present rate of consumption for fuel also; -and whenever he passed a station it would be necessary to cut the -telegraph wires. Moreover, on board the pursuing train there must be -men skilled in repairing the line, or the chase could not have been -resumed so promptly; and Jack could not expect to do more damage in a -given time than could be remedied by expert hands in the same period. -Worst of all, the pursuing engine was evidently more powerful than his; -and though it was somewhat handicapped by its position at the wrong end -of the train, yet an experienced driver can always get more work out of -his engine than a tyro,--and Jack was making his trial trip! - -He cudgelled his brains for some means of checking the pursuit without -bringing his own train to a stand-still. He wished that he had thought -to instruct his men when tearing up the rails to lift some of the -sleepers into the train; these placed on the line would prove serious -obstacles. It was too late to repine; he made up his mind not to lose -the chance if it should occur again. While his thoughts were still on -the matter, his eye caught the balks of timber used for fuel on this -part of the line. The stock in the tender was much diminished; more -fuel must soon be obtained; but surely one or two might be spared for -the experiment. Without delay he sent Hi Lo to the back of the tender -with an order to Wang Shih to carry two of the balks through the train -and to drop them on the line from the communication door at the rear of -the last carriage. In a few moments the command was carried out, but -Wang Shih reported that owing to the high speed he had found it -difficult to see what happened to the logs when they reached the ground. -One, he thought, had remained on the inside rail; the other appeared to -jump off. Narrowly watching the riband of steam from the pursuing -train, Jack believed he detected a momentary diminution about the time -when it should have reached the spot where the logs had been thrown out; -but if there was a delay it was very brief, and a few minutes later the -tail of the advancing train came into full view, the growing size of the -carriage-end showing that it was making up on him. - -Looking ahead with greater anxiety, Jack saw a station within a mile. -This must be Pei-su-ho. He had already decided that to stop there would -be absolutely necessary, and in a short colloquy with Wang Shih when he -returned from throwing the logs on the track he had arranged what should -be done. Immediately on the stoppage of the train twelve men were to -engage the station staff and destroy the telegraphic instruments; ten -were to tear up the rails behind the train, and, if possible, bring some -sleepers on board; four were to cut the telegraph wire, and twenty to -load wood from the station stock on to the nearest carriage. In the -meanwhile he himself, with the assistance of the man acting as fireman -and others riding on the engine, would take in a supply of water from -the tank. - -The train rattled into the station. In his anxiety Jack found that he -had shut off steam too late; the engine ran some yards beyond the -water-tower. As he had already found at Imien-po, it was not easy to -the amateur to bring a train to a stand-still at a given spot. But -although the greater part of the train had run beyond the platform, the -Chunchuses, who were standing ready with the doors open, swung -themselves out, and before the gaping officials were aware of what was -happening they were disarmed and helpless. Not for the first time had -Jack reason to be glad that his men were the pick of Ah Lum's band, and -a standing proof of the efficacy of discipline with the Chinese. - -While Jack was backing the engine to the tank the work of ripping up the -track and demolishing the wire had already been begun, and a string of -men were hauling timber into the nearest carriage. But before the -supply of water was fully replenished Jack had to blow his whistle to -recall the various parties; the pursuer was drawing perilously near. -The train moved off before all the men were in their places; the last of -them running along the platform and being helped in by his comrades. Up -came the second train; again it had to halt before the gap, and the -driver, being at the other end, was compelled for safety's sake to -reduce speed earlier than he would have done had he been able to judge -the distance more exactly. But this time the gap was shorter; the time -required to restore the line would be correspondingly less. Yet Jack -had gained one advantage; knowing that the enemy's water supply, like -his own, must have run low, he had brought the station hose away with -him, and he looked at it with grim satisfaction, lying coiled at the -rear of the tender. - -As Jack's engine, Alexander the Second, gained impetus and charged up -the gradient towards the hills looming in the distance, it was followed -by a dropping fire from the pursuing train: some of Lieutenant Potugin's -men had climbed to the roof of the stationary carriages. Whether any of -the bullets struck the train was doubtful; no harm was done; and in the -excitement of the moment the idea of firing rifles seemed almost as -childish as shooting at the moon. Nothing less than a siege-gun would -have appeared formidable in the circumstances. - -The brigands' last cutting of the line and the removal of the hose had -evidently gained several minutes for the fugitive, for many miles had -been covered before the smoke of the pursuer was again seen. With so -considerable a start Jack felt it safe to pull up once more and try a -device that had occurred to him. His engine was at the summit of a long -descent where the line curved. Hitherto his track-breakers had forced -up both the rails, but the curve was here so sharp that he thought he -might save time by having only one rail lifted, hoping that the partial -gap might not be seen by the enemy until it was too late to do more than -check the train, which would in all probability be derailed. An -alternative plan suggested itself, only to be dismissed. It was to -remove the rail, and then replace it without the bolts. The pursuer -would then rush on at full speed expecting no danger; the train would be -hurled from the track, and probably all on board would be killed or -injured. But even in the heat of the moment, and with the knowledge -that if he were caught he could expect no mercy from the Russians, Jack -could not bring himself to compass such wholesale destruction. "Play -the game": the phrase of the school song stuck to him. His purpose -would be amply served by the mere derailment of the train, the speed of -which would no doubt be sufficiently checked, when the gap was descried, -to avert fatal consequences. - -So confident was he of the success of his scheme that when, after the -single rail was removed and flung over the embankment, he again crowded -on steam, his mind was occupied rather with the question of what should -be done at the next station than with the prospect of further -difficulties with his dogged pursuer. He was now approaching the place -in the hills to which Ah Lum was to advance by forced marches, and -whence he was to be prepared to dash across the line on receiving a -message that the scheme had succeeded. Jack had already selected his -messenger; the man was clinging to the rail of the engine, and only -awaited the word to spring during a temporary slackening of speed and -plunge into the hills. - -The chosen spot lay between Pei-su-ho and Kao-ling-tzue, and had been -minutely described by Ah Lum. Jack was glad that his anxieties appeared -to be over, for the country flashed by so rapidly that he ran the risk -of over-shooting the mark unless he could keep a good look-out. He was -narrowly watching for the opening on his right when Hi Lo suddenly drew -his attention westward. With greater alarm than he had yet felt, even -when he first caught sight of the pursuer, he saw, scarcely a mile and a -half behind him, the relentless enemy leaping along in his wake. He was -half-way up a steep incline; the second train was rushing with wholly -reckless speed down a steep straight gradient on which Jack, no longer -fearing pursuit, had thought it desirable to clap on the brakes. All -notion of going cautiously must now be abandoned. Amazed at the failure -of his last effort to delay the pursuer, Jack set his men with desperate -energy to pile up the furnace to its utmost capacity; and when he topped -the hill, and the enemy was just beginning the ascent, he let the engine -go at its own pace down the opposite side. He and his men had to hold -on with both hands as they rounded another sharp curve; the wheels on -the inside seemed to be raised from the track, the train keeping the -rails only by the grip of the outside wheels. Jack held his breath as -the panting engine plunged along; would it come safely on to the -straight? Even in the excitement of the moment he solved as in a flash -the mystery of the pursuers' escape from derailment, and he could have -beaten his head for his thoughtlessness. The rail that had been lifted -was an inside rail; rounding a curve the weight of a train going at -speed is always thrown on the outer rail, which is raised above the -level of the other. Either designedly or by accident the pursuing train -had passed at full speed over the gap, its very speed proving its -salvation. - -Although there were many ups and downs, the general trend of the line -was still chiefly on the up grade, and Jack found that while the enemy -made as good timing as himself down the slopes, their more powerful -engine gained rapidly wherever the track began to rise. As mile after -mile was passed, the huts of the line guards at intervals of ten versts -seeming like the milestones on an ordinary journey, the space between -the two trains steadily diminished. Every now and again the pursuer was -lost to view; but whenever it next came in sight it was always -perceptibly nearer. The noble Alexander the Second rattled and groaned -like a creature in pain; the working parts were smoking; some of the -bearings were melting, and Jack dared not risk the perils of oiling. He -knew that he was getting out of it every ounce of which it was capable, -unless indeed he adopted the desperate expedient of screwing down the -safety-valve, from which a dense cloud of steam was escaping. He -glanced at the gauge--13 atmospheres; then his eye went backwards along -the track--the pursuer was still gaining; he turned to look ahead, there -was a long steep ascent to be climbed. The pace lessened to an alarming -extent: puffing, panting, creaking, the engine toiled up a hillside on -which the track could be seen rising for at least two miles. He must -risk it. - -Three minutes later, the valve now screwed down, he again glanced at the -gauge--14 atmospheres. Bursting pressure, Jack knew, was calculated at -five or six times the working pressure; but the Alexander the Second was -an old engine, he doubted whether her boilers would stand anything like -this strain. - -For a time Jack's train drew away; but the gain was only temporary; the -pursuers, he guessed, must have adopted the same desperate expedient. -Gradually they crept up, while Jack alternately watched them and the -track ahead, and the gauge, which now registered 15 atmospheres--the -limit which it was constructed to indicate. Beyond this point he had no -means of knowing how the pressure was increasing. The rapidity of his -thoughts seemed to keep pace with the tremendous speed at which he was -travelling. His mind worked with marvellous clearness; the minutes -seemed like hours; he even found himself speculating which of the three -risks was the greatest--derailment, capture by the Russians, or the -imminent explosion of the boiler. - -To look for the spot chosen for the despatch of his messenger was out of -the question; it had probably been already passed. Jack felt that he -had no longer any alternative; he must play what seemed his last card. -The pursuing train was only half a mile behind on the steep upward track -when at his order Wang Shih, at the risk of his life, uncoupled the -rearmost of the three carriages. For a short distance it followed the -rest; then it stopped, and began to run back at a pace that threatened -to telescope at least one carriage of the oncoming train. A turn in the -track hid both the detached carriage and the pursuer from sight; Jack -listened with a beating heart for the sound of the collision, which he -felt would be audible even above the thundering roar of his own train. - -Lightened of part of its load, his engine was forging its way uphill at -considerably higher speed. At one moment he thought he heard the -expected crash, and it seemed that the move had been successful, for -when next he obtained a fair view of the line behind, the enemy was not -in sight. Alternating between compunction and elation, he ventured, the -line being more level, to reduce speed until it was safe to drop his -messenger, who must perforce find his way to Ah Lum. But the man had -barely left the track when, to Jack's amazement, the indomitable pursuer -reappeared. A glance showed him that it was pushing the discarded -carriage before it. His move had been detected, probably before the -cast-off carriage began its backward journey; the pursuing engine had -been able to reverse in time; chased and overtaken by the runaway -carriage, the train had no doubt been badly bumped, but not with force -enough to cause any serious damage. Now, to all appearance, it was -following the quarry at the same breakneck pace as before. Jack felt a -glow of admiration for the wary Russians, who showed themselves so -intent to mark his every move, so quick to take measures to defeat it. - -His mouth hardened as he watched the pursuer gaining upon him yard by -yard. He knew that the pressure must now be enormous; would the boilers -stand the strain? Yet in spite of all he was steadily being overhauled. -Yard by yard the gap lessened. Nothing but an accident could now -prevent him from being overtaken; his only course seemed to be to stop -before the enemy was too close, reverse his engine, and with his men -take to the hills. But then he reflected with a kind of agony that the -task he had set himself was even yet only half done. There was no -longer, indeed, any chance of Ah Lum's retreat being cut from the west; -but the Russians could still despatch a force from Ninguta in ample time -to check the Chunchuses before they got across the railway; and if they -were once checked, the forces behind would at once close in and crush -them. While, therefore, the slightest hope remained, Jack resolved to -cling to his train; but he gave his men orders to jump clear at a -moment's notice. They must now be very near to Kao-ling-tzue: if they -failed to cut the line there the race was clearly run, for a warning -would certainly be flashed over the wire to the next station at -Han-ta-ho-tzue, giving ample time for preparations to be made to meet -him. He was in a bath of sweat; his throat was parched; his limbs were -trembling; but collecting all his forces, he watched the gauge and -grasped the lever. - -There remained, he clearly saw, one small chance, and only one. If -there happened to be a train at Kao-ling-tzue side-tracked in obedience -to his instructions, it might be possible--how long would it take?--to -interpose it between himself and his pursuers. There would be a minute, -nay, less than a minute, to gain possession of it and set it in motion. -Could he increase the margin? Yes; by detaching the saloon, now the -rearmost carriage, and crowding the whole of his men and the two -prisoners into the single carriage in front. The enemy had all along -shown himself so alert that he would doubtless be on the look-out for -such a move; there was no longer any likelihood that it would end the -chase; but at least it would check the pursuer's progress, forcing him -to stop or reverse. Even if it caused the delay of only a few seconds, -it was worth attempting; a few seconds might make all the difference. - -The station was already in sight when, the transference of men having -been quickly effected, Wang Shih broke the couplings and left the saloon -solitary upon the line. Looking with blood-shot eyes ahead, Jack -saw--and his labouring heart leapt at the sight--not one, as he had -hoped, but two trains, one behind the other, completely filling a -siding, where they were halted to allow General Bekovitch's expected -train to pass. - -But the same glance that gave Jack such elation showed him that he had -to deal with perhaps the greatest danger he had yet encountered. He had -intended to follow the same plan that had proved successful at the other -stations: dispose of the officials, cut the wires, and block the line. -But he saw almost with dismay that the platform here was thronged. -Drawn, no doubt, by curiosity to see the train of General Bekovitch, and -excited by the urgent messages received along the wire, not only the -station officials were waiting, but a considerable number of workers on -the railway, Russian riflemen, and Chinese passengers. These, together -with the attendants of the standing passenger train, were massed upon -the platform. They formed so numerous a crowd that it would tax all the -energies of the Chunchuses to deal with them; there might be a prolonged -fight, and, even if it ended in a victory for the brigands, so much time -would have been consumed that the pursuers must arrive before anything -could be done to stop their progress. It was a moment when many a man -might have despaired. But Jack was not made of the stuff that yields. -As his engine plunged along towards the station he conceived an -alternative plan; it would test his nerve and self-command to the -uttermost; but it might succeed by its very audacity. - -Passing the word to his men that they were to remain in the carriage and -hold their revolvers ready in case an attack was made, he halted the -engine with a jerk a yard beyond the spot where the station-master was -standing. He sprang to the platform, clutched the astonished official by -the arm, and dragged him along, speaking in low, rapid, urgent tones. - -"Come with me. There is not a moment to lose. We are pursued by a -train in the possession of the enemy. General Bekovitch is laid up. We -have done our best to check the pursuit, but they'll be upon us in a few -minutes. Only one thing can be done: uncouple the engine on the siding, -and start it up the line. Quick! our lives depend on it. I will take -the responsibility." - -As Jack had hoped, the suddenness and unexpectedness of the news, and -the urgency of his manner, bereft the station-master of all power of -independent thought. He hurried along the platform, shoving aside all -who stood in his path, every man in the crowd looking on with -wonderment. He sprang on to the line, with his own hands uncoupled the -engine, signalled for the points to be closed, and ordered the driver to -send it ahead at full speed. - -"Two minutes saved!" thought Jack, as the engine started. But he could -not afford to let the flurried official regain his self-command. - -"That is not enough," he said. "They will see the engine, reverse, -couple it on, and come at greater speed. I've tried it already. You -must empty the passenger train, and then push it along with the goods -engine. It would be well to throw a carriage or two off the rails at -the points. Anything to block the line." - -"Certainly, your nobility," said the station-master. "It is the only -way." - -They were now on the track between the waiting train and Jack's. Many -of the passengers had their heads out of the windows, wondering what was -going on. Waving his arms, the station-master summoned them in urgent -tones to alight. - -"I'll now push on," said Jack. "Do your best, nichalnik; remember how -much depends on you." - -He walked rapidly along between the trains to reach his engine. -Passengers, anxious, wonder-struck, were already leaving the train. One -of them, a Russian army doctor, stopped Jack and asked what was the -matter. - -"Train behind in possession of the enemy," returned Jack laconically. - -"Bozhe moi!" ejaculated the doctor, drawing his revolver and making for -the platform. - -Jack passed on, not venturing to delay even long enough to assist a -lady, for whom the jump from carriage to track was somewhat difficult. -She sprang down unassisted. - -"Monsieur Brown, Monsieur Brown!" - -Jack shivered from top to toe, and never in his life felt so much -inclined to take to his heels as then. He could hardly believe he had -heard aright; yet amid the bustle now filling the station he had caught -the whisper of his name. On a sudden impulse he swung round. - -"Monsieur Brown," said Gabriele Walewska, running up to him, "I have -news for you: I have something to show you." - -"Come with me, Mademoiselle," said Jack instantly. "I haven't a minute -to lose." - -"But Masha is here; I cannot leave her." - -"For heaven's sake, Mademoiselle, climb up into this carriage. I will -fetch Masha." - -With anxiety tearing at his heart Jack hurried back down the train. He -saw Gabriele's old nurse at the door of a carriage; she was almost the -only passenger who had not yet alighted. - -"Spring into my arms," he said, forgetting that she knew no tongue but -Polish. But his outstretched arms spoke for him. The woman jumped -clumsily; but Jack kept his feet, and, straining his muscles, he carried -the burden, as rapidly as he could stagger, to his own train. -Gabriele's hands were ready to help the woman; with an unceremonious -heave Jack pushed her into the carriage. Then he ran to his engine, -swung himself up, and pressed the lever just as the empty passenger -train moved off in the other direction. Before he had run a hundred -yards he heard a crash behind. Glancing back, he saw that the first -carriage had jumped the points, ploughed up the permanent way, and -overturned. One after another the other carriages followed; and in a -brief minute there was a pile of wrecked trucks and coaches in -inextricable confusion across the rails. - -Jack had not time to give a second thought to Gabriele. He was again -urging Alexander the Second along at full speed. He must run to within -a few miles of the next station, and lift enough rails to delay for some -hours any train despatched from the direction of Ninguta. Twenty -minutes brought him to a likely spot--a high culvert over a brawling -hill stream. Employing the whole strength of his detachment in the -work, he lifted fifty yards of the track and flung the rails and -sleepers into the stream's rocky bed. - -"At last!" he exclaimed. The load of anxiety he had borne for over two -hours was gone. From the place where he had wrecked the bridge nearly a -hundred miles westward to the spot where he now stood, traffic on the -Siberian railway was hopelessly blocked. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXVI* - - *A Double Quest* - - -Gabriele's Story--A Hasty Word--Lex Talionis--Bribery and -Corruption--Cause and Effect--The Natural Man--The Filial -Obligation--The Choice of Routes--A Fair Pleader--In the -Circumstances--Improving the Occasion - - -Jack's part was done. The way had been cleared for the passage of the -Chunchuses across the railway, and knowing Ah Lum's rapidity of movement -he felt tolerably sure that the crossing might easily be made. He could -now afford to think of his own safety. He determined to run the train -back as near as he dared to Pei-su-ho, then to leave it standing on the -line and make off in a northerly or north-westerly direction, trusting -to join hands with Ah Lum at some distance north of the line. The -railway guards were amazed to see the train running swiftly backwards; -but, whatever their suspicions, they were powerless. Jack came to a stop -between two of the block-houses; in a few minutes his men alighted with -Bekovitch and Sowinski, Gabriele, and her nurse; and then Jack abandoned -the noble Alexander the Second that had served him so well, and started -on his northward march. Some distance above the line he instinctively -turned for a last look. There was the short train, motionless on the -rails, a derelict in a vast solitude. But it represented activities -that had disorganized the whole traffic of the line for a hundred miles, -nullified a military scheme, and saved hundreds of lives. It was not -without a certain grim amusement Jack remembered that the final card in -that game had been played by the Russians themselves. "I only hope the -station-master won't be cashiered," he thought, as he turned his back -upon the scene. - -Not till now had he an opportunity of learning what strange fate had -entrusted Gabriele to his care. Some time after he had left the -missionary's house the girl, unable to endure the separation from her -father, again ventured into Vladivostok. Acting on the knowledge that -Jack had bribed a Russian official, she succeeded in persuading a -colonist about to re-embark for Sakhalin to carry a letter from her to -Count Walewski. She told him of her intentions, assuring him that in -spite of her failure to gain permission to enter the island, she still -meant to persevere. Several weeks later she received a reply, brought -by the same man, who had crossed the sea in probably the last boat -before the ports became ice-bound. It was addressed in a strange -handwriting, and as she tore it open she was oppressed by the fear that -her father was dead. But the first line of the letter, written in -French, dispelled her anxiety. The count was ill in hospital, unable to -write; but he had availed himself of the ready help of a -fellow-prisoner--a political prisoner who had recently arrived in the -island. He thanked his daughter for her affectionate solicitude, but -pled with her to abandon her purpose: Sakhalin was no place for a woman; -she would only suffer without alleviating his lot. As for himself, until -the arrival of his new friend he had despaired of ever regaining his -liberty. But the surprising news that the Japanese were winning victory -after victory had sown a seed of hope. The prisoners on the island had -been fed with lies by the officials, who reported constant victories for -Russia. But the new-comer had thrown a fresh light on the war; he could -not foresee its end: the Russians had still enormous powers of -resistance; it was possible that the great fleet on its way eastward -might break through to Vladivostok and change the aspect of things. -Yet, if it should be defeated, the Japanese might capture Sakhalin; -possibly the political prisoners would then be released if they had not -been previously removed to the mainland. It was only a possibility, but -sufficient to give new courage to a sorely-tried man. - -Jack read all this himself, for Gabriele, immediately after explaining -how the letter came into her possession, handed it to him. The writing -was his father's. At the first moment he felt unutterable relief in -finding that his father was alive; then rage burned within him as he saw -before him, marching at some distance apart, each manacled to a -Chunchuse, the two men whose villainy had sent Mr. Brown to the bleak -"island of the dead". Gabriele noticed his look. - -"I understand," she said. "But if your anger is great, how much greater -is mine! Your father's persecutor is a Russian, a foreigner; my father -was betrayed by one of his own countrymen,--one of his own house. The -traitor there recognized me as I entered the saloon carriage; bound as -he was, he shrank from me as though expecting that I would kill him." - -"But he did not recognize you when he saw you at Father Mayenobe's?" - -"No. But something must have put him on my track, for it is through him -that I was a passenger on the train. I was arrested in Vladivostok and -ordered to go back to Europe. He was with the soldiers who arrested me: -in fact, he pointed me out to them. I do not know how he came to -recognize me after all." - -At the moment no explanation occurred to Jack, who indeed did not give a -thought to it. But later he remembered that, on the well-remembered -evening in Moukden when he had got the better of Sowinski, he had -mentioned the man's true name, Streleszki. This had no doubt set the -Pole wondering how Jack could have learnt his name; and the chain of -incidents had led him to connect the disclosure with the European girl -he had met at the missionary's. So that Jack's almost inadvertent -explanation had ultimately led to this meeting with Gabriele at the -station, and to the end of his long search for his father's whereabouts. - -The party marched as rapidly as possible, rising gradually towards the -barren hills. After two hours they stopped for a brief rest, and for -the first time since his capture at Mao-shan General Bekovitch was -within arm's-length of the Chunchuse leader. Jack wondered whether he -would be recognized; but the change of costume, the hardening of his -features and the development of his physique due to his active rigorous -life, made him a different being from the lad whom Bekovitch had seen -for five minutes at the Moukden railway-station. And the general was -certainly not in such a calm and collected mood as might quicken his -memory. He was indeed in a condition of boiling rage and indignation. - -"Here, you--" he cried, seeing Jack so near to him. "Do you understand -Russian?" - -"Moderately well, sir." - -His very voice had become more manly; its deeper tones did not awaken -recollection. - -"Then what do you mean, confound you! by treating a Russian general -officer thus? What do you mean, I say? Do you know what you are doing? -Made to tramp over these hills--fettered to a filthy -Chinaman--why--why----" - -The general could find no further words to express his indignation. - -"Is it not the Russian custom to manacle prisoners?" asked Jack quietly. - -The Russian's cheeks took a purple hue. - -"An officer--a general! Do you know who I am, you--you----" - -"You are General Bekovitch." - -"Well--well--loose me at once, then; I insist on this indignity being -removed; it is monstrous!" - -"Possibly; but quite Russian. You are no worse treated than you treat -your prisoners. If a Chunchuse, myself for instance, had fallen into -your hands, what would have been his fate?" - -The mild reasonableness of the Chunchuse's reply, together with his firm -attitude, seemed to suggest to the general that he should try another -tack. - -"Come," he said, with sudden suavity, "I know you gentlemen; I suppose -it is a matter of dollars. How much will you take to let me go?" - -Jack looked at him. - -"Say a thousand dollars--that's a very fair sum, more than you'd get in -the ordinary way of your--business. Eh?" - -"Yes: our business, as you call it, is certainly not profitable, but we -do make a haul at times." - -The general looked furious. Jack quietly continued: - -"But you are making a mistake--you are treating me as you would a -Russian and an official. I am merely a brigand--but we Chunchuses have -our code. Dirty though he is, General Bekovitch, the man you are bound -to has cleaner hands than you: he at least is an honest man according to -his lights. It is he who should complain of contamination." - -Bekovitch quivered with rage, but gulping down the indiscreet words his -anger prompted he returned to the point. - -"I could make you a rich man. I said a thousand dollars; come, I will -make it two thousand. It will buy you a pardon, and an official post as -well. Batiushki! no brigand ever had such a chance." - -Jack laughed. - -"We have our code, General Bekovitch, I repeat. There are some things -bribery cannot effect. Your release just now is one of them. But for -bribery you would not be here." - -The general stared. - -"What do you mean?" - -"It is all very simple. If the Pole Sowinski yonder had not bribed you, -General Bekovitch, you would not have conspired against Mr. Brown at -Moukden, and you would not have needed to deport his son. If you had -not deported his son, his son would not still be in Manchuria; and if he -had not been in Manchuria he could not have captured you, General -Bekovitch, and you need not have attempted to bribe him." - -The general stared incredulously at the speaker. Then it was as though -the Cossack uniform dropped away; as though the young man before him -became again the lad he had been nine months before. The Russian -recognized him at last, and his jaw fell. - -"You see now," pursued Jack, "the double uselessness of offering bribes -to me--as the son of Mr. Brown, and as an Englishman." - -"What are you going to do with me?" - -All the bluster, all the silkiness, was now gone; the general was -anxious, almost suppliant. - -"That I cannot say. You will be delivered to my chief, Mr. Ah. It is -likely that you will be detained until my father is released. But I -cannot answer for Mr. Ah. He is a Chinaman, with Chinese ideas. Much -may depend on how my father has been treated." - -Bekovitch became pale; his eyes looked anxiously around. Jack left him -to his meditation. Passing the spot where Sowinski sat, manacled like -Bekovitch, Jack noticed that the Pole's eyes met his with a hunted, -terrified look. He had recognized his captor at once, and having also -seen Gabriele he felt that he had to reckon with her as well; and his -imagination of what he himself might do, were he in their place, shook -him like the ague. - -The march was resumed, and late in the day the party came in touch with -Ah Lum's scouts. The meeting between Ah Lum and Jack was very warm. - -"Never was captain so nobly served," said the grateful chief. "I was at -my wits' end to escape the meshes of the net; and now not only have I -escaped, but I hold in my power the man who was to ensnare me. Truly -the poet Li T'ai-poh was right when he said, in his _Apology for -Friendship_-- - - "'Never despair: the darkest Lot may mend; - Call no Man lost that hath one faithful Friend'. - -You will find the works of Li T'ai-poh worthy of perusal, my honoured -friend. They have been to me as a bright star to a wanderer in a dark -night." - -Jack thanked him for the recommendation; then changed the topic, and -asked how the crossing of the line had been effected. He learnt that a -slight skirmish had taken place at the line between the Chunchuses and -the energetic pursuers of the train; but the Russians, being hopelessly -outnumbered, had been compelled to retire with loss. Ah Lum in his turn -was informed of the discovery of Mr. Brown's whereabouts. - -"Nothing proceeds from the machinations of men," he said, "but the whole -of our lives is planned by destiny." - -"Yes, Mr. Ah, and destiny has willed that my father's persecutor and -your hunter are the same man--the Russian general there." - -"Ch'hoy! May his posterity be cut off! May the five thunders strike -him dead! May the village constable attend to his remains! May he be -born again as a hog! When we pitch our camp, I will cut out his tongue, -fry him in a caldron of oil, rip----" - -"Stay, stay, Mr. Ah!" cried Jack, aghast at this unwonted fury in his -scholarly friend. "You forget that he is a European, and I am an -Englishman; we don't do such things in my country." - -"But it is an imperative duty. Your duty to your father demands that -you should heap on the villain the direst curses, and inflict on him the -most terrible torture." - -"No, Mr. Ah, the books of our sages teach us differently. Besides, my -father would not approve: he would most strongly disapprove." - -This was a new aspect, and one that Ah Lum took time to consider. - -"That alters the case," he at length reluctantly admitted. "A son may -not act contrary to his father's wishes. What does the poet Tu Fu so -beautifully say?-- - - "'Happy the Father, yea, and doubly blest, - Whose Son, though absent, doeth his Behest'. - -Yes, it is a pity; but when inclination and the counsel of sages agree, -there is but one course." - -Considering that there would be plenty of time to levy a contribution on -the settlement at Shih-tou-ho-tzue, Ah Lum sent back 200 men for the -purpose of collecting supplies, and pushed on with the main body. A few -hours later the detachment rejoined, with a number of carts containing -useful stores of all kinds, and the march northward was resumed with all -speed. One of the carts was appropriated to the use of Gabriele and her -servant; but the former soon declared that she preferred to walk; the -springless cart made riding anything but comfortable. The march was -continued throughout the day. In the evening Ah Lum reached a spot far -in the hills, where he might safely encamp. - -Next morning Jack took the earliest opportunity of holding a -consultation with the chief. It was his fixed intention to get if -possible to Sakhalin; he knew his father was there: to rescue him ought -not to be difficult. As a Chinaman Ah Lum confessed that he could not -oppose an enterprise of such piety; but as a practical man he thought it -his duty to mention the objections. He had never been to Sakhalin, but -he understood that it was a terrible place, visited by fierce storms, -buried for the greater part of the year under snow and ice, covered with -thick forests, infested by wild beasts, wilder men, and even hideous -dragons. By the many forms of exorcism employed for generations past in -China, dragons had been driven out of the Celestial Kingdom; but they -had crossed the sea and taken refuge, so Ah Lum had been informed, in -the dreary wastes of Sakhalin. - -Jack brushed all these objections aside. Seeing that he was firm, the -chief carefully considered the best means of helping him. The strait -between Siberia and Sakhalin was at this time of the year frozen over; -the ice would not begin to break up for several weeks. The nearest -point at which it could be crossed was at least 1500 li from the -Chunchuses' present encampment, and not only would so long a journey be -attended by many hardships, but Jack would be liable to arrest as soon -as he came to any considerable Russian settlement. Jack at once said -that he did not propose to make the long overland journey; his best plan -would be to sail by junk from one of the Manchurian ports as soon as the -coast was clear of ice. To go to Vladivostok was too risky; Possiet Bay -was the nearest point, and the most promising in all respects. It was -some hundreds of li distant, and there were high hills to be crossed; -but Ah Lum offered to send with Jack a man who knew the country, and to -issue orders to the headman of every important village, instructing him -under pain of his severest displeasure and drastic penalties to do all -in his power to forward the journey. - -This having been settled, the question of the disposal of the prisoners -arose. - -"I am not one to mistake a village headman for the emperor," said the -chief; "but fishes, though deep in the water, may be hooked, and I know -I have a valuable fish in the Russian general. How many men think you a -general is worth in exchanges?" - -"That's a hard question, Mr. Ah. Some less than nothing: others an -infinite amount." - -"Then it will be a matter of long bargaining. As for the other man, he -is of little account. The mule is always attended by a flea. The two -men are companions: what does that prove? When the rat and the cat -sleep together, be sure that the larder will be empty in the morning. -As the fishmonger throws a sprat into the scale to make the salmon -appear cheap, so will I deal with the Pole when I dispose of the -Russian. But there is another point, my honoured friend; what is to -become of these women whom Destiny has sent to trouble me?" - -"Yes, that has troubled me, too. I must go and hear what they say." - -Jack found Gabriele listening gravely to Ah Fu's recitation of the "May -Queen". - -"Mademoiselle, may I have a little serious talk with you? The chief is -sadly perturbed about your presence here." - -"Well, Monsieur Brown, it was your train that brought me. Seriously, I -suppose I must go back to Father Mayenobe _en route_ to Sakhalin, for -sooner or later I will get there--on that I am determined. They may -deport me, but I shall always return.--What will you do yourself?--not -remain a Chunchuse?" - -"No, indeed. I am going to find my father." - -"To Sakhalin?" - -"Yes." - -"Oh! Monsieur Brown, cannot I come too? I may never get such a chance -again. My poor father! he has been there six years. Take me with you." - -"But, Mademoiselle----" - -"I am very strong, really I am. Did I not walk for six hours yesterday? -I will not delay your march." - -"But think of the difficulties--a long mountain journey to begin with, a -voyage in a junk at one of the worst seasons of the year, the danger of -being discovered and arrested at any moment, exposure, perhaps -hunger----" - -"I am not afraid. And surely it will be better for me to face these -hardships in your company than alone!" - -"Alone?" - -"Yes, alone! I have as strong a motive as you; my father--oh! I cannot -bear to think of him ill and wretched. I shall go to Sakhalin. If you -will not take me, and do not give me up to the Russians, I shall tramp -to the coast and cross on the ice--alone." - -Jack hardly knew whether to be amused at the absurdity of such a -venture, or to be impressed with the girl's determination. That she -meant what she said he had not the slightest doubt. - -"But what about Masha?" - -"Poor old thing! She declares she will never leave me. And she is quite -strong--stronger than I am, though she is getting on in years. We shall -get through somehow; the Lord God will protect us." - -In face of this spirit Jack felt helpless. It was arranged that -Gabriele and the nurse should accompany him. Their destination was kept -secret from the band, lest by any mischance it should leak out. A week -afterwards, Jack took a cordial farewell of Ah Lum, asking him, if he -had any news to communicate, to write to him at the care of the -Hong-Kong and Shanghai Bank at Shanghai. The leave-taking was conducted -with due solemnity. There was no question as to Ah Lum's sincerity of -feeling. He was unfeignedly sorry to lose the lieutenant who had done -him such yeoman service. When he had exhausted the resources of his -language to express his gratitude, he spent a few minutes in bestowing -fatherly counsel on Jack, drawing lavishly from his well of proverbial -wisdom. Jack found the draught a trifle turgid, but otherwise the -quality was excellent. - -"Difficulty and danger," began the chief, folding his hands and looking -benignly over the rims of his spectacles--"difficulty and danger teach -us to know the value of friendship; at the same time they winnow the -true from the false, even as a husbandman winnows the grain from the -chaff. I may never see you again; take from me a few words of counsel, -learnt as well from life as from the works of the poets and sages. What -says Li T'ai-poh?--'A good rule of conduct is better than stout armour -or a sharp sword'. When you are most happy, you should be most ready to -meet misfortune. Extreme joy is but a sign of grief to come. In -security, do not forget danger. Do not consider any vice as trivial, -and therefore practise it; nor any virtue as unimportant, and therefore -neglect it. Let your words be few, and your companions select. -Inattention to minute actions will ultimately be prejudicial to a man's -virtue. Past events are as clear as a mirror; the future as obscure as -lacquer; yet, gazing into that mirror, I seem to see reflected a future -of great prosperity, high office, and a numerous progeny. Heaviness and -care will come upon you, as upon all men; at such periods the works of -Li T'ai-poh will prove a well of refreshment, a mine of solace. I have -no fears for you. As the sun's rays first gild the highest mountains, -so the blessings of Heaven fall in richest measure upon the upright. -You have shown yourself to be an excellent son: what says the poet Wang -Wei in his _Address to Posterity_?-- - - "'To him who faithfully his Father's Will obeys, - Heaven in its Bounty grants great Wealth and Length of Days'." - - - - - *CHAPTER XXVII* - - *Sakhalin* - - -Abundant Profits--A Hut in Sakhalin--Sowinski and -Another--Sympathy--Coincidence--Blood Money--Downhill - - -One brilliant April morning Jack set out towards Ninguta, accompanied by -Gabriele and the servant, Hi Lo, and two trusty Chunchuses. They were -all dressed in Chinese garb, and since Manchurian women do not deform -their feet there was no difficulty for Gabriele on that score. But they -carried Russian dresses and uniforms for use if necessary. They crossed -the railway safely at night half-way between two of the block-houses; -and, striking into the hills, followed a path that would take them a -considerable distance south of Ninguta. Their great danger lay in the -chance of meeting one of the Russian columns which had been engaged in -rounding up Ah Lum; but the two bandits believed that they would hear of -the proximity of any such troops in good time to avoid them. - -Jack had discussed with Gabriele whether they should take Father -Mayenobe's mission station in passing. On all grounds they decided that -it would be best to leave the good priest undisturbed. No doubt he -believed that Gabriele was well on the way to Europe; it would be a pity -to renew his anxieties, and possibly involve him in trouble with the -Russians. - -While they were laboriously making their way over the hills, another -member of Ah Lum's band, posing as a lumberman, travelled by the -railway, newly restored and more strictly guarded than ever, to -Vladivostok. He bore a letter from Gabriele to the man by whose aid she -had communicated with her father in Sakhalin. The letter stated that -the receiver might earn 500 roubles if he would accompany the bearer to -Possiet Bay, and there meet the writer, who would then give him further -instructions. Jack had little doubt that when they arrived they would -find the man waiting. To an ex-convict of Sakhalin 500 roubles is a -fortune. - - -The Chinese shipping interest at Possiet Bay was scandalized when it -heard that Too Chin-seng was contemplating a voyage to Chifu at least -three weeks before the usual season. The ice, it was true, was breaking -in the harbour; but the weather was tempestuous outside; and large -quantities of loose floe rendered navigation difficult and dangerous. -There was much shaking of the head over the temerity of the ship-owner -who was thus imperilling not only the lives of the crew but the safety -of the vessel. He could easily get another crew; a vessel like the -_Yu-ye_ ("Abundant Profits") was more difficult to replace. She was a -stout junk some sixty feet in length and fifteen in beam, built of thick -wood to withstand the heavy seas of those northern latitudes, and from -the Chinese point of view well found in all respects. That for the sake -of a few weeks' gain in time a man should risk so valuable a craft -seemed to the shipping world at Possiet Bay a wilful flying in the face -of fortune, almost an insult to Ma Chu, the goddess who watched over -good sailors. - -Too Chin-seng went quietly about his preparations, not even swerving -when his neighbours protested that by the time he returned from Chifu he -would be too late for the early herring fishing off Sakhalin. One day -the vessel, loaded with a cargo of rice, made her way with much creaking -and groaning out of the harbour, her sides bumped and scratched by heavy -ice floes. Before sailing she had undergone the usual inspection; the -officials sniffed and pried, as though the dissatisfaction of the native -community had infected them also; but everything was in order. The day -was fine, the sea exceptionally smooth for the time of year; and when -once free from the floating ice, the _Yu-ye_ ran merrily before a light -north-easter down the coast. - -But towards evening, when off Cape Lesura, she hauled her wind and beat -about as if in expectation of something. She had not long to wait. Half -a dozen figures appeared on the shore; a sampan was launched from the -edge of the ice and laboriously punted its way out to the junk. The -passengers were got aboard with some difficulty, for the wind was rising -and the sea beginning to be choppy. But, all being at length embarked, -the junk clumsily beat out to sea, heading towards the coast of Yesso to -the north-east. - -"He can makee chop-chop sailo pidgin, lowdah?" asked Jack of Too -Chin-seng at the tiller. - -"My belongey numpa one junk, masta. Ping-ch'wahn no can catchee he, -galaw!" - - -In a rough wooden hut on a hill-slope above a small lumber settlement on -the south-east coast of Sakhalin two men were talking. It was nearly -dark; a sputtering tallow candle threw a murky light over the room, -showing up its bareness. A rickety table was the only article of -furniture; a raised portion of the rugged wooden floor, covered with one -or two frowsy blankets, served both for chairs and bed. On these -blankets the two men were now seated. - -One of them was a big, heavy-browed, uncouth fellow--a posselentsy; that -is, one who having served his time in the convicts' prison, was now -liberated, though not free. He could not leave the island, nor could he -choose his place of residence; he was bound to live where the governor -bade him live. On leaving the prison he had been furnished with -implements and ordered to go and build himself a hut at the spot -prescribed, and till the soil around it. For two years he had been -provided with food enough to keep him from starving; after that he must -keep himself by the labour of his hands--cutting wood, loading coal, -mending bridges. His hut became the nucleus of a village, other -convicts being sent to do as he had done. After fourteen years he might -hope to be permitted to return to Siberia or Russia. - -The posselentsy was sitting with his back against the log wall, taking -frequent pulls at a bottle of vodka, which, though forbidden to the -colonists except at the two great Russian festivals in October and -January, is secretly manufactured in stills deep in the woods, and -stealthily bought and sold. But this bottle was a present. - -"Yes," he was saying in answer to a question; "he checks the logs loaded -into store by the foremen of our artels." - -"An easy job, no doubt," suggested the other man--the Pole Anton -Sowinski. - -"Easy! It's child's play. All he has to do is to count the logs and -write the numbers in a book. Then the dirty Pole--I beg pardon; I -forgot he was a countryman of yours--gives out the vouchers, and the -work--work!--is done. I had the Englishman's job myself--until I made a -mistake in the figures." - -"A mistake!" - -"Well, they said it was intended. At any rate they sent me back to the -woods." - -"And while this Englishman--this spy--and the other sit at their ease, -you poor Russians have to do all the hard work. I suppose it _is_ -hard?" - -"Hard! Try it, barin. Felling trees and splitting logs all day is not -exactly a soft job. And to make matters worse, since this war has been -going on they've set a lot of us fellows to deal with the fish--make the -stinking fish manure that the Japanese used to make. The herring season -is just beginning; that'll be my pleasant occupation next week." - -"And that is the life you lead while the Englishman--the spy--and the -other live like barins, eh? It is shameful." - -The Russian took a long pull at the bottle. It was not often he got a -chance of airing his grievances and drinking vodka from the continent--a -great deal more to his taste than the crude poison of local manufacture. - -"You are right; it is shameful." - -"I wonder you don't do something." - -"Do something! What can we do? We rob them when we get the chance, but -that doesn't make things easier. Besides, they are not so bad after -all--the Pole and the Englishman. The Englishman taught my boy to cast -accounts; he's now a clerk in the superintendent's office. And the Pole -taught my girl to speak French; she's now maid to the governor's lady. -It didn't cost me a kopeck: no, they're not a bad sort." - -"Still, think of the injustice." - -"Yes, the injustice; that's what makes my blood boil. I was a robber; I -tell you straight what I was; and I killed a gorodovoi who interfered -with me: that's what brought me here. But what's that to being a spy, -and plotting against the Little Father's life? No, and if I had my -rights----" - -The drink was beginning to take effect; the posselentsy was becoming -noisy. - -"Yes, yes," interrupted Sowinski; "and I suppose if the Englishman were -out of the way you would stand a chance of getting your old job--his -job--again?" - -"Perhaps--if I could bribe the governor's secretary. But what chance is -there of that? His price is too high for me. And besides, the -Englishman is not out of the way, nor likely to be." - -"And yet it might be managed too. A determined man like you, with say a -couple of hundred roubles to back you, might go far." - -The Russian was not so much fuddled that he failed to understand the -drift of the other's words. - -"What do you mean?" he asked suspiciously. "Speak plainly," he added, -bringing his huge fist down upon the table with a bang that made the -Pole wince. "What is your game?--that's what I put to you. You haven't -come here--a barin like you--just to see me, and listen to my grumbles; -I know that. No, nor yet for love of anybody else; I'm an old bird, I -am, and I see what I see, I do. If you want anything out of me, I won't -say I sha'n't meet you if you make it worth my while; but you'll have to -speak out, man to man, you know; beating about the bush is no good with -an old bird like me, not a bit of it." - -"Quite so, my friend, quite so. Indeed, that is my way: a clear -understanding--nothing kept back on either side." - -"Well then, speak out, can't you? What is it? What do you want me to -do, and what will you pay me for it?" - -"That's what I like--plain speaking. Well, it seems that the matter -stands thus: here are two men between your present hard life--an -atrocious life, an unendurable life, a life worse than a dog's--and an -easy life, a life with little to do and any amount of time to do it. -It's a strange thing, but these very two men are hated by the -government. The officials don't want to do anything openly: you know -their way; but if the two men were suddenly to disappear----you -understand?--well, the government at Alexandrovsk wouldn't take it -amiss. Of course, there would be a kind of enquiry--a formal matter; -and that would be all. But the officials must not appear in it. There -are reasons. That is why, as I was coming here to see about a contract -for railway sleepers, the matter was mentioned to me--by a high -personage, you understand. I have with me----" he corrected himself -hastily--"that is to say, not here, but at the superintendent's, two -hundred roubles--fifty for an immediate present when an understanding is -come to, another fifty when the disappearance takes place; the rest if -the disappearance is so complete that no traces of the two are -found--say within a month. But of course I must know what becomes of -them." - -"Ah! That's the game, is it? And what's to be the story for -Petersburg, eh?" - -"That's an easy matter. We'll say they bought false passports--there's -a manufactory of those useful documents not a hundred miles from -Nikolaievsk--and smuggled themselves away in a herring boat. That'll -wash, don't you think?" - -"If it goes down as easy as this vodka it'll go down uncommon easy," -said the man with a chuckle. - -"And there's plenty more where that came from. Well, what do you say?" - -"I can't do it alone. I shall want some one to help. You--" he looked -critically at the Pole--"you ain't the man for such a job. I'll have to -get a pal. Ten roubles, now--I suppose you won't object to pay that, -supposing you don't want to lend a hand yourself?" - -"That shall not stand in the way. I shall have to pay the money out of -my own pocket," he added as by an artistic inspiration. - -The man flashed a shrewd glance at his visitor; but though he said -nothing on the point, he was apparently making a note of something in -his mind. - -"Well, you leave it to me, barm," he said. "When I take a job in hand, -my motto's 'thorough', it is. And mind you: when I see you next, -another bottle of this vodka: that won't ruin a barin with two hundred -roubles at the superintendent's office and ten in his own pocket, eh?" - -A few minutes later Sowinski left the hut and stumbled out into the -darkness--down the hill, dotted with rude huts dimly discernible in the -gloom, towards the little bay where half a dozen junks engaged in the -herring fishery lay at anchor. The road was broken by ruts and -pitfalls; unconsciously the Pole groped his way over or past them, busy -with his thoughts, which were blacker than the night, hurrying him to a -deeper pitfall dug by himself for his own undoing. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXVIII* - - *The Empty Hut* - - -My Son--Liberty in Sight--Au Revoir!--Suspense--The Open Door--A -Footprint--The Trail - - -While Sowinski was making his way down the hill, a sampan with two -passengers put off in dead silence from one of the junks in the -roadstead. The vessel had arrived that afternoon with a small cargo of -rice; she was to ship a consignment of dried fish for Chifu. The -loading was to be commenced at dawn on the following day; she was not to -carry a full cargo, having to fill up with coal at Alexandrovsk; by the -evening it was expected that her consignment would be on board, and she -would sail again next morning. - -The sampan moved without a splash towards the northern end of the bay, -where there were no huts. The fishing settlement extended half round -the southern end, and the lumber yards occupied the rest of the southern -quarter and part of the northern. It was a very solitary spot at which -the passengers landed, and the sampan-man--who happened also to be the -owner of the junk--steering his little craft between two rocks, where he -was secure from observation, squatted motionless, apparently awaiting -the return of the two men whom he had just put ashore. - -Making a circuit round the lumber settlement--a somewhat difficult -matter in the dark--the two passengers, one of whom evidently knew the -way and walked a pace or two in advance, stopped at a hut a little -larger than the majority of those they had passed, and gently tapped at -the door. No light was visible; the taller of the two men cleared his -throat as in nervous impatience. A step was heard within; the door was -opened, and a voice asked in Russian: - -"Who is there?" - -"It is I, graf," said the man who had led the way. "I have a friend -with me." - -"Come in, then." - -The two entered; the door was gently closed behind them. The outer room -was in complete darkness; but, leading the way through that, Count -Walewski opened a farther door, which led into a second room, dimly -lighted by a couple of candles. A man was seated at a table, reading. - -"Here is our friend Godunof, comrade," said the count in French. - -Mr. Brown looked up--looked again, stared, then sprang to his feet. - -"Jack!" - -The taller of the two visitors brushed past Godunof, and father and son -clasped hands. For a few moments not a word was spoken by either of -them; a stranger might not perhaps have guessed from their manner that -they had been parted for nearly a year--the father a victim of foul -wrong, the son ignorant of the father's whereabouts and burning to -avenge the wrong. But beneath his iron-gray moustache and beard Mr. -Brown's lips were quivering, and Jack had a lump in his throat which -made him incapable of speech when his father turned to the count and, -keeping Jack's hand in his, said simply: - -"My son, Count." - -Count Walewski was deep in conversation with the other man. He seemed -scarcely to comprehend what Brown had said. - -"Your son! But--my daughter--you remember her letter; she is here, now, -in a junk at the shore; Godunof says so; it bewilders me; am I dreaming? -Your son!--they came together; Godunof tells me they have come to take -us away. After all these years!--Brown, this will kill me!" - -The count, trembling like a leaf, leant for support against the crazy -table. - -"Sit down, my friend," said Brown. "We must keep our heads. Jack has -come on a desperate adventure; it takes my breath away; he must tell us -what it means." - -A long conversation ensued--not long in point of time, but in the amount -of matter compressed into it. The difficulty of arranging the escape -lay in the impossibility of knowing from what quarter the wind would be -blowing at any hour that might be determined. Without a favourable wind -the _Yu-ye_ could not get out to sea; and it would be madness for Mr. -Brown and the count to go aboard until there was a practical certainty -of the junk being able to slip away. As soon as they were missed, every -boat in the roadstead would be searched. And even if the vessel cleared -the bay, there was always a risk of its being followed by the government -launch engaged to patrol the fishing settlements along the coast, -perhaps by a gunboat sent from Korsakovsk in response to a telegram. -The launch at this moment lay at anchor in the bay, and unless the -_Yu-ye_ got a good start and a fair wind, it must inevitably be -overhauled, though the government boat was an old and crazy vessel whose -best work was long since done. - -Granted a favourable wind, then, it was arranged that the two, the -following midnight, should make their way down to the point at which -Jack had landed. If the wind proved unfavourable, the departure must be -postponed. The junk would slip her moorings at the first glint of dawn, -and before the escape was discovered Jack hoped they would be hull down -on the horizon. - -"But what speed can you make?" asked Mr. Brown. "You can't outrun a -steamer." - -"I doubt whether the launch would venture far into the open," said -Godunof, the colonist who had carried the letters between Gabriele and -her father. "She can't stand heavy weather, and a gale may spring up at -any moment in these seas. Besides, she'd be chary of meeting Japanese -cruisers in the Strait of La Perouse. I wonder, indeed, she ventured -into this bay--no better than an open roadstead, and exposed to attack." - -"She only arrived two days ago from Korsakovsk," said Mr. Brown. "She -came on a matter of revenue; nothing else brings her here." - -"Well, we must chance it, Father," said Jack. "We've got here safely, -and please God we shall get away safely too. We can run for the nearest -Japanese port, and there we'll be as safe as--as in Portsmouth Harbour, -by Jove!" - -The plan having been discussed rapidly, yet with anxious care, Jack took -leave of the two gentlemen--all three with full hearts wondering whether -they would ever meet again--and returned by the way he had come. - -His return was eagerly expected on board the junk. He had scarcely -clambered over the side when a figure closely enwrapped in Chinese dress -moved towards him. - -"Did you see him?" - -"Yes, Mademoiselle. He was overcome at the news that you were here." - -"And is he well? And your father--both well? Oh, Monsieur Jack, I pray -that nothing, nothing, may happen! Nobody knows of your visit?--you are -quite sure? You made them understand?--the time, the place, the wind? -To think that we have to wait a whole night and day! I can hardly -endure it!" - -"I am just as bad, really, Mademoiselle. Lucky for me we have to load -up to-morrow; that will give me something to do. By this time -to-morrow----" - -The next day was a time of dreary waiting. It was a bright morning, the -sky clear, the sea smooth--too smooth, thought Jack, anxiously whistling -for a wind. The cargo was taken on board--smelling horribly, but -Gabriele waived Jack's condolences: what was such an unpleasantness -beside the larger matter of her father's safety? As the day wore on, -black clouds came scudding out of the north; the wind freshened minute -by minute, and the junk began to roll. - -"The wind serves!" cried Gabriele joyfully. "Oh for the dark!" - -Some time before the hour agreed upon, the sampan was punted to the -appointed spot. In it were Jack, Hi Lo, and the owner of the _Yu-ye_. -The wind was roaring, the sky was black, the tide full, and the Chinaman -had much ado to prevent his craft from being dashed against the rocks. -Time passed; nobody appeared. Jack looked at his watch; it was twenty -minutes after midnight. What had delayed the prisoners? Another twenty -minutes; he was becoming uneasy. What could have happened? Godunof -could not have played him false; the colonist had not returned to the -junk with him the night before, but since he had received only a portion -of the reward promised him, it was unlikely that he had betrayed the -secret. Had the prisoners been delayed by an unexpected visitor? Had -they started and been caught? All kinds of possibilities occurred to -him. - -At last, when the two were fully an hour and a half late, he could -endure the anxiety and suspense no longer. He resolved to go up to the -hut, and alone. But when he told the Chinaman what he intended, and -asked him to put him ashore, Hi Lo spoke: - -"My go long-side masta." - -"No, no; you must stay and look after Mademoiselle." - -"My no wantchee stay-lo; my no can do. Masta wantchee some piecee man -allo-time long-side; ch'hoy! what-fo' Hi Lo no belongey that-side?" - -The boy was already slipping over the side of the sampan. - -"Very well then," said Jack reluctantly. - -Then, turning to the Chinaman, he bade him remain at the same spot until -near dawn. If by that time Jack had not returned, the man was to go -back to the junk and come again when darkness fell on the following -night. He must find some excuse for not putting to sea, and not let it -be known that anyone connected with the junk was ashore. Above all, he -was to watch over the women. - -With great caution Jack and the boy stole round the settlement towards -Mr. Brown's hut. Unfortunately, as Jack thought, a bright moon was -shining fitfully through gaps in the scudding cloud; and having to take -advantage of every patch of shadow when it appeared, their progress was -slow. The wind was bitter cold; the spring-like promise of the earlier -part of the day had been succeeded by a sharp frost, which had already -hardened the slush and mud except in places sheltered from the blast. -The thin ice on standing pools broke under their tread, with a crackle -that gave Jack a tremor lest it should have been heard. But there was -not a light or a movement in the settlement, nor any sound save the -whistling of the wind and the booming of the surf on the shore. - -Stealthily they made their way up the hillside. They arrived at the -hut. The door was closed, the window dark. Jack tried to peer through -interstices between the rough logs of the wall; he put his ear against -the wood; he heard nothing, saw no glimmer of light. With a sinking -heart he pushed gently at the door. It yielded to his touch. He -entered, groping in the dark; and bidding Hi Lo close the door, he -struck a match and held it above his head. Feeble as the light was, it -showed enough to strike him cold with despair. The hut was empty, and -in disorder. A chair was overturned; a half-burnt candle lay on the -floor; the table was pushed into a corner, and a book had fallen beneath -it and stood on its bent leaves. Jack picked up the candle and lit it. -The clean boards of the floor were marked with many muddy stains as of -scuffling feet. Dreading to search, Jack yet looked for traces of -blood; there were none. But among the marks one struck him -particularly--a huge footprint, too large to have been made by either -Count Walewski or his father. Someone had entered before the ground -outside had frozen. But the struggle--everything in the bare hut spoke -of a struggle--must have taken place after the fall of dusk, for with a -pair of old perspective glasses found in the junk Jack had kept a close -watch on the hut, and had seen his father enter, late in the afternoon, -with another figure--presumably the count. - -Dazed with this sudden set-back to his hopes, Jack sat down on one of -the chairs, resting his throbbing head upon his hands. A feeling of -utter helplessness paralysed him. Hi Lo stood watching him, the boy's -whole attitude one of mute sympathy. Had the authorities got wind of -the plot, thought Jack, and again spirited his father away? Had -Godunof, the ex-convict, betrayed him? Scarcely, or a police visit -would have been made to the junk, and he himself arrested. He tried to -pull himself together; he must do something, and at once; but what? He -could not tell; he was in the dark; and Gabriele in the junk was -waiting, listening, wondering why ere this she was not in her father's -arms. - -Bending forward in his misery, suddenly his eye fell on the huge -footmark made with a clay-clogged boot on the white floor. The boot -must have been of quite unusual size; what could have been the stature -of the man who owned it? Jack suddenly sprang up; if there was such a -footmark within, would there not be others, similar, without? By them -could not the assailants be traced? He was convinced that his father -and the count had been attacked: should he rouse the settlement? Their -lives might be in danger; in warning the authorities he would at the -worst only risk his own liberty. But supposing the authorities -themselves should be concerned in the matter! To appeal to them would -then be worse than useless; he would merely sacrifice his own freedom, -and with it all possibility of serving his father. - -Still the footmark stared at him. An idea suggested itself. Could he -trace the man himself? He had never followed any trail but that of a -paper-chase; but what of that? It was worth a trial. In a rapid -whisper he told his thoughts to Hi Lo. The boy nodded with full -comprehension. Jack blew out the light, and pocketed the candle; then -the two groped their way to the door and issued forth into the moonlit -night. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXIX* - - *The Heart of the Hill* - - -Trackers--Voices--Into the Open--Waiting for Dawn--Demons--Greater -Love--Choke Damp--Found--A Rusty Chain--From the Depths--Explanations - - -The moonlight and the frost, which Jack had been disposed to regard as -hindrances, were now all in his favour. The moon threw just sufficient -light to enable him to avoid obstacles and to see the impressions of -footsteps in the mud, which the frost had suddenly hardened. Bending -low, he was at first unable to distinguish, among the many footprints in -front of the hut, the large one for which he was so intently looking; -but a little distance away he had no difficulty in picking out two -separate trails of the enormous foot, one approaching the hut, the other -receding from it. It was the latter that must be followed, and with Hi -Lo at his side Jack walked as quickly as possible over the glistening -track. - -Every now and then the traces disappeared, for whenever the moonlight -was obstructed by a cloud, a hut, or a tree, it was impossible to see -clearly enough to distinguish them. Then it was that Hi Lo proved -himself invaluable, and made Jack thankful he had not refused the boy's -request. It was he, as a rule, who succeeded in finding the lost trail; -scouting ahead like a sleuth-hound, he seemed to be able to see in the -dark. - -The way led steeply uphill. It was hard and rough going, following a -narrow road probably used for the haulage of timber. Under the thin -coating of ice the mud was deep, and at times their feet sank up to the -ankle. The little hamlet of log huts was soon left behind; they came -into a clearing dotted with the low stumps of trees; here, evidently, -had been felled the timber of which the huts were built. Then they -passed into a densely wooded clump, through which in the darkness they -had to grope their way. Once or twice Jack ventured to light a match; -this being the sheltered side of the hill, there was no wind, and during -the few moments of feeble light Hi Lo could assure himself that they had -not lost the trail. Crossing more rapidly another open stretch, they -entered a still thicker and darker patch of wood. When, after going -some distance into this, Jack again struck a match, the boy, peering on -hands and knees, declared that the footprints were no longer visible. -They must needs go back to pick up the trail, far more difficult to -distinguish in these forest depths than in the open. The search took -time; anxiety was all the while tearing at Jack's heart-strings, but he -schooled himself to patience. At last they came again upon the huge -footprint with which they had now grown familiar. Lighting the -candle-end, Jack traced the mark for a few yards on the upward path; -then, together with the other footprints, it suddenly disappeared. - -"What in the world are we to do?" whispered Jack. - -The forest was dense on each side of the path. At the few points in the -course of their journey where a gap let through the moonlight, they had -seen extraordinary effects, the trees seeming to have been tossed about -by giants, lying at all angles against the trunks that had arrested -their fall. But the path had been cleared of these obstructions, for if -not removed, the waleshnik, as the fallen timber is called, would soon -block up any forest road in Sakhalin. - -Groping about, Hi Lo at length discovered, to the right of the main -path, a fallen tree that concealed a narrower track, made by men, but -apparently no longer in use, and partially overgrown. For some time the -keen little fellow's search failed to find the footprint, but at last, -at a break in the undergrowth, he pounced upon it. The man with the big -feet had evidently passed this way. Jack struck up the path; it was -steeper now, and blocked at many points by trees that had been allowed -to remain where they fell; but it was fairly broad, and at one time must -have been as important and as frequently used as the path they had just -left. Here and there they came to a clearing--the work of fire; -blackened stumps standing grim and gaunt in the moonlight. Then on into -the forest beyond, picking their way by touch rather than sight, barking -their shins and rasping their elbows against obstacles they were unable -to avoid. - -The air was pervaded by the musty smell of decayed vegetation. It was -silent as the grave save when a quick rustle told of some wild beast -scurrying away into the thicket. Suddenly Hi Lo stopped, putting his -hand on Jack's arm. - -"What is it?" murmured Jack. - -The boy instantly clapped his hand upon his master's mouth, and pulled -him from the path through a mass of tangled undergrowth. They were at -the edge of a small clearing. Through the still air Jack could now hear -voices ahead; then came the faint glimmer of a light; and soon, as they -crouched breathless behind a friendly trunk, two figures appeared on the -farther side of the clearing, coming towards them, one carrying a -lantern. The men's voices were low; even in this remote spot they were -doubtless mindful that it is illegal to be abroad after dark. Jack held -his breath as they passed within two yards of him. He caught a few words -in Russian. - -"How long do you think?" - -"About three or four days--unless they can eat coal!" - -Then a hoarse chuckle. - -The voices receded; the light died away; the men were gone. One of them -was tall and broad, a son of Anak: clearly the owner of the giant foot. - -His heart thumping against his ribs, Jack waited until he thought all -was safe; then with Hi Lo he recommenced his climb up the wooded hill. -He had no doubt that these men, whose voices the boy had fortunately -heard in time, were concerned in the disappearance of his father and the -count. But what had been done with them? Were it not for the evidences -of the struggle Jack would have been tempted to suppose that the men -were in league with the two prisoners, conniving at or assisting their -escape. But the state of the hut belied any such thought. - -It was some time before he ventured to strike another match in order to -make sure that he was still on the track; the merest glimmer seen from -below might lead to disaster. When at last he thought it safe to do so, -he saw clear indications of the recent passage of several feet. He -hurried on at the greatest speed the difficult path and the darkness -allowed, and after some twenty minutes emerged upon a kind of table-land -above the bay. He remembered seeing it from the junk--a huge terrace in -the hills, sloping gradually upward, and after about a mile ending in -another steep incline. The road was here more easy to follow; there -were no fallen trees; it was the so-called tundra of Sakhalin. The -trees were not so thick: through gaps in them he caught glimpses of the -sea, silvery in the moonlight; and he thought of the fair girl waiting -in the junk, now doubtless in an agony of apprehension regarding her -father's fate. - -The two pressed on. By and by they came to the steeper ascent. It was -necessary once more to verify the trail. Fearful lest a gleam should -give the alarm below, Jack took off his hat and struck a match within -it. There were the footsteps, going up and down the hill, which was not, -like the slope below, covered with trees. Indeed, during the last few -hundred yards the two searchers had stumbled over sleepers, rails, and -other things indicating a railroad either abandoned or in course of -construction. Once they came full upon an upturned truck; a little -beyond, upon a coil of wire rope. Jack stopped more than once to -examine these impediments, always careful to conceal his light; and he -concluded that they were rather the relics of a railway than material -for a new line. He was still wondering what had tempted Russian -enterprise to construct and then to abandon a railway in this spot, so -remote and difficult of access, when the explanation came suddenly. He -found himself among the outworks of a deserted coal-mine. The ground -was littered with timber, dross, rusty tools; the path had come to an -end; and Jack stopped abruptly, at a loss what to do. - -It was hopeless in the darkness to attempt to explore the workings, for -he had no doubt now that his father and Count Walewski had been brought -here and left in some remote part of the mine, to perish of starvation. -He saw through the villainous scheme. "About three or four days--unless -they can eat coal!"--the words were now explained. What the motive was -he could not guess. The conspirators had shrunk from murdering their -victims outright; but when starvation had done its work they would no -doubt come upon the scene, discover the dead bodies, and claim the -reward which the governor would probably have offered for news of the -fugitives. - -The matches were used up; it would be dangerous to attempt to trace out -a route in thick darkness. All that could be done was to wait for the -dawn. What that might bring forth who could tell? With morning light -the prisoners would certainly be missed, and a hue and cry would be -raised. Even if the plot were the work of officials, still a search -would be made. In that case it would be perfunctory; while if they were -innocent undoubtedly they would scour the country all round the -settlement. There would be little to guide them. The main path from -the hut was largely used; many tracks crossed and recrossed on it; and -if the night's frost was succeeded by a thaw, as was almost certain, the -footprints would become mere puddles and give no clue. - -Jack and the boy made themselves as comfortable as possible in the -shelter of an overhanging cliff; but the hours till dawn seemed to creep -along. Jack's thoughts dwelt in turn on the prisoners and their fate, -and on Gabriele waiting in the junk. She was dressed in Chinese -clothes, but would she escape undetected when the vessels in the bay -were searched in the morning? Jack was tempted to send Hi Lo back, so -that she might be warned; but second thoughts counselled him to wait -until daylight. He might then at least let her know whether the count -was alive or dead. - -There was no sleep that night for either Jack or Hi Lo. As soon as it -was light enough to see the ground they resumed their search. Almost -immediately Jack understood why they had failed to pick up the trail the -night before. The party had climbed on to a ledge of bare rock a few -feet above the ground, and on this their boots had left no mark. But a -little farther up the hill the track could be distinguished. It led -directly towards a dark opening in the cliff--one of the galleries of -the deserted mine. - -As they approached the opening, Hi Lo began to shake with fear. A mine -to an unsophisticated Chinaman is a terrible thing. He believes that -the delving of the earth lets loose innumerable demons, enraged at the -disturbance of their homes. So strong is this belief that mining is -actually forbidden by law, though the law is now fast becoming a dead -letter. Hi Lo knew nothing of western progress, and he implored Jack to -turn aside from this black tunnel into the earth. Jack did not laugh at -the boy's fears; he told him to remain at the entrance and give warning -if anyone approached. Then he stepped into the mouth of the gallery. - -He had already concluded that the mine consisted of galleries, not of -shafts. The outcrop of coal was visible in the side of the hill. He -therefore had no fear of coming unexpectedly upon a pit. But he groped -his way along with great caution; the truck rails had not been removed -from the floor of the gallery. The air was pure; he felt indeed a -slight draught, which pointed to the existence of an outlet of some kind -in the direction in which he was going. After proceeding for a few -minutes he was brought to an abrupt halt by a solid wall of rock in -front. Feeling each side of the gallery, he found that the passage -branched off to right and left. Which turning should he take? He stood -in indecision; in the darkness there was nothing to guide his choice. -Then it occurred to him to shout. If his father and the count were in -the mine, they were doubtless alone: they would hear his call, though it -were inaudible outside. He gave a halloo, and listened; he heard -nothing but the sound rumbling along the passages. He shouted again; -there was an answering cry behind him; then the patter of footsteps -hurrying, stumbling along towards him. Facing round, he raised his fist -to fell an enemy; but a small form cannoned against him, and a boy's -voice uttered a gasping yell. It was Hi Lo. Hearing the shout, he had -unhesitatingly plunged into the blackness. Anxious as the moment was, -Jack admired the spirit of the little fellow, who, to come to his -assistance, had braved dangers none the less terrifying because so -purely imaginary. - -"Well done!" said Jack, patting his arm. "Now run back and wait for me. -I'm all right here." - -"My no can do," said Hi Lo decisively. "My stay-lo long-side masta. -Big piecee debbils this-side; my helpum masta fightey; my no can lun -wailo." - -"Very well. Keep close." - -Again and again he shouted, always without response. Then at a venture -he turned into the right-hand passage. After a few yards he felt Hi Lo's -hold on his tunic relax. The boy had fallen to the ground. Hastily -stooping he picked him up, almost falling as he breathed the lower -stratum of air, and staggered with his burden to the main gallery. He -had but just reached it when he himself was overcome and sank to the -floor. He did not lose consciousness, but his head buzzed and swam, and -he felt a horrid nausea. When he was somewhat recovered, he carried Hi -Lo back to the entrance, and was relieved to find that in the open air -the boy quickly regained consciousness. But he could not expose the -little fellow again to such peril; bidding him remain at the spot, and -on no account to follow, he plunged once more into the darkness. - -This time he turned into the left-hand passage, and found that it sloped -rapidly upward. Before long he was brought up by a similar obstacle; -the gallery again divided. He felt a slight current of air strike -against him from the left-hand side; in that direction he continued to -grope along. If the words he had overheard meant anything, they meant -that the prisoners might be expected to survive for a few days. As that -would be impossible in the foul air of the unventilated passages, he -could not be wrong in pressing forward wherever he could breathe. Again -he shouted; again there was no reply but a series of echoes. But moving -on again, and listening intently, he fancied he heard a low continuous -rumbling ahead; this could not be an echo. The sound grew stronger as -he advanced; in a few moments he understood its cause; it was -unmistakably the sound of falling water. Stepping now with still -greater caution, he soon became aware that he was within a few yards of -the waterfall; the sound seemed to rise from beneath his feet. He threw -himself on his face and crawled forward--and the floor ended; he was on -the verge of a precipice. - -With a shudder and a long breath he drew back. For some distance he had -noticed that the walls of the passage suggested to the touch stone -rather than coal. They were hard as flint, and the roof was so low that -he had to bend almost double. Apparently it was a prospector's gallery, -not a real working. He wished he had a match; in the current of air -that he now clearly felt, there was little risk of explosion from -fire-damp. But his box was empty. He understood that the sound of the -waterfall must hitherto have smothered his shouts; but if he hallooed -now he might be heard, if there was anyone within hearing. Making a bell -of his hands he uttered a shrill coo-ee. It gave him a kind of shock -when, apparently from only a few feet below him, there came an answering -call. - -"Is that you, Father?" - -"Yes. For heaven's sake be careful, Jack. It is a sheer drop. Wait a -moment." - -Mr. Brown struck a match. Jack peered over the edge. There, some -fifteen feet below, on a broad ledge of rock sprayed by the waterfall -that plunged past it into a dark abyss, stood his father and Count -Walewski. The rock above them was perpendicular and smooth; on either -side of them the ledge rounded inwards; in front of them yawned the -unfathomable gulf. As he looked, the match went out, and with the -return of complete darkness a feeling of terror seized upon him; his -limbs shook, his skin broke into a cold sweat. - -"Are you there, old boy?" - -"Yes." - -"You've no matches, I suppose?" - -"No, but--of course, I've a candle-end." Jack was pulling himself -together. "Do you think you could pitch up your box, Father?" - -"I can try. I'll strike a match; the count will hold it so that I can -get an aim." - -Both spoke in a loud tone, to be heard above the splash and roar of the -fall. Count Walewski held the lighted match aloft; Jack stretched -himself to the edge of the precipice; his father, retreating a few feet -along the ledge, took careful aim, and tossed the box of matches gently -into Jack's outstretched hands. In a moment the scene was faintly -illumined. - -"You see how we stand, Jack; can you get us up?" - -"You were let down by a rope?" - -"Yes; they took it away with them." - -Jack remembered the coil of wire-rope he had noticed at the entrance to -the mine. It had no doubt been formerly used for hauling the trucks. - -"Wait a few minutes, Father. I'm going to see what I can do." - -"Blow the candle out; there isn't much of it left." - -Again the scene was in darkness. Jack hurried back along the passage, -and found Hi Lo at the entrance. Together they retraced their steps to -the spot where the coil of wire lay. As Jack feared, it was too heavy -to carry; it proved too thick to break. Wasting no time here, he sent -Hi Lo in one direction while he went in another to search for any stray -rope that would be long enough for his purpose. He came to a -tumble-down hut which from its contents he guessed had been the -foreman's tool-house. Rummaging about among its rubbish, he found a -chain some ten yards long, rusty, but quite strong enough to bear a -man's weight. In a corner stood a broken sledge-hammer; and among a -heap of bolts, clamps, and miscellaneous old iron he came upon several -iron wedges such as are used for breaking hard ground and rock. With -these they hurried back to the waterfall. Lighting the candle again, -Jack, now in complete possession of his faculties, saw that the ledge on -which his father and Count Walewski stood was at the base of a cavern. -By the feeble glimmer he drove two of the wedges into the floor of the -passage. Then he quickly attached one end of the chain to them and -lowered the other end. In this Mr. Brown made a loop, which he tested. - -"The Count first," he shouted. - -The poor old nobleman, who was ten years his elder, and older than his -years through the sufferings he had endured, sat in the loop and clung -to the chain with his thin feeble hands. Hi Lo coiled the chain round -the wedges to prevent an accident, and Jack, steadily hauling on the -chain, brought the Count--a very light weight--to the edge of the -precipice. Then he firmly secured the chain to the wedges, and, his -hands being now free, lifted the Pole over the brink. The old man, -broken down by his terrible experiences and exhausted from lack of food, -was at first helpless; but when he had recovered from the terror of his -ascent, all three hauled on the chain, and succeeded in drawing Mr. -Brown up. - -"Thank God!" he said, as he gripped Jack's hand. - -The Count murmured a feeble but heartfelt "Amen!" - -"Let us get away from the noise of the waterfall," said Jack. "Then we -can talk over the next step. Please God, we'll get you clear away yet, -Father." - -They withdrew for some distance into the passage, and sat down. In a -few words Mr. Brown explained what had happened: how on the previous -evening, when they had been reading in their hut, they had been -surprised and overpowered by two ruffianly posselentsys and forced to -accompany their captors up the hill path. The men were unknown to Mr. -Brown; he could only explain their action by supposing that the plot to -rescue him and Count Walewski had been discovered. - -"How did you find us out, Jack?" - -"We tracked the fellows by the footprint of one of them; or rather Hi Lo -did; he has done me many a good turn since you disappeared, Father; I'll -tell you the whole story when you are safe." - -"What are we to do, Jack?" - -"It won't be safe to leave here before night. If we did, we should be -sure to run up against one of the search parties that are probably out -by this time." - -"You're right. I can manage to hold out, I think; but I'm afraid for -Count Walewski. He's not so strong as I am; we've both been without -food for more than twelve hours." - -"My go fetchee chow-chow," said Hi Lo instantly. - -Jack looked dubiously at the boy. Was it safe? he wondered. Hi Lo -pleaded so earnestly to be allowed to go that Jack at last consented. - -"Be very careful," he said. "When you get out of the mine, go a -roundabout way to the shore. If you get there safely you'll be able to -reach the junk. Tell Mademoiselle that we hope to see her to-night, and -bring just enough food to keep us going until then. Be as quick as you -can, boy, and hide if you see anybody on the way." - -"Allo lightee, masta; my lun chop-chop; no piecee Lusski catchee Hi Lo, -no fea'!" - -And he slipped away. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXX* - - *Crowded Moments* - - -A Search Party--Touch and Go--Food--Sowinski Reappears--Trackers -Tracked--Recrimination--De Profundis--After Long Years - - -"Now, Jack," said Mr. Brown when Hi Lo was gone, "do you think it safer -to stay here, or to leave the mine and hide in the woods till the -evening?" - -"Here certainly, Father. If we go away we stand a chance of running up -against a search party. They are bound to search the workings." - -"Yes, if they remember the mine," said the Count. "It has not been -worked for several years. And suppose they come into it. How can we -escape them?" - -"Hi Lo and I nearly came to grief in one of the galleries. The air was -very foul. We might hide there, going as far in as is safe. We could -keep wet handkerchiefs about our mouths and hold out longer than the -pursuers. They wouldn't dare to strike a light for fear of an -explosion." - -"What is the height of the gallery?" asked Mr. Brown. - -"From five to eight feet, I should say. It varies. The other galleries -seem to be regular." - -"Well, whatever the height, the purer air will be at the top. If in one -of the higher parts we could raise a platform and mount it we might -venture farther in than if we remained on the floor. Can we do that?" - -"Yes, there are some logs just at the entrance. It's worth risking, and -the sooner the better." - -Hurrying to the entrance, Mr. Brown and Jack carried in as many balks of -timber as they could find, dropping them at the turning of the gallery. -Then, holding their breath, they rushed one of the logs into the gallery -as far as they dared, and ran back to the open passage. They repeated -this operation until a small platform was raised some two feet above the -floor; then, bidding Jack remain in safety, Mr. Brown mounted to test -the result. He found that the air, though foul, was not bad enough to -be dangerous. The position would be endurable for a few minutes. He -hoped that it would not be necessary to have recourse to this unpleasant -place of refuge, but it was well to know that it existed in case of -need. Then, somewhat sickened by the foul air they had swallowed, they -went to find the Count, who had volunteered to keep watch at the -entrance to the mine. - -He reported that he had seen, far off on the hillside, two parties of -men moving in different directions, in a manner that suggested a search. -But they had now disappeared. For some time nothing further was seen, -and Jack and his father took the opportunity to exchange confidences -about all that had happened since that June day when they had parted at -the door of their house in Moukden. - -Suddenly the Count, who had remained constantly on the watch, -considerately leaving father and son to themselves, touched Mr. Brown on -the arm and pointed. The heads of half a dozen men could be seen -topping the brow of a slope about 300 yards below them. Instantly the -three withdrew into the first gallery, taking the precaution to remove -their boots, so that they would not be heard if they had to retreat to -the platform. In a few minutes they heard the echoing voices of the men -as they left the open and entered the mine. It was impossible to see -who they were, but the Count recognized the voice of one of the prison -warders, and Mr. Brown that of a prisoner who had occupied the next bed -when he was for a week in hospital. It was soon apparent what the -prisoner had been brought for. The party halted within a few yards of -the fugitives, and their words were now distinctly audible. - -"Now, Scuratoff, you know the galleries?" said the warder. - -"Yes; I worked here seven years ago." - -"Then lead the way. Is it safe to light a lantern?" - -"Maybe; I cannot say. It used to be safe enough in the main gallery, -but in my time there was foul air in the side galleries. We had -safety-lamps." - -"Yes, confound it! I looked for a safety-lamp, but there wasn't one to -be found in the place. We must do the best we can with the ordinary -lantern; and to make sure, we'll only use it in the main gallery. If -the air in the others is too foul for a light, it will be too foul for -life." - -The waiting fugitives heard the click of the lantern as the warder -opened it, and silently retreated into the side gallery, raising their -make-shift respirators to their mouths. They saw a feeble light at the -junction of the two passages. The search party continued their progress -and halted where the galleries branched, being now in full view of the -three within. - -"This is the dangerous passage--this one to the right," said the -prisoner. "Better take the light away." - -The warder retreated some paces with the lantern. - -"Go in, Scuratoff, as far as you can. Foul air be hanged! You'll be -well rewarded, remember, if you find the runaways--a year off your -sentence, at any rate." - -The man groped his way in, while Jack and the others quietly drew back -to the little platform, where they took their stand. Nearer and nearer -drew the Russian; it seemed as though he must discover them, and Jack's -hand instinctively went to one of the two pistols he had had the -forethought to bring from the junk. Then the voice of the warder, -sounding hollow in the vaulted passage, was heard calling. - -"Do you find anything?" - -"Neither man nor beast," replied the prisoner in a shout. Hitherto he -had held his breath, but after speaking he took a mouthful of the foul -air. Instantly he turned, rushed down the passage, and stumbled gasping -at the opening into the main gallery. - -His companions dragged him out into the purer air, and the warder -retreated still farther with the lantern. Jack and the others stepped -down from the platform, and hurried towards the main gallery, to get the -much-needed air while the man was being revived. - -"That's enough for that one," they heard the warder say. "We'll push -on." - -When the searchers passed the entrance of the gallery, the fugitives had -again retreated, but were within two yards of them. - -It was long before the Russians returned, and meanwhile the fugitives -ventured into the main gallery, to enjoy the comparatively pure air as -long as they could before they had again to seek shelter. At last the -search party, baffled, passed by towards the entrance. Jack heard the -warder commenting on the chain they had seen hanging over the edge of -the precipice. Somebody at some time must have descended by its means -to the ledge; but if the fugitives, they had paid the penalty, for there -was no sign of them. - -They left the mine. Ten minutes afterwards Jack ventured as far as the -entrance. They had disappeared. - -By and by Hi Lo returned with a small supply of food, which the three -ate ravenously. He reported that every junk in the bay had been -searched; and that the "missy" had hardly been prevailed upon not to -return with him, so anxious was she to see her father. The condition of -Count Walewski was pitiful to behold. Privation and anxiety were -telling upon his already broken constitution, and Jack feared lest under -the terrible suspense his heart strings should snap. - -"Keep a good heart, my friend," said Mr. Brown. "In a few hours all -will be well." - -The day wore away, all too slowly, and evening settled down over the -hillside. Jack, looking out, saw a slight mist rising from the sea, and -welcomed it as favouring their dash to the bay, where the vessels at -anchor were already raising their riding-lights. So intent was he upon -the scene seawards that he had not noticed two men, who were coming up -from the woods, furtively, as if fearful of being observed. When he did -see them, he shrank back in momentary alarm, remembering immediately -that as he had not left the shade of the dark entrance he could not have -been seen. He watched their approach. One of the two was of huge -stature; the other!----Jack felt his heart leap, for the other, whom in -the distance he recognized rather by his gait than his features, was -Anton Sowinski, the man whom he believed to be hundreds of miles away in -Manchuria, in the safe hands of Ah Lum. - -"Look-see, masta!" whispered Hi Lo at his elbow. "Polo man, galaw!" - -Once more his father's enemy was upon his track. The Pole's presence -was of evil import. What was he doing here? Was he merely a searcher, -like the rest? He halted near the entrance, and the taller man, who -overtopped him by at least six inches, stooped and drew from behind a -broken truck a coil of rope. Then both came into the gallery. - -Jack slipped back to the others. - -"Sowinski!" he said in a whisper. During their conversation earlier in -the day he had told his father of his dealings with the Pole, and of the -man's identity with Ladislas Streleszki, the traitorous steward of the -Count. This news Mr. Brown had kept from the old man, who had been all -along in absolute ignorance that he owed his exile and imprisonment to a -member of his own household. - -Once more the fugitives shrank back into the foul passage. As the two -men passed the entrance Jack heard Sowinski say: - -"I cannot understand it. Are you sure they searched the cavern? There -are not two caverns?" - -"No, barin. There is only one. Scuratoff guided them; there is no -mistake." - -They turned into the left-hand passage. Jack instantly resolved to -follow them. Without his boots he would be inaudible, and they carried -no light. Accustomed as he now was to the darkness of the mine, he -could move about it more rapidly than the Pole and his companion. He -whispered his intention to his father. - -"Better not." - -"I don't think there's any danger. We three should be able to deal with -the men, big as the Russian is. I'll give you one of my pistols. Hi Lo -can fetch an iron rail from the workings for the Count to use." - -"Very well, but be careful, my boy." - -Jack slipped away in the wake of the two conspirators. In a few moments -he heard the Russian apparently hailing someone in a low voice. -Approaching within a few yards of them he heard the man still hailing. -There was no reply. Then there was the chink of a boot against a chain. - -"What's that?" cried Sowinski in his harsh voice. "Light your candle." - -The posselentsy lit his candle. The two saw the chain wound about the -wedges, and hanging over the brink. Jack wished he had removed it. - -"Scuratoff had no rope," said the Russian. "He must have gone down to -the ledge with this. Now tell me if I was right, barin." - -"Hold your tongue, fool! The candle throws no light downward. Let it -down over the edge." - -Fastening it to the rope, the posselentsy paid the latter slowly out. A -dash of spray from the waterfall extinguished the flame. - -"Pull it up again!" cried Sowinski with a curse. Jack felt -instinctively that the man was at a white heat of baffled rage. - -Once more the candle, lighted after some trouble, was lowered. This -time it escaped a wetting. The Russian stretched himself on his face -and peered over. - -"I can see nothing. Bozhe moi! They are not there." - -He rose slowly and clumsily, pulling up the rope with the candle at the -end. Then he turned and faced the Pole, and by the sputtering light -Jack saw the look of silly amazement on his face. - -"What did I tell you, you clumsy, hulking fool!" cried Sowinski through -set teeth. "You've bungled it; idiot that you are. Why, why, I repeat, -didn't you take my hint and do for them outright?" - -"If it comes to that," replied the man, red with sullen anger, "why -didn't you do it yourself? You wanted to run no risks; you wanted it -done cheap; did you think I'd chance another twenty years in the prison -yonder for two hundred roubles? No, I wouldn't do it. This was your -plan; your plan, to save a few paltry roubles. I'd have cracked their -heads if you'd made it worth my while; you've only yourself to blame." - -"Yes, I was a fool to trust the thing to a sheep-headed lout like you." - -"Sheep-headed! Look you, I stand no abuse. I've done your job; two -hundred roubles is little enough for it; and I'll trouble you to hand -over the balance." - -"The balance!" snarled Sowinski. "Eka! You may think yourself lucky to -have got what you have. You get no more from me." - -"We'll see about that, you white-livered little rat!" - -The man made a sudden step forward and shot out his free hand to grip -the Pole by the throat. But Sowinski, instinctively aware of what was -coming, drew back quickly, his right hand seeking his pocket. The -Russian saw the movement, flung himself forward,--dropping the candle, -which sputtered on the floor of the passage--seized the Pole with his -right hand, and with the left clutched at the other's right arm. But he -was a second too late. He missed his grasp, and even as he swung his -opponent round with the intention of hurling him into the abyss, there -was a flash and a report that startled a hundred echoes from the cavern -and the galleries. The Russian gave a quick grunt; then all was in -darkness; they had trodden out the light. Into the next moments so much -was crowded that Jack could never disentangle the separate events in his -mind. His father's voice; a cry from Hi Lo; an appalling scream from -Sowinski; a dull thud, followed by a brief silence save for the splash -and rumble of the cataract. Then, through the sound of the waters, came -a second and heavier thud that turned Jack's blood cold. At his side his -father struck a match. - -"They're gone!" gasped Jack, white to the lips. - -"Your pistol?" - -"No." - -"Thank God!" - -Tempter and tempted had struck the ledge in their fall, rebounded, and -gone headlong to the rocks a hundred feet below. - - -Some few minutes after midnight, a sampan put off silently from a -solitary angle of the bay. Creeping through the white mist, slowly, to -avoid the intervening junks, it skirted the anchored vessels and quietly -ran alongside of the _Yu-ye_. A hooded figure leant over the bulwarks, -watching with straining eyes as five dark figures climbed up the side. - -Count Walewski tottered into his daughter's arms. - -Jack turned away and spoke to the skipper. An order was given in a low -voice. The junk, riding on a single anchor, slipped the cable and ran -up her enormous foresail. Spars and cordage creaked; but all was silent -around; and the sail filling to the strong north-easter, the junk began -to make way towards the open sea. - - - - - *CHAPTER XXXI* - - *Entente Cordiale* - - -Censored--A Letter--An Oxford Version--Last Words from Ah Lum--A -Rencontre--Debit and Credit--Schwab -Sympathizes--Business--Partnership--Light in the East - - -"My word! And then--and then?" - -"That's all, Monsieur Brin. The old junk sailed magnificently; with -morning light we found ourselves off the Japanese coast, and three days -later ran safe into the harbour of Hakodate. There's nothing more to -tell. We spent several weeks in Japan among the plum-blossoms, and--here -we are, in time to see this great meeting of the fleets." - -Monsieur Brin and Jack Brown were among a party seated at dinner in the -George Hotel, Portsmouth. The Browns had landed at Southampton two days -before with Count Walewski and his daughter. They had been met by Mrs. -Brown and her two other children, and had now come to Portsmouth to -witness the festivities in connection with the visit of the French -fleet. Monsieur Brin was at the same hotel, in the capacity of special -reporter for the _Soleil_. - -"But now, Monsieur," continued Jack, "I've told you all our adventures. -What about yourself? What have you been doing since I saw you last at -Harbin?" - -"Ah! You ask! My friend, my history is in sum one word--Kaiser! You -left me in Harbin: well, I devote care to Hildebrand Schwab; he -recovers; we are both recalled, he because his negatives are all lost, I -because when I describe the only battle I saw, my despatch is blacked -out by the censor. Naturally my redacteur open his eyes when he must -pay my bills for such as this. Look! Here is a leaf of my copy; that is -what the Russian censor has done--and Russia, par exemple! is the ally -of France. Behold!" - -He took a leaf from his pocket-book, and laid it on the table. It -appeared as follows:-- - - - "Les Russes ont commence aujourd'hui un ------------------ - ------------------------------------ j'ai vu le general - Kouropatkin qui buvait -------------------------------- - -------------- 'Doucement berce sur ma mule fringante,' - je chevauchais a cote du general ---------------------- - ---------------------------------------------------------- - ---------------------------------------------------------- - ---------------------------------------------------------- - -------------------------- au meme moment, psst! j'entends - le sifflement d'un obus qui me va au----dessus de la tete - eclater dans ------------------------------------------ - ---------------------------------------------------------- - ---------------------------------------------------------- - ---------------------------------------------------------- - -------------------------------------------- des jambes, - des bras, *disjecta membra*, comme dit le ---------------- - ------------ plus loin, un medecin qui plonge ------------ - -------------------------- et ---------------------------- - -------------- la bataille." - - -"That is my account of a most dramatic episode of the battle of the -Sha-ho. What is left? Nothing! It provoke curiosity, it tantalise, -but does it satisfy, does it excite, hein?" - -"The censor has certainly made a terrible hash of it," said Mr. Brown, -passing the paper round the table. It created much amusement, and -seemed to fascinate Jack's fifteen-year-old brother Humphrey, who gazed -at it with a sort of awful admiration. - -"But you spoke of Herr Schwab," said Jack. "What became of him?" - -"He came----" - -"By gum!" interrupted Humphrey, "don't I wish old Caesar's despatches -had been blacked out like this!" - -Brin glanced at the boy over his glasses and resumed: - -"Schwab came with me from Harbin by the same train. My word! it is -Kaiser, Kaiser all the way. 'Our Kaiser who is in Berlin': I begin to -think that is the German paternoster. I left Schwab at Vienna; he was -going to sell his camera. He has a great admiration for you, Mr. Jack, -but he is filled with regret that he never had an opportunity of doing -business for Schlagintwert with that chief of brigands--how did he call -himself?" - -"Ah Lum. By the way, I forgot to tell you that when we landed at -Southampton I found a letter awaiting me from him; it had been forwarded -from Shanghai, and got here first owing to our little tour in Japan. It -explains how Sowinski was able to reach Sakhalin." - -He handed Ah Lum's letter to the Frenchman. Brin read it carefully, and -with much gravity. It was as follows:-- - - -From my camp above Tu-men-tzue, - First Sunday after Trinity. - -Honoured Sir, - -A man's manners, says the Sage T'ai Ping-fu, are to be measured by his -intentions. If therefore your servant, greatly deploring his ignorance -of your honourable language, write through another hand, I pray you will -not charge him with want of courtesy; does not the poet say "Respect is -the corner-stone of friendship"? Nor will you, honoured sir, be other -than indulgent if this letter should seem to have been unduly delayed in -the writing. Even as a pearl is not to be found in every oyster, so is -it rare among our literati to meet a scholar learned in the barbaric -tongues. Such a one I have now discovered in the writer of this letter, -Mr. Chang Fu-sing, whose late return from the august University at -Oxford was duly reported by my agents at Ma-en-ho-kai. [_Lincoln -College: 3rd class Mods., aegrotat Mod. Hist. Chang Fu-sing, B.A. -Oxon._] Him I secured by night for the trifling loss of five men. [_My -nose abraded; one eye bunged up. Ch. F.-s., B.A.Oxon._] Trifling, for -rarity--and the need of the purchaser--are the true measures of value. -To the starving man a crust outweighs a viceroy's ransom. - -Since the auspicious day when your honour's never-to-be-forgotten -assistance enabled our troops to reach the shelter of these mountains, -the insolent Russians--may their graves be defiled!--[_Idiom="Ruin seize -thee!" Cf. Gray, "The Bard", i. 1. Ch. F.-s., B.A. Oxon._]--have not -dared to molest your unworthy servant. For, as the ineffable T'ai -Ping-fu says, the bird that has once escaped the net is hard indeed to -snare. But, again, as Wang Wei reminds us to our profit in his _Essay -on Military Matters_, small reverses, by inspiring caution, may benefit -an army, even as small successes may lead through saucy confidence to -humiliation. After a little affair otherwise unworthy of your august -attention, the two prisoners, Bekovitch and Sowinski, were found to have -absented themselves from our custody. As the proverb goes, Only a fool -expects courtesy from a hog. - -Yet, as Li T'ai-poh harmoniously says: - - When stings the Bee, and Pain is keen, then shouldst thou - think of Honey; - Wise Men seek Good in every Ill, yea, e'en in Loss of Money. - -[_The versification is mine. Competitor: Newdigate Verse. Ch. F.-s., -B.A. Oxon._] After consulting the works of Tu Fu, I found that, the -sunshine of your honour's presence being withdrawn, it was allowable to -return to our ancestral usages in matters relating to the treatment of -prisoners and criminals. If in this my judgment was in error, I must -beg your honour's clemency; for are we not taught by P'an T'ang-shen -that in defending a friend from calumny all measures are laudable? It -may suffice to say that some days before his escape, the Pole, kneeling -on hot chains, was induced to confess his crimes; these were duly -inscribed by him in the Russian tongue and signed. Thereafter his -partner in guilt, who had shown more obduracy, even resisting our most -approved means of persuasion, acknowledged his many wickednesses, among -them the preparation of forged papers secretly introduced by a menial -into the writing-cabinet of your honour's august father. True is it, as -the Sage says, "Fear rather a faithless servant within the gates than a -hundred enemies without", or, as the more homely proverb warns us, A -worm at the root will bring the noblest oak to earth. - -But calamity treads hard upon the heels of the wicked. Witness the fate -of the Russian--may his posterity be cut off! [_Idiom="A murrain on -thee!" Cf. Shakespeare, "The Tempest", iii. 2. 88. Ch. F.-s., B.A. -Oxon._] By sure hands your unworthy servant brought his confession -beneath the eyes of the barbarian commander-in-chief. He is blind -indeed who cannot see the length of his nose. My agents now inform me -that the evil-doer is stripped of his offices, and of the emoluments -thereto pertaining; as our saying goes, he has lost his buttons. His -fellow-criminal has evaded my most diligent enquiries. But him also -Justice pursues with sharpened sword, resting not by night neither by -day. - -Quantum suff. Though our lives be henceforth as two rivers flowing east -and west, the recollection of past favours will be with me, honoured -sir, as a plant in perennial bloom. What says P'an T'ang-shen?--"A man -should find as much joy in the remembrance of a friend as though his -worst enemy were to boil in oil." - -My son, who is now under the tutorial charge of Mr. Chang -Fu-sing--[_purely honorary--no pay. Ch. F.-s., B.A. Oxon._]--adds, as -in duty bound, his humble respects. - -Permit me, honoured sir, to subscribe myself - -Your most grateful obedient Servant, - AH LUM. - -P.S.--May I venture once more to commend the works of Li T'ai-poh to -your august attention? - - -"Thanks!" said Brin, handing the letter back. "I am ver' much -interested. The English is good, hein? In the idiom of Oxford? Permit -me to make a copy for my book that will appear at early date, -_L'Ascension de la Chine_." - -Meanwhile Humphrey Brown had gone to the window, and stood with his -hands in his pockets looking into the crowded street. A cab rattled up -to the door of the hotel. - -"I say," said Humphrey, "here's a funny old guy. Come and look, Agnes." - -"I prefer to listen to the conversation," said Agnes, a self-possessed -girl of thirteen. - -"All right, grumps! But it would make you laugh. He's coming into the -hotel. My eye!" - -Not two minutes later the door opened, and there entered a portly figure -in light-striped flannels; a pink cummerbund showing beneath the vest; -gold-rimmed eyeglasses fixed somewhat awry on his broad nose. He stood -at the door for a moment to choose his table. - -"By George!" exclaimed Jack, springing up; "it's Schwab himself." - -He went towards the door. - -"Good-evening, Herr Schwab!" he said, holding out his hand. - -The German turned and stared. - -"Ach! I haf not ze honour, unless--who do you rebresent, sir?" - -Jack smiled. Schwab instantly seized him by the hand. - -"Du meine Guete! I abologize. I know you now. Nefer before did I see -you in ze evenink dress. How are you, how are you, how are you?" - -"Jolly glad to see you," said Jack. "Come and be introduced to my -father, and mother, and the rest. You know Brin. We were talking of -you only a minute ago." - -The introductions were made. Humphrey turned away to hide his laughter -at the German's elephantine bows. - -"I abologize to ze ladies for my so unbecoming addire, but ven I -egsblain zat I haf shust gome from ze station----" - -"Say no more," said Mr. Brown. "Very unfortunate I couldn't meet you in -Moukden, Mr. Schwab." - -"Ach ja! Bermit me to ask, haf you seen ze evenink baber?" - -"Not yet." - -"Vell, I haf vun. I bought it at ze station; ze baber boys zey should -be made to keep change. I haf only a benny, ze boy he haf no ha'bny--I -muss vait five minutes till anozer gustomer arrive. Zat is not -business. Ven I read ze baber, I see a baragraph vat I zink interess -you. I read to you. 'It is announced from St. Betersburg zat ze -rebresentations of ze British ambassador in regard to ze extraordinary -case of Mr. Brown of Moukden haf at last been crowned viz success, and -orders haf been issued for Mr. Brown's immediate release.' Zere is -somezink I do not understan', since already Mr. Brown is here." - -"Ah! You're not a diplomat, Mr. Schwab," said Mr. Brown, laughing. "It -is a little funny to know that three months after my escape, and when -Sakhalin is in possession of the Japanese, I am graciously permitted to -regain my liberty." - -Jack gave Herr Schwab a brief account of the final scenes of his quest. - -"Zen for how much is your claim?" asked Schwab of Mr. Brown at the -conclusion of the story. - -"What claim?" - -"Vy, your claim for gombensation--for intellectual and moral damage. -Business are business. As business man, I advise downright zumping big -claim." - -"Well, Mr. Schwab, I've been turning over the matter, and really I think -I'll let things alone. You see, Sowinski is dead, poor wretch! and -Bekovitch is degraded, and if the account were properly adjusted, and -Jack's damage to the Siberian railway put on the debit side, the balance -might turn out against us after all." - -"Ach! zat is anozer matter--ja! you muss gonsider ze balance-sheet. Zat -is business." - -"You are still in business?" said Jack. - -"I am in business forever. It is ze bress of my nostrils. -Vargorresbondencephotography, zat is not business; it do not bay -egsbenses. I am now in beacephotography. I gome here, rebresentative of -Schlagintwert, to make bicturebostcardphotographs of ze French and -English entente. And zen I return to ze Baltic to make photograph of -our Kaiser ven he velgome ze British fleet." - -"He!" cried Brin with a chuckle. "Welcome! It must be -snap-shot--prestissimo! When your Kaiser welcome the British fleet -there will need a good camera, and exposure--one-millionth second. Ho! -ho!" - -Later in the evening Schwab took Jack confidentially aside. - -"Mr. Brown, my frient, I have somezink to say. It has been gonfided to -me zat you gondemblate a gondract." - -"A contract, Herr Schwab?" - -Schwab guffawed. - -"Zat is my shoke--a madrimonial gondract." - -"Who has been telling you that?" - -"Ah, I haf it in gonfidence from your sister. Already is she a frient. -She tell everybody in gonfidence." - -"Then you can contradict it in confidence, Herr Schwab. There is no -foundation--that is to say, nothing is settled." - -Schwab looked sly. - -"No, not settled, of course--but gondemblated." - -"Really, Herr Schwab!----" - -"Yes, yes, I understan'. Shust so. I also have affair of ze heart." -He sighed deeply. "I can symbazise. But viz me it is different. You -are lucky dog--ze Fraeulein Walewska is kind; vile I am in ze depss of -desbair: Madame Bottle--ach, she is gruel. I sigh, she smile; I groan, -she laugh; I even make bresentation, she decline vizout zanks. Ah! Mr. -Brown, you do not know vat it is to be gross in lov." - -Jack looked as sympathetic as he could, while Herr Schwab, laying his -hand lightly on his waistcoat-buttons, continued lugubriously: - -"Ach, truly it is a terrible zink to lov vizout return. It break ze -heart; it shpoil ze digestion;--it is bad for business. No longer can I -gif sole attention to ze interest of Schlagintwert. Vy, it is only a -few days since I take order from Robinson & Robinson in London; -yesterday Schlagintwert return ze order. Vat haf I written?--'Subbly -Mrs. Bottle, 68 Crutched Friars, London, 50 casks botato shbirit, last -quotation, f.o.b. Hamburg.' Zere is fipence vaste in bostages. Zat -show you!" - -"Yes, very amusing," said Jack absently. Gabriele had just come in with -Mrs. Brown, and Jack was on thorns lest the German's by no means gentle -voice should reach the ladies. - -"Amusink!" cried Schwab. "Schlagintwert do not see ze shoke. Vy----" - -"Of course, I meant annoying. But, Herr Schwab, if you will----" - -"Yes, yes," said Schwab, noticing how Jack's eyes strayed to the other -end of the room, and how he fidgeted with his watch-chain. "Yes, I see. -Only vun moment, Mr. Brown. Ze business I shboke of. Already I mention -it to ze young lady----" - -"Upon my word, Herr Schwab!-- - -"Vait, I egsblain. Zere is nozink fix--not nozink at all. Ze Fraeulein -vill say nozink. She blush; zen she ask me to tell her about my -ancestor, Hildebrand Suobensius. But zis is business." - -"Well, what is it, Herr Schwab?" - -"It is an obbortunity--an obbortunity for Schlagintwert and for -yourself. Our firma establish a new branch--bon-bons, gonfectionery. -Zey vish to open accounts in zis gountry: you understan'?" - -"Understand?--what?" - -"Vy, zis--here is ze obbortunity. Schlagintwert zey require -advertisement: zey shall make you ze vedding-gake--_costprice_!" - - -About six weeks later, Mr. Brown was looking over his copy of the -_Shanghai Mercury_ which had come by the morning post. - -"Here, Jack," he said, "this paragraph will interest you." - -Jack took the paper, and read: - - -"One of the results of the treaty of peace recently signed between -Russia and Japan is that the famous brigand, Ah Lum, has been summoned -to Pekin. The military ability he displayed in his operations in -northern Manchuria has been recognized by his appointment to a high post -in the Board of Civil Office." - - -There is shortly to be started, in Hong-Kong, a new firm of produce -brokers under the style of Brown, Son, & Co. Brown we know; Son we -know; Co. at present consists of Mr. Hi An-tzu. Whether it will by and -by include Mr. Hi Lo-ch'u depends on that young man's business aptitude: -Son thinks it very probable. Brown is to be the sleeping, or as he -prefers to put it, the consulting partner. Son will manage the London -house; while Mr. Hi in Hong-Kong will open accounts with respectable -Manchurian farmers, of whom one will undoubtedly be Mr. Wang. - -Some of Brown's friends took him to task for lifting his former -compradore from his lowly station to the equality of partnership. To -their remonstrance Brown replied with a morsel of political philosophy. - -"It's all very well," he said, "to sneer at the 'heathen Chinee', and -look upon him as fit for nothing better than to smoke your opium and do -your work in South African mines. Believe me, John Chinaman is not so -very heathen; and he is waking up: and when he does move he will hustle. -For myself, I prefer a colleague to a competitor." - -What Brown thinks to-day his business friends generally think to-morrow. - - - - - *Glossary* - - -C=Chinese, P=Pidgin-English, R=Russian. The Chinese substitute _l_ for -_r_, and add the terminations _-ee_, _-um_, and _-lo_ to many words. - - -_ach_ (R), oh, ah. - -_allo_ (P), all, every. - -_artel_ (R), a society of workers formed on co-operative principles. - -_barin_ (R), lord, gentleman. - -_batiushki_ (R) = By Jove! - -_belongey_ (P), often equivalent simply to the verb to be. - -_bimeby_ (P), by and by, afterwards. - -_bobbely_ (P), noise, uproar. - -_bottom-side_ (P), down, below. - -_bozhe moi_ (R), good heavens! - -_cash_ (C), small copper coins carried on strings. - -_catchee_ (P), to get, have. - -_ch'hoy_ (P), an exclamation. - -_chop-chop_ (P), quickly. - -_chow-chow_ (P), food. - -_Chunchuse_ (more strictly _Hunhutze_: C), literally red-beard: the name -given to the organized bandits of Manchuria. - -_compradore_ (Portuguese), superintendent of a European's native staff. - -_da_ (R), an exclamation; literally "yes!" - -_droshky_ (R), single-horse carriage. - -_dushenka_ (R), little soul: a term of endearment. - -_-ee_, a pidgin-English termination. - -_eka_ (R), an exclamation: "there now!" - -_Fa-lan-sai_ (P), French. - -_fangtse_ (C), cottage. - -_fan-kwei_ (C), foreign devil. - -_fan-tan_ (C), a game: the players stake on the remainder when an -unknown number of cash is divided by 4. - -_fan-yun_ (C), foreigner. - -_feng-shui_ (C), the geomantic influences of the earth, determining the -luckiness or unluckiness of places. - -_first-chop_ (P), best, excellently. - -_flend_ (P), friend. - -_fo'_ (P), four, for. - -_folin_ (P), foreign. - -_galaw_ (P), a common exclamation. - -_gorodovoi_ (R), policeman. - -_gospodin_ (R), sir. - -_graf_ (R), count - -_he_ (P), he, she, it, they, him, her. - -_Ingoua_ (C), English. - -_kopeck_ (R), silver or copper coin: 100 kopecks make 1 rouble. - -_kow-tow_ (P), to bow humbly. - -_li_ (C), a Chinese mile: about one-third of an English mile. - -_ling-ch'ih_ (C), capital punishment by slicing. - -_littee_ (P), little. - -_look-see_ (P), look, examine. - -_lowdah_ (P), captain of a junk. - -_Lusski_ (P), Russian. - -_mafoo_ (C), groom. - -_makee_ (P), make, do. - -_Melican_ (P), American. - -_moujik_ (R), peasant. - -_muchee_ (P), very. - -_my_ (P), I, me, my, mine. - -_nichalnik_ (R), station-master. - -_no can do_ (P), cannot. - -_nu_ (R), well! - -_numpa_ (P), number: numpa one, first-rate. - -_och_ (R), oh! - -_one-tim'_ (P), once. - -_ph'ho_ (C), an exclamation. - -_pidgin_ (P), business: pidgin-English, English as spoken by Chinese at -the ports. - -_piecee_ (P), used with numerals: _one piecee man_=a or one man. - -_ping-ch'wahn_ (C), gunboat. - -_plopa_ (P), proper: allo plopa, all right. - -_rouble_ (R), the standard money (paper) of Russia: ten roubles=a -British sovereign. - -_samovar_ (R), tea-urn. - -_sampan_ (C), a Chinese punt. - -_savvy_ (P), know, understand. - -_side_ (P), place, direction: this-side, here; that-side, there; -what-side, where. - -_so-fashion_ (P), in that way. - -_suttingly_ (P), certainly. - -_tael_ (C), a coin (rarely seen) worth 6s. 6d. - -_that-side_ (P), there. - -_that-tim'_ (P), then. - -_this-side_ (P), here, hither. - -_tim'_ (P), time. - -_tinkee_ (P), think. - -_Toitsche_ (P), _i.e._ Deutsche, German. - -_too_ (P), very. - -_topside_ (P), above, superior; in the head. - -_troika_ (R), three-horsed vehicle. - -_verst_ (R), two-thirds of English mile. - -_vodka_ (R), brandy made of barley. - -_wailo_ (P), away, to go away, run away. - -_wantchee_ (P), to want. - -_what-for_ (P), why. - -_what-side_ (P), where. - -_what-tim'_ (P), when. - -_yamen_ (C), mandarin's residence and office: yamen-runners, equivalent -to English bailiffs, but a very inferior class. - -_yinkelis_ (P), English. - - - - - * * * * * * * * - - - - - *The Light Brigade - in Spain* - - or - - *The Last Fight of Sir John Moore* - - *By Herbert Strang* - - Author of "Tom Burnaby," etc. - - With a Preface by Lieut.-Col. WILLOUGHBY VERNER. - - _Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. 12mo. $1.50_ - - -"In 'Boys of the Light Brigade' Mr. Strang draws upon the resources of -the Peninsular War, and succeeds in extracting much freshness from -well-worn themes, as Moore's retreat to Corunna and the heroic defence -of Saragossa. The personal interest of the story is kept at a high -tension.... It is a book which no boy will be able to put down when -once started. The volume is provided with excellent maps and plans of -the scenes in which the incidents take place."--_The Standard_. - -"This author has fairly earned the right to be accepted as the -legitimate successor of the late George A. Henty in furnishing -entertainment for youth. Like Henty, Strang manages to galvanize the -dry bones of history into a close semblance of glorious life.... The -present volume contains vivid and spirited descriptions of campaign life -in Spain ... with many rare and interesting episodes.... This is good -reading for young and old."--_Chicago Post_. - -"The author describes graphically with truth to history the last fight -of the British commander, Sir John Moore. It is a stirring military -story in the manner of those written by the late George A. Henty, but -really with more authenticity."--_Philadelphia Press_. - -"An interesting story, with extra good measure in its incidents and -character ... and with some pretty little love passages."--_Cleveland -Leader_. - - - - *KOBO* - - *Story of the Russo-Japanese War* - - *By HERBERT STRANG* - - Author of "The Light Brigade in Spain," etc. - - _Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. 12mo, $1.50_ - - -"It is a dashing romance for boys, founded on the Russo-Japanese War and -worthy of the late Mr. Henty at his best. A story that every schoolboy -will enjoy and one that will be read with much pleasure and profit by -many older readers as well."--_Cleveland Leader_. - -"The story throughout bristles with adventures, it is well written and -the author shows intimate knowledge of Japanese character and -customs."--_San Francisco Bulletin_. - -"In one respect Mr. Strang's tale is even better than many of the late -G. A. Henty's. It has more dash and dialogue. These are strong points -in the work of this writer, who is destined to fill the place vacated by -the lamented author of 'Under Drake's Flag,' and 'With Clive in -India.'"--_The Dundee Advertiser_. - -"For vibrant actuality there is nothing to come up to Mr. Strang's -'Kobo.'"--_The Academy_. - -"A great amount of actual military history is incorporated with an -exciting and romantic plot."--_The Westminster Gazette_. - - - - *The Adventures* - - *of* - - *Harry Rochester* - - *A Tale of the Days of - Marlborough and Eugene* - - *By* - - *HERBERT STRANG* - - Author of "Kobo," "Light Brigade in Spain," etc. - - _Illustrated by William Rainey, R.I. 12mo. $1.50_ - - -"A story full of thrilling adventure."--_Newark Advertiser_. - -"Mr. Strang is a follower of Henty in writing adventurous historical -romances for boys, and does his work with even more spirit and vim. -This tale gives a good picture of the wars of Marlborough and William of -Holland against the French, with a clever and courageous boy -hero."--_Congregationalist and Christian World_. - -"Three such successes as Mr. Strang has now achieved definitely -establish his position and should fully reassure those who despondingly -wondered when and where a worthy successor to Mr. Henty would -appear."--_Glasgow Herald_. - -"Mr. Henty's mantle may worthily be worn by Mr. Herbert -Strang."--_Truth_. - -"Told with a dash and vigor which mark him as Henty's natural -successor."--_Notts Guardian_. - - - - *By ELBRIDGE S. BROOKS* - - -Historic Boys. Their Endeavors, Their Achievements and Their Times. -With 29 full-page illustrations. 8vo, pp. viii + 259. - - -Historic Girls. Stories of Girls Who Have Influenced the History of -Their Times. 8vo, illustrated, pp. viii + 225. - - -Chivalric Days and Youthful Deeds. Stirring Stories, presenting -faithful pictures of historic times. Illustrated, 8vo. $1.25 - - -Heroic Happenings. Told in Verse and Story. Illustrated, 8vo. $1.25 - - -Great Men's Sons. Stories of the Sons of Great Men from Socrates to -Napoleon. Fully illustrated, 8vo. $1.25 - -Including the Sons of Socrates, Alexander, Cicero, Marcus Aurelius, -Mahomet, Charlemagne, Alfred, William the Conqueror, Saladin, Dante, -Tamerlane, Columbus, Luther, Shakespeare, Cromwell, Peter the Great, -Napoleon. - - -The Long Walls. An American Boy's Adventures in Greece. A Story of -Digging and Discovery, Temples and Treasures. By E. S. Brooks and John -Alden. Illustrated by George Foster Barnes. 8vo. $1.25 - - - - *New York--G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS--London* - - - - - *By HERBERT STRANG* - - -The Adventures of Harry Rochester: A Tale of the Days of Marlborough and -Eugene. - -The Light Brigade in Spain; or, The Last Fight of Sir John Moore. - -Kobo. A Story of the Russo-Japanese War. - -Brown of Moukden. A Story of the Russo-Japanese War. - - - - - - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BROWN OF MOUKDEN *** - - - - -A Word from Project Gutenberg - - -We will update this book if we find any errors. - -This book can be found under: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44256 - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission -and without paying copyright royalties. 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